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Overleveled, Underloved
Willow isn’t exactly the type to make friends and never has been. She’s curt and to-the-point, quick to judge, and has little interest in other people. For work, she sells gold and her skills in an online game, keeping her distance from her customers. In the real world, she can’t even remember the last time her phone rang.
Ash is struggling. It’s not cheap to live in London, it’s not easy to make friends after you finish school, and it’s just her luck that she runs into a group of horrible people in the new game she started playing. But, on the verge of giving up, someone helps Willow.
What begins as an unlikely friendship slowly grows until Willow starts questioning her feelings towards Ash and has to ask Is this love?
Ash is struggling. It’s not cheap to live in London, it’s not easy to make friends after you finish school, and it’s just her luck that she runs into a group of horrible people in the new game she started playing. But, on the verge of giving up, someone helps Willow.
What begins as an unlikely friendship slowly grows until Willow starts questioning her feelings towards Ash and has to ask Is this love?
- GenresAsexual
159 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 12, 2021
1 person is currently reading
18 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 17, 2021
An odd little story and book. Amber meets Ash online through an online game, when she needs to be "rescued" there. They start an online friendship that soon moves into IRL where they live in London.
Amber is odd, but I related a lot to her. She is very asocial - socially awkward and ambivalent about people, loner and closed off. Not even sure she cares for others, until Ash and her bubbly bright personality light up her life. It's all told from Amber's perspective, and it's clear she doesn't understand a lot of socialization.
At one point Ash asks her if she has Aspergers, which she sort of gives a non-answer to, saying some symptoms she has researched relate, but others don't. So it's definitely something I feel could be possible - but that's coming from my own spectrummy perspective - so take that as you will.
The relationship is VERY slow burn, and even when they do decide to date which isn't until MUCH later in the book - they are tentative and slow about the process. It's very much cerebral in that's it's all thought process/stream of consciousness stuff from Amber, which can be a bit befuddling. She clearly cares a lot for Ash, and Ash in turn appreciates her stoic and action-based approaches to solving problems and helping her out.
However the question of romantic feelings constantly confuses Amber. She had thought she was asexual. Then wonders if she is demisexual. But what was frustrating was that part was focused on so much - but then ultimately skipped over via the author which I felt was a missed opportunity. Like we certainly didn't have to have raunchy details, (and we don't get them) but it's clear Amber struggles with intimacy and states she has to get used to things, and how her responses can sometimes be lacking until it 'sinks in' which again are all things I totally relate to - but I felt it just never fully got addressed, despite the time being spent on those thoughts and feelings.
Another disappointment was both women's lack of sharing any personal details with each other about themselves, about their pasts, their families etc. We know Ash has a shitty relationship with her brother who upsets her quite a bit. Her father is good and caring, but slightly distanced... There's no mention of her mother and often angsty and emotional reactions to certain mentions, that again never get addressed, and I found it so frustrating! The same with Amber, we know her parents aren't around and she expressed some extreme anxiety about her childhood and a lack of care factor from her parents, but it feels weird to only just slightly allude to these things and never reveal them outright.
So that is why it only gets 2 stars for "just okay". Probably not going to be an enjoyable read for most people. I only stuck with it because I identified a lot with MC Amber and her personality and ways, and thought processes - but even I recognize that is not great reading! lol.
Amber is odd, but I related a lot to her. She is very asocial - socially awkward and ambivalent about people, loner and closed off. Not even sure she cares for others, until Ash and her bubbly bright personality light up her life. It's all told from Amber's perspective, and it's clear she doesn't understand a lot of socialization.
At one point Ash asks her if she has Aspergers, which she sort of gives a non-answer to, saying some symptoms she has researched relate, but others don't. So it's definitely something I feel could be possible - but that's coming from my own spectrummy perspective - so take that as you will.
The relationship is VERY slow burn, and even when they do decide to date which isn't until MUCH later in the book - they are tentative and slow about the process. It's very much cerebral in that's it's all thought process/stream of consciousness stuff from Amber, which can be a bit befuddling. She clearly cares a lot for Ash, and Ash in turn appreciates her stoic and action-based approaches to solving problems and helping her out.
However the question of romantic feelings constantly confuses Amber. She had thought she was asexual. Then wonders if she is demisexual. But what was frustrating was that part was focused on so much - but then ultimately skipped over via the author which I felt was a missed opportunity. Like we certainly didn't have to have raunchy details, (and we don't get them) but it's clear Amber struggles with intimacy and states she has to get used to things, and how her responses can sometimes be lacking until it 'sinks in' which again are all things I totally relate to - but I felt it just never fully got addressed, despite the time being spent on those thoughts and feelings.
Another disappointment was both women's lack of sharing any personal details with each other about themselves, about their pasts, their families etc. We know Ash has a shitty relationship with her brother who upsets her quite a bit. Her father is good and caring, but slightly distanced... There's no mention of her mother and often angsty and emotional reactions to certain mentions, that again never get addressed, and I found it so frustrating! The same with Amber, we know her parents aren't around and she expressed some extreme anxiety about her childhood and a lack of care factor from her parents, but it feels weird to only just slightly allude to these things and never reveal them outright.
So that is why it only gets 2 stars for "just okay". Probably not going to be an enjoyable read for most people. I only stuck with it because I identified a lot with MC Amber and her personality and ways, and thought processes - but even I recognize that is not great reading! lol.
June 23, 2021
3.5/5 Stars
So let's start by saying, that I believe this book to be a niche book of a niche. I'm sure I'm meeting that niche, which is why I did have a good time, but I'm also pretty certain, that a lot of other people might not feel that way. That said, let's get into the review.
So this book is a book written for gamers or by a gamer, because it uses terms and features games that it isn't explaining. You either know them or you don't. Which is not a negative aspect, at least in my opinion, since both the MC and her love interest - same as her family - are gamers. So it would be very OOC for any of them to suddenly explain to the reader what a certain word is supposed to mean. It's not too heavy on the terminolgy though. Meaning, that it IS a book about gaming, but it could have been way more intense. Which I personally find a missed oppurtunity. On the other hand, that would have made it even more niche, so well.
The story itself is very slow burn. If you don't like slow-burn, if you don't like slice of life & if you don't like Contemporary Romance, you will - again - walk out of this dissapointed. Because this really takes it's time to built a relationship between the main leads, but also to make the change of platonic to romantic love as believable as possible. I'm almost kinda sad, that this wasn't a zucchini story, but the romantic ship we got was fine too, so it's ok.
I'm using the word fine by the way, because this isn't a dramatic, cliche, over-the-top heartbounding romance. This isn't the dramtic tale of two people overcoming god and the world just to finally throw their lips at one another. Normal humans don't work like that. They just live. They just try to be happy.
I normally love those kind of over the top storys, because it makes it look like, something is happening, even if that's not really true. This isn't the case in this book at all. There is no drama, no misscomunication, no misunderstandings. Just two humans, trying to live their life as happy as possible.
Both have their own life, their own world and then they collide and start creating a new world together. Making room for one another, talking, making compromises. Small things. One step a day closer to a new future.
They weren't unhappy (minus the mental health struggels). But that doesn't change that this new something, this new routine made them happier. Which is why - to summ this long wall of spam up - this book feels very real. Real people, with real struggles and real problems that deal with real life.
I guess that's also why I loved the characters so much. Especially Willow, who sometimes hit almost too close to home. She's ace, she's very awkward, very insecure about herself, believing that poeple could never possible see her and see someone worth being friends with, struggles to read social clues, struggels with reading emotions, struggels when meeting new people, struggels with how people will judge her and her way of life, because society expects people to be one way and one way only. She's not diagnosed, but I'm pretty sure, that she's autistic. When asked about it, she's like "Maybe? I'm not sure"
Her getting together with Ash isn't taking away from her autism. OR her asexuality.
She is struggling with her aceness though. Because Ash is allo (=not ace) and Willow doesn't know if she'll be enough. If what she is able to give Ash, will be enough. You know, real fears and struggeles aces have. So again, relatable.
At some point I wasn't sure if the author knew the difference between being aro and being ace, because Willow uses them as if they were the same, until she doesn't. Because to her, it never mattered. Because she never felt romantic or sexual attraction, so she thought she was both. But then there's Ash and she's like "Is this romantic attraction???? I don't know" Which is whyyyy I strongly believe that she's either demiromantic - NOT demisexual, she made that VERY clear - OR this IS a Zucchini Story after all, because she never really says that it is romantic love she feels. Just love. That wasn't made clear enough though, so I'll roll with demiromantic untill the author themselves tells me othervise.
The writing itself is very simpel. Clear and to the point, but simpel, making it very easy for anyone to read. I'm pretty sure that was wanted though, because I feel like the epilog was written differently (We change POV for the epilog. I'm gonna be honest, I didn't like the epilog but that isn't changing my view of the book as a whole).
I talked about the most important rep already, but I just wanna include the following real quick:
Ash is gay and - at least at the start - chubby/fat. AND the fact that Willow describes her as chubby AND as "how a perfect woman should look like" in almost the same sentence made me - a fat woman - smile so much, you don't understand. SADLY Ash looses some weight later on. At first I thought that it had to do with her recovery - she was suffering from depression at the start of the book - but after I talked with a friend about it (Hi Naomi) I realised, nah, it's because of society. #ARealShame
It's not a 5 stars, because it's not intense enough for me. I would have loved to spend some more time on the personal struggle aspect. Because we don't dive deep enough for my personal taste.
I can't promise that the person reading this review, is gonna feel the same way I felt when I read this, but that isn't changing how this book made me feel. Which was - and still is - good. That's why, I'm giving this 4 stars.
So let's start by saying, that I believe this book to be a niche book of a niche. I'm sure I'm meeting that niche, which is why I did have a good time, but I'm also pretty certain, that a lot of other people might not feel that way. That said, let's get into the review.
So this book is a book written for gamers or by a gamer, because it uses terms and features games that it isn't explaining. You either know them or you don't. Which is not a negative aspect, at least in my opinion, since both the MC and her love interest - same as her family - are gamers. So it would be very OOC for any of them to suddenly explain to the reader what a certain word is supposed to mean. It's not too heavy on the terminolgy though. Meaning, that it IS a book about gaming, but it could have been way more intense. Which I personally find a missed oppurtunity. On the other hand, that would have made it even more niche, so well.
The story itself is very slow burn. If you don't like slow-burn, if you don't like slice of life & if you don't like Contemporary Romance, you will - again - walk out of this dissapointed. Because this really takes it's time to built a relationship between the main leads, but also to make the change of platonic to romantic love as believable as possible. I'm almost kinda sad, that this wasn't a zucchini story, but the romantic ship we got was fine too, so it's ok.
I'm using the word fine by the way, because this isn't a dramatic, cliche, over-the-top heartbounding romance. This isn't the dramtic tale of two people overcoming god and the world just to finally throw their lips at one another. Normal humans don't work like that. They just live. They just try to be happy.
I normally love those kind of over the top storys, because it makes it look like, something is happening, even if that's not really true. This isn't the case in this book at all. There is no drama, no misscomunication, no misunderstandings. Just two humans, trying to live their life as happy as possible.
Both have their own life, their own world and then they collide and start creating a new world together. Making room for one another, talking, making compromises. Small things. One step a day closer to a new future.
They weren't unhappy (minus the mental health struggels). But that doesn't change that this new something, this new routine made them happier. Which is why - to summ this long wall of spam up - this book feels very real. Real people, with real struggles and real problems that deal with real life.
I guess that's also why I loved the characters so much. Especially Willow, who sometimes hit almost too close to home. She's ace, she's very awkward, very insecure about herself, believing that poeple could never possible see her and see someone worth being friends with, struggles to read social clues, struggels with reading emotions, struggels when meeting new people, struggels with how people will judge her and her way of life, because society expects people to be one way and one way only. She's not diagnosed, but I'm pretty sure, that she's autistic. When asked about it, she's like "Maybe? I'm not sure"
Her getting together with Ash isn't taking away from her autism. OR her asexuality.
She is struggling with her aceness though. Because Ash is allo (=not ace) and Willow doesn't know if she'll be enough. If what she is able to give Ash, will be enough. You know, real fears and struggeles aces have. So again, relatable.
At some point I wasn't sure if the author knew the difference between being aro and being ace, because Willow uses them as if they were the same, until she doesn't. Because to her, it never mattered. Because she never felt romantic or sexual attraction, so she thought she was both. But then there's Ash and she's like "Is this romantic attraction???? I don't know" Which is whyyyy I strongly believe that she's either demiromantic - NOT demisexual, she made that VERY clear - OR this IS a Zucchini Story after all, because she never really says that it is romantic love she feels. Just love. That wasn't made clear enough though, so I'll roll with demiromantic untill the author themselves tells me othervise.
The writing itself is very simpel. Clear and to the point, but simpel, making it very easy for anyone to read. I'm pretty sure that was wanted though, because I feel like the epilog was written differently (We change POV for the epilog. I'm gonna be honest, I didn't like the epilog but that isn't changing my view of the book as a whole).
I talked about the most important rep already, but I just wanna include the following real quick:
Ash is gay and - at least at the start - chubby/fat. AND the fact that Willow describes her as chubby AND as "how a perfect woman should look like" in almost the same sentence made me - a fat woman - smile so much, you don't understand. SADLY Ash looses some weight later on. At first I thought that it had to do with her recovery - she was suffering from depression at the start of the book - but after I talked with a friend about it (Hi Naomi) I realised, nah, it's because of society. #ARealShame
It's not a 5 stars, because it's not intense enough for me. I would have loved to spend some more time on the personal struggle aspect. Because we don't dive deep enough for my personal taste.
I can't promise that the person reading this review, is gonna feel the same way I felt when I read this, but that isn't changing how this book made me feel. Which was - and still is - good. That's why, I'm giving this 4 stars.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews