Challenge Corner discussion

After a meet-disaster, a podcaster and her producer fall in love over email without realizing they know (and hate) each other in real life.

When high school librarian Yael’s secret podcast starts to take off, she decides to hire Kevin, a remote freelance editor/producer so she can manage juggling her mental health, day job, and the queer teen book club she’s been hosting at school after hours. To maintain her anonymity, they communicate strictly via email and Kevin only knows her by her podcast persona, Elle.

Little does Yael know that Kevin, who in real life goes by his middle name, Ravi, is the same man she tore apart for climbing out of her bedroom window after a one night stand with her roommate, Charlie. And she certainly never expects him to show up to volunteer at her book club.

In person, Yael and Ravi clash until their sparks turn into something more. Over email, Elle and Kevin are starting to fall hard when they decide to keep things strictly professional. But when Ravi discovers the truth, will keeping it a secret mean the end of everything he’s built with Yael/Elle? And what happens when she finds out? Will they fall twice as hard, or cut ties in more ways than one?

thanks Jess!!

I am late but I am still planning to read maybe later this week

Yeah I got assigned to a strike last week (I'm a union rep) so I haven't read a thing and am behind.

good luck with that Jess!

I started reading yesterday and only got through chp 2


I am not sure if they will do further editing but I've had to reread a couple of sentences just to understand what they mean

the way the 3rd person is used was a bit off and I feel like it will do the book a disservice for me by putting me as a reader at an emotional distance from them

(view spoiler)[I also really dislike when MMC is clearly not an asshole (because he did try to reason and he was honest with Charlie as far as he told us) but FMC is still set in her ways to call him and treat him like an asshole.
like no, even you recognise that Charlie does this to himself and seeks out people who are unavailable so why are you blaming Ravi when clearly the problem is Charlie needing to either stop hooking up and then crying after it when his way of luring them in doesn't work (cz they said it won't) or he needs to get in board woth them just seriously saying the truth
i really dislike FMCs who are set in their ways and treat MMC like an asshole just because (hide spoiler)]

=> chp 6

(view spoiler)[so the conversations are very rich but also very heavy.
I think the pen pals idea works great for them and their story, but at the same time I wonder if these exchanges would be easier to digest had they been in live conversation format.
At the same time, dialogue might not have been this deep had it not been email.
They do have chemistry through email, it's just hard to digest if you're not on it, I've had to google way too many things. (hide spoiler)]

=> chp 13

(view spoiler)[so I might have started skimming the last 3 chapters

I think I am not invested in this story and the subtext is really making me even more removed

I want more from Yael's mental health. it's really not enough to just mention that someone has a disorder, show me! tell me about symptoms and medicine regimen and how life is affected by this!

plus she is sooooo stubborn that Ravi is an asshole while clearly Charlie chooses them that way and doesn't take no for an answer.
I don't like her

and I might be harsh here but the writing styles sounds like a young person disguised in a woke politically correct persona

I do like Ravi, and well everyone else in the club.... (hide spoiler)]

=> chp 16

I am quitting here

(view spoiler)[I tried to push through a bit but honestly I couldn't connect more and it made me feel I want to skim even more

I like that they shared a kiss and there was tension, but I like that mostly because of Ravi

it's sad because I like the premise of the story but the delivery wasn't doing it for me

I kinda want to skim the rest just to see how they find out about each other and what happens there, because I am curious, but official time of death is here for me (hide spoiler)]