M J > Recent Status Updates

A dnfer. We've had limited 3rd person with close perspec. from either characters until now. All of a sudden mid-scene, mid-chapter, mid-book, we're 3rd person omniscient.I was already iffy because of how weak and phony their D/s dynamic is. Like this is meant to be taboo, and that not my issue. It's that Dom is defined as the hypermasc concept of dominant (rough, inconsiderate, top) and sub is the receptive partner

Also Isaac's tattoos are so so bad.

Something that keeps jerking me out the story is the is the characters referring to themselves as "the jock" and "the angry goth". Yikes. The author is using them in place of he/him/his pronouns, which I guess is to avoid confusion? I guess a sentence like he stirred his soup and passed his' to him could be really confusing but every other book in the mm genre makes do

Think I'm just gonna DNF this.

Red and white dinners are 50's not 60's. I know it's petty but fuck off

Wow. Remington understandably blindsided by his shitty classist friend being shitty and classist. We're all shocked.

Also why can't Remington just say they broke up instead of this elaborate fake boyfriend plan ?

Something pissing me off is that these are college kids bare knuckle no-rules fighting and not sustaining injuries. Like even punching should cause damage to those small bones in hands, loss of teeth, bruised/bleeding organs...

So the bet is, win in a fight and you get thousands of dollars, lose and go to Italy for two weeks as a fake boyfriend and probably lose his job? When he's lost every fight for a year?

“All I need you to do is come to Italy with me, pretend to be my boyfriend for two weeks and then when we get back, we’ll tell everyone we decided to be friends. Simple.”
Right. Despite being a full time college student with a PARTIAL scholarship and having a part time job he desperately needs?

"Don’t you want to know why I don’t talk?" “I mean, I want to know. But I figure you'll tell me when we're better friends.” He smirks, looking at me upside down. Oh. That's…unexpected? Sweet?"
Omggg he's not like other guys 🙄🤢

I mean Remington has no observable redeeming qualities ?? Just fetishizing Holden for not speaking at all. Like that is the total basis for his attraction now.

"As much as I hate the way the people in this town judge me, I’m hit with the realisation that I may not be any better than them, given I expected to walk into a home brimming with maids and butlers and not an ounce of warmth or personality." ....am I...supposed supposed to be sympathetic to Aston martin driving, mansion living, nice intact family having rich boy? Who is also a complete bully? What?

Yeah DNFing this implausible bullshit.

Like this is what I mean "Zane stopped into the bathroom to straighten his tie and check to make sure his close-cropped brown hair lay down neatly. The suit he wore was sharply tailored to his 6’5” frame, but it didn’t hide the bulky muscles that moved under the fabric. His was not a body you’d expect to see riding a desk, a fact he was reminded of daily looking at the slightly pudgy agents who worked around him."

Finally cracking this one open after letting it sit on my list. Not the best first impression...the main characters describing themselves for easy characterization is annoying and yanks me out the story. Who plausibly, internally, describes themselves by their height to the inch and says "he usually carried his frame like a large cat, lithe and easy." It's third person close perspective btw

The fact that the author is trying to work in and second chance romance and sex into this story is sick.

So yeah it was the brother and the stepfather. This is a miserable fucking read...like just relived trauma over and over and I feel like it's going to relapse. There's hinting of a serial killer and it's probably Shane. I think I might just skip ahead and call it done. This book is making me ill

Okay feeling pretty confident about it being Shane that killed animals and gaslit Bailey into believing it was him

Hmm now I'm not so sure. I think Bailey has DID and was assaulted by his stepdad and twin Shane, who made him think Bailey was the one killing animals when it was actually Shane taking advantage of the gaps in his memory

My prediction is that it was the twin that hurt Theo.

"You scared yet, kid?” Brody appears next to me almost as silently as a shadow. Almost. “You won’t see his face.” “Mm.” I shrug. “I don’t need to see a face to read a mark.” “Don’t think you’ll be reading much of him.”
Why’d he want me, anyway? ”
Maybe he wants something to play with. You don’t stand a chance, city boy.” Is that so? I grin back. “I like playing.” “That cheap pranking shit? Won’t fly with him.”
DNF

"I’m far enough away I can’t make out any details, but I recognize that man. He’s the one I fought the night I ran the roofs. The one who beat me. Took me apart like I was some scrawny teenager with a pocketknife. The one I should fear. Now I have a name to put with the broad shoulders and lack of face: Lieutenant Zach Riley. The Ghost."

No fucking shit. Huge surprise that. 🙄🙄

"Who is this guy?” I ask finally. “A monster or a hero?” “Both.” My bunkmate looks at me with wide, reverent eyes.

Like? Why are these guys in basic training knowing anything at all about top secret special operatives? They're basically civilian's at this point. Why would they have all this lore that the MC, a professional criminal doesn't? This is just for plot convenience

...It's feeling very pick me. Like everyone (adult men in military basic training) gasping and gushing about the super cool deadly head bad ass military guy handpicking the main character to join his team. I'm a few eye rolls away from dnfing this one.

Oryn and all his alters are great but the MC, who I ironically can't remember the name of, is forgettable and robotic. His contribution is "I'm not like other guys I 1) am nice 2) don't judge 3) have a low sex drive". He's the literary equivalent of unsalted butter.

Not enough characters for my last update, but I read that and was just like...wtf why? The authors note said she poured her heart into writing this, but it's very 2/10 so far. There's a lot of cliched dialogue and over the top characterization that makes me want to roll my eyes. Also dated slang, which is cringe. "For the win"? Yikes.

This is . "Kolya Jr. has been an adventurous whore since he got his first boner at the fresh age of five. It was such a marvelous discovery when I found my then-wiener hard that I giggled with glee. Then I proceeded to run all over our house, dangling, pointing, and showing it off to anyone who crossed my path..[his momtelling me to get my weenie back in my pants. I pouted as I muttered, “But my weenie likes the air"

Yep DNF. MC Liam just used the r-word. When the hell was written where the author would think that's okay?

I think this is a DNF. Liam's describes his gf as hot as a bitch and that's it. Theyve been dating 3, tf? Also his gf is shown as a stereotyped Mean Girl, sexually forward and comes off desperate. Despite being repulsed, nauseated, and scornful of her he's still dating her, kissing her, walking her to class...just leading her on entirely. Meanwhile he's thinking about Aiden's "delicious touch" like ew dude