Review: As Long As You Love Me

As Long As You Love Me by Marianna Leal
RATING: 2 STARS
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"As a POC, I am always amped to read a multicultural romance (especially someone of Spanish origin) so it was obvious my expectations were high for Marianna Leal’s “As Long As You Love Me” but unfortunately it failed to achieve well… anything.

The plot—wait what plot? This ‘romance’ was filled with pages of Catalina discussing her struggles and traumas (which oftentimes than not, were brushed off way too easily). The plot was just about nonexistent and whatever little was featured, was half-ass and brushed aside by the lead heroine's immaturity, overly dramatic and whiny behavior. As you can tell, I was not a fan of hers. Besides being a POC character, I failed to find anything likable about the lead. And her relationship with Gabe was laughable at best.

There was no chemistry between them. At all. I wouldn’t even categorize this as enemies turned lovers. The relationship with Gabe didn't seem believable nor would have it last as a long term relationship. He honestly was too good for her. There, I said it.

And besides the unconvincing romance that blossomed between Campus Babe and Kitty Kat (gag), this was an overall boring read filled with mediocre characters, dull plot, bad pacing.

Save yourself the trouble and skip this one fellow readers.

Review: The Duke Gets Desperate

The Duke Gets Desperate by Diana Quincy
RATING: 3 STARS
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"The Duke Gets Desperate" was far more entertaining than I originally expected which isn’t saying much. I love the diversity of the main character, Raya, and her steamy relationship with Anthony. I could feel the sexual tension through the pages, and for the first time in a long time (in a historical read anyways)—the lead heroine was not meek or a pushover, Raya was determined to restore the family castle to its former glory, and strong willed. Normally in historical romances, if not all, the heroines are normally the opposite.

Despite that, the author fumbled the bag with the built up. The main characters were never on the same page besides the lust they have for one another, Anthony lacked depth and I felt like I got to know Raya more as a person with fears, hopes, dreams, desires, etc. then our lover boy. The concept was there but 2/3 through, the pacing didn’t match the rest of the novel and it felt like there was too much back and forth (he said, she said consistent misunderstandings) between the couple.

It wasn’t terrible but the wow factor was definitely not there. Nevertheless, I'm intrigued enough by the author to pick up another of her works so see how it compares.

Review: Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi (Novel) Vol. 1

Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi (Novel) Vol. 1 by Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù
RATING: 3 STARS
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“If you’re a BL fan, you have heard of this or at least come across the MDZS donghua or the live drama, The Untamed—so when the opportunity arose to read the novel with the official English translation, of course I jumped on the bandwagon. But was the translation up to par? Absolutely not.

The amount of missing lines/paragraphs and mistranslations were absurd. The English did not flow naturally and felt more like a fan translation than anything so I was a bit baffled on why this was published professionally if the translations weren’t 100% accurate. Were there no professional translators or editors hired? And let’s talk about the price. Sure the photos are stunning but for a poor quality novel—not worth the price whatsoever.

Nonetheless, being one of the first BL novels I have ever read, the nostalgia of MDZS brought back a lot of fun memories when it was first fansubbed online years ago. The beautiful imagery, engaging storyline, unique blend of characters, world-building, tradition, etc. will make me come back to this novel eh… more so the donghua/live action drama time and time again.

 

Review: It Happened One Fight

It Happened One Fight by Maureen Lee Lenker
RATING: 1.5 STARS
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I’ve always been fascinated by the Golden Age of Hollywood—the time period, entertainers and most especially the films that I am sure more people have heard of or can recall at the top of their head—so when the book announcement was made, I was immediately on board to read this new to me author.

Was the author able to release a timeless classic? Absolutely not.

I wanted to love this—hell even like it but it felt too modern for me. The characters, Joan and Dash, were unlikeable and I was far from interested in their lackluster, unbelievable love story. The unnecessary drama/conflicts between the pair was long, repetitive and drawn out, the lack of communication was consistent throughout the novel, the bland storyline had me checking periodically how much longer I had to suffer through the read, the writing style was poor and the pacing needed a lot of work.

To be blunt, the premise was there for “It Happened One Fight” but the author failed to deliver.