Tangela

3.5/5- I thoroughly enjoyed the series, however, I have thoughts on how everything ended:

- There were too many POVs and sometimes it was a hard time keeping up.

- On top of too many POVs, I didn't like how male focused they were. The twins would've been enough and everyone else could've been a blurb.

- Justice for Esme! She had a great story that had so much depth but we focused so much on the men and the spice. I wanted more for her and didn't like how her story concluded.

- While the mothers were terrible in this book, Micah deserved an explanation of why her mother did what she did and that was a piece that was missed.

- I feel like the truth of the triplets mother was blown off. That entire story should've been addressed.

The women (minus Micah) did not get a good edit in this last book, but I still enjoyed it.

2.5/5 - While this book was somewhat messy, this didn't feel like a Christmas book. I did not get any warm and fuzzies. There were no Christmas related activities being done. They were doing everything but celebrating the holidays!! When I read these books, I want Christmas to be the main character! The 2nd chance romance was cute but it could've been executed better. I did appreciate how Rome (MMC) was so confident he would get his high school sweetheart Faith (FMC) back. Also, why did Faith's ex-husband get a POV? No one cared about what he thought. Also, the inner dialogues were repetitive. The epilogue made my head hurt! I have more critiques but I don't care to list them out.

2.5/5 - This is the 2nd book in the series I've read and I do not understand the hype. The writing was not great and this was a copy/paste of the first book. And the epilogue was pointless. I actually listened to the book and the narrators didn't make it any better. These types of books may not be for me.

4/5 – The way black Americans have been mistreated for the past 300 years is almost laughable. This book was no different as I did chuckle at the unfathomable atrocities inflicted upon us. You literally must laugh to keep from crying. I have a deeper understanding as to why our people are so against medical care. There is so much generational trauma we need to heal from to get to a better place, but I feel the damage is done. We are/were used as guinea pigs to test surgeries and medications, but once it has been perfected, we are excluded and not able to reap the benefits. However, I wish the author would've expanded on certain subjects, such as BMI, and kidney metrics as I have recently learned the ideologies behind those are racist. There was more that could've been included in the book, but what the author gave was enough to make me question everything going forward.

4.5/5 - This is the second book I've read by the author this year and I have to say he is a really great writer. The story is about a black man's love for his Jewish mother and how they both navigated through life. This could've been made into a tv show or movie because his mother had lived a life that was worth documenting. It's hard to believe this was written almost 30 years ago (‘97).

4/5 - Justice for Britney! Her family did her so wrong. The men in her life are trash and failed her! Britney only wanted a family and to settle down. While I do believe Britney needs extensive therapy for all she has gone through, I'm glad she was able to share her story. Michelle Williams did a great job narrating.

4/5 - This book was so close to being a 5, but the ending was a no for me. The story was sick and twisted and it had me on the edge of my seat and had me questioning ‘WTF was I reading?'. I enjoyed myself thoroughly (even at times it was hard to read), but that ending made me mad! What a way to fumble a 5 star rating!

4/5 - While I enjoyed this book, it did not need to be 500 pages. Marisa was sending me throughout the entire story with her decisions. She was always in shambles, which didn't make sense as she was a yoga instructor! Please get some therapy. Asher's a better person than me because I wouldn't be able to deal with her. But again, they are in their 20's so I shouldn't expect too much.

3.25/4 - Let me start off by saying that it is ok to write a book with less than 350 pages. Not all books have to be 400 pages long and this book was no different. This could've been cut down by 150 pages. The miscommunication was off the charts between Briana and Jacob for absolutely no reason. They were in their mid 30's acting like this. Brianna was my favorite side character in Part of Your World, but she was borderline insufferable in this book. And everyone treated Jacob like he was a wounded bird who would break at any moment. I didn't think their chemistry was believable. However, I did enjoy the banter and the letters they wrote one another.

4.5/5 - Wow, wow, wow! This book was wild!! This thriller kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I had to stop reading the book and only listen to the audio because I kept trying to skip to the bottom of the page to see what happens next. The FMC (Adina) worked my LAST nerve with her bad decisions, which had me screaming and cussing the entire time. Did no one teach her anything in the 18 years she was on earth?! That is why I removed the .5. Other than that, she came through for me at the end. This books was a fun ride!

4/5 - This was a really good story as it was about a friend group getting older and growing apart and trying to come to terms with it. I thought the characters were very well fleshed out as I identified with many of the people in the story. The FMC (Harriet) chasing a dream of being a doctor in order to appease her parents, only to decide as she got older, that she needed to make decisions for herself. I will say as much as I liked the MMC (Wynn) poor thing self esteem was bottom of the barrel. I don't know how Harriet dealt with him as long as she did and decided she wanted to CONTINUE to be with him. Couldn't be me. For him to have come from such a great and loving family, not sure how he had such low self worth.

4.5/5 - Another great story by Sadeqa Johnson! I appreciate how the two FMCs lives intertwined without them knowing it. It's amazing what we as black people have gone through in this country, especially when it came to unwanted pregnancies in the early 1900's. I also loved how elements of the Yellow Wife was weaved into this book as well.

2.5/5 - I know I am in the minority here, but this was NOT it. This book was too cheesy for me. I gagged and rolled my eyes so much, I didn't think I would finish. I was so happy to be done. Thane didn't impress me at all. He was laying it on too thick and came off too perfect. And I felt the story was boring. Even though it was supposed to be drama free, I needed more I order to keep my attention.

3.5/5 - Honest question: Are hockey players considered celebrities? Like is TMZ really tracking their every move? I was warned that the first book in the series wasn't the best, but this wasn't as bad as I was expecting despite all of the controversy. This book didn't need to be as long as it was for a romance. Please I beg authors to put the pen DOWN!! The book began to lose steam for me at the 55-60% mark, but picked back up at the 80% mark.

The highlights were the following:
-The MMC - I'm sorry, but I LOVED his confidence. It made sense why he wore the mask with the public due to his upbringing.
-The bond between the MMC and his best friend! I adored their relationship and the bromance the MMC had with his bestie's family. It warmed my heart. I would love to get a back story on their relationship.
-The chemistry between Stevie and Zander was cute as I loved how he built up her self esteem because lord knows she needed it.
-The spice scenes were spicing and I wasn't mad at it! lol Zander and his gold chains...WHEW

And on to the lowlights:
I LOATHE a self deprecating FMC and Stevie was no different. I'm sick of reading about these types of women. Please help them find their self worth and NOT through a man!

The redundant words used in the book that drove me insane were the following:
Light brown skin
Freckles
Chestnut curls
Head on a swivel
Blue green eyes
Thick thighs
Curves
I honestly believe those sets of words were used at a minimum of 50 times and I was OVER IT!

3.5/5 - I had to sit on this for a couple of days. In the beginning of the book, both characters were harsh (profane, rude, hostile etc.) but as the book progressed, both of their personalities began to soften, which made it easier to root for them. However, Lavish needed therapy ASAP! She was too volatile and violent, which made me cringe, but other than that, I loved how things worked out for her at the end.

3.5/5 - I really enjoyed this book. However, I deducted a couple of points because I did NOT agree with the messaging.
1. Savannah only decided to get a job was so she could find a husband once she divorced her current. Ma'am what?!!
2. I also believe she made comments about enjoying be domestic and submissive to her men. GIRL!! While I understand wanting to be supportive of your partner, being submissive is not needed.
3. I was angry when Taurus' mother said that Savannah's mother was jealous of her for being a SAHW. SERIOUSLY??!! Savannah was getting cheated on and when she decided to get out, her ex didn't want to give her anything even though she supported him all those years. So I think the mother was looking out for her daughter's best interest!

2/5 - Where do I start? I'll keep this short: I did not like the writing style, nor did I like Feyi (FMC). Her decisions and navigation through grief didn't make sense. I think she was experiencing PTSD from the accident more than anything. I cringed at the dialogue and her attraction to Nasir's dad, even though I really liked Alim and thought he was too good for her. The book was bad all around.