The Trope Author Stella Stevenson
Book Review
4.5 out of 5 stars!
Set to release Nov. 22, 2022 (Tomorrow!)
"Confidence is not 'they will like me'. Confidence instead is 'I'll be fine if they don't'." - Christina Grimmie
"Well sweetling, can he see the future? You're the only one who knows if you can do that. Prove him wrong." - Maggie's Mother
Maggie's pursing the life of a published author with a passion! Only her first round of readers for her debut novel couldn't find the passion between Maggie's two leads. At a loss Maggie decides it's time for some author research! With a little nudge Maggie decides to fake date her best friend's older brother. He's agreed to help Maggie so she can get the chemistry working in her read. Maggie on the other hand has some ulterior motives for picking Dean. . .
Maggie's read plenty of romcoms and romance novels, so she knows what to do to get her crush into the husband lane. But can fantasy and fiction really cross over into reality? Will Dean fall madly in love with Maggie at the end of this fake dating scenario? And why does Mac keep showing up wherever Maggie is or where she's requiring some help?
"You annoy me less than most, Maggie but let's not push it." - Mac
Anyone want those romantic tropes to become reality? The scenes were you both crash into each other? The trope where you are both "conveniently" stuck in a hotel with one bed? The moment when the guy finally realizes he has feeling for you and can't deny or hide them anymore? Meet Maggie in a nutshell. She wants all the romantic moments and tropes! She KNOWS all of the tropes but being able to translate them into real life? Maybe not so much. . .
"That's because real life isn't like books." - Audrey
Being a writer is challenging and being able to translate the scenes, the characters, and the chemistry between the characters can be immensely difficult! Maggie's been dealing with anxiety and the need to write for so long that she's kind of been out of the social circle for a long time. Things just aren't clicking, and she needs help fast, luckily, she has the perfect man picked out for her!
I got the cliche secondhand embarrassment on so many levels with Maggie! She's trying all the moves and tactics on the wrong guy! She's a bit clueless and so tunnel vision focused on Dean you will be shaking your head on multiple occasions. I loved Maggie's loyalty to her friends and her personality along with the cluelessness. You can clearly tell who she really has chemistry with, but we just have to let her figure that out on her own.
I enjoyed all of the characters in this read! Audrey's the friend who will be your ride or die for life. I loved how she helps Maggie and helps to ground her when Maggie's spiraling and having an anxiety attack. Audrey does not judge her friend, except for when Maggie's being an idiot, and will clearly do anything for Maggie.
I loved the dynamics of all the characters and when things were brought to light it blew me away, also made complete sense and had me chuckling. You will pick up on so many things that Maggie's just skipping by. The comedy in this book was fantastic and just Maggie trying so hard to make the romance tropes work. None of them hitting their mark or going according to plan.
There was one scene in the book that I found a bit clanky. I understood why the scene was there and what it was trying to convey with characters and their personalities. But just for me it felt a little off, this being my personal opinion. You may find absolutely every scene in this book amazing.
"Has anyone ever told you you're basically one full moon away from being a werewolf?" - Maggie
This read has all the tension, CHEMISTRY, and slow burn. We get some MF action along with some solo action. There's mention of anxiety and there are anxiety attacks depicted on page. This is my third time reading about this technique to ground yourself and I absolutely love it! The five-step countdown of going through all your five senses to help bring you down from the panic.
Language is present in the book along with a side character being prejudice against another side character. LGBTQ+ representation is in this book, and I got excited when I read, they/them pronouns! I loved the twists in this book and all around I would say a lighthearted read. Yes, there were some adult things in this book and mention of mental health but all around a happier read. We only have a single POV and that being Maggie's.
We do get a happily ever after and I loved the acknowledgements from the author and her future plans! I cannot wait to read more from this author! I enjoyed being able to read with a physical book this time, I love reading on all formats but having a physical book? The best!
Enjoy this read as Maggie's on the hunt for some chemistry and romance! Don't forget to give the author some stars!
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