Welcome back, bookworms! Today I’m writing to you all from a film set we’re currently producing on 👀 More to come on that, but I’ve been taking every quiet moment here and there to write this because July has been BUSY. And being busy means I didn’t read a single book this month other than Tropesick. Some months it's 10 books and others it’s zero, and I’m trying to be a bit more chill about it. My Type-A self loves to be on track, and according to Goodreads, I’m 19 books behind schedule, so that’s something…
August is a new month, new me. Or maybe September?
Tropesick arrived at my house as an ARC a few months ago, and it immediately drew me in. The play on words in the title alongside the actual tropes on the cover just felt right. They say never judge a book by its cover, but I will every single time. That doesn’t mean a bad cover means I won’t read the book, but it does mean that a really great cover can convince me to read it.
But before I even thought about this book for the club, one of my friends who works at a bookstore mentioned how much she loved the ARC. I trust my bookstore girlies through and through.
From that point, I can’t even say that one thing sealed the deal for me on this book… it was the whole thing. The baseball aspects, to shared trauma, to a book about books, to Tyler’s tattoos, to the classic one-bed trope. It felt like it had so much packed inside, without feeling performative or over-the-top.
A goodreads comment also stood out to me as something I’ve felt like I was missing: Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry but with MORE romance!
When I first started the book, I’ll be honest, I wasn’t initially hooked. The first few chapters felt promising, but I didn’t have a gut feeling about this book being a god-tier book. I didn’t connect with the characters or wrap my head around this world until I did something that changed everything.
I switched to the audiobook.
This doesn’t happen often, but when it does, it’s pretty life-changing. For years, I thought I didn’t love Emily Henry until I listened to her books on audio. That changed everything, and both Happy Place and People We Meet on Vacation became two of my favourite books of all time—something I credit to Julia Whelan’s voice.
So yes, switching to the audiobook for Tropesick made a massive difference, and I ended up listening to the entire book from the start again. Not only is it dual narration; the female voice so perfectly encapsulated this character, it felt real.
I really loved the first 20% once I switched to audio. Katie was someone I felt like I understood, and I loved the balance of her strength and softness. She wasn’t a character I felt like I was relating to, but Lauren Okie’s writing allowed me to truly understand her and how she was feeling. A prime example was the early interaction between Katie and her father, and the gut punches I felt in response. I felt so protective of her and truly just wanted to hug her. Tyler, on the other hand, was a bit harder for me to read. He felt more like an onion I had to peel back layers of to actually understand how he functions. What shined through from the get-go, though, was his determination to grow and be better.
The two of them together had me smiling throughout most of the first half of the book. There was an underlying understanding between them that made this romance hit so much harder. Their longing was tangible.
As the book went on, I lost some of my emotional investment in their story. I can’t put my finger on why, but something was missing for me. I liked them individually as characters still, but the romance wasn’t selling me the entire time.
Then the last ~15% or so REALLY threw me for a loop, and I can’t say I am obsessed with the dash of magical realism. Instead of being wowed, I was mostly just confused; It didn’t make sense. I’ve never gone into any contemporary romance book expecting magical realism, and I don’t think we should start that. It took me away from the story and the grief at hand. I am never one to poke holes in romance books, but it’s almost too easy. I wanted to be emotionally spent after reading the end of this book, and instead, the emotional impact of everything that happened at the end fell flat.
Despite tearing into how Tropesick ends, I still think it’s a good story for a certain readership. The magical realism twist wasn’t for me, but I knew going into this book that I might fall on one side of the very polarizing reviews. Katie and Tyler are adorable, and getting to watch them interact again was such a wonderful experience, but as the book went on, I found it lost me a bit. Would I still recommend this book? Yes, but I think it’s necessary to mention the dash of magical realism. The writing and uniqueness of this story definitely shine through, and I think many readers can relate to the events.
“Yet,” she said, and then she was on top of me, tickling me like a child, under my arms, beneath my knees, laughing and laughing, morning light bathing the cottage, salt and dew and summer in the air, her eyes so bright and her smile so blinding I could’ve died right there, being attacked by this absurd, gorgeous little creature, who, despite everything, had not forgotten how to play.”
“You write literal bodice rippers for a living. Don’t you want to be with somebody who sees you? Don’t you want to feel like your soul’s on fire? Like your heart’s going to explode?”
“The path to happily ever after is rarely a straight line. And every love story— no matter how predictable— is always, always earned.”
“Of all the love stories I’ve written, yours has been my absolute favorite. Now go. Live. You have so many chapters ahead of you— and quite the happily ever after to finish.
Overall: 3.5/5 ☆
Romance: 3.75/5 ☆
Storyline & Pacing: 2.75/5 ☆
Characters: 4/5 ☆
If you could add or remove another trope from this book, what would it be?
Tropesick feels like a love letter to the romance genre; what about the tropes it uses makes it feel fresh?
What is something you wish more books had in regards to sibling loss? What would make it feel more real?
Do you think Tyler was to blame for the pain Katie and her family suffered?
Meredith seemed to be pulling all the strings to get Katie and Tyler back together. Do you think she was too meddlesome in their relationship?
If you want more forced proximity
Reckless by Lauren Roberts
Little Fire by Hollee Mands
Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson
If you want more grumpy/sunshine vibes
Funny Feelings by Tarah DeWitt
The Right Move by Liz Tomforde
Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score
If you want more brother’s best friend stories
Till Summer Do Us Part by Meghan Quinn
Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey
Lilah by Ashlyn Montgomery
If you want more girl next door vibes
Kaleidoscope Heart by Claire Contreras
Twice Shy by Sarah Hogle
Over the Fence by Melanie Moreland
Reading: Nada. I’m so deep into the biggest reading slump right now that I’ll take any and every book rec I can get. Books I have high hopes for (and better get me the heck out of this slump) are Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman on audio and The Last to Drown by Noelle W. Ihli.
Eating: Still trying to find more ways to eat more protein, and my newest favourite is oatmeal with protein powder. Diesel Salted Caramel is a top-tier flavour, and I HIGHLY recommend adding a bit of frozen raspberries and maple syrup. Perfection.
Playing: Lately I’ve been watching a lot of YouTube over streaming services. I’m obsessed with these two creators, Michael DiCostanzo and Mackenzie Lee, who compete in challenges. Sometimes it’s “Wordle in the Wild,” and others are scavenger hunts across Europe. They don’t have a large upload cadence, so I’m currently playing their old videos on repeat.
Obsessing Over: I’ve never been one to think about lighting in rooms (aka I'm the one who routinely turns on the bright overhead light). That said, as of late, I’ve been obsessed with warm yellow lights. Every night I’ve been turning on my Hatch alarm clock and candle warming so my bedroom can be super moody and calm as I get ready for bed. Dare I say it’s even improved my sleep?!
Recommending: Go back to your childhood sports and hobbies! While I’m not going as much as I want, I’ve done a couple of swims at my community pool lately, and it’s healed something inside of me. A secondary recommendation on top of this is the Shokz Open Swim headphones!!! Yes, you can now have an underwater concert while you swim lengths. And yes, it’s incredible.
Treating Myself: While I haven’t pulled the plug yet, I’m on the hunt (and will be treating myself) to a work tote. I haven’t landed on which one I want yet, but I’m searching. The only requirement is it needs to look cute with a practical vibe and fit a 15” laptop.
Before summer ends (and spooky/fall season begins), I wanted another cute romance book, and this one is IT. Not That Kind of Proposal is an enemies-to-lovers rom-com about a hopeless romantic wedding planner and the cynical divorce lawyer forced to help her plan her ex’s wedding.
I’ve linked the group chat below so you can join & chat with us in August! We talk about the book pick + everything else happening in the book world :)
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