This novel just wasn't for me. The romance aspect felt forced and progressed at such a rapid speed it left very little intrigue. For someone who has not read any other work by this author, I felt the plot was confusing and again rushed.

Additionally, I did not care for Sorcha's character. She seemed lack luster and at times annoying. Finally, I loathed the inconsistent use of "ye". Ye should remove this!

I feel like I just read a book by an entirely different author! I'm not sure what happened between the 3rd book in the series and this one, but I think the author lost her way. The heroine acted very strange, not the usual strong heroine I've become accustomed to in books by Kerrelyn Sparks. Sorcha was really very silly, and the whole conflict in the romance stemmed from her being scared because she loves too deeply (this was so weird to me) and also from believing so much in the Telling Stones that she was willing to overlook the relationship she could have with the Woodsman. It felt very forced, and when his conflict came into play about keeping her safe, I just felt it had been done before. It didn't have the usual uniqueness to it as the other books in the series.

I also felt the story was very predictable - I knew what was going to happen before it happened, so halfway through the book, I figured I could just put the book down because I already knew the ending. Of course I continued reading to the end, but everything I predicted would happen did eventually happen.

I wanted to give this a great rating, because I still love Kerrelyn Sparks. But I love the old Kerrelyn and I want her back. This book is not to her usual standards, I know she can write better than this. I look forward to the next and final book in the series, hopefully better than this one.

This is the fourth book in the "Embraced" series but the first from this publisher, thus the book #1 label. The others were published under the series title "A Novel of the Embraced."

Sorcha is one of 5 young women who are "embraced," or have magical gifts. They were sent to the Isle of the Moon to be raised, and became sisters of the heart growing up. They are now on the mainland of Aerthlan, having dangerous adventures and falling in love.

Sorcha is the biological sister of the king of Norevshki, and her "sister" is his queen. Through a treacherous event at the border with the enemy elfish land, Woodwyn, Sorcha is rescued by the Woodsman. The Woodsman is a thief--or is he? Is he actually honorable? And why is Sorcha so attracted to him when the Telling Stones said she would fall in love with an elf with lavender eyes and white hair? The Woodsman has brown hair. But their attraction to each other is undeniable. And is there more to the Woodsman than there seems to be?
***
Sorcha and the Woodsman are both likable characters, and the Woodsman is heroic. The book is full of danger, magic, murder, court intrigue, a rebellion, dragon-shifters, a master villain, and a secret.

The book is also full of Kerrelyn Sparks' signature understated humor. For instance, Sorcha's magic is fire--it's not a coincidence that her name sounds like scorch. The mild sex scenes are always humorous because of the sisters' naiveté. There's a character or two who provide comic relief, and there's a running gag about the Woodsman always having a plan. The book is just plain fun to read in spite of the suspense.

The book can be read as a standalone, but I recommend reading the other books in the series to fully appreciate it.

I read an ARC, but this is my honest opinion, freely given.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have been waiting for the 4th book in the series for a while and it did not disappoint. Sorcha being taken hostage has us learning more about the elves and why they have been attacking Norveshka. After meeting the Woodsman, she realizes not all elves are necessarily evil. Sorcha tries her best not to fall in love with anyone, but cannot deny her attraction to the Woodsman. Brody and Aleski are featured more heavily in this book and we learn more about the Circle of 5 and their goals. There were definitely parts that were predictable, but I feel like that is true of most romance novels. I can’t wait for the Maeve’s book to come out and see how this all ends.

I received this ARC from netgalley in exchange for and honest review.
I really enjoyed this story. I do think you would benefit from reading the other 3 books in this series first. I was a little lost in the beginning until I started remembering what had happened previously..
The woodsman was pretty cool, and I really loved his power over wood, and the fact that he is an elf means he can talk to the trees. Sorcha can make fire with a snap of her fingers, although she hasn't had a lot of practice due to an incident where she almost burned down a kitchen when she was 8.
While I did enjoy this book quite a bit, it wasn't my favorite in the series, that would have to go to the last one that came out.. It had Dragons.. what can i say I love Dragons...
Also I think I'll do a reread of all the books before the next one comes out that way it will all be fresh in my mind.

Sorcha thinks that she isn't strong, she suffers from anxiety when her sisters and loved ones are but in danger. So much so that she can't eat. When a plot against her sister Gwen is discovered she rides along with her as a bodyguard. When Gwen is warned of an ambush everyone flees except one dragon Alexsi and Sorcha. Alexsi is injured and can't fly and sorcha won't leave him behind. So they are captured. When the Woodsman witnesses the capture he decides he needs to rescue them and return them home. On the journey to safety the woodsman and sorcha develop feelings for each other.
The woodsman is basically robbing the generals and soldiers of things they have themselves stolen from villages and people. He then returns the stolen goods. Turns out he has a bigger plan in motion, that I don't want to spoil but its pretty big. and while I had an idea something bigger was going on I didn't know what it was until a little bit before it was revealed.
I will be buying this book once its release to add it to the rest of the series that i have. and will def. be reading more by Kerrilyn Sparks going forward..
I also really enjoyed the sneak peak of the next book for Maeve she can turn into a seal, Im really hoping that this will be her story along with Brodies..

I’ve loved each story so far of the girls who grew to be sisters, each of them embraced with special abilities. This was a great addition to the previous books! (But the beginning of a new series? I can get behind that!)

Sorcha is captured when a plan to meet Gwen’s mother fails. Even as she sets out to rescue herself, a stranger interferes. Soon she’s taken captive again, this time by the Woodsman. But the further they travel and the more she learns about him, she begins to question if she’s his captive or if he’s rescuing her.

The Woodsman was a great hero. Not over the top about the heroine, but irresistibly drawn to her. I loved that she confused him and his emotions and often times had him talking to himself. She sent him on quite a bit of a chase.

’She was definitely a sneaky one. Unpredictable. Surprising. A challenge.

His mouth tilted up. He’d always enjoyed a challenge.’


While Sorcha was tough enough when needed, she suffered from anxiety when anyone she cared for was in danger. To me, that just seemed like what any normal person would do, but for some reason it was a negative characteristic, at least for her. However, I loved her innocence (gotta read about the community picnic) and her ability to keep the Woodsman guessing.


’”The Woodsman will have a plan.”

Liz smirked. “The Woodsman always has a plan.”

The crowd gave the Woodsman an expectant, hopeful look as he came to a stop in front of them.

“So?” Father Kit turned toward him. “What’s the plan?”

Hell if I know.’

This has a lot of humor interspersed within the drama and action. With some political intrigue as well as threats from a force that wants to rule the world, this story had plenty of layers to keep me engaged. There is a lot of romance here but very little steam. Normally, that would be okay but there was also a lack of chemistry between the hero and heroine, so even when I did get to what should have been the steamy parts, I just kinda skimmed through them. However, that did not take away from my overall enjoyment of this book.

As complicated as it was to like Sorcha, the main character of this story, I really enjoyed the writing of the author and it was easy to understand the backstory despite this being one of several books in her world.
I enjoyed her writing... until it came to the romance between Sorcha and the Woodsman.

Their interaction, their banter, their lust for each other is... *shudders*
From the way they talk to each other to what they do with each other, it's - I'm sorry - awful. I guess their banter was meant to be playful and funny, but it's not executed well. And I am really sorry for that because up until then I truly enjoyed Kerrelyn Sparks' writing style as it was easy to fall into and the descriptions and dialogue were really well.

Overall, since the weird romance is a huge part of this and I'm not really connecting with the characters, I won't look for the other books in this series.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

How to Love Your Elf, I thought this was the first book in a series but I read elsewhere that it is in fact the 4th in the Embraced series. I loved the concept of embraced people and elves and the whole Robin Hood aspect, there where moments when that shown through. The book was not easy to get into, a lot of information, hard to keep my attention. I enjoyed the relationship between the Woodsman and Sorcha, it was more interesting, even if it was predictable. Overall, I didn't dislike the book but it didn't make me want to go and read the rest of the series already out.

Sorcha and the woodsman's HEA is a light fantasy and a quick read. Enjoyable, but needed more worldbuilding and character development. This is the first book I've read, and backstory alluded to the other embraced sisters story. It was a okay standalone, with a few engaging players. It lacked grabbing my interest to continue, or looking back to the other sisters stories. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book from Netgalley. 2.5 stars

I read this book all in one night, up until 1 a.m. to finish it! The plot was interesting and the banter between Sorcha and the Woodsman was so perfect. I was excited to learn that this is actually the 4th book in a 5 part series so I'm definitely going to go back and read the first three books. My only complaint about the book was that the sexy scenes were pretty lackluster, and some of what the Woodsman said didn't actually come to pass. Otherwise, a solid romance!

I was given a chance to read this novel by Netgalley, and I’d first like to say thank you for the opportunity. I own the first three books in the Embraced series, and was eager to read the fourth. This book lived up to my expectations! The hero is like Robin Hood, though with far more secrets. It was lovely to see a deeper side to Sorcha, particularly how anxious she became for those she loved. Beautiful love story!

Oh, how I love this story! Action, adventure, romance, love. What's not to love. I devoured How to Love Your Elf in one sitting. I just couldn't put it down. Sorcha and the Woodsman were adorable together. Loved their interactions and banter. So cute and fun. Their chemistry was great. It was just a very fun and enjoyable story to read. But there was a moment that totally made me cried so be warned. Seriously a great read. I absolutely love this series.

*I voluntarily read an advance copy of this book*

When I saw a new paranormal series by Kerrelyn Sparks I was all over it. Then I found out that How to Love Your Elf was the continuation of the 'Embraced' series. Same series-ish ('Embraced' vs 'Embraced by Magic'), different publishers. Yay, Kensington Books! So.... due to my want for reviewing accuracy (and book availability per my Audible Escape membership), I had some homework to do. I can honestly recommend that you hit up the previous books of the 'Embraced' series prior to reading this or else you will feel pretty lost.

Now we finally get Sorcha's book. The fourth of the five 'adopted' embraced sisters from the Isle of Moon has her turn at destiny and fulfilling the prophecy from the telling stones. I really enjoyed this tale and the Woodsman. The parallels to Robin Hood were awesome. As always, the side characters were really fun. We find out more about the circle of five (and more that we don't know) and the lengths they have gone through from world domination. We learn more about where Gwennore came from and her past although we don't get much on-page time with her. I really found Aleski and her brother, Silas, made me want to smack them at times, but... I guess that's just the overbearing big brother sort of way.

All in all, this was a fun continuation of the Embraced storyline and I still have so many questions and hypotheses about the overarching story (the Circle of Five). I was sooooo hoping that Brody's story would be in here and I was also hoping it would cross with Maeve's as well.... yay! I am soo looking forward to 'The Siren and the Deep Blue Sea'!

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.*

Elves, magic, princesses, and benevolent thieves—if that sounds good to you, you might enjoy Kerrelyn Sparks’s How to Love Your Elf.

Sorcha is a recently titled Norveshki princess who’s one of The Embraced—people born with unique magical powers and believed by many to be cursed. On a failed diplomatic mission Sorcha’s kidnapped and helped in her rescue by The Woodsman, a man believed to be a thief/bandit. As she travels back to safety with him Sorcha learns that things with him aren’t quite what they seem and that greed and violence threaten an already tenuous political situation. What’s the real identity of The Woodsman and is he as drawn to her as she is to him?

Sparks creates a world that feels fresh and young even though some violent, tumultuous events are taking place. The tone of the book is earnest and sincere with occasional moments of levity and passionate characters who are immediately infatuated with each other despite the significant factors that could keep them apart. The relationship between Sorcha and The Woodsman—like all of the other action in the book—moves quickly.

I can get behind a case of instalust, but it doesn’t always work for me here. With everything moving at such a fast clip—even the introductory information about the cast of characters and the world that Sparks creates—the book has an overall superficial feel.

How to Love Your Elf is entertaining--and I enjoyed reading it--but ultimately it's not a world or a set of characters that I really connected with.


I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Netgalley but all opinions provided are my own.

Fantasy, romance, intrigue, danger, and romance rolled up into a neat package. Kerrelyn Sparks is a master of combining all my favorite things into a great book. I marvel at her wonderful imagination that ends up giving us this amazing series. Luciana, Brigitta, and Gwennore are now queens, married to their true loves. Now it is Sorcha's turn. Only she refuses to love, love is painful. Furthermore, when the sisters played the Game of Stones for her the colors lavender and white were shown. If the stones are true for her as they were for her sisters, it would mean Sorcha's true love is an elf with lavender eyes and white hair. The problem is that Sorcha's really does not like elves, except for Gwennora, her sister who is only half elf. Unfortunately, for her she is captured by the elf army, but is saved by the elf renegade known as the Woodman. Now she is stuck in elf country, surrounded by them. What can she do now to get out of this situation? And just what or who is the Woodman and why can he talk to the Sacred trees? Just why is she so attracted to him? Yes, he has lavender eyes, but his hair is all wrong! This is the fourth book in the Embraced series. All the books in the series are outstanding reads. They deserve to be read from book one through the series, plus they will make more sense to the reader. Only one book more left (SOB!).

This book wasn't quite my thing. I prefer my character with a bit more depth and more extensive world-building. However, the book definitely serves it's purpose for people who just want a nice light fantasy read with a lot of intense/mushy romance.

Kerrelyn Sparks's "How to Love Your Elf" takes readers on a quick, fun ride that touches most of the fantasy literature genre boxes for me. I liked the narration switching between Sorcha and the Woodsman, I liked the world Sparks has created, and I liked that I didn't really need the stories that came before this to understand what is going on thanks to what is essentially a recap during the first chapter. There were a few, tiny, nit-picky things that I didn't like about this book such as switching between ye and you in the same conversation, the use of "the little blue pill" because it completely yanked me out of the fantasy world that was created, and the fast pacing of the story. I wanted more than just a few days in their world to believe the romance that becomes all-encompassing for the characters. Overall, a solid 3-star book that has made me want to go back and read the previous stories as well as making me want to read about Maeve's story in the future.

Thank you, NetGalley and publisher for the ebook ARC of this work in exchange for my honest review.

How to Love Your Elf by Kerrelyn Sparks is the fourth installment of the Embraced Series. The series entails the lives of five embraced girls sent for their protection to the Isle of the Moon for their safety to be raised by nuns. The girls are considered adopted sisters, and now that they are women, each is finding her way in a world they didn’t know much about. This book is about Sorcha, Princess of Norveshka, embraced with the power of fire. When the mother of her adopted sister, Gwennore, contacts her to come back to her home of Woodwyn, Sorcha insists on joining the dangerous mission to trust the elves and help her sister reunite with the mother she never knew. But Gwennore’s mother was not to be trusted. The elf army soon turns on the Norveshka troop capturing both Sorcha and dragon Aleski to hold as prisoners in exchange for Gwennore.

Out steps the Woodsman...mysterious and handsome, possibly dangerous and known as a thief to some. But when he sees the battle while hidden in the woods, he spies Sorcha, and her willingness to go back into the danger to help her fellow comrade with no thoughts of what it could mean for herself. The Woodsman knows he must rescue her and her friend from the elfin army. Sorcha doesn’t know if this mysterious woodsman can be trusted, she doesn’t know his real name or any of his story, but she has no other choice. Aleski needs medical attention and she needs to get back home.

Of course danger lies ahead for them, and in usual Embraced fashion, a forbidden romance ensues, but not without a visit from the Chameleon, or Lord Morris and the other villainous Circle of Five. Their adventure is traveling through the Haunted Woods, and the living Oaks, and of course their is a battle or two. But in a series with shape shifters, and embraced magic, and romance between islands it is everything you can ever want and more.

I need to tell the truth, I am a HUGE fan of all things Kerrely Sparks. The Embraced Series, the Love At Stake series, I love it all, and this latest installment did not disappoint! From the characters, the imagery of the forest and castles, it’s just beautiful. Kerrelyn Sparks is so good at writing fantasy novels and fictional islands and languages, it’s just a pleasure to read. I would recommend this book, and the rest of the series to anyone who loves a bit of fantasy in a romance novel that will keep interested from the first page to the last.

I would like to thank Netgalley, Kerrelyn Sparks and Kensington Books for an advanced reader edition of How To Love Your Elf.

Going into this book I had no idea it was the fourth book in a series, and it didn’t matter. I went straight off the blurb and based off the fact that I liked this author. I was interested to see how the “embraced” handled their abilities and how this book differed from other paranormal books. This book was kind of like a robin hood retelling but with elves and magical creatures.

I really like strong female protagonist in books and Sorcha was a strong character but at times made me a little angry because she acted a little dumb. I’m not sure if it was because she was hidden away and sheltered or because she really didn’t know, maybe if I read the books before I would’ve had a little more insight on that point. Her spitfire though earns her a rescue from the Woodsman and she fights him on the rescue so that made me like her from the beginning. Sorcha automatically fights for the little person and helps people in need on the way. It was interesting to see her evolve from disliking every Elf in the country side to only the evil ones, because she met the peaceful kind ones along the way.

The Woodsman, you just know from the beginning there is more than meets the eye with him. Slowly throughout the book you start to unravel it, but his mysterious ways are half the fun. I enjoyed his embraced gift more than others mostly because the forest could talk to him, then when all is revealed about the forest it is deeply touching. The fact that he normally has a calm attitude and Sorcha seems to bring out the crazy in him was kind of funny, he would just stutter and stand there. He is trying to save his country one village at a time, he tells everyone not to fight back that he will bring back everything that was stolen. Basically, he is an elf robin hood, once the evil elves ransack villages he steals from them and returns everything. He was a really great overall character and I would love to read more about him.

Actual rating: 1.5 stars

As someone who really enjoyed reading the other entries of the Embraced/Embraced by Magic series, I was shocked by how little I cared for its latest entry, How to Love Your Elf. Though I looked forward to the follow up to Eight Simple Rules for Dating a Dragon, as it would star the fourth Embraced sister, Sorcha, I was dismayed by how unlikable I found her. I also did not enjoy her love interest, the Woodsman, or their attempts at banter and romance. What kept me reading How To Love Your Elf was my interest in the Embraced prophecy and the role the five sisters will play in bringing peace to their world. 


I was super excited to read How to Love Your Elf due to its main character, Sorcha. Sorcha is the most fiery of the Embraced sisters--quite literally due to her ability to summon flames at her fingertips. From the glimpses I had seen of her in the other novels, I also enjoyed her quick temper. Sadly my expectations of Sorcha being a badass proved false. The character lacked confidence in literally everything she did, was afraid to use her magical flame powers off an on, and couldn’t even manage to properly disarm a man. In fact, she failed so hard at disarming that her only method of self-defense was to go for the genitals in order to protect herself, which led to some pretty icky banter. Surely I am not the only person who does not find the threat of violence to the genitals as flirtatious and romantic?


"'I know how to protect myself.'

'Are you planning to knee them?' His smile widened. 'At least my groin will be safe now.'

'Ha! Who says I'm done with your groin?'

He tilted his head. 'So you have plans?'

'No! I--' Dear goddesses, what was she saying."


I was disappointed to discover that much of Sorcha’s tough behavior was a facade to hide how afraid she was to lose her loved ones. In fact, nothing scares her more than actually losing a loved one or falling in love and losing that person. While that seems like a reasonable anxiety, How To Love Your Elf presents this anxiety as Sorcha being afraid to love anyone because she simply loves too much and even makes herself physically ill over it. This is problematic in itself because it automatically makes her love interest appear like he’s taking advantage of a naive, impressionable woman who is certainly not ready for any kind of romantic relationship.

“When she loved, she loved too desperately. She loved without reason. She couldn’t be practical like Luciana, trusting like Brigitta, or clever like Gwennore. When her loved ones were in danger, she was overwhelmed with a sense of helplessness. Love didn’t make her strong as it did her sisters.”


Instead of growing on her own as a person and as heir to her adopted sister’s throne, (something she's really having trouble with), Sorcha falls in love with much more confident man with a mysterious background [spoiler] Don't worry, he's actually also the secret rightful heir to the Elf throne[/spoiler]. When she is kidnapped by the Woodwyn elves to ransom her in exchange her for her sister Queen Gwennore of Novreshki, she is rescued by a mysterious Robin-hood type referred to as the Woodsman. At first sight, he falls in love/lust with her and Sorcha, of course, is unable to resist his questionable charms. She wonders if he is “The One” for her as predicted by her sister’s Telling Stones, almost immediately, but laments that he does not have the hair color the stones predicted and therefore cannot possibly be her true love. Seriously? I could not believe hair color was an actual supposed conflict.

And if Sorcha’s maturity levels were lacking, the Woodsman’s general personality was too. In many romance novels, the male hero often straddles the line between being a healthy protector and supporter of his love interest and toxic masculinity. In How to Love Your Elf, the Woodsman is definitely the latter--possessive, controlling, and always in need of a plan. All of this makes it hard to root for his quickly developing romance with someone who seems so desperately young and out of her league.

“Whenever he married he would make sure his future wife and children knew who was in command. Sorcha’s words from earlier that afternoon flitted through his mind: Are ye going to make all the decisions without consulting me? Who put you in charge?”

As if their personalities--Sorcha’s insecurity in herself and fear of love and the Woodsman’s controlling confidence--don’t make it hard enough to support the romance, How to Love Your Elf struggles to present any dialogue or love scenes that didn’t make me cringe. Even the other characters protest to their romance and point out that they had only known each other for a literal week when [spoiler] the Woodsman proposes marriage to Sorcha [/spoiler], which goes to show just how little interaction and development takes place between the two. What's more is How to Love Your Elf tries and fails to set Sorcha and the Woodsman up as star-crossed lovers due to their opposite Embraced powers and Sorcha's prejudices against all Elves that aren't her adopted sister Gwennore.

"She was completely wrong for him. Even her gift was an utter disaster. While his Embraced power relied on wood, her power destroyed wood."

But really, their conflicting Embraced powers was the least of their problems. Due to Sorcha's innocence, the characters' instalove, and their very little interaction. I could barely stomach their love scenes, and actually skimmed to get through them as quickly as possible. And the brief hurdles to their blossoming love is dealt with almost as quickly as the protests to their [spoiler] proposed nuptials.  And no one really stops to wonder if Sorcha would actually make a good queen, even though she was struggling with being an heir already and has only lived in her new homeland for a mere few days.[/spoiler] Any obstacles the romance encounters feels contrived and not like an actual problem--either because they are simply silly problems, such as relating to the Woodsman’s hair color, or because they are dealt with and wrapped up so easily. There’s never any leftover feelings of animosity or similar emotions, because How To Love Your Elf tells us exactly what every empty-headed main character is feeling.  And what’s worse is that when the novel actually tries to flesh out characters it is in what is always snippets of pure, unnecessarily melodramatic flares of emotion, such as screaming, or collapsing to the ground. 

“‘Colwyn, my love!’ Tara clasped her hands together as she gave him an adoring look.
 He glanced over at her at her. ‘Who is that?’ 
Tara huffed, “You don’t know me? If it wasn’t for me, we wouldn’t have been able to kill those soldiers over there!’ She pointed at the men who had fallen from the bridge. ‘I can take care of myself, so who needs you!’ She flipped her hair over her shoulder as she turned and stalked away.’”

Despite these soap-opera-esque scenes, How to Love Your Elf does a fairly good job of world-building. There is some Elven and Embraced lore presented, but it's mainly in a bit of an information dump that might leave readers new to the series confused. Returning readers, however, are already familiar with these ideas and will enjoy the continued threat of the Circle of Five and the Chameleon, an Embraced who can turn into literally anything or anyone at will, and an interesting twist that the novel presents. This twist, as well as my continued investment in the prophecy of the five Embraced sisters and their bringing peace to their world, is what kept me reading through the disappointing character development and less than ideal dialogue. 


I also enjoyed reading about the Wood Elves and their relationship with the trees in Woodwyn. Though it mostly read like a plot device to carry messages to Sorcha’s sister Gwennore, who can also speak to trees, it was fun to see this plot continued and explained from Eight Simple Rules for Dating a Dragon. 


“The elves have a special relationship with the sentient oak trees of Woodwyn. When we die, our bodies and spirits become one with a chosen tree. That, in turn, causes the tree to become one of the Living Oaks.” 


Though it was enjoyable to return to familiar characters and the world of Aetherlan, if I had read How to Love Your Elf as a standalone novel, I would definitely not continue reading the rest of the series. In fact, I almost couldn’t believe I was reading the same series by the same author--and the publisher changes also made me question that. Despite my surprise at how little I liked How to Love Your Elf, I really thought the other novels of the Embraced/Embraced by Magic series were a lot of fun and I’m still invested in what happens to the last of the five Embraced Sisters, Maeve. I can only hope that How to Love Your Elf was a fluke in the series and that the last novel has better, more believable character development, an actual romance I feel like I can support without moral qualms, and dialogue that doesn’t make me laugh for the wrong reasons.