Member Reviews
With a slow start, this book didn’t give me much to hope for. It took me almost two weeks to get through the first 20%, but from there on I read the remaining 80% in one day.
Somehow this book was able to touch on topics of childhood trauma, substance abuse, and domestic violence, while maintaining the rom-com vibe promised on the cover. Love, Liana… Sincerely, Kade touched me way more than I originally thought possible. At times I wanted to physically shake them, but you have to root for Kade and Liliana.
I have received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Shout out to Xpresso Book Tours, Allie Doherty, and NetGalley for the ARC!
I adored this book.
It was everything I wanted in a romcom- funny and heartwarming.
Not without it's drama- Stephanie's substory was heartbreaking and extremely traumatic to read at times. This was not the warm and fluffy read you would expect, and it really is moving.
I loved Liana and Kade, they were the perfect characters to tell this story. I laughed with them often.
The story of the agony aunt/ lifestyle guru was just fantastic- I looked forward to reading it every bedtime and it was exactly what I needed.
I liked the story and the way the character interacted between them, because it really brings something different to their story.
Recommend this book for those who love stories when the main character balance each other.
The book also delves into tough issues including drug abuse, domestic violence, and homelessness. so if anything like that triggers you is best avoid.
This book was everything I wanted it to be. It had me turned pages without even realizing. It was so good!
This is a really quick read! I hadn't seen the character of a love/romance blogger before so this was an interesting take and the main characters were well rounded. I will say, there was some notes on domestic violence and parent death - the second was tough for me to ride with as I've lost my parents. But, it was handled well within the story.
Overall it's a good read but definitely more than I bargained for. The characters make the story. I enjoyed the romance. But there was a lot of other drama that I wasn't expecting from the cover and blurb. The story has a lot of depth. So as long as you aren't going into expecting a light romance read I think readers will really enjoy it.
Love, Liana... Sincerely Kade by Allie Doherty
First of all I want to thank @netgalley for the opportunity to read this novel.
This was such emotional and funny and then again heartbreaking and then so beautiful all at once. I cried and laughed at these two, especially when he admitted that he loved her and she was all that he needed.
Please check the triggers for this one.
It was a good one it reminded me of one of Taylor Swifts songs named Gorgeous. Especially the love between Liana and Kade.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice : ⭐️⭐️
#BOOKREVIEW + Love Liana, Sincerely Kade by Allie Doherty 💌💕
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hey hey ✌️ thank you so much to @netgalley for sending me a review copy to read and review! xx
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FINALLY, a romance novel that wasn't STEREOTYPICAL!!
I went in thinking this was all gonna be cliché and just the normal romance story out there...
I was GLADLY mistaken! 😍
The book revolves around love blogger, Liana, who binge-watches rom-coms as if they were her only supply of oxygen. But it was the closest thing she had to actual ‘love’.
As for Kade, a man with a face of a god and a streak of arrogance, he’s a man for the ladies.
Liana and Kade’s personalities were so complementing to each other! The nonsensical banter they engaged in, and the way they interacted with each other was hilarious 😂 I am a big lover of humour in books, and this book deserves a medal for the amount of times it made me laugh out loud.
Liana and Kade had such a soulful bond, one that brought all the fuzzy feels! 😋
When Liana accidentally agrees to launch a sex section on her love blog in two months, she seeks the help of Kade, the man who has slept with more women than he can count. But Kade needs Liana's advice as to why he doesn’t seem to have the capability to love.
I loved, loved, loved the story premise! 😍
There was such a great balance in the plot, with sensual and cute wholesome moments between Liana and Kade. It was also a surprise when the story wasn’t wholly focused on the love between the two main characters. The side characters made their own important appearances! ✨
I loved that Kit, Zoe, (Liana’s sisters), and Kade’s good friend Stephanie had unique, yet contrasting personalities that were greatly defined. Their own stories intertwined with Liana and Kade’s, making the story all the more special! xx
Love Liana, Sincerely Kade is a cute, inspiring, and hilarious rom-com that conjures all the good feelings one can feel! I absolutely had a blast reading it! ❤️
Rating: ⅘ ✨
TW: mention of abuse of side character…
Thank you to NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours/Lake County Press for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Truthfully, I am not sure how to feel about this book. The summary seemed great and like an enjoyable rom-com with some spice. It felt more like fanfiction-style writing and the plot jumped around a lot. It seemed like every single character had their own spin-off novel worth of issues. Not a bad book, but go in with an open mind and check trigger warnings beforehand.
TW: Drug use, Domestic abuse/violence, Loss of a parent, Infidelity
4 stars
You can read all of my reviews at Nerd Girl Loves Books.
This is a cute and sexy contemporary romance set in NYC. Liana is a single romantic-advice blogger that is pressured by fans to add sex advice to her blog. Uncomfortable with the topic, she seeks advice from a cocky man that emailed her for advice about love. Enter Kade, the cocky guy who drinks too much whiskey and only has one-night stands. He wrote Liana asking her if love really exists. They develop an unlikely friendship, with Liana helping him figure out love, and Kade giving her advice about her sex blog. What they didn't expect was the chemistry they can't deny.
This was a quick and easy read that surprised me because it is more than just a rom-com. The book also delves into tough issues including drug abuse, domestic violence, and homelessness. I liked Liana's firmly held belief in romantic love, despite not experiencing a lot of it herself. Steeped in a movie list of classic rom-coms, she exudes confidence that finding true love is attainable. However I felt her inability to forgive her step-sister for a youthful transgression, her seemingly indifference to repairing the relationship with her once-close sister, and calculated actions she takes later in the book was out of character for someone that portrays herself as a relationship expert.
I felt the back story with Liana's father and their brief interactions were ultimately pointless in the overall story other than to depict Liana's strive to be independent. I think that could have been described in a briefer way without pulling the reader out of the main story. It felt like the author was trying to pack in as much complicated back-story as she could, but the story didn't need this and it was unnecessary. Also detracting from the story were the multiple forays into minor character arcs. I understand the author wanted to use these storylines to add background to why the main characters acted and felt the way they did, I just think they could have been tightened up and shorter, so the book wouldn't lose too much focus on the main story.
I really liked Kade as well. He is a study in contradictions. He reveled in his self-described jerk persona, however his big heart is clearly displayed by his protection of his best friend Stephanie and his efforts to get her away from her abusive girlfriend. They share a backstory of childhood abuse and neglect, both fleeing their horrible existence in Chicago for NYC. I loved his interactions with Liana. Their chemistry is fire and their banter is adorable. The slow-burn love story is drawn out a bit long for my taste, but the author eventually gets there. What was a little bit jarring, however, was the speed at which they went from flirty banter to basically living and working together like an old married couple. Thus, the stereotypical 80% roadblock that halted the couple's relationship was annoying and abruptly stopped the story's momentum. However, the ultimate resolution and epilogue brought me back and the ending was satisfying.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley, Lake County Press and Review, and Love Book Tours. All opinions are my own. If you want a book with a bit more depth than your typical rom-com, I highly recommend you read this book.
Thank you so much to NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC of "Love Liana...Sincerely Kade", written by Allie Doherty. This novel was released on September 27th, 2022.
Overall, I rated this novel 3/5 stars!
This book centers around Liana, who knows a lot about love, and Kade, who knows a lot about sex, but isn't certain if love truly exists. He sends an email to Liana's advice column - and this is where things start to pick up. The main storyline of the book is that each of them teaches the other a bit about these two particular subjects - which will either bring the two of them closer together or further apart.
This was such a great romance read. I read a lot of romance, it is probably my most read genre, so it is hard for me to find romance books that I really enjoy since I have read so many. A lot of romance novels read kind of tired for me, like I've already read the story before. I did not have that issue with Love Liana... Sincerely Kade. I was gripped by this book from beginning to end and was pleasantly surprised that it also dealt with some heavier topics as well (TW for physical/mental abuse, childhood neglect/abuse, drug/alcohol addiction, and the occasional panic attack).
Liana loves love, so much so that she writes an entire blog about it. The irony of her lack of a love life when giving love advice for a living is not lost on her, and when her fans demand more advice on the sexual side of relationships, she finds herself stuck. In enters Kade. Smooth, suave, and certified Casanova he is everything Liana is not. Kade has never been in love, he is not sure if he is capable of love. He figures that the best person to help with his predicament is certified love expert Liana. She provides the love advice while he helps her with the sex advice. What starts out as a mutually beneficial partnership between two people slowly develops into a friendship which eventually grows into something more. But how long can it last?
Love Liana.... Sincerely Kade was a gripping romance from start to finish. I read it in less than 24 hours! Definitely a favorite romance for the year.
This is the first book I have read by this author and I was really excited by the premise.
I think the beginning was a touch slow and had a lot of build-up before the story really took off. I thought the characters had a lot of chemistry and I enjoyed the banter, but I felt like the side stories with the other characters didn't really add to the overall story. I liked Stephanie's side story a little more since her relationship was similar to Kade's mom and can explain his hesitancy with love/relationships, but Liana's family drama was just a little too messy and also felt forced.
The ending was not a favorite by any means- it really felt like it was rushed to have everything tied together and again, just didn't add to the overall storyline. It felt long because of all the loose ends (i.e. Kit breaking away from Zoe/the family, Kit getting married, Liana/Kade getting engaged, etc.) Very little was actually developed and it was more so like the author is just telling you point blank what occurred, rather than showing you or giving you signs before the epilogue of where the plot was going.
For the most part, I enjoyed the book, but I feel like it could've been developed a little more. The chemistry, the banter, and the premise were all great, but the execution missed the mark slightly and some side parts took too much away from the main storyline.
Liana Dawson is a romantic-advice blogger who gives great advice until she is asked to provide sex advice. Given she could be considered perpetually single, and with little advice to give, she finds herself drawn to Kade Jennings, someone who knows all about sex but nothing about love. When Kade asks for advice about love in an email to Liana, it begins a friendship that leaves her questioning everything she thought she knew.
Whilst this book does begin slowly, revealing more about Liana and her family than her relationship with Kade, it does then branch out after the first half, to explore their relationship. There is great chemistry between them and their confidence with each other, helped to build their relationship. It was great to see them gradually reveal their feelings and be themselves. A sweet romance.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This book sounded really good and had a great premise, but I found myself immediately turned off to both characters. Kade is your typical selfish male who discards women, and Liana is selfish, a bit pretentious, and woe is me. I tried getting past it but in the beginning when Liana is so rude about her sister, I stopped.
I couldn’t bring myself to finish it and DNFed. Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Wow this cover is adorable and fits the main characters Kade and Liana. But this book isn’t a rom-com and it covers serious topics you wouldn’t expect by the blurb and jacket alone. Liana writes a love advice blog and is trying to grow it to be her full time occupation. Kade is king of the one night stands and writes Liana asking if true love exists. The two get together striking a bargain. She will help him focus on dates and non physical love and he in return will coach her on sex so she can answer those type of questions. That is well and good but the romance story is very slow getting started. I put this book aside a couple of times before returning.
There is a lot of dysfunctional family dynamics for both of them. A wicked half sister moves in and there is huge issues with daddy but they both disappear in the second half of the story. And I’m still not feeling any resolution about her beloved sister who sells out to her father. Other than a couple of lines you don't see her redemption so I’m still feeling betrayed by her. Kade has a horrific childhood back story. And his best friend is in an extremely abusive relationship. I could get behind his efforts to help her or cut her off until he commits a felony in the process just to be the alpha male.
I was frustrated that so many little things didn’t get closure or didn’t fully make sense. If you’re going to be the evil sister then I want to see a better comeuppance. I want to have the conversation where beloved sister comes back to Liana. Even the start with the letter writing did not make sense. Advice columnists get hundreds of letters and they choose a few for replying. It seems silly that she would have 24 hour guarantee to respond policy unless she is being paid to specifically reply.
That being said the main romance is sweet. There are funny lines and good banter. And the characters, especially Kade have growth (with the help of therapy) during the course of the book. I think the extra stuff interfered too much with my focus and the main story. And the angst moment near the end seems to be thrown in for formula’s sake. I almost threw my tablet down at that point. But Liana is just expected to understand his panic because he says the magic three little words. I think I’m being generous with my 3 stars but I would read the author again hoping for better focus.
Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Country Press & Review for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of the book.. First off please read the trigger warning. I missed and got a little bit of a surprise. Did that stop me from enjoying the book no.
Ok so who can't love a gorgeous hot shot who realizes that his love life isn't exactly stellar. So how does he go back dealing with it, By writing into a love column.
Then you have a young woman who hasn't every really been in love writing a love column,. And the best part is that she gives herself a timeline, It brought me back to the days of dominoes get your pizza in 30 minutes or its free.
But I digress.
It was a good read that had angst , spice and a few moments of rip your heart out.
The cover and provided description for this book are amazing! I can see how many people would enjoy this book, but unfortunately it isn't for me.
I appreciate how the author tried to include some tough topics, but I think it could have used some work.
Kade living with his P.A. was a strange touch, but I think the attempt was to make him more relatable? Liana could have used some therapy and I really struggled to like her as a character.
The intent of this story was good, and I will read other works by this author, but this one just wasn't my cup of tea.
This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, from Lake County Press and Review and #NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to preview and review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
Liana and Kade are both relatable while you hope to be like them.
Messy but in the best way possible, is the only way to describe Liana and Kade!
Liana is trying to get her blog up and become a household name, but one email has her perplexed. Kade is trying to figure out his future so when he emails the infamous Liana he feels closer to finding answers until she asks to meet him!
A seriously of hilarious events leads these two to become friends, but a palpable attraction is there and they have to make some tough decisions!!
I love the sensitive man Kade is. You never see a hero in touch with his emotions and seeing Kade grow into the man he becomes was so beautiful! Seeing Liana come to terms with life and accept her happiness just really rounded out the whole book!