This is a story where I want to jump straight into my thoughts – I had heard so many positive reviews of The Kiss Quotient and the fact that it was a fresh take on romance that I decided I had to give this book a go, and unfortunately it did not live up to the hype (for me).
I’ll start with the positives, Stella, our heroine, is an own voices representation for Asperger’s. Seeing her viewpoint and how she reacted or responded to certain stimuli or scenarios was really interesting. Especially in relation to her family’s expectations for her as she tried to succeed in her career and a personal life. And I am glad that romance as a genre is getting greater representation of the romantic leads because everyone who wants to find love and romance deserves to see themselves represented. I also thought that the start to this story was really strong. I enjoyed our introduction to Stella and Michael and their early interactions I was on board with.
However, as the story developed, I grew to dislike Michael and the way he interacted with Stella. He seemed to become quite pushy and possessive (maybe this is a sign that I do not read a lot of romance). There were some scenes where it didn’t feel as though Stella was leading/pushing her own boundaries, but that Michael was egging her into situations that she was uncertain and uncomfortable with. Given that this story was heavily focused on just the sexual/romantic elements of the relationship (and a little limited on wider plot points), I think it was hard for me to really enjoy the story when I no longer bought into the main couple.
My disappointment probably is a reason I rated this story as low as I did – the few times I have read a fake dating/escort teacher plot I have enjoyed it so I was saddened this was not the case here. I am aware that the author is writing another story relating to Michael’s cousin, who was a character I enjoyed for their brief appearance.
I’ll start with the positives, Stella, our heroine, is an own voices representation for Asperger’s. Seeing her viewpoint and how she reacted or responded to certain stimuli or scenarios was really interesting. Especially in relation to her family’s expectations for her as she tried to succeed in her career and a personal life. And I am glad that romance as a genre is getting greater representation of the romantic leads because everyone who wants to find love and romance deserves to see themselves represented. I also thought that the start to this story was really strong. I enjoyed our introduction to Stella and Michael and their early interactions I was on board with.
However, as the story developed, I grew to dislike Michael and the way he interacted with Stella. He seemed to become quite pushy and possessive (maybe this is a sign that I do not read a lot of romance). There were some scenes where it didn’t feel as though Stella was leading/pushing her own boundaries, but that Michael was egging her into situations that she was uncertain and uncomfortable with. Given that this story was heavily focused on just the sexual/romantic elements of the relationship (and a little limited on wider plot points), I think it was hard for me to really enjoy the story when I no longer bought into the main couple.
My disappointment probably is a reason I rated this story as low as I did – the few times I have read a fake dating/escort teacher plot I have enjoyed it so I was saddened this was not the case here. I am aware that the author is writing another story relating to Michael’s cousin, who was a character I enjoyed for their brief appearance.