Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I have so many conflicting/complicated thoughts about this book! I am always thankful for books that challenge the conventional norms of romance, particularly in regards to the typical sexual tropes of automatic orgasms all day every day, and I appreciated that Stout decided to frame a story around the topic. There are parts of this book that I found to be heartbreakingly poignant and very real -- particularly the trauma of her relationship and breakup with Ethan and the pressure and insecurity she felt with him and because of him. In a world where the "orgasm gap" exists, these stories are so important and meaningful. My hesitancies come more with the character of Kyle. Yes, he existed as the perfect foil to Ethan and he was highly swoon-worthy, but I also found him to be a little too perfect and a little too convenient to the plot? Because of this, I found Rebecca's constant refusal to communicate with him to then be extremely frustrating...there was just something a little off there. Their relationship also just seemed to go from 0-100 really fast, and that messed with the pacing of the book at times. My other hesitancy stems from Rebecca's behavior/choices at certain moments, particularly with Kyle's ex and then with the sex therapist, but also with her friends ..... she seems to not understand boundaries and her repeated actions made me not like her at all, which was very frustrating as a reader who wanted to root for her!
Overall, this book is a good step in the right direction in terms of the larger subject matter but its execution fails to fully deliver.

I found Love, Only Better to be very cute. This book wasn't my usual speed but it was enjoyable and entertaining.

Blurb:
Our main character is 28-year old, Jewish-Latina Rebecca. In her 28 years on this earth she has never been able to achieve the big O. This issue has ruined many, if not all her relationships and sexual experiences. She has decided to swear off dating. Until, a sexy biker by the name of Kyle moves in across the hall. There is instant chemistry between the two when they meet. Rebecca wants her relationship with Kyle to work but she believes in order to do that she must figure out how to achieve the big O. This is her big secret and she can't solve this problem on her own to she brings in the experts.

Review:

There were many elements to this book that made it enjoyable. I liked the idea of women empowerment and I felt like the characters were great and diverse. I've never read a cute romance novel with a Jewish lead so that was sweet. This was ideally a slow-burn which I usually like but couldn't really buckle in for this ride. There were times when I felt like Rebecca really needed a therapist and not a vibrator. She had a lot of self hatred and confidence issues. Which naturally I believe her past relationships contributed to but she was borderline obsessive about her quest for an orgasm as if it was the cure to a deadly disease. Alternatively, this was a learning experience for her and perhaps this journey of self discovery really was important for her to grow as a person. overall, this probably wasn't my favorite read.

Thank you NetGalley and PR by the Book for this ARC

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I was so excited when I saw I got Love, Only Better arc because I really like that in this book the author deals with very important issues, such as female empowerment. However, I did not like it as much as I thought I would. I really liked the blurb, so I expected to love the book, but sadly the plot barely matched it.
I think the story was too focused on Rebecca's and that we needed more of Kyle's perspective.
Overall many things in this book didn’t work for me.

The premise and blurb of this book intrigued me and brought me in. I wasn't expecting the typical romance story line and thought this would be a little more of a common issue among women. However, the plot did not deliver and the overall story was lost to me. Again the concept of female empowerment was promised but I don't feel it fully delivered.

I would still have women read this book as there is a lot of research and information but maybe it was too much at one time.

I truly wanted to like this novel, as it has a favorite trope. Unfortunately, I felt that the heroine's problem and her therapy for that issue was handled in a way that interfered with the story (it felt a bit too clinical and creepy?) Also, how her therapy created a conflict for the couple just didn't feel believable to me.

In Love, Only Better Rebecca is on a mission to find that missing piece from her sex life that has caused her nothing but problems. The first step is admitting there’s something wrong and that’s exactly what Rebecca does and how she ended up in a clinical study for women in her similar situation. Things are uncomfortable but going okay until a complication moves in across the hall in the form of a tall and handsome motorcycle rider named Kyle. Can Rebecca’s journey of self improvement continue and allow her to have a future with Kyle?

This book really embraces women’s sexuality and their needs and desire to feel comfortable with themselves. Rebecca is definitely on a journey of self discovery and improvement throughout the book and learns so much. The only real hang up I had with Rebecca’s character is that she was so incredibly hard on herself almost to a point that I felt like skipping over her inner monologue thoughts. Trust me, I understand everyone is their own worst critic and struggle with confidence from time to time but it was a constant thing for her character. Overall this was a good and enjoyable (and informative) read.

Thank you @netgalley and publishers for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

Nope. I don’t want to know what kind of friendships the author has in their life. If I had to guess by this book they’d be toxic, full of judgement and hazardous to your mental health.

Female empowerment, YES. This book, NO. I was so bored. So so bored. Although the sex scenes were steamy enough, the actual story wasn't worth it.

“Someone ought to tell Goth-Girl that she was entirely too happy to be dressed like that.” -From Love, Only Better

Oh, I thought I would love this book. I loved the blue, and the cute bright colored cover. This book ended up putting me in a mini reading slump. Many things didn’t work for me. One, the creepy doctor scenes. It was so all off putting. I would like to erase all of that from my brain. Two, there are almost exclusively toxic female relationships. From the mother, friends, coworkers, even just people the MC meets she has to lash out with judgmental comments like this one I quoted. Rebecca is even mean to poor birds outside her window- she was so unlikeable. Three, the love interest seemed so imaginary and a complete prop. Even with him being so one dimensional, he would still deserve better than our MC. The writing shifts from describing certain unimportant things in vivid detail, like the pharmacy, to almost glossing over what readers want to spend time on like the meet cute.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was not for me but I will say I loved that the author was thorough and detailed about the steps to achieving the big O in a way that didn't shame any kinks or make the reader feel like what they fantasized about was wrong. That being said I was not rooting for Becca and Kyle to get together because he seemed just as toxic as her putz ex BF Ethan.

The topic of this book is one which has been a long time coming (pardon the pun) as it counters the myths which have informed so many romance novels for generations. I can imagine many readers picking this up with a sigh of relief that finally a romance book will offer some realism about the physical aspects of the relationships it contains. The premise of this book is great but I found some of the less appealing aspects of the book outweighed that a bit. Some pretty toxic relationships undid a lot of the potential this books offers.

So... this is awkward because this book is one big tough cookie. As much as I loved the blurb, the plot barely matched that, if at all. Unfortunately, the style didn't help the case as I often found it dry and I felt like I was reading a script rather than an actual finished piece.

It was a little stalkerish, a little troubling with the doctors and some other situations Rebecca inserted herself into and in the end, I still question what was her real motivation.

Kyle is an eye-candy for sure, and I loved him most times but a little more build up with that relationship wouldn't have hurt. As it is, poor boy gave the impression of being a prop and the prize for Rebecca. And not in the cute way. More like when you treat a dog when they follow your orders. That treat was Kyle.

I fully understand and support the message at it's core, that's the reason why this book caught my interest in the first place, but... this series of unfortunate events was just not it.

Over all, it was interesting to see how Rebecca dealt with her situation but there were so many wrong turns on the way, it was hard to believe she could land where she did in the end.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for access to the advance reader copy of Love, Only Better.

The concept of this book really appealed to me - I love the idea of exploring the mechanisms of female pleasure. The author’s note was great too, it helped set the intention of the book.

Unfortunately I had some issues with the execution.

Things I liked:
- The awareness raised re. the female orgasm
- Reflecting on the relationship between self confidence and pleasure - although I found it strange that having an orgasm seemed to immediately improve Rebecca’s confidence

Things I didn’t like:
- Rebecca’s friends weren’t very good to her - they did improve, but they were tough at the start
- Some scenes were really over the top long and descriptive (like what was in each aisle at a pharmacy), but key elements (like a build up to Kyle and Rebecca getting together) were lacking
- The study seemed quite unusual, particularly the pressure the Drs put on Rebecca, and the filming component - I question the ethics?
- I also am unsure about the ethics of the sex therapist

There were a few typos (organisms instead of orgasms etc.) which might need to be checked before publication.

In short: I absolutely loved the idea of this book, but the ”romance” execution fell short. I think it could have been really fun if Kyle was 100% committed to working with Rebecca on achieving her orgasm and went on the journey with her.

This book deals with very important issues, and I really wanted to like it. But I couldn't.
The amount of self-loathing from the main character was way to much, to the point of being boring (and trust me, I know a LOT about self-loathing). The study seemed like it was being done in the 50's, the best friends were bullies.

The concept was good, the idea of talking about difficult issues that women face with their sexuality was very good, but in the end the execution was poor.

This story is unique in the sense that most romance stories feature intimate moments that always go according to plan and then some. I appreciated that this story had a more realistic representation of intimacy and the struggles that often go undiscussed when they occur in the bedroom. While the pacing of this book seemed to lag at times and the study that Rebecca participated in during the first half of this book had me feeling unsure about the trajectory of the story, I could see how that was a starting point for Rebecca to learn more about herself and discover new ways to learn about herself. Her journey towards self confidence and ownership of who she is makes this book feel like part romance and women’s fiction. I found some of the main character’s struggles very relatable and could empathize with what she was going through. Her vulnerabilities and her struggles had the reader routing for her and wanting her to find the happily ever after she deserved. It was nice to see the realistic way that couples can discuss openly and honestly about health, physical needs and expectations during the course of this story. That’s not something I see often (if ever) in romances and appreciated those themes throughout this book. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this story, all thoughts are my own.

I firmly believe this book is well-intentioned and may be of great use to women experiencing similar issues. As a didactic tool or a conversation starter, it has lots of value. And it's definitely a conversation that SHOULD be started. There is so much silence and ignorance around women's sexual health (let alone their actual pleasure!) that any discussion and resources are extremely valuable.

That said, as literature, this did not work too well for me. The scenarios of sexual health research, treatment, and therapy concerned me as they didn't fit the ethical or courtesy standards I would expect (the research study therapists seemed pushy and remarkably unconcerned with their participant's comfort and I can't imagine a "watch your language" warning when asking a woman to describe her intimate history and experiences). The actual characters and plot were not developed to an equal degree as the main character's therapeutic journey.

I wouldn't discourage anyone experiencing sexual dysfunction from picking this up--it includes clear, explicit information about several possible methods of resolving issues and may be more accessible/less intimidating than clinical works. However, if one is simply looking for an enjoyable story to read for fun, this is probably not the best choice.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

I was so excited to get Love, Only Better as my first ARC because I loved the concept of this book. I liked the message of female empowerment and the way it shows that women should discuss sex and orgasm more often without being ashamed of it. But I guess this was the only thing I really enjoyed.

I felt like things were happening too fast, it seemed there were a lot of things going on at the same time and that none of them have been well developed.

I didn't really care about the romance because they had zero development. They just met and were already in love. Kyle was a nice guy but I missed some development and they had no chemistry.

So, I really enjoyed the concept but overall was a little bit disappointing.

Thank you Netgalley and Media Goddess Inc for this ARC.

I loved the way Paulette Stout wrote Rebecca's story. I loved the feminism and the long overdue mentions of women's basic needs/wants. It was a quick, fun read. The chemistry between Kyle and Rebecca had me on the edge of my seat. I definitely recommend this book.

I really, really struggled to get into this book no matter how many times I tried. I just couldn't get Rebecca's voice or into her head. I couldn't finish it. I liked the idea of it, women not being embarrassed to embrace or enjoy their sexual pleasure in romance isn't always brought up enough in this context.
Thanks to netgalley and the author for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

With a great and important message of female empowerment, Love, Only Better gives light and explores an issue often disregarded and made to feel shameful. I loved the authors take on sex positivity and loving and accepting yourself without judgment.

I do have to say that, Love, Only Better was wildly different from my expectation after reading the blurb and accompanying prequel short. The story was too focused on Rebecca's issues, mostly occurring in her own head, rather on the relationship building between the two MCs, which made it a little tedious and long winded at times.
I would have loved to see more from Kyle's prospective, as his character came across as a little flat - an accessory to Rebecca and not a MC on it's own merit - in contrary to the prequel short where I really liked him.

3.5 stars and an O.