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.

So the description sounded pretty decent and I like the idea of women taking control of their bodies and feeling confident and empowered. Wow though, we took a really long and pretty boring path to get there. I didn't care about our main character's boss, her clinical sex therapy or homework assignments, or her annoying friends. If this book is helpful for some people (it gives what I feel like are women's health/body information basic examples/exercises, such as looking at your vulva in the mirror to get better acquainted, etc.), then by all means read it. If you're good with all that, just skip this one; you aren't missing anything.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Paulette Stout deserves all the stars for bringing to the page a story that I haven't seen explored in fiction this way before. The protagonist--Rebecca--has psychological barriers that restrict her ability to enjoy sex, specifically, to have an orgasm. Helen Hoang approached something similar in The Kiss Quotient, which involved a woman on the autism spectrum hiring an escort to conquer her challenges with intimacy. But Stout's challenges are specifically focused on the orgasm, and she seeks out professional help (from a hospital study, to "homework" involving toys and visual materials, to a sex therapist). The story is inspired by the author's own experience, something she relates in an author's note at the end. Many readers will feel "seen" in this novel, and Stout's frank and candid discussions will spark conversations and introspection among readers that might not otherwise have happened.

I love the idea the author is trying to convey in this book - sex positivity and female empowerment. It's good to see the main character taking the step to consult her doctors to overcome her fears and self-doubt regarding organisms. The concept is GREAT. Please let there be more books about it instead of everyone getting earth-shattering sex in the sky (ACOTAR reference).
However...
- The first part of the book reads like a therapy session logbook filled with self-loathing.
- Too much, WAY TOO MUCH self-loathing, and a very passive main character. She's so passive and pessimistic that it's extremely frustrating to read. The way it's written is so very cliché it made me laugh several times.
Quote 1 'Two old ladies talked as they rolled grocery wagons. One full of groceries, one empty. Rebecca knew which hers would be.'
Quote 2 'The floral scent of spring filled her nose. Fresh and clean, it was the antithesis of everything about her life.'
Too bad these quotes aren't meant sarcastically. It would be brilliant if they were.
Scene 1: MC talked to the phone after the other person hung up.
When a theatre kid says it's cliche, it's REALLY cliche. Monologues are okay but DON'T SAY IT OUT LOUD unless on a stage.
- A friendship that doesn't sit well with me. After a whole scene about friends being pushy and the MC being reluctant, the MC would conclude that they're best friends I love them oh so much. Best friend how? I'm not convinced.
- There's more romance in SpongeBob than in this romance book. There's no build-up, no chemistry.
Quote 3: 'He was perfect. She was broken.'
How sad. I don't care.

Overall a disappointing read, the concept is great but I would not recommend this book.

Rebecca and Kyle meet when he moves in to her building. She is just out of a relationship and hurt by what her ex said to her about her performance in bed. This makes her wary of getting close to anyone else, and ends up in a programme that is supposed to help her. Will they give each other a chance?

I would have liked to see more from Kyle's point of view too, as we did in the short prequel.

I really enjoyed the message of female empowerment in this book, while exploring an issue that is incredibly common but never really discussed because of the shame surrounding it. We’re taught not to discuss sex or arousal, and we internalize a lot of feelings because of it.

At first I wasn’t sure about Rebecca’s friends, they seemed overly pushy when she wasn’t ready to talk, but they redeemed themselves (although I’m still not sure why Leslie smoking and the job she was working on was brought up randomly, maybe that’s in the next book). Rebecca has incredibly low self esteem in all aspects of her life, but it’s not made clear whether it stems from her relationship with her parents (likely?), or just from her belief that she can’t climax and from how her ex, Ethan, treated her. She engages in a lot of frequent, negative self talk, I don’t think the fact that she couldn’t climax was the root of all those issues, and it seemed a little outlandish that the ability to orgasm was magically the end all be all to solving the low self esteem and negative self talk.

There were also things that didn’t really work for me. Are there really sex therapists out there that have you strip down in their office and teach you how to masturbate while walking you through a fantasy and dribbling oil on your breasts? This seems like a sexual assault charge waiting to happen… I also didn’t really buy the relationship with Kyle. It happened so quickly and didn’t seem very organic.

The authors note did give really great insight into the book and the author herself and her reason for writing the book, what she was going though and what she hoped that writing it would accomplish. It’s very insightful and the book opens the door for more discussion on the topic, and maybe it will start to feel less like a taboo topic and like something that is okay to discuss and that should be okay to talk about.


Thank you Netgalley and Media Goddess Inc for providing me with this ARC of Love, Only Better.

I was so excited to get Love, Only Better as my first ARC. I saw it and knew it was something I would enjoy and enjoy it I definitely did!

Rebecca is 28 years old and has never had an orgasm. Alone. With a partner. Nada. It's affected her every relationship, especially in the last one. Ethan ended things with her after years of dating because she was "cold" for never hitting the big O with him. His parting words haunt Rebecca and she's hung up on trying to have an orgasm on her own. She thinks there must be a physical issue with her. She doesn't even know what getting there would look like. Enter Kyle, the hot new neighbor. They're attracted to one another immediately and he seems to be the man she's been missing her whole life - attentive, patient, caring, and romantic. But, Rebecca's mental hang ups means she doesn't trust herself and could ruin this fledgling relationship before it has a chance to take off.

There were a few issues I had with the book. I couldn't stand how down on herself Rebecca was ALL the time, but if it was weighing on her mind I guess it's understandable. Kyle was a little too quick with the relationship stuff in my mind. He was having trust issues with her very early on and it just seems a bit much, but dude had been cheated on so.. who am I to judge?! I will say the author's note at the end of this was a breath of fresh air and really enlightened my understanding of where her head was at. Having healthy conversations about sex and empowering women really should be something we aren't ashamed to talk about, yet the majority of us are. In that regard, thus could be a really great thing for someone looking for a little education to pick up and maybe feel less embarrassed. We should be able to talk about this stuff with the people close to us in our lives and for addressing that issue alone, I applause Paulette Stout.

For the record, I would give this a 3.5 if I could!

This was a unique book about a heroine that has hang-ups about sex and self esteem and her journey to find love and an orgasm.A cute story.