DNF at 48%

While I was reading this book I was feeling very iffy about the disability rep. There were some things that I was reading that made me upset. I am not own voices, so please take a look at own voices reviews explaining why they were upset with this book. After I read own voices reviews I did not feel comfortable with finishing this. I am really upset because I want to LOVE this book.

Thank you, NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Lovely, heart warming, romantic read. Fabulous to read the story from the perspective of both the main characters. The challenges of living with disability that isn’t instantly apparent are portrayed realistically and give an insight into the challenges others face. Great read!

Thank you Netgalley

I decided to read this book, because I saw that the main character had a brain injury. As a disabled person myself, I'm always looking for more positive disability representation in books. This was not that.
This book had me feeling a bit... well concerned from the get go about how the disability rep was going to be handled. The book describes Seraphina (the one with the brain injury) as broken. Repeatedly.
Throughout the book it was clear that Seraphina was embarrassed about being disabled, which that's fine. A lot of disabled people have felt like that, especially when they first become disabled or realize it. But I wanted this book to end up Seraphina being proud of herself and her disability, and that just didn't happen. Or even close to that. Once the romance started, Seraphina's TBI just sort of disappears. She kept repeating over and over again how nobody would want to date her because she is disabled. Sweets, there's more to life than some lame billionaire who doesn't think anyone aside from him deserves oxygen.

This book took my interest with the main character being a female in STEM. Any book with this topic included is necessary and already gets a good rating in my books.

Overall I enjoyed this and I especially liked the duel perspectives. It felt everything was that bit more explained and complete. I did find some aspects incredibly far fetched or unbelievable. Mainly if I'm honest the whole character of Milo. I can't place my finger on it but I found him troubling.

There was one interaction with his father that read untrue and unrealistic. During the entire book, he is dominant and controlling but in this subplot, he was happy with submission and was grateful for someone to take control. From what we learn about the character the event would normally make him feel emasculated or at the very least the defence would feel like a step too close to intrusive. A case of too much too soon. For me, this broke the immersion for the sake of making a cliche relating to Seraphina.

Seraphina was a perfect lead if not stubborn in a way that was incredibly counterproductive. The way her character helped navigate and highlight brain injuries and trauma after the initial incident was admirable. Everything about her read true and it was great to see a sexual side brought to a character with a disability as this seems rarely covered in modern contemporary romances.

I did find their relationship rushed and I think my discomfort with Milo possibly stems from this. For Seraphina who struggles with changes in routine Milo seems to ramp things up very quickly. Although he makes allowances for her disability like her sleeping due to her chronic fatigue a comment is always made. This feels like he acknowledges her disability but doesn't quite understand how to really deal with it. He is controlling in terms of other men's contact with Seraphina and compromises don't seem to be in his remit. Despite being a billionaire scientist CEO I can't help but feel Seraphina deserved better.

The three-quarter of the way conflict also felt contrived. Considering what Seraphina had dealt with in the past this felt petty and exaggerated.

Overall as a first read from this author, it was enjoyable and I would read more from her. The book tackled themes that I haven't been introduced to before and I enjoyed the strong female lead.

I enjoyed this story, I thought it was easy to read and always love a story with STEM representation.
I would say at times reading that the main character was ‘broken’ because of her brain injury was tough, even if the character did feel that way herself.

Really enjoyed this quirky, STEM-esque rom-com with a bit of spice! I wish it were longer with more character depth, but it read at a quick pace and kept me engaged throughout. Loved the boss/millionaire vibes and the lab setting. I'm all about a guy protecting his love interest from bullies, the environment, themselves and felt that Sophie did a nice job tying that in but also allowing the MC to learn and grow.

Two haunted people that find unexpected support in each other to conquer their own monsters within,. Such a sweet romance of being vulnerable with just the right person and take the risk to have someone else help you.

This book was a clever romantic comedy. It reminded me of the kiss quotient, i strongly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Helen Hoang's writing. Four out of five stars.

I appreciated that the author, Sophie Penhaligon, depicted a disabled woman, specifically someone with a brain injury, in an authentic manner. What I mean by that is that the author talked about how Seraphina struggled with verbally communicating and her social anxiety after her brain injury but didn't turn the book into inspiration porn and imply that disabled people are only good for romance when the partner pities them for their disability instead of seeing them as a person with a personality, wants, needs, and desires.

The romance was somewhat predictable, but I appreciated seeing the two perspectives from Seraphina and Milo. I loved the office romance and hope to hear more from the author whether it's another romance novel or a book in another genre.

I wanted to love this - I love math and have enjoyed other similar romcoms with quirky characters! - but the writing just didn’t work for me. I probably only got 15% through :( Maybe with some editing it could be redeemed!!

I didn't like the way the main character in the book, Seraphina, was often described as a broken person for being disabled. Seraphina deserved more, she's a very sweet character that I liked very much, but this story doesn't do her any justice. It seemed like she never grew and developed as a character. I'm not a disabled person but when I read a book with a fat main character I feel hugged by the book, almost like I'm able to understand more of myself. I can only assume other people should feel the same way, you should be proud of who you are. I wished the main character could have seen this at the end, but unfortunately, she didn't

Safety in Numbers was unfortunately not the book for me. I didn't like how Seraphina was presented as a broken woman, undeserving of love because of her traumatic brain injury and I particularly detested the therapist telling her that her failing relationships were her fault for not being up front about her disability? It came across as tone deaf and disrespectful and for that reason I just couldn't get behind it.

Rating = 3.5/5

Safety in Numbers is a nice quick read about Seraphina, a woman who suffers from aphasia, as she rejoins the world of work. This is a romance so of course, she meets the grumpy, bit-of-an-ass Milo who happens to be the CEO of the company.

Safety in Numbers is set mainly in Seraphina's workplace which was different, but I wish this had led to a bit more "lab talk" to provide more depth to the characters and help the setting feel more real. It did suit the characters, but I wanted more.

The characters were likeable enough. It was really interesting learning more about aphasia via Seraphina. However, I hated Seraphina's self-hate and belief that she was worthless. But I could understand the struggles aphasia could cause. I kind of preferred Milo as a character (even though his name just reminds me of The Tweenies). I really liked his grumpy but soft in the centre personality and his patience with Seraphina. He was a bit of a gem.

Safety in Numbers is told from both Seraphina and Milo's perspectives - not quite alternating every chapter but almost. I think this helped open up both characters to the reader more. I could really understand how aphasia affected both Seraphina and Milo as he communicated with her. I do not suffer from aphasia so cannot tell if the representation is accurate but I learned and went on a Wikipedia trip to find out more.

The story was slightly predictable as I could who was going to be the problem as soon as they were introduced. I do wish there was more confrontation at the end to add a bit more drama.

Safety in Numbers was an interesting read that had me researching. I wish there was more depth to both the characters and the story, but it was an enjoyable palate cleanser after some heavier reads and I flew through it. I would definitely recommend it to fans of easy, contemporary romances.

The main character annoyed me when I think I should have been feeling sympathetic towards her. Didn't finish as a result and moved on

Unfortunately, this novel just didn't work for me as a reader.

The premise was all there, but sadly I just wasn't able to connect well with the story once executed.

This wasn't for me. It wasn't that the book was poorly written - it's more that the protagonists didn't make an impression on me. The writing is a bit staccato, but that might be an intentional choice, to better portray the inner life of a character with neurological health issues. I wanted to like this book more than I did, especially because a grumpy hero who is a secret softie is one of my favourite tropes, but I just couldn't get into it.

Once I got into this book, I couldn't stop reading it. I was on my phone in the car, at school, before bed... literally everywhere. It has every single trope you'd ever need: boss x assistant, overcoming trauma, pushing the boundaries, and tons of romance ;) Thank you so much to Sophie Penhaligon's team and Netgalley for this amazing ARC!

This started out strong. I was fascinated by the routines Seraphina established to keep herself organized and stress free. I found the explanation of aphasia and how she deals with it so interesting. But it (not just the routines) became repetitive and this slowed the development of the characters and took me out of the story. Their romance was sweet but it felt like something was missing. There was no real chemistry, although they talked about their chemistry often. And it all sounded the same, was all in the same voice despite being divided up into different chapters for Seraphina and Milo. With some editing and more character development, I could have really enjoyed this.

You cannot miss this Sophie Penhaligon book! This cute rom-com book is the best! What is not to love about the characters and the building plot.

Go to IG: @entre.mi.libro.y.yo to read the full review

First of all, I want to thank the publisher, the author, and NetGalley for providing me with this book.

A couple of weeks after reading this book, I can safely say that there's not much to remember about it.

What I liked:
It is fun, a pageturner, and even romantic.

What I didn't like:
It is not memorable, a romance like any other.
I read some reviews in which was said that the disability shown in the book was not accurately displayed.
I thought that the main character Seraphina lost herself sometimes, and did things that were not like her.

I gave this book 3 stars because it kept me wanting to know the rest of the story and, yeah, it was fun.