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sschany's review against another edition
5.0
This was just a fun and flirty read. Naomi and Oliver were childhood enemies. They both stumbled upon the other through an unexpected apartment interview, Naomi to prove her worth and Oliver just wanting to survive the day while playing caretaker for the 2nd time in his life. Naomi discovers a grudge may not be all it’s worth and chooses the Cunningham men she was raised to loathe instead of her old time enemy memories.
romancelibrary's review against another edition
3.5
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Passion on Park Avenue kicks off the Central Park Pact series by the fantastic Lauren Layne. Three ladies become friends after finding out that they were all dating the same douchebag. They promise to look out for one another as they go back into the dating scene and ultimately become really good friends.
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: Lauren Layne should consider writing screenplays. She has a way of writing the most vivid romantic comedies that the reader can easily visualize as movies. My only issue with LL’s books is that even though they’re set in NYC, I have yet to encounter characters of colour. Her books make the famous city seem completely white, which is so far from the reality of NYC. Regardless, I love her writing and really enjoy her books.
I loved the first half of Passion on Park Avenue – it had everything I could ever want in an enemies to lovers romance. Although, in this case, the enmity is only on the heroine’s side because she is unable to move on from the past. The chemistry between Oliver and Naomi is sizzling and their romance is a total slow burn. However, this book completely lost me in the second half. The slow burning kind of died out and Naomi continued to be stubborn by going on dates with the wrong guy and by refusing to tell Oliver the truth. It was so frustrating because there were so many wasted opportunities, other than jealousy, that could have been used to further develop the relationship. This whole process of Naomi constantly being hot and cold, Oliver being jealous, and Naomi insisting that she will date a douchebag got old real fast.
I’m all for slow burn, but the payoff has to be worth it. Here…the payoff is pretty much nonexistent. The sex scene is fade to black, which is fine. I've read and enjoyed many sweet romances in the past. But I felt like this type of sex scene did not fit the tone of the story at all. It’s like LL tried to make this book sexy without actually making it sexy, if that makes any sense. Normally, I wouldn’t give a warning about sweet romances because they are generally easy to spot, if not from the synopsis, then from the tone of the book when you start reading it. This was not the case with Passion on Park Avenue. This book made me feel like I was headed in one direction and then BAM! All of a sudden, it takes another unexpected route.
I was also pretty annoyed by the fact that Naomi and Oliver's childhood past was a wall between them up until the very end. This leads me to conclude that the resolution was weak because it 1) happened too quickly and 2) we didn’t get anything from Oliver’s POV as he processed everything.
Overall, this was a cute, if somewhat draggy, romance. I am invested in the series and can’t wait for Claire’s book next (the jury is still out on Audrey...). I can't say that Passion on Park Avenue is a book that I will ever pick up again, which is unfortunate because I LOVED the first half of the story so much.
Passion on Park Avenue kicks off the Central Park Pact series by the fantastic Lauren Layne. Three ladies become friends after finding out that they were all dating the same douchebag. They promise to look out for one another as they go back into the dating scene and ultimately become really good friends.
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: Lauren Layne should consider writing screenplays. She has a way of writing the most vivid romantic comedies that the reader can easily visualize as movies. My only issue with LL’s books is that even though they’re set in NYC, I have yet to encounter characters of colour. Her books make the famous city seem completely white, which is so far from the reality of NYC. Regardless, I love her writing and really enjoy her books.
I loved the first half of Passion on Park Avenue – it had everything I could ever want in an enemies to lovers romance. Although, in this case, the enmity is only on the heroine’s side because she is unable to move on from the past. The chemistry between Oliver and Naomi is sizzling and their romance is a total slow burn. However, this book completely lost me in the second half. The slow burning kind of died out and Naomi continued to be stubborn by going on dates with the wrong guy and by refusing to tell Oliver the truth. It was so frustrating because there were so many wasted opportunities, other than jealousy, that could have been used to further develop the relationship. This whole process of Naomi constantly being hot and cold, Oliver being jealous, and Naomi insisting that she will date a douchebag got old real fast.
I’m all for slow burn, but the payoff has to be worth it. Here…the payoff is pretty much nonexistent. The sex scene is fade to black, which is fine. I've read and enjoyed many sweet romances in the past. But I felt like this type of sex scene did not fit the tone of the story at all. It’s like LL tried to make this book sexy without actually making it sexy, if that makes any sense. Normally, I wouldn’t give a warning about sweet romances because they are generally easy to spot, if not from the synopsis, then from the tone of the book when you start reading it. This was not the case with Passion on Park Avenue. This book made me feel like I was headed in one direction and then BAM! All of a sudden, it takes another unexpected route.
I was also pretty annoyed by the fact that Naomi and Oliver's childhood past was a wall between them up until the very end. This leads me to conclude that the resolution was weak because it 1) happened too quickly and 2) we didn’t get anything from Oliver’s POV as he processed everything.
Overall, this was a cute, if somewhat draggy, romance. I am invested in the series and can’t wait for Claire’s book next (the jury is still out on Audrey...). I can't say that Passion on Park Avenue is a book that I will ever pick up again, which is unfortunate because I LOVED the first half of the story so much.
bookbakingwithmagic's review against another edition
3.0
I love how the girls support each other even though they met under odd circumstances.
The parallels between Naomi and Oliver and Anne and Gilbert were super cute! I really want to get myself a copy of Anne and the Green Gables and this book just got me even more excited about it.
I love hate to love relationships so this was lots of fun. Time to listen to Claire’s story!
The parallels between Naomi and Oliver and Anne and Gilbert were super cute! I really want to get myself a copy of Anne and the Green Gables and this book just got me even more excited about it.
I love hate to love relationships so this was lots of fun. Time to listen to Claire’s story!
tchien's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I feel like I could have enjoyed this book more had I been in a better mood. Having said that, I could objectively say that this was more or less a decent story with believable, albeit occasionally bad decision making characters, especially the heroine.
Though the environment and characters felt a bit outdated, harkening back to Lipstick Jungle, Cashmere Mafia, and Sex and the City days, It was still a largely enjoyable story that was more angsty than I expected. Which is actually a good thing for the story. Don't let the cutesy cover fool you. There was far more emotional character growth and exposure to serious topics like dealing with Alzheimer's and the realities of interacting with the 1 percenters.
I wouldn't mind finishing the rest of the series though perhaps not right away.
Though the environment and characters felt a bit outdated, harkening back to Lipstick Jungle, Cashmere Mafia, and Sex and the City days, It was still a largely enjoyable story that was more angsty than I expected. Which is actually a good thing for the story. Don't let the cutesy cover fool you. There was far more emotional character growth and exposure to serious topics like dealing with Alzheimer's and the realities of interacting with the 1 percenters.
I wouldn't mind finishing the rest of the series though perhaps not right away.
kaycozycorner's review against another edition
5.0
I really loved this book. I’m a sucker for all New York books and the upper east side. I really liked Naomi and how she wasn’t stuck up and the friends that she had made under the circumstances were hilarious.
afrathefish's review against another edition
2.5
apparently on some lauren layne bender bc i can’t seem to get enough. i can’t vouch for these books being written well, nor is it something i would recommend, but there’s a way her writing manages to tickle my brain. this book specifically was slightly more heavy handed than most of her other works, but i digged it well enough. it seems my brain doesn’t want to think and lauren layne’s writing is a good enough form of escapism