BOOK REVIEW: ALEX, APPROXIMATELY BY JENN BENNETT

(2.5-3 stars)

Twas okay... :|



I'm thinking it was a mistake to read this so soon after reading Noteworthy because even though they're different contemporaries, this book totally, totally pales in comparison. I wasn't expecting a replica of You've Got Mail or anything—it is a retelling after all—but I was still very underwhelmed by this.

#1 (and my biggest problem with this book): I just didn't get why Bailey and Porter were drawn to each other. Considering that 95% of this book is romance, this was a substantial issue. He was an ass to her in the beginning FOR NO DISCERNIBLE REASON and then suddenly he was spilling his guts to her, also—you guessed it—FOR NO DISCERNIBLE REASON. Their actual relationship was okay, I didn't hate it, but it definitely wasn't something I was wowed by. Their banter was supposed to be all witty and funny, but it just didn't cut it for me. I didn't laugh, nor was I particularly amused by it. It's kinda discouraging when you're reading a book and you know the author is trying to get a reaction out of you and you're just...completely unfazed.

#2: I found Porter to be somewhat questionable as a character. He was sweet at times, but then he'd say or do things that left a bad taste in my mouth. 

Exhibit A:

"Porter shifts closer. I back up. He's always in my personal space, I think weakly...He steps closer. I step back—and my butt hits cedar. Crap. I've run into the mailbox post. I start to shimmy around it, but Porter's arm shoots out and blocks me. Damn! "Not this time," he says, trapping me with his hand on the mailbox...."Is this a quiz?" I ask, trying to sound mad, but I'm really just insanely nervous. I'm cornered—which I hate."

Am I supposed to find this sexy? I don't find a guy keeping you in place despite you physically and very obviously retreating from him very sexy. Hard pass.

#3: Bailey wasn't very striking as a main character, to say the least. She felt wishy-washy, and I didn't particularly enjoy reading her internal monologues. She also had a tendency to overreact that really took me out of a lot of the book's moments.

#4: The You've Got Mail aspect of this was very...not present. It was barely there. Not to mention the fact that I didn't get why "Alex" and "Mink" were so close to each other in the first place. Their conversations were pretty lackluster and didn't convince me of their intimacy at all. 

Some (aka two) things I liked: the movie quotes at the beginning of each chapter, and the emphasis on consent.

What my problem with this book boils down to is: I DON'T GET IT. I don't get Bailey and Porter's relationship, I don't get their supposedly "witty" banter, I don't get their conversations as Alex and Mink. I just don't get it.