A review by ashlightgrayson
Smart Mouth by Emma Lee Jayne

emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I had a fun time with this romance, but I think there are a lot of areas where I felt like it could have been improved. Tom, the male lead, is part of a famous boy band and now as an adult years later has founded his own music studio. The female love interest, Gwen, has known Tom for years as her best friend's twin brother. Gwen has always had a low opinion of Tom due to some misinterpretations of his behavior when they were younger. Tom, on the other hand, has always had a crush on Gwen. By an odd set of circumstances, they reunite as adults and Gwen mistakes Tom for his twin and her old best friend. 

There are a lot of subplots pertaining to the main character's relationships with the side characters. Tom has a very contentious relationship with his twin brother. It is clear that Tom wishes things between his brother and him were different and there is a lot left unsaid there. It is eventually revealed that a lot of this tension is based on jealousy and insecurity, but none of this is ever resolved within the story. I understand that the romance is the focus of this story, but I find value within the other relationships in stories like this. Tom's brother is also going through his own issues with his marriage. We never actually meet his wife or get any other details about that relationship. It is mentioned often enough within the story that I expected to learn more about it, but we never do. It really left me unsatisfied by the end. I'm hoping that there is a direct sequel to this book where we get to learn more about Tom's brother and his marriage. I enjoyed the romance overall, the subplots in the story just felt incomplete as written.

As a side note, there is some representation for ADHD and anxiety in the book. I have a lot of friends who have ADHD, anxiety, or both, and I appreciated seeing my friends represented in the book as I was reading it. 

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