Title: Simply the Best
Author: Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Series: Chicago Stars #10
rough start, better after 40%
Much thanks to Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to a free eaudio ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This book has a rough start. I was so scared it was going to be a disaster and I’d have to give one of my favorite authors a bad review. But I feel it finished strong, so it’s not all bad.
First off, the prologue is worthless. It’s too short and vague to paint a full picture, and the incident has little to do with the narrative; it’s just a funny anecdote in Rory and Clint’s relationship.
Second, Rory and Brett’s initial hookup was also unnecessary. It sets up great tension between the two, and introduces a wonderful conflict for Brett, but both of those things could have been accomplished by them merely being attracted to each other when they meet. I feel they should have met at Clint’s house when they were both looking for him. The chapter at the party does not endear to us any of the characters we’re supposed to sympathize with. Rory’s miserable and drunk and ready to fall into bed with the first man who shows interest; Brett’s looking for a release and distraction and is ready to pay the first woman who warms his blood; and Clint comes off like a petulant teenager who’s convinced they’re in love with their first crush. Sorry, I have little respect for any of those attitudes. Furthermore, it stole any credence from my mind that Brett was such a good agent, because I have a hard time believing he wouldn’t recognize his most important client’s sister much less have no idea she was invited to said client’s birthday party.
I really hated that first chapter.
Third, there’s a weird scene around 30% that struck me as, again, unnecessary. Rory and Brett are trying to find Clint and come across this group of backwoods hicks who carry guns like additional limbs. My feelings toward such individuals are similar to Rory and Brett’s, however I feel Brett and especially Rory could have handled the meeting far better if they’d tried. Instead of being polite and patient, they attacked the hicks with presumptions and prejudice on their own property. I wasn’t at all surprised that the hicks were defensive and disinclined to cooperate. I’m not a hick, but I do live in the rural Midwest and know some hicks, and I don’t think I’d much care for two obvious city slickers showing up in their fancy car and looking at me and my place like it was smeared with shit. Then for those city slickers to take their political and social frustrations out on me because they judged me as a stereotype as soon as they saw me, I’d probably want to shoot at them too. Rory and Brett were being just as rude and spiteful as they assumed the hicks would be.
I hated that entire scene, and it was ultimately unnecessary, because those hicks had absolutely zero consequence to the plot. Yeah, they loaned them a chainsaw, but Clint could have showed up a few minutes early instead and had one of his own. The whole inclusion of the hicks really comes off like SEP just wanted an excuse to yell at the perps of January 6.
Fourth, SEP tooted her own horn a couple times. No, she’s not the first author to do that, but it really annoyed me in this book. It just wasn’t tasteful. Perhaps because the book was so bad in the beginning that it seemed super cringy to tout other stories that may or may not be equally bad. Perhaps because at least one of those toots was horribly written and forced in. I quote:
[Brett:] “My boss, Heath Champion. Real name, Harley Davidson Champione–”
[Rory:] “There’s a story behind that.”
[Brett:] “A good one.”
Are you not cringing?
It took me a while to find Rory and Brett likeable as characters. Their introduction didn’t endear, as I’ve described above, but their behavior continued to grate. Rory seemed to be contrary and argumentative for the sheer joy of it, and Brett acted like the boy who pulls the braids of the girl he likes because that was the only way he knew to get her attention—then acts too cool to have anything to do with girls. Their banter early on was more annoying than funny, and it often was a battle of the sexes that soon exasperated me. Their banter was supposed to be cute and funny, but it wasn’t clever or original, so it didn’t do what SEP wanted it to do.
All of these complaints occurred in the first 40%. The book got better after that. My only notes toward the end were that Brett’s stalking of Rory made me uncomfortable and that it made zero sense for Troy not to have his own wire cutters.
I adored Kristin’s storyline and her and Rory’s relationship evolution. Kristin and Daniel’s romance didn’t have enough room to breathe and could have used some more development, but it was heartwarming nevertheless. I liked Rory more when she stopped being so damn argumentative and grew a backbone; SEP did an excellent job swapping Rory and Brett’s circumstances. Clint continued to be a petulant child but more or less redeemed himself toward the end. I’m afraid I never considered Brett a swoon-worthy hero, but he turned out okay. I kind of agree with Heath, Brett made some really bad choices job-wise, and reaped what he sowed.
I wish Landom had gotten a comeuppance. And it would have been nice to find out Tyler’s career crashed and burned. Those could be considered loose ends.
I loved that the story was a murder mystery! Not a great one, but solid. It definitely made me more interested. And the epilogue was inspired—loved it. It’s not the first time SEP has had a heroine pull that trump card to get what she wants, but it was done well here.
Overall, it’s definitely not SEP’s best work, but if you can overlook the bad, there’s good to be found.
Thorough review. I still have to read this one and usually I like her books. I guess I’ll have to see how it goes.