I absolutely loved the sound of #Blocked however I couldn't get past the somewhat pretentious writing style. It was trying to be too clever, too wordy, as if the author has used a thesaurus on every word a la Joey Tribbiani when he writes a letter to the adoption folks for Monica and Chandler and I just couldn't get past how it was trying to be more than it was.

Unfortunately this book fell a little flat for me. The subject was one I usually enjoy reading about however I can't decide if the book was too "young" for me (I usually enjoy YA books) or if perhaps the writing wasn't as developed as it should be. The book read quite slowly too and I found myself stopping more often than reading on at the end of a chapter.

I have mixed feelings about this book. In some ways I liked it and found the whole world of Winter being a social media influencer a good topic for the story and an insight into how tough it can be to balance your life when you're in the public eye. The relationship between Bo and Winter was, different. I appreciated that they both had their own mental health issues and it's rare we get to see a couple in a romance novel that both deal with mental health issues, so I appreciated that. However their relationship started out very rocky and I just didn't feel like there was much development. I really enjoyed the idea behind the book and some parts really had me hooked but overall I just felt like it wasn't for me!

#Blocked follows Winter a social media influencer who meets 'bad boy' Bo at his inauguration event. After her previous traumatic relationship, Winter has to learn how to relearn how to trust someone new. The characters are quite relatable as they all have their own issues and past experiences that have helped shaped who they are today, as well as following what it's like dating in the digital age. The abrupt ending was what threw me off a bit but I am glad to know that #Blocked will be a two-book series. This was a quick read that I definitely would recommend!

I received an eARC of this book in return for an honest review, thank you NetGalley!

I was quite excited when I read the blurb of this book, as I am a sucker for quick, cheesy romance books. It follows social media influencer Winter, trying to escape a toxic past relationship, who meets ‘bad-boy’ Bo Blaine at the opening of the hottest new bowling alley in their city.

The story was mostly just okay, though it didn’t really have as much to do with social media as the cover/title suggests. The characters were interesting enough but I’d have liked a little more substance on them in order to build a proper connection. There was also a lot of short sentences of ‘they did this. They did that’ which broke up the flow of the story for me.

Overall there was a lot of potential and I did appreciate the author including interesting topics such as anxiety and toxic relationships, but it just didn’t hit the spot for me.

2.75 stars

#Blocked: A Social Media Love Story (A Social Media Love Story, #1) by Savannah Thomas is a contemporary romance set in the digital world of texts, Nanogram and blogs. It starts with a wrong assumption, full of misunderstanding and one person blocking the other.

Winter Smith, is a huge blogger and a fashion influencer who portrays a pitch perfect life online, but is it really that perfect in reality? Bo Blaine, the youngest member of the powerful Pacific Northwest Blaine family, meets Winter Smith, he’s instantly infatuated.

I did not like how the story started. It started with Winter not confronting Bo Blaine, but rather blocking him on a clear misrepresentation of him online. The story was not plotted well. It suddenly goes from this two not taking and end up again talking after I guess a Marathon or Volunteering event.

We see Winter Smith and Bo Blaine both suffering from their own mental health issues because of their past, which hasn't been addressed very well in the book. I would rate this one as a one time book, but wasn't really hooked on to it. The characters and the romance felt a little bit immature.
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Thank You to NetGalley and Publisher for sending me the eARC in exchange for a honest opinion.

#Blocked tries to be a book about living the life of a content creator, and it surely achieves that.
But.
The writing is very simple and reads as an obvious first attempt. Simple sentences like "{Character name} stood up. {Character name} thought for a second" occur far too often. This book seems to be an example of telling the reader what's happening rather than showing.
Some of the descriptions were cringe-worthy, one being a reference to "that mixed guy", a description that is unnecessary and not exactly appropriate.
At no point was I invested in the characters nor the plot. The characters were flat and the plot didn't seem to have a point but wandered around quite a bit. I just did not care what happened to the characters other than the few animals mentioned.
Perhaps this book will work well for a readership in their late teens/early 20s who are obsessed with social media and are looking for a simple romance.

A book I would say is more Young Adult in genre. Social media is taking over our lives and I thought there were lots of places this story could go. The characters were ok, but not a lot of depth and at times "young". Important issues were discussed in the story - anxiety, abuse, family. It was a quick read and had its moments.

Thank you for the opportunity to preview this story, Netgalley.

A huge thank you to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op as well as NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I read the premise for this book and was so excited to read it. A book about an anxious social media influencer? Sign me up! However, I was left feeling disappointed after this one. First of all, I felt that the premise didn't really align with what the entire story was about and most of it had absolutely nothing to do with Winter's past, her career as an influencer, and the blocking. The story felt pretty slow and the writing wasn't as descriptive and in-depth as I'd like. The also characters felt difficult for me to connect to, although I could see their potential and appreciated their growth. It was a quick read for me, but overall just not enough substance there.

3.5🌟.

Relatively slow paced but cute love story in a digital age. Winter Smith, a social media influencer, embarks on a journey of self discovery and unexpected love after experiencing a tormenting toxic relationship. I love that this book gives hope to those who have been in a toxic relationship that there are better days and better people ahead. Despite the slow character development, the book was a quick and easy read, and it ended with some unanswered questions leaving room for another book, and the chance of an entire series. I will definitely pick up the next book to see where the story goes.

Shout out to NetGalley for providing me with an E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

”He wanted you to believe you were worthless. But that couldn’t be further from the truth.”

#Blocked is a fast, sweet read about Winter, a social media influencer who lives with crippling anxiety, and Bo, a wealthy entrepreneur with mental health issues of his own. Their instant chemistry is undeniable when they meet for the first time, but Winter’s protective instincts take over, and she shuts Bo out - but he’s not giving up that easy!

I think I need to preface my feelings about this book with a disclaimer: while I frequently try to convince my local librarian that, why, yes, I am still young enough to borrow books from the Young Adult section, thankyouverymuch, the truth is that I am a 30-year-old suburban soccer mom, elbow-deep in lunchboxes to pack, uniforms to wash, PTA responsibilities to tackle, homeowner's association dues to pay, and wrinkle creams to put on auto-ship.

And after reading this book, it shows.

So much of #Blocked felt too young for me. From the social media terminology that goes way beyond your aging-millennial's standard Facebook & Instagram, to the colloquial slang and referenced trends that "the young people these days" are using, I clearly was not the intended audience for this book. (That's okay; I don't ever expect authors to write with my specific demographic in mind, but I struggled to connect because Savannah Thomas’s writing style did little to introduce me to any of this. Instead, she simply assumed that her readers would already be familiar with the youthful colloquialisms and trends, and that's what fell flat for me.)

In keeping with the book’s youthful vibe, the characters and their relationships came off as a bit shallow and immature. Again, it felt like a young adult read (despite being billed as “Contemporary Romance”). Even though the characters are clearly older than high-school/college, their personalities, interactions, and dialogue felt incredibly young. At least, too young for me, at 30, to be able to connect or identify with at all.

Even though the book felt a bit young for my reading taste, I appreciated the author’s endeavor to speak into deeper issues, using her characters’ lives and backstories to incorporate themes of anxiety, abusive relationships, toxic family dynamics, and more - the characters may have seemed a bit shallow, but there is more depth to the overall subject matter than I initially realized, and for me, that redeemed the book in some ways.

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Thank-you to Savannah Thomas, Victory Editing, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

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#Blocked - Savannah Thomas

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book! #Blocked follows a fashion influencer named Winter, and Bo, who comes from a rich family and is a business owner.

Winter had a previous abusive relationship that has negatively impacted her mental health and her anxiety and PTSD are a big part of this story. Bo was a misunderstood “bad boy” who has a bad reputation but is actually a caring person. I enjoyed this, especially the parts where they volunteered at an animal shelter and adopted two kittens (because I love animals). The romance I wasn’t the biggest fan of. It was cute but kinda boring. At the end there was a twist/cliffhanger ending, and I didn’t realize this was the first book in a series so I wasn’t the biggest fan of that. But otherwise it was an enjoyable read!

I was very excited about the blurb of the book. I like social media based love stories. However, I wasn’t very invested with this story.
The characters weren’t fascinating. Romance was just average.

Fashion influencer, Winter Smith, portrays a picture-perfect lifestyle to her many followers. In reality, she’s plagued by anxiety, panic attacks, and the memories of an abusive past relationship.

Bo Blaine, the youngest member of the powerful Pacific Northwest Blaine family, meets Winter Smith, he’s instantly infatuated. Their connection is undeniable, but when he tries to contact her again, he hits a brick wall. Email. Phone. App. Every social media platform. BLOCKED.

This book was compelling and the characters are interesting and surprisingly multifaceted for instagram influencers. Bo feels almost too obsessed with Winter and after we see her previous relationship it doesn't feel very healthy when Bo does it even if I like him infinitely more.

Unfortunately for me, this book was a DNF. I loved the premise of the book and the synopsis really drew me in. However, it was difficult to connect to the characters. I appreciate that Winter and Bo both suffered with mental health problems because that is a relevant social topic, however, it became increasingly difficult to connect with the characters. The plot also started to feel immature and overall was a bit flat.

This ARC was provided by Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My first book of 2021 was #Blocked: A Social Media Love Story by Savannah Thomas. I’m so glad I got an advanced copy of this book to review. It was perfect for starting off this year’s reading list. #Blocked was so readable. I immediately loved Winter and found myself transported to the Oregon by Thomas’s descriptive writing. This is a modern love story done with social media at the center but in a really well thought out way. While characters post on social media and earn a living through it, the book is filled with action and dialogue. This keeps it from feeling like reading a text chain. The chemistry between Winter and Bo reminded me of Twilight in the sweetest way. I predict this one will be at the top of the romcom book lists and declare it a must read 2021 book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book! I was instantly hooked by the cover and the premise. As I read, I enjoyed Winter's voice and appreciated the representation of PTSD and anxiety and really connected with her past trauma. I was rooting for the couple from their meet-cute and really enjoyed following their journey -- and Winter's backstory really set up a good reason for her to be reserved about giving Bo a chance. The only thing I didn't quite like was the insta love aspect of the story, but it didn't take away too much for me. Overall, I definitely enjoyed this book and can't wait to see if we get more from this author in the world.

I think this was a poignant read - very realistic to what goes on in the real world of social media and influencers. I liked the rawness of the characters and I loved the introspection that took place.

As much as I loved the description and the premise of this book, it was not for me. I felt like the plot was very empty and the relationship between Winter and Bo were shallow and underdeveloped. Both characters had a very “poor me” attitude with their back stories (her - bad mom, abusive ex; him - bad boy image). While a lot happens, nothing of true substance happens. This book was hard to read/finish.

Sadly, this was a DNF for me. I read roughly 30% of the book and it just failed to grab me. I found it difficult to connect to the characters. Also, a male lead with anger issues that aren't explained...no thanks.