ARC Review: The Thing About Love by Julie James

” I have no idea if I’ll continue reading this author. I just think she’s fallen so far away from what I used to love, that I wonder if she’ll ever be able to go back.”
~ Under the Covers

Oh man, I don’t even know how to say this because I never thought I would ever be saying this about a Julie James book but this one really disappointed me. I’ve been a big fan of Julie James from the very start of her career and have read every one of the books she has released, but I’ve noticed that she is veering further and further away from what I liked about her books. While she still has the very strong, very career-oriented heroines, I just don’t think the more recent books have the same fun banter and sexy romance that her first books have.

First of all, I thought the hero of this book, John, to be pretty bland. James did a lot of research for this book, and it’s very evident in the pages. I know she had an FBI agent take a close look at this book so that all the details are correct. The problem is, we don’t need all those details to make a great book. The beginning of this book is very slow. Instead of presenting readers with a hero who has been cheated on, there’s pages and pages of work-related FBI terminology that I personally think could’ve been cut out. Yes, you’re an agent. I get it already. But because there’s so much focus on that, I never got the chance to connect to John at all. There are scenes that are meant to be emotional and make you sympathize with his character, but instead of feeling sorry for him, I felt nothing at all.

The same thing goes for the heroine, Jessica. I like that James has very strong heroines, but behind that there is nothing there to make me actually care about Jessica. I felt like we never really got to the core of her character and instead it’s all about the job.

The romance fell flat and I never smiled once throughout reading this book, which is what used to happen when I read a Julie James book. The only thing that saved me from not finishing this book is the writing. James still writes well, but there’s just too much extra stuff that’s being pumped into the books that the romance and characterization almost seems like a second thought next to getting all the terminology right. I wish she went back and focused on the banter and building that romance from the ground up. Everything else should come after. After reading this, I have no idea if I’ll continue reading this author. I just think she’s fallen so far away from what I used to love, that I wonder if she’ll ever be able to go back.

[about-author author=”Julie James”]

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