In February of this year, Deep End was released, and was added to the monthly Tbr of book girlies everywhere. I was a little late to the party, and decided to read it in March with my Fable bookclub. Up until that point I had only heard good things about this book, and rave reviews about how the love interest Lukas was the blueprint for being the perfect book boyfriend. So of course I was more than intrigued to begin Scarlett and Lukas' story, especially being a fan of Ali Hazelwood's books in the past. Here are my thoughts on Deep End.
Synopsis
Scarlett Vandermeer is a Stanford diver recovering from the aftermath of of traumatic diving injury. While trying to overcome her own battles she finds herself entangled in a no-strings-attached relationship with her best friend's ex, Lukas Blomqvist, who also just happens to be a Olympic champion swimmer. As Scarlett tries to navigate her academic goals, athletic dreams, and her newfound feelings for Lukas, she realizes that her heart may be swimming out into the Deep End.
Strengths
The main strength of this book is that its an Ali Hazelwood book, and she has a cult following of dedicated readers that would easily rave about her grocery shopping lists if given access to them. In addition to this, you can really tell while reading Deep End that there was a lot research done on competitive diving and swimming, and the possible struggles faced while competing at such a high level. Last but not least, this is in my opinion, spicier than some of her other books have been in the past.
Weaknesses
I wish I could be obsessed with this book, but instead it sadly put me into a book slump. I thought the characters were very flat, and I honestly despised Pen. She was the most toxic "best friend" I've seen in a book in a long time, one such example being when she randomly handed Scarlett a hair tie and told her she had left it in Lukas' room...like girl why were you in his room? She was seeing other people, had broke up with Lukas, and told him and Scarlett they should get together, yet every opportunity she had she'd stomp her feet and act jealous. In addition to this, I wasn't a huge fan of Scarlett and Lukas' relationship, as it was mostly a "hook-up" situation, yet all of a sudden they decided they loved each other? Maybe I missed something, but all I know is on my end I saw no sparks between the two. The final weakness I thought this book had was its repetitive nature. The majority of the book was Scarlett at diving practice, and trying to overcome her own trauma in order to qualify for the Olympics. However, once the book finally got to the Olympics, the scene was glazed over, and skipped to the characters getting medals. The majority of the page length could have been cut down if not for these scenes, and it left me feeling underwhelmed that we got to see every single diving practice, but not the actual competition.
Would I Recommend It?
Although I wasn't a fan of Deep End, there are many people out there who are freaking out and saying how obsessed they are with this book. So I would say if the plot appeals to you, and especially if you are into diving, take my review with a grain of salt, because there's a good chance you'll enjoy it. I just sadly wasn't one of the majority that is obsessed with this book, and that's okay. I still will continue to read Ali Hazelwood's books in the future, and will continue to look forward to her new releases.
My Ratings
Overall: 3/5
Spice: 2/5
Content Warnings
Death of a parent, terminal illness, abusive familial relationships, traumatic sports injuries
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