Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce you to one of the slowest slow burns in the history of slow burns. Sebastian: I didn’t. And quit texting Jas’s name over and over again. It’s annoying. She’s skating again. Good job, Jas. Happy for you. Then she meets Ivan Lukov, who totally changes her life. What will happen to Jasmine's career? How will Ivan influence Jasmine? Will she have a romantic relationship with Ivan? The author gives answers to all these questions in this book. It is not, though as I said, there are minimal sex scenes so don’t expect a smuttok extravaganza (if you must know, Kulti has just two. And fine, they’re good! But god damn, you really have to wait for them). Jasmine is a person who had to go through a lot of injuries in her career. She has reached an age considered the last phase for people in figure skating.

I was excited to read this. It's very popular right now and a lot of my friends seemed to like it. It also seems very seasonally appropriate because the winter Olympics are currently going on. I was like, "OOOOO! Looks cute, figure skating, enemies to lovers- what's not to like?" I honestly loved Jasmine. She was this mean, hard-working bitch with a big, loud family that loved the shit out of her hard ass and she loved the shit out of each one of them too. She is definitely a tough cookie and a bit too intense for some people to put up with but damn, it’s like she’s me and I am her. Most of the time. And I honestly love her because I can relate to her. And when we finally got to know Ivan better – I didn’t see it coming and that part totally got me swooning. Take a picture, it lasts longer,” Ivan drawled all of a sudden. I blinked and thought about glancing away but decided that would look even worse.Prepare yourselves to fall even harder for Jasmine Santos. To any fellow figure skaters out there, Jasmine is for you. To overachievers, to those who seek validation, to those who have struggled with body image issues and performance insecurities, to those who have grown up not feeling sympathy for themselves, Jasmine is for you. For reference:

From Lukov with Love also followed this pattern very closely. And for the first time, I felt like that bothered me a bit. With all her other books I read, I would just think – well, here’s Mariana Zapata I know and love. And now, for the first time, I was like – yeah, OK, but I’ve heard this story 5 or 6 times before. Published in 2018, From Lukov with Love is a contemporary romance fiction by Mariana Zapata. The story follows the main character, Jasmine Santos, a talented figure skater. Here's a brief summary of the book: One of the many things I love about MZ’s books, is that she never fails to deliver in the family dynamic department. Family can be simultaneously the most messy and wholesome part of anybody’s life. They’re the ones who can build you up or tear you down, and most of the time, they do both. Jasmine had some incredibly touching moments with her family, as well as some incredibly heart-breaking ones. I cried for her relationship with her father because that really hit home. The feeling of inadequacy and feeling guilty in pursuing one’s own dreams was so prevalent in Jasmine’s journey and development as a character and I love that MZ is never afraid to really tap into those hard-hitting emotions. It was raw, gripping, and authentic as hell. Just one month ago he had asked me if I was ever going to go through puberty. And in reply I had told him I’d go through it when his balls decided to drop" So part of me has to believe that Zapata had this movie in mind or was paying homage to it in some way.This was a unique romance novel. I would even go as far as saying that this was more than just a romance novel. I will go even farther and just put it out there... Jasmine Santos is one of figure skating’s most talented, dedicated athletes, overcoming broken bones, family disapproval, and financial woes to continue doing what she loves. But her abominable temper always gets in the way of her potential greatness, leading to her last skating partner dumping her for a competitor. She’s been on her own ever since, until the coach of Ivan Lukov — an international men’s figure skating phenom with enough awards and titles to last a lifetime — approaches Jasmine with the idea of pairing them up together. From Lukov with Love didn’t end up amongst my favorites by Mariana Zapata, but I still enjoyed it. Partially because- again, it was very soothing and relaxing. And partially because I really loved the characters.

This started off as a solid 4 star read for me, and it all went downhill from there. Not to say that this was not a fun read - because it was. I was just expecting more As I already mentioned, Mariana Zapata is one of my favorite romance authors and I enjoy her stories very much. I am not that well-acquainted with this genre so I don’t want to speak from my side-of-the-road-puddle-deep experience with them, but for now, this is just up there on my list. It has been so very great and it made me so very warm inside. Which is dumb to admit because the whole thing happens on ice (which is kind of cold ahem). But anyway. In my opinion, yes. I’d heard rave after rave that Kulti was THEE Zapata book to read, but I thought this one was leagues better in pacing, character work, dialogue, and overall romance. Unlike the main characters in Kulti, you get the sense that Jasmine and Ivan always have respect for one another despite their enemies-to-lovers squabbling. This means that, when the time comes for their relationship to enter the lovers portion of the program, it’s more believable. The payoff is worth it, and feels satisfying. And good lord, all the swooning I did!!!!! Embarrassing, to be honest.

When Ivan needs a new partner, it’s the chance that could make Jasmine’s career. Plus, it’s becoming more and more clear that Jasmine is running out of options. Every day, her world is getting smaller, and retirement looms closer. For so long, she’s struggled to balance her life as a skater and her love for her family. She’s given so much of herself away for goals that sometimes feel empty. The author mentions the problems of using "but" as the connector while complimenting a person in this book. I noticed how you, Ivan, treated her. You cared for her. You wanted her to be happy. You put a smile in her face everytime she's down. I'm mad with you, Jasmine, for ignoring his sweet gestures. Yes, I knew that you have insecurities and trust issues. You needed support from someone you could trust. I loved how you grew. It was worth waiting for that you achieved it, at last.

When Ivan hugged Jasmine when she cried after her dipshit dad basically insulted her career choice. i have seen nothing but good things about mariana zapata, so i was really excited to finally read one of her books. and knowing that this was a goodreads finalist in the romance category only got me even more hyped. so maybe my expectations were a little too high because ughhh! this was a massive let down.

Christmas Gifts

A "but" was about to come out of her mouth. I could feel it. There was always a "but" when someone paid you a compliment. Left: Me, holding up my test papers after passing my Junior Freestyle Test almost exactly a year ago with my Evita program. Right: Me again, performing my Arabian Nights program in the winter show.