Goose Reads 2023! (Closed)

Week 23 - The Weekend in Room 512

Week Twenty-Three - June 4th - June 10th

Title: The Weekend in Room 512

Author: zoe_grimm

Genre: Romance

Number of Chapters: 18

Completed? Yes

Link (Added as an in-line comment):

Blurb:

Ethan Wong, an ex-prodigy violinist, thinks it's not meant to be. After his latest mental breakdown at his last violin competition, where he placed tenth out of ten contestants, he's not sure why his music professor appointed him the soloist for their New York concerto. 

Cameron Langley, the star college baseball athlete, believes it's meant to be. After being completely ghosted and shut out of Ethan's life after high school, he's finally found the man at a chance encounter at an overbooked hotel. More determined than he is to win his college's first championship, Cameron is desperate for answers and another shot at love with the guy who stole his heart.

Will they face the music or strike out from each other's lives for good?

Goose's Thoughts:

It's Week 23, it's Pride Month, and we are reading a story full of so many feels I'm pretty much a pile of sad goo!

There is something incredibly special about this story and how its written from the very first word to the final piece of dialogue between Ethan and Cameron. It's a real love story that comes to life right in front of your eyes and I loved how well Ethan and Cameron fitted together. The force-proximity storyline made for an interesting dynamic to begin with and I loved watching them grow as the novella progressed. Just watching the two of them grow together put a smile on my face.

Not only did Zoe capture their relationship perfectly, but the way she explored Ethan's mental health throughout was just ... heart-breaking. I could feel his panic and pain just radiating off the screen as Ethan struggled to deal with the thousands of thoughts running through his head. There was just so much pain in his character that it felt physical. The feelings of not being good enough is something that we all face and Zoe really encapsulated that in Ethan's narrative.

So much care and thought has gone into this story and that care just radiates off the screen with each chapter. The journey that these two reunited characters go on is astounding and I loved watching them grow and help each other. It was nice to see Cameron being so supportive of Ethan and just being there for him when he needed it without trying to fix things for him. Their companionship was just so cute throughout.

Honestly, I loved this story from beginning to end. Just watching these two come together despite so many years apart was so cute. There was still so much love and care between them that it just filled me with all the feels. 

If you're looking for a cute, but also slightly devastating read, I would wholeheartedly recommend this one to all of you. The descriptions, the emotional depth, and the way Zoe captures every aspect of love between these two characters is so worth the emotional pain experienced throughout. It is just full of so much emotion, and so many feels, that it is worth every minute of your time.

Thank you for writing such an amazing story, Zoe!

-Goose