I thought this book was a formulaic sports romance. Then I found out partway through that it was about covid, something I've been avoiding in my media because I wanted escape. But neither of those things define this book. Yes it's got the sports romance and yes it does take place during a pandemic. But it also is funny, steamy, has a great plot, and brought me to tears many times. I read it in one go for hours straight. It really captures how the pandemic, social unrest after the tragic murder of George Floyd, unfolded through the lens of the closure of sports and the kindling of a romance 6 ft apart. ( )

An interesting account of life during Covid in America.
This is set at the start of Covid and starts off showing what we all experienced at the start and the changes in information given out at that time.
I love the building of the relationship between Jason and Katie.

There was a lot of soul searching from several of the characters in the book. Heartache, hope, love.

Like many others I did wonder if this was too soon to write a book set in Covid times, but I am glad I read this book. ( )

The C Word by Mindy Klasky is a lighthearted, extremely fluffy rom-com about the beginning of an unorthodox love story between two strangers during a global pandemic.

I had no idea what I was going into when I first received my email informing me that I had won.
I entered partly because I was curious to see if I would be lucky enough to be picked and partly out of sheer curiosity after having read the brief synopsis of the book. So, I am extremely honored and pleased to have been chosen to receive an ARC, courtesy of Peabridge Press, LibraryThing, and Mindy Klasky.

From the moment I started reading, I found myself invested in the story of sports journalist, Katie McIntyre, and star pitcher, Jason Price. This is ironic given what the whole premise of the book is all about. This wasn't exactly a genre I usually gravitated towards. Moreover, this was the first time I had ever picked up a book written by this author. A disclosure I am more than glad to have remedied this year.

I enjoyed the witty, and oftentimes extremely heartwarming banter between the two main characters. I loved that this wasn't an insta-love kind of book because I feel it wouldn't have been very realistic. Instead, Klasky uses the romantic fake-real turn trope to tell her story. I love the idea of characters getting to know each other while fake dating - being friends before lover kind of thing. Besides, the notion seems more realistic and possibly the safest (health-wise) way to start a relationship in real life as well. This book is by no means perfect as there are some scenes and characters that I found that I did not care for. In a way, this book resonates with me. Last year, I was curious about how dating would have worked out during the coronavirus pandemic. Klasky provided an answer and delivered it much like how soft news is reported.

Overall, an interesting commentary on finding and navigating love while surviving job loss, lockdown, grandmother, and a vicious devil-cat. I surprisingly could not put this down. There was something about reading Katie & Jason's story...it gives you hope that even amidst a worldwide health crisis, love can survive. ( )

I really liked this book!! It reads like almost any other romance i would read, and getting my baseball fix in during January didn't hurt either. It was definitely weird to see COVID-19 and the pandemic in fiction. Seeing things like "flatten the curve" and stocking up on toilet paper... it almost felt like a joke as we approach the year mark of the pandemic. It wasn't an inaccurate representation of the early days, but there were moments where it was like "wow we really didn't know what was coming." It was very clear what would be the big topic of the inevitable fight between the two main characters would be, so building up to that fight and then the resolution of it was satisfying. Overall, I would recommend the book, and I'm definitely going to check out Klasky's other works! ( )

It's weird to read a book that starts before COVID because it simultaneously feels like COVID has been happening forever and COVID just started. It's unbelievable that there has been time to write a whole book!

That being said - 'The C Word' was a beautiful romance consist with the times. It was hilarious and realistic to read about the restlessness of a fourteen day quarantine and creativity of a virtual date. This was an easy romance with well developed characters and interesting subplots.

I gave this a three stars (three and a half in my personal journal) because although I loved diving into the characters, it felt like a lot of unresolved issues were resolved quickly off book without giving us any insight. It seems liked when we finally were getting into the meat of the character's issues, they were brushed off with a "we talked about this."

All in all though, it was a well written, quick romance. I can't wait to see what Mindy Klasky writes next! ( )