{Kim Reviews} Roomies by Christina Lauren

I know we all try not to judge a book by its cover, but I totally judged this book by its cover. Roomies caught my attention as I was scrolling through Edelweiss. I saw that it was by Christina Lauren, and then soon learned that it was about a fake relationship. And if you must know something about me, it’s that fake relationships are my guilty pleasure. I rarely read non-YA novels, so I really requested this on a whim. But the whim turned out to one of my good decisions because this turned out to be an amazing novel!

When Holland gets ambushed in a train station, her long-time busker crush comes to her rescue. The medical team thinks she fell on the train tracks on purpose, and won’t believe her that she got ambushed. Only Calvin could prove them wrong, but Calvin disappears as soon as he was needed. Holland later learned that Calvin is in the country illegally. When Calvin attends a tryout for Holland’s uncle, he passes with flying colors. Holland gets this crazy, impulsive idea of offering to marry Calvin to get a green card. What started out as fake slowly turned into something more, and the lines between acting and reality started to get more blurred.

Roomies was a very quick read for me. I just couldn’t get enough of it and I devoured the novel in a single sitting. I don’t know what it is about this book that was so addicting to me, but the chemistry between the two characters definitely was one of the factors. The romance between them just seemed to sizzle and the electricity jumped off the pages and transferred to me – the reader.

Usually when reading books I tend to look for more meaningful stuff other than romance, but this one just seemed to get the romance part on point that I didn’t need or want to look for more. Not that this book doesn’t have meaningful stuff; it does. Other than the romance, obviously, it also features LGBT themes, family, friendship, determining what’s important, following one’s dreams, and learning when to let go and when to hold on to something.

Roomies, for me, was a well-rounded novel. Although centered on romance, it also featured a lot of other themes that made it just right. If Roomies were a recipe, it would be a perfectly measured one without a single flaw. I just loved reading it – it made me laugh, cry, and of course, it made me feel all the feels.

If you’re looking for the perfect romance novel that’s meaningful, a quick read and would make you feel all the feels, this definitely is the novel for you!  Amazingly written and filled with emotion, Roomies touched my heart and made me feel alive. I can’t wait for romance fans to read this, you guys!