Ali Hazelwood, best known for her TikTok sensation The Love Hypothesis, has released her latest romance – Deep End. The novel follows two student athletes who start a causal relationship upon discovering their mutual interests. Hazelwood’s books often come with lots of hype surrounding them, but do they live up to expectations?
If you aren’t familiar with her work, her first novel The Love Hypothesis became an online sensation, however it originally started out as Reylo fanfiction. Since then, she has consistently been publishing romance books, Deep End being the latest in the series. I try not to have too high hopes for modern romance books. The majority of them follow the same formula and tropes. Now I don’t think there is anything wrong with this, I love reading romance books and I think as long as you accept that repetitive nature of them, they can be great fun. This all being said, Deep End falls into this formulaic romance book category. I’m not saying this is a fault in the book, however if you dislike this specific genre, then this definitely isn’t the book for you.
The story and relationship between the two main characters, Scarlett and Lukas, was cute and fun, it had everything a good romance book should have. I wished their relationship was a little bit more developed before the end but it wasn’t so unbelievable that they ended up together. What I really enjoyed in the book was the development of the Scarlett’s friendship with teammate Penny, and without spoiling anything, it definitely added a layer of tension throughout the book. Overall, this book is what I expect of Hazelwood’s work as she consistently writes good and exciting romances.
Overall, this book is what I expect of Hazelwood’s work as she consistently writes good and exciting romances.
The only thing I felt like the book was missing was more of Scarlett’s life outside of her relationship. While I understand the romance was the centre of the plot, she is describing as such a full and multifaceted character, but we never really get to see any of that in action.
Another aspect to consider before you pick up this book, is that at the beginning there is a warning saying that the novel will contain discussions and scenes of BDSM. Throughout the novel the two characters do have discussions about this. However, if this is something you’re worried about, let me reassure you that nothing that crazy actually happens. All the explicit scenes are pretty standard and can be read in any adult romance, and I don’t think the BDSM warning is that necessary.
Deep End is another great edition to Hazelwood’s collection of works. She writes in the same standard I would expect of her. Is this book anything life changing or new? Not really, but it is still a fun read and perfect if you need a romance kick.
