Reviews

I tried to read the first book in this series and couldn’t get into it for some reason. Maybe I’ll go back. I enjoyed this one for the most part although….I feel like it could’ve been paced a little better. Started to drag a bit about halfway through. Like when they’d been having sex and I’ve already heard both characters endlessly narrate how close they were as children and everything they’ve been through and then one of you is like “oh wait I love them” I have to throw up my hands.

angelica_elle_reads's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

cmedici's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

meganh10's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

k8so's review

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emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Loved this, the low key magic, the love story. Did not find the two of them particularly hot but that's ok

guiltlesspleasures's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

After finishing After Hours on Milagro Street, I jumped straight into Full Moon Over Freedom. The community Angelina M. Lopez has created is so inviting and immersive, and I wanted to stay there for a while.

Lopez excels at setting, not only world-building but drawing these beautiful vignettes that stay with you. In AHoMS, it was Loretta’s bar after hours, with Alex in a pool of light. In FMOF, it’s a long-shuttered train station, the abandoned hotel with its marble-topped reception desk, an encounter in a pond, a magical speakeasy.

Speaking of magic, it plays a bigger role in this book. Gillian (nee Juliana) is the Armstead sister who flew the coop in search of big city success. She slimmed down her Mexican nose, covered up her brown eyes with green contacts, and married a moneyed (and awful) WASP, but at her core, she remained a bruja. It didn’t feel like magical realism to me, but magic is absolutely a part of both Gillian and this story.

There’s magic in our MMC, Nicky, too—SEX MAGIC. 🔥 This guy … he is smoking hot. Together, they’re incendiary. He’s also Gillian’s first love from when they were teenagers, although she never admitted it to him or even herself. Watching their relationship blossom is a privilege. There’s so much chemistry, but more importantly, there’s emotional support and healing. Lopez is so good at tying sex very distinctly to the arcs of both the characters and their relationship. It’s not in here just to boost the spice quotient; it is integral to the story.

Shoutout as well to Lopez for telling the TRUTH about small kids, namely that the first thing you do when you go to a restaurant is move the sugar packets out of their reach. Generally, she addresses motherhood beautifully: the sacrifices you do and will make for your kids, the fears for their future, the caution around letting people into their life.

Another beautifully written book from Lopez. I love the world she’s created and the way in which she’s created it.

e_o's review

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4.0

Really liked it. Nicky is so dreamy and Juli, i get the fear of failing. I really like the writing of the books, and how latin american culture is a focus in the books, specially issues for mexican americans.

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