Reviews with content warning for Homophobia - Finding Joy

This was sweet and heartwarming romance between Desta and Elias in Ethiopia. The descriptions of the sights, food, and people made me want to plan a trip! Both Destra and Elias have complicated lives, but at their core are just looking for love and direction in life. Celebrating their connection was a highlight of the story, especially with how Destra slowly adapted to Ethiopian life. This story definitely lives up to its name.

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wardenred's review

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emotional hopeful relaxing medium-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

I chose myself, konjo, and you, if you still want me.

This was a really nice, heartwarming read. I loved all the vivid descriptions of life in Ethiopia, and I also loved that both leads were such genuinely good, kind people. It was wonderful to see them get their happiness, and while both of them had to face their share of troubles, joyful and happy moments absolutely prevailed, true to the book's name. All in all, this was a great summer read.

Despite the fact that I enjoyed hanging out with these characters, it was a bit hard to get invested in the romance itself, but that's totally a "me" thing. I often find it difficult to emotionally process romantic plots that begin as a crush/sexual attraction as opposed to an emotional connection coming first. Once feelings got involved, though, the story immediately grew even more compelling.

I have a couple of minor gripes with the writing style; the dialogue didn't always sound natural to me, and I felt like there was a bit too much telling instead of showing. However, what really kept me hooked on the prose was literally every description. It was like I was seeing all those places, tasting all that food, and drinking all that coffee. And I'm always here for a book that makes me feel like I'm drinking a nice cup of coffee! :)

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emily_mh's review

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hopeful lighthearted medium-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

4.5

This was a great read. In such a short amount of time Herrera was able to establish a series of believable, rounded characters and their interrelationships. The star of the show was obviously the romance between Elias and Desta. It was just SO. SWEET. I could tell that they had really deep feelings for one another, but they also had amazing chemistry.

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lennie_reads's review

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emotional funny hopeful informative lighthearted reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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brgntteva's review

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emotional informative fast-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

4.0

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watson_my_shelf's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring fast-paced

Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

This book was SO CUTE. I immediately fell in love with the two main characters, Desta and Elias, and was invested in their love story from the beginning. This book goes beyond just a romance story, though, and brings up important topics, such as cultural identity and homophobia. The story is set in Ethiopia and discusses their lack of LGBTQIA+ rights, which is something I knew nothing about before reading this and am so glad I got to learn about this topic. It's easy to forget that other cultures are so different from mine and I appreciate stories that remind me there are so many different cultures out there with with a different set of standards and rules. Be prepared for *steam* in this book as well!

I listened to the audio version & it was good! The narrator did a good job and would recommend on audio.

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