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3.18 AVERAGE
3.18 AVERAGE
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The setting (Barcelona) was evocative and the descriptions of the food were mouth watering. The main characters were appealing and I like the way the author chose to alternate between their voices, with the heroine narrating present day events and our hero narrating the events of ten years earlier, when they’d met and fallen in love, only to be parted. The problem I had was that if the romantic leads had just talked to each other, all the misunderstandings would never have existed. Granted, then there would be no story to tell, but it’s hard for me to believe in true love between two characters who never tell each other anything important.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Grief, Car accident, Alcohol
Too formulaic and predictable. Dual timeline flashback structure. Getting over past tragedies, yawn. Not compelling.
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3/5 stars - Amazon first reads pick of June, I think. Starts off very slow but picks up about halfway through. I kind of want to go to Barcelona now…
This was an Amazon Prime first read book and I’ve found that those can be hit or miss. In this case, this was a hit. When I saw this was set in Barcelona, a city I visited only once and fell in love with, I knew I needed to revisit through the characters of this book.
This was my first read by this author and what I love the most was the simplicity of the writing, but also the duality of the story. This was told in a dual point of view, giving us both Alice’s and Andy’s perspectives, but the genius lies in the way the story unfolds in Alice’s narration of the present that juxtaposes with Andy’s narration of the past as they both recount their history while dealing with their present. Add in the flavors of the food they cook together and the magic of Barcelona and this book was a chef’s kiss.
As most love stories go, there is the tragic untold trauma attached to both characters that complicates their love story, but you will find in the end, it brings them closer together.
A solid four star rating with me now craving paella, churros, vanilla ice cream with hints of cinnamon, walks in Parc Guell and the pure magic of Barcelona. *looks up flights expeditiously*
This was my first read by this author and what I love the most was the simplicity of the writing, but also the duality of the story. This was told in a dual point of view, giving us both Alice’s and Andy’s perspectives, but the genius lies in the way the story unfolds in Alice’s narration of the present that juxtaposes with Andy’s narration of the past as they both recount their history while dealing with their present. Add in the flavors of the food they cook together and the magic of Barcelona and this book was a chef’s kiss.
As most love stories go, there is the tragic untold trauma attached to both characters that complicates their love story, but you will find in the end, it brings them closer together.
A solid four star rating with me now craving paella, churros, vanilla ice cream with hints of cinnamon, walks in Parc Guell and the pure magic of Barcelona. *looks up flights expeditiously*
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
fast-paced