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ashlightgrayson's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
3.5
This story was incredibly heartwarming, and as a Latinx person myself, made me feel like I was joining a family and a new home. The way Kemp describes the atmosphere in the restaurant makes you feel like you are there in-person. She also has an accurate depiction about how a lot of Latinx families are not great at addressing mental health concerns and male figures in Latinx culture have difficulty expressing emotion. Pen and Xander embody the struggles of many Mexican and Mexican Americans youths in the United States. Pen wishes to follow her dream of owning her own business as her parents have done. However, she must fight against her family's expectations that she obtain a college education and take advantage of the opportunities that they have worked so hard for her to have. Xander deals with the abandonment of his parents as well as surviving in an atmosphere where illegal immigrants are not welcome. The characters also feel genuine and relatable and are independently engaging. I'm looking forward to future books published by Kemp. Hopefully her previously independently published The Girl in Between series will be traditionally published, or something similar in the future. I'm always down for a fantasy story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, and Abandonment
melaniereadsbooks's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
tense
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
5.0
Thank you to LibroFM and the publisher for an ALC of this book.
Pen's dream has always been in her father's restaurant, cooking and baking and giving hope to the community. But her father wants her in college.
Xander has been looking for his father for years, and struggling to stay afloat with an undocumented status and no family except his Abuelo. Xander starts a job at Pen's father's restaurant the same day Pen is fired and forced to move out of her family home for lying about college. Together and with the support of their found families, the two learn what they are really looking for.
This audiobook was absolutely beautiful. I loved it so much. The characters are so real and incredible and I love them. The conflict is rough to read about but so realistic and meaningful.
The writing is gorgeous and I would definitely read many more books by this author! Absolutely beautiful.
I loved it, and I especially loved the ending!
Pen's dream has always been in her father's restaurant, cooking and baking and giving hope to the community. But her father wants her in college.
Xander has been looking for his father for years, and struggling to stay afloat with an undocumented status and no family except his Abuelo. Xander starts a job at Pen's father's restaurant the same day Pen is fired and forced to move out of her family home for lying about college. Together and with the support of their found families, the two learn what they are really looking for.
This audiobook was absolutely beautiful. I loved it so much. The characters are so real and incredible and I love them. The conflict is rough to read about but so realistic and meaningful.
The writing is gorgeous and I would definitely read many more books by this author! Absolutely beautiful.
I loved it, and I especially loved the ending!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Self harm, Violence, Vomit, and Xenophobia
Depression, intimidation
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