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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
3.5 rounded up to a 4. Wow. The romance at the center of this book grabbed me from their first interaction and held me completely captivated through to the end. The plot however was a different story. It was a lot harder to connect to because the book takes place over a pretty long period of time and we only really get glimpses of what is going on every few weeks, so while I 100% believed in Alex and Isa's relationship (it reminded me A LOT of being a teen and having random crushes on people I would see on the train), the pacing of the story as a whole left a little to be desired. I did still really enjoy this and definitely recommend checking it out, but I would advise going in prioritizing romance over plot.
TW: racism, police violence
TW: racism, police violence
It was a fairly generic YA romance for me. It didn't inspire any great feelings or make me think Wow this was something! It was okay.
This book was beautiful, it was heartbreaking, and it was so much heavier than I thought at first glance. I can't underplay how much I was rooting for our two main characters, both to find their own footing, and to find each other. And it was a debut?? I'll read anything Ms.Williams writes next.
This was an enjoyable audiobook. It's a sweet little YA romance with likeable characters and complex parent-child relationships. It's dual-POV, which I tend to like in love stories.
3.5 stars. YA Romance is probably my least favorite genre, but I was given an ARC of this title and since it was well reviewed for its representation of Latinx culture and dealing with issues of mental illness, I gave it a try. Surprisingly, I enjoyed it! It was much more complex, emotional and authentic than I anticipated and so much more than a romance.
Thank you Abrams Books for sending me a finished copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
A boy and a girl meet on the train, and the boy leaves poetry for her to find as a relationship is kindled on their individual journeys in lives separated by class and circumstances. Isabelle's family is well-to-do with a history of mental illness, whereas Alex's family struggles with money. Both of their parents push Isabelle and Alex toward goals they don't want, with Isabelle longing to dance and Alex aiming for poetry. They both learn about each other on these mutual train rides over three years, as their romance and relationship deepens.
This Train is Being Held is a slow burn, and I think that makes this romance more meaningful. Each character gets to see the hardships in each other's life. Isabelle's mother is dealing with mental health issues and has certain racial prejudices towards anyone who has darker skin, whereas Alex's father is controlling and Alex himself deals with racism as a Dominican American. It's nice to see a romance book that bites off more than the sweeter side, as real life is often tart and sometimes bitter. I found this train ride got me where I wanted to go, and I think you'll enjoy it too!
I enjoyed the slow burn romance in this book, and also appreciated how it tackled important issues related to Latinx culture, mental health, and prejudice. Good stories will always make you feel something, and This Train is Being Held had me feeling all the feels because of its wide range of themes in romantic and personal life.
Don't miss out on this fantastic book!
A boy and a girl meet on the train, and the boy leaves poetry for her to find as a relationship is kindled on their individual journeys in lives separated by class and circumstances. Isabelle's family is well-to-do with a history of mental illness, whereas Alex's family struggles with money. Both of their parents push Isabelle and Alex toward goals they don't want, with Isabelle longing to dance and Alex aiming for poetry. They both learn about each other on these mutual train rides over three years, as their romance and relationship deepens.
This Train is Being Held is a slow burn, and I think that makes this romance more meaningful. Each character gets to see the hardships in each other's life. Isabelle's mother is dealing with mental health issues and has certain racial prejudices towards anyone who has darker skin, whereas Alex's father is controlling and Alex himself deals with racism as a Dominican American. It's nice to see a romance book that bites off more than the sweeter side, as real life is often tart and sometimes bitter. I found this train ride got me where I wanted to go, and I think you'll enjoy it too!
I enjoyed the slow burn romance in this book, and also appreciated how it tackled important issues related to Latinx culture, mental health, and prejudice. Good stories will always make you feel something, and This Train is Being Held had me feeling all the feels because of its wide range of themes in romantic and personal life.
Don't miss out on this fantastic book!
Latino rep!! it feels so liberating to understand the Spanish in this book too.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.
Trigger warning: One of the side characters attempts suicide, gang violence is present, police racial profiling of a character.
This Train Is Being Held is told in dual perspectives of Isa a dancer and Alex a baseball player. Both have very different lives, passions, and responsibilities yet they see each other often on the train going to and from there after school activities.
While seeing each other every so often they decided to finally talk to one another and over time gain friendship and then a relationship.
We get to see both of their lives and how they live and their families and while they both are very different you can still feel the love in both of there families and how they just want the best for Isa and Alex and for them to excel and become successful adults.
On the opposite side though we have one of them being pushed towards their activity becoming the only thing they do, and the other is being pushed to give up the activity to focus on becoming a doctor.
Overall I loved this book. It covers so many different things in a realistic way that has you feeling all the feels for the characters and rooting for them to succeded. One of the things that stuck out to me throughout this story is even though the two didn’t get to see each other very often they still cared and made the most of the time they did have together. In so many young adult novels the love aspect of the story becomes the main focus and everything else gets thrown aside, while in this story it was very present, but the characters were still focused on themselves. Family, and friendships, and passions were also a priority and the main focus of the characters.
Another part of this story I enjoyed was how the divide between things was present and addressed. It was very realistic and showed how you don’t always realize things are happening to those you love until you talk about it.
We also get to see mental health from a family member’s perspective and how it affects them while also seeing how it affects the person with the illness.
I’m looking forward to reading more by this author in the future.
Trigger warning: One of the side characters attempts suicide, gang violence is present, police racial profiling of a character.
This Train Is Being Held is told in dual perspectives of Isa a dancer and Alex a baseball player. Both have very different lives, passions, and responsibilities yet they see each other often on the train going to and from there after school activities.
While seeing each other every so often they decided to finally talk to one another and over time gain friendship and then a relationship.
We get to see both of their lives and how they live and their families and while they both are very different you can still feel the love in both of there families and how they just want the best for Isa and Alex and for them to excel and become successful adults.
On the opposite side though we have one of them being pushed towards their activity becoming the only thing they do, and the other is being pushed to give up the activity to focus on becoming a doctor.
Overall I loved this book. It covers so many different things in a realistic way that has you feeling all the feels for the characters and rooting for them to succeded. One of the things that stuck out to me throughout this story is even though the two didn’t get to see each other very often they still cared and made the most of the time they did have together. In so many young adult novels the love aspect of the story becomes the main focus and everything else gets thrown aside, while in this story it was very present, but the characters were still focused on themselves. Family, and friendships, and passions were also a priority and the main focus of the characters.
Another part of this story I enjoyed was how the divide between things was present and addressed. It was very realistic and showed how you don’t always realize things are happening to those you love until you talk about it.
We also get to see mental health from a family member’s perspective and how it affects them while also seeing how it affects the person with the illness.
I’m looking forward to reading more by this author in the future.