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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
(3.5)/5
I was not sure what to expect with this one, but i thoroughly enjoyed it! It’s definitely a lot heavier than I anticipated and is more of a “coming of age”/family discovery story than i anticipated.
I was not sure what to expect with this one, but i thoroughly enjoyed it! It’s definitely a lot heavier than I anticipated and is more of a “coming of age”/family discovery story than i anticipated.
A beautiful story full of love, complex female characters, and Cuban-American culture. Not too complicated and yet a wonderful opportunity for a deep dive into a Latine young adult’s identity in a lit class
I really liked this one. It was so atmospheric and I loved the feeling of being emerged in another culture. Rosa is such a headstrong main character and Alex is the sweetest love interest.
I just loved this book. It really had a Gilmore Girls vibe to it. A small town full of great personalities (my favorite was the Instagramming viejitos). Rosa working to navigate her relationship with her loving-but-absent mother and find her heritage in her steadfast grandmother, while at the same time trying to figure out her own future. Rosa’s determination to bring the town together to save the place she loves. And her conflicted emotions when she meets Alex – a boy connected to the sea.
I laughed. I cried. I really enjoyed this read.
From my review at Hidden Staircase.
I laughed. I cried. I really enjoyed this read.
From my review at Hidden Staircase.
I loved this beautiful book! The prose was lyrical and whimsical, achingly beautiful and sad at parts and entirely relatable in others, and I would find myself going back to reread certain passages or sentences that moved me. I felt entirely immersed in both Port Coral, Florida, and the mysteriousness of Cuba that Rosa longs for. And most of all, I loved the relationship between the women of the Santos family. While the romance is sweet, this book is ultimately a love story about family and the three wonderfully strong, tragic Santos women. I can't say enough good things about this book!
I don’t know how to exactly explain how I feel about this book to me it was just meh. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t exactly something I was excited to pick up.
4.5 stars. What an amazingly vibrant book! I really love how Nina Moreno writes- she's so good with turns of phrase and descriptions that pull you into the story without being Too Much. The description of baked goods, my god. And the scents on the air, the ocean waves. It's so lyrical and charming. The story was heavier than I anticipated in some ways and made me a little melancholy in the middle, but I also loved the feeling of family and community, and the romance! So sweet and perfectly balanced. Who can resist a baking Ravenclaw?! I felt like I was in Port Coral in this Cuban community- the writing was so immersive. I also loved Rosa herself- she was relatable and curious and I enjoyed her relationships with many of the characters. Her mother and abuela were very complex and that added so much dimension to the story. I can see the Practical Magic and Gilmore Girls comparisons SO clearly, they're really good comps- just add a huge helping of Cuban & Latinx culture :) I can't wait to see what Nina writes next.
Don't Date Rosa Santos has been an anticipated read since I came across its book deal pitch saying something about a coming-of-age story linked to a family curse connected to the sea.
As someone who grew up living by the sea, my fascination with fictional works that has sea/ocean elements is totally valid hence I bought a copy of this book and picked it as my first July read.
Rosa Santos heard all stories about her family being cursed by the sea - her grandfather died saving her mother as they escape Cuba, her father vanished mysteriously in the sea that surrounds Port Coral - and it was not a big deal for her until her final year in high school came up and she realized that she had to deal with things linked to this so-called Santos curse.
First, she have to confess to her abuela that she plans to pick the school that has a study abroad program in Cuba (her abuela's loathed birthplace). Then, she have to save her Port Coral community from being gentrified. And she have to deal with the fact that she is slowly falling in love with a boy who loves boats and the sea.
Armed with her supportive friends and a dash of brujeria, Rosa is positive that she can calm the waves and still the current so odds will favor her dreams. But will it be easy for her to juggle everything and leave the storm unscathed?
Okay, one reason why I enjoy reading diverse books written by authors of color is that the depiction of culture and tradition feels genuine and it appeals directly to me, the reader, as if I am part of the community and being immersed with the environment.
This novel successfully showed how colorful and rich Latinx culture is by making me fall in love with the people of Port Coral.
Rosa Santos is a force to be reckoned with. As an overachiever in school who does double degree while planning to have a study abroad in Cuba, the place where her ancestry is traced, Rosa's character has a unique development that I enjoyed reading.
She was the perfect example of a main character who knows when and where to step in and out of the centerstage. The way she took the responsibility of planning the campaign to save their community and juggled all her miscellaneous things is such a powerful move that proved how consistent and organized she is.
I also enjoyed the supporting characters. As a found family trope supremacist, I tend to like the whole ensemble cast thing especially when all of them come together to do one big thing and this novel managed to do it twice, one with a heartwarming scene and another with an emotional effect.
If I have to point out one thing that I almost did not enjoy (but managed to surprise me in the end) it's the storyline that felt too much for me in the first place. Imagine reading about Rosa wanting to unravel the secret behind her family's curse plus realizing she has this academic and community problems that need to be solved plus additional family questions about her mother plus this budding romance she's having featuring the boy with the boat.
It felt overwhelming during the first half but things made sense and the author redeemed the storyline before it ended.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read that I recommend if you're looking for a coming-of-age novel that has sea explorations, family curses, and teenage romance set in rich Cuban and Latinx cultural backdrop.
RATING: 4stars
As someone who grew up living by the sea, my fascination with fictional works that has sea/ocean elements is totally valid hence I bought a copy of this book and picked it as my first July read.
Rosa Santos heard all stories about her family being cursed by the sea - her grandfather died saving her mother as they escape Cuba, her father vanished mysteriously in the sea that surrounds Port Coral - and it was not a big deal for her until her final year in high school came up and she realized that she had to deal with things linked to this so-called Santos curse.
First, she have to confess to her abuela that she plans to pick the school that has a study abroad program in Cuba (her abuela's loathed birthplace). Then, she have to save her Port Coral community from being gentrified. And she have to deal with the fact that she is slowly falling in love with a boy who loves boats and the sea.
Armed with her supportive friends and a dash of brujeria, Rosa is positive that she can calm the waves and still the current so odds will favor her dreams. But will it be easy for her to juggle everything and leave the storm unscathed?
Okay, one reason why I enjoy reading diverse books written by authors of color is that the depiction of culture and tradition feels genuine and it appeals directly to me, the reader, as if I am part of the community and being immersed with the environment.
This novel successfully showed how colorful and rich Latinx culture is by making me fall in love with the people of Port Coral.
Rosa Santos is a force to be reckoned with. As an overachiever in school who does double degree while planning to have a study abroad in Cuba, the place where her ancestry is traced, Rosa's character has a unique development that I enjoyed reading.
She was the perfect example of a main character who knows when and where to step in and out of the centerstage. The way she took the responsibility of planning the campaign to save their community and juggled all her miscellaneous things is such a powerful move that proved how consistent and organized she is.
I also enjoyed the supporting characters. As a found family trope supremacist, I tend to like the whole ensemble cast thing especially when all of them come together to do one big thing and this novel managed to do it twice, one with a heartwarming scene and another with an emotional effect.
If I have to point out one thing that I almost did not enjoy (but managed to surprise me in the end) it's the storyline that felt too much for me in the first place. Imagine reading about Rosa wanting to unravel the secret behind her family's curse plus realizing she has this academic and community problems that need to be solved plus additional family questions about her mother plus this budding romance she's having featuring the boy with the boat.
It felt overwhelming during the first half but things made sense and the author redeemed the storyline before it ended.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read that I recommend if you're looking for a coming-of-age novel that has sea explorations, family curses, and teenage romance set in rich Cuban and Latinx cultural backdrop.
RATING: 4stars