Reviews

Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet by Laekan Zea Kemp

morganbrabender's review against another edition

5.0

I haven’t been moved to tears by a book in a long time, but this one did it for me. Multiple times. I can’t accurately express how wonderful this book is. The quote below gives you an idea about how beautiful the writing is and how deep the themes go. This story is about community, family, identity, dreams, belonging, and love. The author does a wonderful job of conveying everything she intends to and you’re left a better person than you were before reading this book. I highly recommend!

“That’s what I’ve learned about fear. Courage isn’t currency, and claiming it isn’t a game. The things that scare us aren’t roadblocks but mirrors, and bravery isn’t about shattering our reflection, it’s about having the strength to look.”

amppet22's review against another edition

5.0

This book is so wonderful. You fall in love with the characters and at the core of it is the love you feel for everyone in this story. This story is about finding yourself and working through hard times. It’s about love and family. I’m not great at summaries, I never want to spoil anything, but this is a wonderful story. You can imagine the taste of Pens food. You can see the nervousness in Xander’s eyes. You feel the love this book gives. I connected to this in so many different ways and I felt at home when I read the last pages. This book is special and I hope you all read it!

abbyshef16's review against another edition

4.0

4.5/5

mandyist's review against another edition

5.0

I raced through this audiobook in less than two days. It's such a lovely, wholesome story full of tantalising culinary descriptions (and some eye-watering restaurant-kitchen confessions). Both narrators did a great job. Recommended to fans of Elizabeth Acevedo's With the Fire on High.

southern_librarian's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

Community Read 2024 YA Title. Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet is the story of Pen and her coming of age, framed by an evolution in her family's restaurant. Pen has worked in her family's restaurant for as long as she can remember. Now that she's 18, though, her parents have big dreams for her: college, a degree, a profession outside of the gritty paycheck-to-paycheck restaurant life. Pen, however, wants nothing more than to continue her dad's legacy: running a gritty paycheck-to-paycheck restaurant in the community that she loves, helping the neighbors she loves. Along the way to growing up and growing out, her life intertwines with Xander, a young man who is doing his own growing up.

This book started off super strong. I was hooked. It actually made me think a lot of the show The Bear, which I loved. Pen is fierce and her colleagues at the restaurant are characters. (3D characters.) But then quite a few plot points sped up in the middle... a little unrealistically fast. I was hooked, though, so I kept on keeping on. Then I really liked the ending... but also wasn't sure it was realistic. But I'm going to chalk that up to my *ahem* advanced age. To a teen reader, the ending would, I'm sure, be 100% just right and exciting. ;) Overall, I'm pleased for this to be my library's YA Community Read pick. I'm going to have no trouble selling this one to readers at the library this spring!

miarconnell's review against another edition

emotional fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

kalin_grace's review against another edition

emotional reflective tense medium-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

3.5

karty_v's review against another edition

DNF @6%

Pen just wasn't the MC for me

mercipourleslivres's review against another edition

4.0

So I haven't posted what I've been reading in a while, mostly because I've been in a book slump. When that happens, I can usually pull myself up with my old standard, YA Contemporary, and boy did this one deliver. Could not put it down. The food descriptions were mouth-watering, and I loved the found family aspect. Alternating between our male and female lead, the chapters move the story along at a brisk pace. I could definitely find myself relating to Pen's struggles with depression and anxiety. The book wasn't perfect, I ended up giving it 4/5 stars because of how the villain was straight out of a telenovela, and everything wrapped up too tidily at the end. (I get wanting to have happy endings for everyone, but they aren't always realistic and if you get one they need to feel earned.) Still loved it. If you're looking for a diverse YA read, add this to your own voices shelf.

girlreading's review against another edition

4.0

3.5* An emotional love story portraying the love of family and romance in equal measures. Featuring hard-hitting discussions on mental illness (specifically depression and self-harm), being undocumented, complex family dynamics, this is a story filled with passion, food, fear, Latinx culture and community.

TW: discussion of self-harm, depression, anxiety, ICE, police brutality