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3.39 AVERAGE
3.39 AVERAGE
Reviewed for A Book Nerd, a Bookseller and a Bibliophile
Sara finds herself in a huge bind on the arrival of her week long vacation with her parents and siblings and their spouses. She just dumped her boyfriend on the phone and ends up begging a stranger who gives her positive vibes to be her boyfriend for the week. Luis and Sara click in way that makes them both feel the power to embrace their emotional past to find their future. Felt it needed one more chapter or an epilogue. Love the closeness of the Navarro family and would love to read more about them in the future.
Sara finds herself in a huge bind on the arrival of her week long vacation with her parents and siblings and their spouses. She just dumped her boyfriend on the phone and ends up begging a stranger who gives her positive vibes to be her boyfriend for the week. Luis and Sara click in way that makes them both feel the power to embrace their emotional past to find their future. Felt it needed one more chapter or an epilogue. Love the closeness of the Navarro family and would love to read more about them in the future.
This book hooked me right away with the characters and the beautiful location of Key West. It allowed me to relive my memories traveling there, especially when I am currently unable to go anywhere with COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. I did not want this story to end. Such a fun summer read, I highly recommend it.
Twas okay.
The romance dragged on forever, and Luis just felt a little to closed off. It also took a while for me to get into the writing, but once I did, I loved it!
The romance dragged on forever, and Luis just felt a little to closed off. It also took a while for me to get into the writing, but once I did, I loved it!
Island Affair took one of my favorite romance tropes — a fake relationship meant to fool one’s family members for whatever reason — and breathed new life into it. It’s not that it was particularly original (the book does include a winking nod to The Wedding Date). Rather, it’s Oliveras’ skill at creating these compelling, flawed characters and describing their chemistry in rich and sometime raw prose that makes this a standout. And, to boot, the way the author aptly illustrated the setting desperately makes me want to head to Key West right this second and watch some sunsets and eat some good Cuban food and salsa the night away.
I won this book through a Goodreads giveaway and was super excited to have gotten it and start reading it. It's an uncorrected ARC (hence the occasional typo I spotted) but that didn't really have any bearing on the book itself.
It was good. It was okay. I'd give it somewhere between 3.5-4 stars overall. The writing was good, I like the characters, but something about it at the end just felt...unfinished? I mean (spoilers) it has the HEA you would expect from a romance like this, but I felt like it barely scraped the top off the more salient plot points:
-Luis's forced time off was barely addressed
-Sara and Robin had one in depth conversation and that was apparently enough?
-Same for Luis and Enrique
I generally finished it feeling like there could have been more depth. I enjoyed reading it - at no point did I consider DNF-ing it - but I also wasn't like "holy crap I can't put this down, I have to know what happens next!"
Also, and this is just a personal thing for me, the writer is really good but OMG does she love her metaphors and extended analogies. A couple of them were good here and there, but we're talking three a page sometimes.
--"...had the questions melting on the tip of his tongue like the cotton candy he'd bought his nephew at Children's Day..."
--"...like the sun peeking its hello across the sky when he was out for an early morning run."
--"damn if he didn't feel like a red snapper caught on the end of her fishing pole. Only, fool that he might be, he wasn't squirming to be released."
I realize those are similes, but they're all from a page and a half range, and it's like that the whole time.
The colloquial Spanish was nice. I'm not a native speaker myself, but I'm familiar enough with it that I could tell it sounded the same as my Mexican & Panamanian in-laws do when they're talking/interacting/what-have-you.
Overall this was a good book, I enjoyed it and found the chemistry between Sara and Luis believable and enjoyable, but it didn't blow me away.
3.5-4 stars
It was good. It was okay. I'd give it somewhere between 3.5-4 stars overall. The writing was good, I like the characters, but something about it at the end just felt...unfinished? I mean (spoilers) it has the HEA you would expect from a romance like this, but I felt like it barely scraped the top off the more salient plot points:
-Luis's forced time off was barely addressed
-Sara and Robin had one in depth conversation and that was apparently enough?
-Same for Luis and Enrique
I generally finished it feeling like there could have been more depth. I enjoyed reading it - at no point did I consider DNF-ing it - but I also wasn't like "holy crap I can't put this down, I have to know what happens next!"
Also, and this is just a personal thing for me, the writer is really good but OMG does she love her metaphors and extended analogies. A couple of them were good here and there, but we're talking three a page sometimes.
--"...had the questions melting on the tip of his tongue like the cotton candy he'd bought his nephew at Children's Day..."
--"...like the sun peeking its hello across the sky when he was out for an early morning run."
--"damn if he didn't feel like a red snapper caught on the end of her fishing pole. Only, fool that he might be, he wasn't squirming to be released."
I realize those are similes, but they're all from a page and a half range, and it's like that the whole time.
The colloquial Spanish was nice. I'm not a native speaker myself, but I'm familiar enough with it that I could tell it sounded the same as my Mexican & Panamanian in-laws do when they're talking/interacting/what-have-you.
Overall this was a good book, I enjoyed it and found the chemistry between Sara and Luis believable and enjoyable, but it didn't blow me away.
3.5-4 stars
Small town Island life. Fake Boyfriend trope. La Familia. Cuban cuisine. Beautiful descriptions of Key West scenery.
This was my first book by this author and I really enjoyed it. The romance was sparkling, the chemistry with Sarah and Luis was on fire. Their rapid fire way of getting to know each othere then the journey to trust each other with their pain.
I just felt it ended abruptly. I heeded to know how their relationship progressrs after the 7 day affair.
This was my first book by this author and I really enjoyed it. The romance was sparkling, the chemistry with Sarah and Luis was on fire. Their rapid fire way of getting to know each othere then the journey to trust each other with their pain.
I just felt it ended abruptly. I heeded to know how their relationship progressrs after the 7 day affair.
nope nope nope. Not a fan of the audio narrator and way too many triggers in the content. dnf at chapter 10.
A sweet fluff book - sun, sea, romance tropes. The writing style wasn't quite for me, but that's just a personal thing.
If you are in need of a Latine/x romancé novel set in Key West filled with Latine Family dynamic, Drama, Líes, Tragedy, Mental Health discussions, Love, Fake Dating, Social Media Queen, Hot firefighter and just overall make you feel good sweet romance novel? Then read this one.