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briannareads1342's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Grief
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Child death and Death
megelizabeth's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
This was a bit of a mixed bag for me. I really enjoyed the first third or so - I felt that the main characters instantly had great chemistry, and I loved that the plot went in a very different direction to the one I had been expecting. Unfortunately, as the book went on, the characters started to irritate me more and more, and I didn't end up loving the romance as much as I initially thought I would. I did appreciate some of the conversations around culture, identity, and immigrants' experiences, but I also found the commentary to generally be quite surface-level. Ultimately this book was fine; I enjoyed the experience of reading it overall, and there were elements I did like, but for me it started strong and went downhill, and just didn't live up to its potential.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Child death, Blood, Terminal illness, Racism, Misogyny, and Car accident
jackiepreston's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-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
3.0
All of the conflict in this book could have been solved immediately if any of the characters would actually talk to each other.
In Azere's case, I understand why she had such a hard time opening herself up to Rafael, after a lifetime of her mother pushing her to be the perfect Nigerian daughter and not take her own wants or needs into consideration, but Rafael? Maybe it would make more sense if we were in his head more often, but the truth about his wife and unborn child's death makes no sense to be held off that long and is resolved immediately after he talks about it
This book was much more of a character-driven novel about Azere learning how to get what she wants while also respecting her Nigerian heritage rather than a romance novel. Their entire relationship is glossed over in montages rather than shown to the reader, and the parts of their relationship that do get on-page development are all of the conflicts they have.
This book was much more of a character-driven novel about Azere learning how to get what she wants while also respecting her Nigerian heritage rather than a romance novel. Their entire relationship is glossed over in montages rather than shown to the reader, and the parts of their relationship that do get on-page development are all of the conflicts they have.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Pregnancy, and Sexual content
zombiezami's review against another edition
4.0
You know how a common feature and critique of romance as a genre is that problems would be easier to deal with or even resolved if characters communicated openly with one another? This book takes that concept to the nth degree. I felt that the escalation of the plot did happen quickly, but also that the author took a lot of risks that paid off. For example, in the opening pages of the book, the protagonist is on a blind date. Much of the exposition of her backstory is told by the date confirming or asking about details of her life. I thought that was clever.
Also, the author is great at misdirecting expectations and thus making room for big, dramatic reveals. Sometimes, those reveals felt very silly. Other times, I felt that the reveals put you right in the headspace of particular characters in the book.
Also, the author is great at misdirecting expectations and thus making room for big, dramatic reveals. Sometimes, those reveals felt very silly. Other times, I felt that the reveals put you right in the headspace of particular characters in the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Car accident, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, Death, Sexual content, Vomit, Pregnancy, Blood, and Cursing
Moderate: Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Ableism, Bullying, Terminal illness, Sexual harassment, and Cancer
sarah_thebooknerd's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
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? No
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. It really gets into the heart of preserving family culture, traditions but also accepting your family for who they are and what they want. Azere made a promise to her father when he was dying to marry a Nigerian man and remember her culture, however after a one night stand with Rafael she ends up pregnant and has to confront the pressures by her family, what she wants, her happiness, and choosing love or family. It is emotional and heartfelt.
Reading Around the World: African Countries
Country: Nigeria
CW: grief, loss, death, pregnancy, controlling parent, blood
Reading Around the World: African Countries
Country: Nigeria
CW: grief, loss, death, pregnancy, controlling parent, blood
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Pregnancy, Blood, and Grief
Minor: Death and Death of parent
maeverose's review against another edition
2.5
Most of this book revolves around an unplanned pregnancy and that really should’ve been in he synopsis. I wouldn’t have read it if I knew that beforehand.
I didn’t care for Azere and Rafael as a couple. They had no chemistry. Azere annoyed me because she does. not. communicate. This book relies heavily on the lack-of-communication trope. She keeps things from Rafael for way longer than she should, for no particular reason in some cases, and she just felt like a teenager most of the book with the way she handled things. Rafael keeps something from her for way too long as well. The third act breakup felt really petty and like an overreaction on Azere’s part. It could’ve easily been solved if they just idk spoke to each other maybe?
I was really annoyed that Azere kept talking to Elijah, because he was basically stalking her.
Azere finally speaking up to her mother at the end was very satisfying though.. lol
I didn’t care for Azere and Rafael as a couple. They had no chemistry. Azere annoyed me because she does. not. communicate. This book relies heavily on the lack-of-communication trope. She keeps things from Rafael for way longer than she should, for no particular reason in some cases, and she just felt like a teenager most of the book with the way she handled things. Rafael keeps something from her for way too long as well. The third act breakup felt really petty and like an overreaction on Azere’s part. It could’ve easily been solved if they just idk spoke to each other maybe?
I was really annoyed that Azere kept talking to Elijah, because he was basically stalking her.
Azere finally speaking up to her mother at the end was very satisfying though.. lol
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Grief, Blood, Death of parent, Cancer, Car accident, Religious bigotry, and Death
Pretty spoilery but important to know if miscarriage or traumatic birth is a trigger for you:donotdisturbimreading's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pregnancy and Death of parent
Minor: Death, Blood, Child death, Car accident, and Medical trauma
shelbyjo's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-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
5.0
Absolutely loved it! Started it when I woke up this morning and didn't even get out of bed until I was over 70% done. I couldn't put it down.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, and Vomit
Moderate: Car accident and Child death
gm_vak's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Medical content, and Medical trauma
liteartha's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
this was quick and sweet for the most part, and the themes of cultural identity, immigrant families, and interracial relationships were well balanced with the lighter tone of a contemporary romance
some things i liked a little less:
from a writing perspective, i found the descriptions didn't flow super well, especially in bits where it seemed like adjectives had been thrown in last minute where they weren't needed
i enjoyed getting a look at azere's nigerian culture and family, and specifically addressing some of the experiences of immigration to canada (a perspective i'd like to read more about!) but apart from a few place names and occasional mentions of something like timbits, this experience didn't feel very rooted in its setting. there also seemed to be a big focus on explaining nigerian foods, pop culture figures, etc. to the reader, i think made things feel a little clunky and could've inspired readers to do some of their own research instead of having it spoon fed to them in the story itself
the characters felt very... impersonal. who are they? even the main characters don't really seem to have ambitions and desires beyond their love lives and relationships to their families. i would have liked to get to know them more as people, instead of through the lens of their relationships to each other
the romance at the centre of the story — which btw directly involves an unplanned pregnancy something i find odd isn't in the book's description since it occurs super early on and the entire plot of the book revolves around it — was mostly endearing, but was really rushed. it was hard to believe the depth of emotion they supposedly felt for each other because it all just happened so fast and with very little apparent change in the way they interacted with each other throughout. i also wanted to shout at these characters on multiple occasions to please just fucking communicate, but i figure that's probably something of a trope in this genre so i can't fairly knock that specifically
this last one's down to total personal preference but the references to romantic movies were super frequent throughout the book, even going as far as to describe scenes and quote many of them. this might add to the experience for people who are big fans of the genre, but it was just a lot for me as someone who has seen virtually none of the mentioned films and generally doesn't like to read work that constant references other media anyway
some things i liked a little less:
from a writing perspective, i found the descriptions didn't flow super well, especially in bits where it seemed like adjectives had been thrown in last minute where they weren't needed
i enjoyed getting a look at azere's nigerian culture and family, and specifically addressing some of the experiences of immigration to canada (a perspective i'd like to read more about!) but apart from a few place names and occasional mentions of something like timbits, this experience didn't feel very rooted in its setting. there also seemed to be a big focus on explaining nigerian foods, pop culture figures, etc. to the reader, i think made things feel a little clunky and could've inspired readers to do some of their own research instead of having it spoon fed to them in the story itself
the characters felt very... impersonal. who are they? even the main characters don't really seem to have ambitions and desires beyond their love lives and relationships to their families. i would have liked to get to know them more as people, instead of through the lens of their relationships to each other
the romance at the centre of the story — which btw directly involves an
this last one's down to total personal preference but the references to romantic movies were super frequent throughout the book, even going as far as to describe scenes and quote many of them. this might add to the experience for people who are big fans of the genre, but it was just a lot for me as someone who has seen virtually none of the mentioned films and generally doesn't like to read work that constant references other media anyway
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Vomit, and Blood
Minor: Death of parent, Child death, Death, and Car accident