You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I love Tom and Milo so much. I really appreciated how real it felt for Milo to grapple with not only the professional/personal of his relationship with Tom but also their wealth and privilege differences. It made it feel real while still being a fairytale that definitely served as a great escape outlet for me during a challenging time. And it was also pretty spicy! Very enjoyable.
What are the odds of the guy you sucked in a bathroom at a gala turning out to be a mayor donor for the agency you’re working for? Well… in Camilo’s case those odds are high AF. Cause who was sitting in his boss's office when he walked in for a meeting on Monday? None other than Tom Hughes (bathroom guy) and now after dropping 2mill for a renovation he also wants one on one’s with Camilo to “discuss the progress of the project”. The thing is, the more Camilo spends time with Tom the harder it is to resist him.
-M/M
-Age gap(7yrs, I think)
-Social worker/Millionaire(sold his app)
-Size difference
-A daddy in every sense of the word
-Divorced
-Tom is so swoony
-M/M
-Age gap(7yrs, I think)
-Social worker/Millionaire(sold his app)
-Size difference
-A daddy in every sense of the word
-Divorced
-Tom is so swoony
adventurous
lighthearted
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:
No
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book fell apart for me during The Break Up. For all of Camilo's talk and obsession over his own agency, he completely ignores his mother's agency. Maybe she was happy to have her back rent and the next six months of rent paid for! Camilo never asks, instead making it all about himself, and I found it very off-putting. I liked his character a lot until then, but I spent the rest of the book angry at him for making decisions for his mother—a woman who, as she reminds him, crossed 90 miles of open ocean in a makeshift boat with nothing but the clothes on her back. Had Camilo learned some kind of lesson about his own pride and inability to ask for help (a thread which the book raises), then I would have been fine with it, but the fact that he doesn't, and that his alpha male machismo and making decisions for the woman in his life is portrayed as Good and Right, took at least 1 star off my rating.
American Fairytale provides an unfiltered approach to class differences. There's Camilo who has worked hard for the life he has worked in an agency that helped victims of domestic abuse and has taken care of his mother deeply. Then there's tom who is a Dominican immigrant who put in as much work into his career until he and his business partners could sell it off and make a lot of money. I enjoyed the difference in how Camilo and tom showed their affection. Camilo was out loud and expressive while tom fumbled around, thinking gestures sponsored by money might make Camilo's life easy. But Camilo never did anything that was easy. I fell wholeheartedly for Camilo and tom. Especially milo. his humor, his saltiness, and his passion. They all endeared him to me. Another fantastic romance by Adriana Herrera exploring fantastic nuanced Latinx representation in queer romance. I can't wait to see more from her.
If you enjoy realistic romance that is guaranteed to make you swoon and put a smile on your face, you need to pick up literally anything by Adriana Herrera. In American Dreamer, the first in her Dreamers series, I fell in love with Nesto and Jude. They felt like real people I was reading about, and I still think about them all the time. The same larger than life cast of characters is back in American Fairytale, with sass turned up to an eleven. Camilo is the focus of the second installment, but the whole gang is back again and ready and willing to provide hilarious, if not always appropriate, relationship advice.
Camilo is a social worker who meets billionaire Tom at a fundraising event. Sparks fly and the two have a seriously hot (like will absolutely make you blush hot) hook up before the night ends. Despite his attraction and connection with Tom, Milo leaves before it can go any farther only to run into him at work the following week. After a tense meeting Milo realizes he'll be heading up a project that Tom is funding. The two must find a way to work together without compromising the project and navigate their budding attraction while balancing the serious financial disparity between them. Oh, and there's the tiny detail of Tom having a child from his previous marriage that he's co parenting with his ex-husband.
There is so much to love about this book. I adore the way that Herrera incorporates so much of the character's jobs and families into their stories. It's all woven together so well and these extra details are part of why her characters feel like real people who could walk right off the page and meet you for coffee. I love an angsty romance as much as the next person, but they can be as emotionally exhausting as they are enjoyable and addictive. The love stories that Herrera writes are real and so refreshing, and any angst or tension comes from navigating real world situations.
The chemistry between Milo and Tom is palpable from their very first encounter and only grows throughout the book. It was pure joy to watch them discover each other and work through the obstacles facing them. I am looking forward to the next book in the series and anything else Herrera writes. My heartfelt thanks to Adriana for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Camilo is a social worker who meets billionaire Tom at a fundraising event. Sparks fly and the two have a seriously hot (like will absolutely make you blush hot) hook up before the night ends. Despite his attraction and connection with Tom, Milo leaves before it can go any farther only to run into him at work the following week. After a tense meeting Milo realizes he'll be heading up a project that Tom is funding. The two must find a way to work together without compromising the project and navigate their budding attraction while balancing the serious financial disparity between them. Oh, and there's the tiny detail of Tom having a child from his previous marriage that he's co parenting with his ex-husband.
There is so much to love about this book. I adore the way that Herrera incorporates so much of the character's jobs and families into their stories. It's all woven together so well and these extra details are part of why her characters feel like real people who could walk right off the page and meet you for coffee. I love an angsty romance as much as the next person, but they can be as emotionally exhausting as they are enjoyable and addictive. The love stories that Herrera writes are real and so refreshing, and any angst or tension comes from navigating real world situations.
The chemistry between Milo and Tom is palpable from their very first encounter and only grows throughout the book. It was pure joy to watch them discover each other and work through the obstacles facing them. I am looking forward to the next book in the series and anything else Herrera writes. My heartfelt thanks to Adriana for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I know sequels are supposed to not be as good as the first, but “American Fairytale” is at least as good as “American Dreamer”. The writing is consistent across the first two novels in the “Dreamers” series. This one has a much more adult opening, but I’m not complaining. The passion Tom and Camilo have feels more intense and their chemistry stronger. After “American Dreamer” I was curious about Nesto’s friends, but especially Camilo. I might even like Camilo more than Nesto, and I’m a big fan of his. As much as there’s a bit of a formula to these novels, it’s not set in stone. The rift and reconciliation in this novel didn’t feel as harsh as it was in “American Dreamer”. Maybe it’s that the bond just felt stronger. There is something about the scenes with Nesto, Juanpa, and Patrice that felt like characters making a cameo-like appearance in a sequel or spin-off. I don’t meant that it in a bad way. On the contrary, it’s fun and refreshing. I’m hoping Patrice’s story in book three is as enjoyable as Nesto’s and Camilo’s.
I enjoyed this book just as much as the first of the series! Read the full review on my blog.
4.5!
She’s done it again, y’all. I wasn’t a big fan of American Dreamer but I’m so glad I stuck with the series. I adore Milo and Tom. They had all the chemistry I thought Nesto and Jude lacked, plus some. I loved all the characters and the third act conflict was reasonable? Felt less unnecessary than most. Anyway 9/10 would recommend
She’s done it again, y’all. I wasn’t a big fan of American Dreamer but I’m so glad I stuck with the series. I adore Milo and Tom. They had all the chemistry I thought Nesto and Jude lacked, plus some. I loved all the characters and the third act conflict was reasonable? Felt less unnecessary than most. Anyway 9/10 would recommend
4 stars for the story, B
4.5 stars for the narration by Sean Crisden, A-
I'm not going to recap the plot because there are many good reviews that do that. I enjoyed the story and thought the emotional conflict was genuine and believable. I loved the look into the different immigrant cultures and food. Sean Crisden's narration is excellent. He voices all the different accents very well, and he does a good job with both male and female voices.
4.5 stars for the narration by Sean Crisden, A-
I'm not going to recap the plot because there are many good reviews that do that. I enjoyed the story and thought the emotional conflict was genuine and believable. I loved the look into the different immigrant cultures and food. Sean Crisden's narration is excellent. He voices all the different accents very well, and he does a good job with both male and female voices.