Reviews with content warning for Sexism - Raiders of the Lost Heart

Being a massive Indiana Jones fan, I was all too hopeful that this book would scratch my itch for archaeological adventure while also presenting as a fun romcom. I admit that I saw the title and was immediately taken.

However… it was a bust. It had some fun adventure elements and the plot of looking for the final resting place of a fictional Mexican warrior was really promising. I enjoyed some of the parts where the characters actually found the Aztec ruins/remains. But then it just kinda went overboard with stereotype—ridiculous high stakes, multiple potential villains, cliche romance.

Yeah. The romance. It was pretty cringe. And unfortunately, the FMC reads like she was written by a man, the way she is described and even the way she talks sometimes. The MMC’s POV chapters definitely didn’t help when referring to her body and skills etc. The sex scenes seemed way too heavy on the physicality and reputation of the FMC than on the actual passion and relationship between the two. Idk, everything the FMC did seemed over-sexualized, especially considering a major part of her character was trying to escape those stereotypes. It just seemed like the author fed too much into it that it sort-of had the opposite effect that she was going for. Maybe I just found the writing too cheesy and awkward. And the fact that the MMC was THIRTY-EIGHT-YEARS-OLD and acted the way he did and said the things he did really gave me the ick.

It was a quick read overall and I never wanted to DNF it, I just was disappointed with it.

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ajay913's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted 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

4.0

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notsobinaryart's review against another edition

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adventurous

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

If I hadn't been reading this book for a book club, I would have DNFed this book so many times.

I wanted to like it so bad. Afterall, a romcom with a badass Latina archaeologist adventuring and researching her passion project into who might have been her ancestor? Sign me up!

Unfortunately, the romance overshadowed any other part of the book, and the romance was my whole problem with the book. Specifically, the male main character, Ford.

Ford is the definition of a privileged mediocre white man. Everywhere he is in his career he steals from her. This is not an exaggeration of general white privilege, he specifically steals her opportunities out from under her.

I was hoping, somehow, everything would be explained away, or at least that Ford would undergo a significant change. However, the reasoning and story behind his decisions didn't make me view his character any better, in part because we were explained too late in the story to feel empathy and in part because it seemed like there could have been better options to remedy his situation.

Beyond that, I see no romance between the two characters. They both show no actual romantic feelings, only constant lust and objectification, plus their constant hatred for each other. I'm an avid romance reader, so smut is not new to me; reading a romance that almost seems to center the male gaze, however, is a new one.

If this had been a book focused on only the archaeology, adventures, and the struggles of being a Latina in academia and professional fields, this would be a very different review. So many themes were almost realized, but never truly completed seemingly in favor of the romance.

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schweibertsm's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a fun romance adventure book. Who doesn't love some adventure with their romance. Reading this was definitely similar to watch Indiana Jones, but instead of the Lead woman being a damsel in destress. The FMC was a badass. This was a fun read for me.

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aqtbenz's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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ms_elchert's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

2.0

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doseofromance's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

Was this book secretly written by a man? The FMC was so weirdly sexualized, despite the issue of sexualizing women being a main theme of the book. Like she was barely thinking about anything besides sex or making suggestive jokes. Both MCs - though mainly the FMC - kept thinking and talking about their previous sex lives, which just didn't make sense at all. Bringing it up once is great, but why keep emphasizing that the FMC really enjoys casual hookups?
While I didn't really like either main character, the MMC was the bigger problem. He's actually the exact type of guy women complain about in their fields. Does he sexually harass anyone or sleep with students? No, he just doesn't ever step in when someone else disparages women, uses his romantic relationships to further his career at a woman's expense, and actually explicitly steals said woman's career opportunities. I can't believe the FMC kept going back to him without him actually putting in any effort. He'd do something fucked up, she'd storm of and then come back to him right after. Stop it.

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