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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
You Had Me at Hola by Alexis Daria
4 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I loved this steamy, slow-burn romance with a full cast of Lantinx characters! Jasmine & Ashton are the stars of a brand new television series that combines the cheesiness of a soap opera with the drama of a telenovela. We follow them in their real-life interactions with one another as well as their time filming scenes together. It was a fun, quick read that actually highlighted a lot of really important concepts from the underrepresentation of Latinx people in media to sexual consent. I found this to be a really refreshing romance!
4 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I loved this steamy, slow-burn romance with a full cast of Lantinx characters! Jasmine & Ashton are the stars of a brand new television series that combines the cheesiness of a soap opera with the drama of a telenovela. We follow them in their real-life interactions with one another as well as their time filming scenes together. It was a fun, quick read that actually highlighted a lot of really important concepts from the underrepresentation of Latinx people in media to sexual consent. I found this to be a really refreshing romance!
você me ganhou no olá tinha tudo pra ser um hit na minha estante, protagonistas latinos, cultura latina, romance de bastidores, drama e fofoca.
na verdade, acabou sendo um grande pé na jaca.
vou iniciar falando primeiro sobre a edição da harlequin, o livro possui MUITOS erros de tradução, gramática e digitação, ninguém teve coragem de revisar antes de mandar pra edição final pelo visto. no que concerne a história em si... eu odiei os protagonistas. no início eu tava 50% dentro e indo na vibe, mas chegou no meio do livro, quando o romance começo a se concretizar, foi ai que ele se perdeu.
os dois são extremamente dramáticos, tomam todas as decisões no calor do momento, fazem as coisas mais bizonhas possíveis em nome da emoção, nenhum deles dois é capaz de ser lógico e racional até chegar nos meados do terceiro ato. eu, como pessoa latina, sei que isso é bem característica de novelas latinas tradicionais, mas eu acredito que isso não funcione em livros, muito menos em contemporâneos e só serve para criar personagens sofridos que irritam o leitor (só eu sei o quanto de raiva eu passei). o tipo de romance deles também não faz sentido nenhum pra mim, eles se recusam a ter uma comunicação aberta e sincera por pura teimosia e isso enche demais a minha paciência.
por fim, a cereja estragada do bolo, foi o fato de que esses dois personagens são muito imaturos, apesar de já serem BEM mais velhos (se isso fosse um YA eu nem ia falar nada, sabe), e precisam de terapia, e o pior é que... a autora SABE disso, mas deixa isso como uma questão pra ser resolvida no EPÍLOGO?!??!!? MANA, ELES PRECISAVAM DE TERAPIA ANTES MESMO DE QUEREREM ESTAR JUNTOS!!!!!! no mais, essa história é uma farofona, uma bagunça, já assisti novelas latinas (brasileiras s2) com tramas bem mais coesas, concisas e interessantes. e a harlequin livros, mais atenção na próxima.
na verdade, acabou sendo um grande pé na jaca.
vou iniciar falando primeiro sobre a edição da harlequin, o livro possui MUITOS erros de tradução, gramática e digitação, ninguém teve coragem de revisar antes de mandar pra edição final pelo visto. no que concerne a história em si... eu odiei os protagonistas. no início eu tava 50% dentro e indo na vibe, mas chegou no meio do livro, quando o romance começo a se concretizar, foi ai que ele se perdeu.
os dois são extremamente dramáticos, tomam todas as decisões no calor do momento, fazem as coisas mais bizonhas possíveis em nome da emoção, nenhum deles dois é capaz de ser lógico e racional até chegar nos meados do terceiro ato. eu, como pessoa latina, sei que isso é bem característica de novelas latinas tradicionais, mas eu acredito que isso não funcione em livros, muito menos em contemporâneos e só serve para criar personagens sofridos que irritam o leitor (só eu sei o quanto de raiva eu passei). o tipo de romance deles também não faz sentido nenhum pra mim, eles se recusam a ter uma comunicação aberta e sincera por pura teimosia e isso enche demais a minha paciência.
por fim, a cereja estragada do bolo, foi o fato de que esses dois personagens são muito imaturos, apesar de já serem BEM mais velhos (se isso fosse um YA eu nem ia falar nada, sabe), e precisam de terapia, e o pior é que... a autora SABE disso, mas deixa isso como uma questão pra ser resolvida no EPÍLOGO?!??!!? MANA, ELES PRECISAVAM DE TERAPIA ANTES MESMO DE QUEREREM ESTAR JUNTOS!!!!!! no mais, essa história é uma farofona, uma bagunça, já assisti novelas latinas (brasileiras s2) com tramas bem mais coesas, concisas e interessantes. e a harlequin livros, mais atenção na próxima.
I only rate books 5 stars so they appear on my profile, and only rate one book per series regardless of how excellent the series as a whole is.
emotional
medium-paced
emotional
funny
lighthearted
A bit cheesy and repetitive/predictable but refreshing to read a Latinx centered romance. I’ll definitely check out other books by Daria.
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
REVIEW
cw: anxiety, stalking, grief, mention of cancer, PTSD
Soap opera darling Jasmine Lin Rodriguez finds her face splashed across the tabloids after an extremely messy breakup. Desperate to get away from Los Angeles, she returns to her hometown of New York to film the romantic lead in Carmen in Charge, a bilingual romcom series with a plan in place to concentrate solely on her career.
Thirty-eight-year-old Ashton Suárez is worried his career is dead as well after his last telenovela character was killed off. A last-minute addition to Carmen in Charge, he's hoping he'll finally have the chance to show off his skills to American audiences and even get on the radar of Hollywood casting agents.
Despite Jasmine’s disastrous first impression of him, neither can deny the chemistry that starts to bubble over once they start rehearsing together privately and commit to making this the best show either has been involved with. But with that the media spotlight on Jasmine soon threatens to destroy her new image and expose Ashton’s most closely guarded secret.
For the most part, I really enjoyed this book. My rating was definitely heading towards a solid 4-stars until the conflict kicked in.
I loved Ashton immediately. He was adorably nervous, and I really empathised with his anxiety-ridden inner-monologue, especially early on. My heart broke for him when he recollected the reason why his son didn't live with him, and the PTSD and paranoia was understandable. I loved how he was slowly able to lower his walls with Jasmine. Still, I could see the inevitable conflict coming from a mile away, because of his deep paranoia, which, to be fair to him, wasn't completely unwarranted. I loved Jasmine. I cackled laughing at the outfit Penny brought her to wear at the read-through, but I loved how she owned it. She had a great sense of humour, but I felt for her early on whenever she tried to connect (professionally) with Ashton. It was so, SO awkward.
However, I loved their breakthrough, and I really loved the duality of Ashton trying to make it in the English-speaking market, and Jasmine's struggles with Spanish. One of the things I loved most about this book was that the author didn't translate every single Spanish phrase into English. I realise I'm reading from some privilege, being able to read Spanish, but I find that sometimes books can end up translating every single phrase used in a language other than English immediately afterwards, and it can become very repetitive, and even take me out of the scene. The essence of more complex sentences was always there, but I think the author struck the perfect balance.
The scene with Vera, the intimacy coordinator was really interesting, and well-written, but the following chapters were hilariously awkward. I loved all of the little snippets of each episode. They sucked me right into the plot of Carmen in Charge, just like the best telenovelas.
The slow-burn and mutual pining were both exquisite, and I loved the karaoke scene. As for the aftermath, the chemistry sizzled between Ashton and Jasmine, and the intimacy was incendiary. I loved how caring both were of each other. Their initial outward reactions to the gossip rag article were expected, but I appreciated Jasmine’s pragmatism after her own shock, and liked that Ashton’s inner dialogue showed his own struggle between his heart and his head. However, when the second article came out, while I understood Jasmine’s hurt, her reaction was a little selfish in my opinion. As for Ashton’s conversation at the end of the day filming? I was cringing SO much, and quickly became Team Jasmine. I'm personally not a fan of miscommunication and drama as a major plotline anyway, so the final third of the story was very frustrating at times. Still, I hated how the press treated both of them in the aftermath, and the sexism was especially rage-inducing.
I liked the supporting characters. Michelle and Ava, Jasmine's 'Primas of Power' were fun, and full of great advice. The chapter where they interrupt the private rehearsal was hilariously written, and I loved Ashton’s interpretation of one of the other cast members. He was such a good sport. Ashton’s son Yadiel was adorable, and Ashton's father, Ignacio, was hilarious. I also loved his abuelitos, Bibi and Gus. I really loved the diversity of the characters and how each and everyone was celebrated by Marquita, the showrunner, but i'd have loved a little more detail about Nino, the trans actor who’d play Carmen’s assistant in the series.
The ending was wonderful. Though Ashton’s intervention was well-overdue, it was deeply satisfying. And I'm so glad that Jasmine also came to her own realisation by talking things through with Michelle and Ava before the party started. I loved that Jasmine finally realised her own sense of worth. Meanwhile, BOTH of Ashton’s grand gestures were perfect, but, for me, especially the one concerning the show's renewal. I seriously squee'ed at that part. It was such a thoughtful moment. I also LOVED Jasmine’s family’s response to Ashton’s presence. The epilogue just tied everything up perfectly.
While the conflict frustrated me, this was a fun story and I look forward to reading about the other Primas in the future.
Overall Rating: ❤️❤️❤️.5
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥
funny
lighthearted
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
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes