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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Books like this are the reason I read. I would have never in a million years thought of this story, but Tia Williams delivers it so incredibly well that I can’t fathom ever not having known these characters.
I don’t want to say too much but I’ll say that chosen family representation is one of my favorite storylines in books and this was incredible. The family that Ricki creates, especially trying to navigate her own toxic dynamic with her family, was so pure.
I loved every character, every story line, everything about this novel. I want to read 10 more books about Ezra/Breeze and Ricki. Oooooo or a book for Tuesdays love story… maybe? Tia? Eh?
5 star for me. Highly recommend. Do look at TW’s first. This is a heavy book and I don’t suggest it if you struggle reading anything about death, grief, illness, mental health, a few others.
I don’t want to say too much but I’ll say that chosen family representation is one of my favorite storylines in books and this was incredible. The family that Ricki creates, especially trying to navigate her own toxic dynamic with her family, was so pure.
I loved every character, every story line, everything about this novel. I want to read 10 more books about Ezra/Breeze and Ricki. Oooooo or a book for Tuesdays love story… maybe? Tia? Eh?
5 star for me. Highly recommend. Do look at TW’s first. This is a heavy book and I don’t suggest it if you struggle reading anything about death, grief, illness, mental health, a few others.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Cancer, Child death, Death, Infertility, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment
Minor: Drug use, Miscarriage, Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
What I most like about this book is the setting. The jumps in time between present-day Harlem and the 1920s are so fun. While the 1920s hold their own magic, Ricki brings magic to the present day through her flower shop and the whole thing is so romantic.
I also love Ricki and Ezra’s undeniable pull towards each other. I don’t normally love insta-love but the magical/meant to be/soulmate aspect of this makes it fun. And I was GLUED, just trying to find out Ezra’s big secret.
Romance, Harlem, voodoo, a cute flower shop, and fun characters. Give it a shot if you love a well written romcom!
Romance, Harlem, voodoo, a cute flower shop, and fun characters. Give it a shot if you love a well written romcom!
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
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
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
i reallyyyyy loved this one - the concept, the characters, the black history, the humor - but it still feels like something that i cant point exactly what was missing... i think maybe it was too fast burn for my taste? and i get it since they were soulmates and just recognized each other kinda but still hum... the ending also felt rushed. it's still one of the best romances i've read so far and i really adore tia's writing.
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
funny
mysterious
slow-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
Tia William’s writing is beautiful and I love how she weaves black history, culture, and pride into her works. I enjoyed Ricki and Ezra a great deal, but did find the first half of this book slow going and did not feel particularly invested. I picked it up and put it down quite a lot before settling into the second half. I think it took me a while to feel bought into Ezra and his story.
I really loved Ms Della and Tuesday as supporting characters in this. The found family was fantastic. I did find Ricki’s actual family incredibly irritating and I’m sorry she did not have more support or understanding from her parents and sisters.
In terms of drawbacks, I am never much of a fan of insta love and this one fell too much into that category for me. I think I had mixed feelings on the magical realism. I really liked the concept of perennials but found I wasn’t as drawn into that part of the story as I wanted to be. I appreciated Ezra’s history and influence on music, but the curse part felt too convenient and out of the blue—like it wasn’t a result of Ricki’s actions but poof! she’s set to die. And while I mostly understood Ms Della’s suicide given the circumstances of her severe cancer diagnosis, I will continue to be frustrated and wish that authors would not use this as a convenient plot point. For anyone who doesn’t understand this, look up the disability community’s concerns about the serious dangers of legalizing assisted suicide. Life is still worth living when disabled (in all cases) and even terminally ill (in many cases).
I will say I was delighted by the bottomless brunch real life pun. I laughed out loud and it’s definitely one of my favorite recent listening moments.
I also greatly appreciated the audiobook narrator, who does a great job.
I really loved Ms Della and Tuesday as supporting characters in this. The found family was fantastic. I did find Ricki’s actual family incredibly irritating and I’m sorry she did not have more support or understanding from her parents and sisters.
In terms of drawbacks, I am never much of a fan of insta love and this one fell too much into that category for me. I think I had mixed feelings on the magical realism. I really liked the concept of perennials but found I wasn’t as drawn into that part of the story as I wanted to be. I appreciated Ezra’s history and influence on music, but the curse part felt too convenient and out of the blue—
I will say I was delighted by the bottomless brunch real life pun. I laughed out loud and it’s definitely one of my favorite recent listening moments.
I also greatly appreciated the audiobook narrator, who does a great job.
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No