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jillkaarlela's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.75
Taylor Swift songs: “Wildest Dreams”, “afterglow”
Age rating: 15+ (2 brief steamy scenes, 0.5/5🌶️)
if you are a fan of Ashley Poston (“The Dead Romantics” and “the Seven Year Slip”) you will LOVE this!! I know I did! Just without the paranormal aspect. This was a story about finding identity, family, dealing with past trauma, and finding love in the midst of that. I loved watching Sammy’s chaotic, messy, very human journey throughout this story. I truly connected to Sammy, even though I have not experienced the same circumstances. I also truly loved all of the side characters!! All of the relationships, especially with Sammy and her found family were so beautiful and loving. I will not lie, this might lead me to read a lot more celebrity romances and enter a delulu era, but I’m not mad about it. This book really felt like a warm hug, while still being very entertaining. I will be reading any other romances this author writes. I listened to the audiobook but I WILL be picking up a physical copy!
Plus, I love the representation in this book! We love a Pansexual Latina FMC! And I loved Willa and Brooke’s relationship/marriage! It was so healthy and loving and supportive!! We love seeing queer joy represented!!
Also side note: the audiobook narrator was fantastic!
Tropes:
Second-chance-romance
Celebrity mmc (singer)
Found family
Small town
Pansexual Latina fmc
TW: recovering alcoholic, abandonment issues, parental trauma
Age rating: 15+ (2 brief steamy scenes, 0.5/5🌶️)
if you are a fan of Ashley Poston (“The Dead Romantics” and “the Seven Year Slip”) you will LOVE this!! I know I did! Just without the paranormal aspect. This was a story about finding identity, family, dealing with past trauma, and finding love in the midst of that. I loved watching Sammy’s chaotic, messy, very human journey throughout this story. I truly connected to Sammy, even though I have not experienced the same circumstances. I also truly loved all of the side characters!! All of the relationships, especially with Sammy and her found family were so beautiful and loving. I will not lie, this might lead me to read a lot more celebrity romances and enter a delulu era, but I’m not mad about it. This book really felt like a warm hug, while still being very entertaining. I will be reading any other romances this author writes. I listened to the audiobook but I WILL be picking up a physical copy!
Plus, I love the representation in this book! We love a Pansexual Latina FMC! And I loved Willa and Brooke’s relationship/marriage! It was so healthy and loving and supportive!! We love seeing queer joy represented!!
Also side note: the audiobook narrator was fantastic!
Tropes:
Second-chance-romance
Celebrity mmc (singer)
Found family
Small town
Pansexual Latina fmc
TW: recovering alcoholic, abandonment issues, parental trauma
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcoholism, Sexual content, Cursing, and Abandonment
caseythereader's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
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
Thanks to Penguin Press for the free copy of this book.
- SAMMY ESPINOZA'S LAST REVIEW is for all the former emo girls out there.
- There is so much going on in this book - second chances, friend fights, flighty mom, long lost family and more - and it all works. It all serves to make Sammy and everyone in Ridley Falls feel like real, whole humans even with a complicated romcom plot.
- It's a thoughtful, loving exploration of how emotional traumas linger and affect your actions years later, even when you know what's happening and why. I just love a romance novel that's both swoony and rooted in reality.
- SAMMY ESPINOZA'S LAST REVIEW is for all the former emo girls out there.
- There is so much going on in this book - second chances, friend fights, flighty mom, long lost family and more - and it all works. It all serves to make Sammy and everyone in Ridley Falls feel like real, whole humans even with a complicated romcom plot.
- It's a thoughtful, loving exploration of how emotional traumas linger and affect your actions years later, even when you know what's happening and why. I just love a romance novel that's both swoony and rooted in reality.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Abandonment, Death, Grief, Cursing, and Medical content
Moderate: Alcoholism, Pregnancy, Car accident, and Sexual content
Minor: Racism
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