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A review by befthhh
Mickey Chambers Shakes It Up by Charish Reid
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
*I received an eARC of this book via NetGalley*
Mickey was a fun, strong, complex character! I enjoyed the chapters from her perspective and watching her journey. The rest of the characters were easy to love as well, particularly Mickey's best friend Cleo and the staff at The Saloon. Unfortunately, the tropes in this book just weren't for me. The power dynamics between the owner of a bar and one of his employees, and between a professor and their student (regardless of age) are not ones that I appreciate being marred by a romantic or sexual relationship. Especially given backstory they were both bringing into the relationship (Mickey with her chronic illness and Diego with his grief over losing his mother, and wife to cancer). While I appreciated how communicative they were with each other throughout the book, there were still so many heavy themes dealt with that I feel like the speed their relationship took was reckless. All this being said the writing itself was really strong! The small details were all excellent, the food that was talked about, the setting. I would love to read more by Reid, just not with these particular tropes.
Mickey was a fun, strong, complex character! I enjoyed the chapters from her perspective and watching her journey. The rest of the characters were easy to love as well, particularly Mickey's best friend Cleo and the staff at The Saloon. Unfortunately, the tropes in this book just weren't for me. The power dynamics between the owner of a bar and one of his employees, and between a professor and their student (regardless of age) are not ones that I appreciate being marred by a romantic or sexual relationship. Especially given backstory they were both bringing into the relationship (Mickey with her chronic illness and Diego with his grief over losing his mother, and wife to cancer). While I appreciated how communicative they were with each other throughout the book, there were still so many heavy themes dealt with that I feel like the speed their relationship took was reckless. All this being said the writing itself was really strong! The small details were all excellent, the food that was talked about, the setting. I would love to read more by Reid, just not with these particular tropes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer and Chronic illness