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em_likes_books 's review for:
Don't Date Rosa Santos
by Nina Moreno
I have quite a few friends who read and loved this book, but it didn't quite live up to the hype for me. The story itself was cute; the plot revolves around a close-knit Floridian community working together to raise enough money to save their town's marina from being bought by developers. The people work together to put on a festival of sorts and while I loved that set up, I felt a little let down that we didn't see much of the festival itself.
Additionally, there were a lot of side characters in this book. Most of them were just mentioned here and there and thus didn't warrant enough character development for me to keep track of them. (There was also one instance where the name Eli was used but...I truly have no idea who Eli is? Was it a typo? I was confused.) The love interest also felt a bit bland and I wasn't sure how or when Rosa fell for him. Rosa, her mother, and her grandmother on the other hand were really distinct characters and I loved all their personalities.
I think maybe my favorite thing about this story was all the discussion of food and baked goods. Nina Moreno really brought those scenes to life for me. There were lots of magical realist/fabulist elements to this that I loved too, including the curse that the Santos women face, which made it whimsical and lovely. I wish I had read this closer to summer...or at the very least while not stuck at home under shelter-in-place orders because it was torture to read about the sun and the beach while sitting at home.
Additionally, there were a lot of side characters in this book. Most of them were just mentioned here and there and thus didn't warrant enough character development for me to keep track of them. (There was also one instance where the name Eli was used but...I truly have no idea who Eli is? Was it a typo? I was confused.) The love interest also felt a bit bland and I wasn't sure how or when Rosa fell for him. Rosa, her mother, and her grandmother on the other hand were really distinct characters and I loved all their personalities.
I think maybe my favorite thing about this story was all the discussion of food and baked goods. Nina Moreno really brought those scenes to life for me. There were lots of magical realist/fabulist elements to this that I loved too, including the curse that the Santos women face, which made it whimsical and lovely. I wish I had read this closer to summer...or at the very least while not stuck at home under shelter-in-place orders because it was torture to read about the sun and the beach while sitting at home.