A review by kerosenelit
All Rhodes Lead Here by Mariana Zapata

adventurous emotional lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

It seems silly for a mere nickname to ruin a romance for me, but that’s essentially what happened here. The age gap between Aurora and Tobias isn’t huge by any means, ten years or so, but the constant use of “Buddy” was an odd choice considering. It gave me the ick. On top of that, the revealed reasoning why Tobias used that nickname in the first place for Aurora had me absolutely cackling—not in a good way.

I did enjoy the cozy small-town setting! And the relationship Aurora develops with Amos, Tobias's teenage son! Unfortunately, that’s all I liked. Aurora felt quite immature to me, and on more than one occasion her actions and internal thoughts had me internally screaming. I tend to love adventurous storylines, especially those involving hiking, but even that was lacking for me here.

I know this author is known as the queen of slow-burn romances, and this one in particular is super loved (just look at the average Goodreads rating!), but the excess of painfully mundane moments made this a chore to read. This is exactly why I tend to avoid romances over 500 pages.

(heat level: one open-door scene, explicit details)
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