A review by zahraimaan
All Rhodes Lead Here by Mariana Zapata

emotional lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

i like rom-coms and i like books featuring a slow burn romance, so i thought i might try a book focusing on just the romance part. i don't know if it was just this book or if the genre just isn't for me, i might give the genre another try but i am pretty sure mariana zapata just isn't my cup of tea.

i'll start with the positive(s?): the pacing of the main relationship. i like how slow it was, and it felt believeable that rhodes would slowly warm up to aurora, despite their initial meeting. 

that's probably it. all other relationships were sacrificed in order to develop rhodes x aurora, and it was very tiring to read. clara's home situation was difficult, but it just wasn't realistic that she had to cancel every plan just for rhodes to swoop in and save the day. and every time we had the chance to see the main characters in a group setting, zapata just skipped the scene. we get the driving back and forth, but that's it. i don't think zapata understands that you can develop romantic relationships in a group setting. the relationship between amos and aurora also felt off? sometimes. like at some points i sort of thought he might have a crush on her? and that just felt icky to me. also, in the end aurora says that she

has fallen in love with the and i think she mentions the town residents, but like, what residents? i would have loved some scenes with named town residents so that would make sense. we see her interact once with walter, but i really would have liked some scenes sprinkled in with him throughout the book just so we could gauge where she was in her relationship with the town itself.

next, the writing.... it was just bad. like almost every sentence ended with.... dots? i found myself wishing for more detailed descriptions of the forest and the environment, as aurora has just left the city, she's supposed to be a bit in awe of the beauty and just falling in love with everything and yet the descriptions are plain and boring. 

by the way, why was aurora always peeing or mentioning pee? i've heard the main character in kulti also has an obsession with poop, so it might just be zapata who's weirdly fascinated by bodily excretions. 

all in all, not a book for me, despite featuring tim bradford as the main love interest :(

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent