booksaftercafecito's reviews
188 reviews

Take the Lead by Alexis Daria

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emotional funny 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? No

4.5

Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

Let Me Love You Anyway by Jordyn Barnes

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

2.0

I was intrigued until about the 35% mark. The story just started to take a crazy turn that felt too out of place. The timeline was also messy. As it switched POVs, each one would backtrack to something already covered by the previous POV, but then it wouldn’t line up.

There was also a lot of self deprecation, “I’m such a loser”, “I have baggage, you should leave me”, “why do you want me”, etc. In most books, it more of an internal struggle, but it was said out loud my both MCs CONSTANTLY. It got irritating to read.

Also, the plot line about his sister was so strange. Everything that transpired over the course of the story just didn’t fit right.

Content Warnings

This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Kennedy’s ability to write such relatable characters Is superb. I felt every ounce of Sol’s pain, sadness, anger, relief… this list goes on.
There are so many lessons to take away from this book: how to move on past heartbreak and betrayal, how to find and love yourself, how to use you’re past experiences to guide your future decisions in a healthy way, how to have discussions with your children, how to co-parent for the benefit of the children, healthy adult friendships even after separation or divorce.
Getting a view inside the life of parents of children with autism was so enlightening. Jonah and Tremaine are remarkable.
The way the Puerto Rican culture was so seamlessly intertwined within the threads of Soledad’s story was beautiful.
I cannot say enough good things. Read this book!

Written with You by Aly Martinez

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dark emotional medium-paced