I loved Nesto's motivations and his sense of identity throughout the novel. He was Dominican and proud. He wI really enjoyed the audio from this one.
I loved Nesto's motivations and his sense of identity throughout the novel. He was Dominican and proud. He was Caribbean and proud. He made sure everyone knew from the beginning who he was and what he was about. Not to mention, his foodtruck OuNYe, a play on the Yoruba word "ounje" which means nourishment, is easily one of my favorite things about this book. The way food was described, the different afro Caribbean influences, the DESERTS, everything was absolutely mouthwatering and it made me crave every single dish mentioned in the book. You can easily see this is an own voices novel, and you feel the attention to detail and care the author put into their development of Nesto and the rest of his friends and family.
Jude as a character took me a bit more to like. I think he wasn't as developed as Nesto. It's like he was a secondary character despite having a POV as well. And that's perfectly okay, I just think that when his chapters came along it took me a bit more to be invested. I think also because Jude himself is closed off and pretty reserved about himself because of past traumas, his pov is also one of kind of self doubt.
The relationship between the two is absolutely sweet. They easily fall into domestic bliss but they disguise it as "friendly neighbors who sometimes kiss". Everyone who doesn't know them just assumes they're a married couple or something like that. Adorable.
The reason this doesn't get a full 5 stars from me comes from the last act breakup, or conflict. The last act comes with a lot of unexpected problems for Jude and him dealing with his homophobic sister coming back into his life. The way she comes back is for me, one of my least favorite tropes in media, so I wasn't particularly fond of this. I also wasn't fond of the way Jude's trauma is supposed to be the moving point of the story. I think the story could have done without.
I also wasn't a fan of the way Nesto's dedication to his work was supposed to be a big reason for him and Jude to "break up". I think there's a bit of nuance that was needed because Jude should not have been so hard on Nesto. His mistake was definitely something to talk about, but not one to assume that Nesto would never have Jude as a priority, etc etc, because the way Nesto treated Jude throughout the book should have said otherwise. But I guess this is probably a personal taste, as I'm never too fond of breakups at the end which could have been solved with communication.
Nevertheless, I did enjoy this book and I'm looking forward to read the rest of the series. I want to see the rest of Nesto's brothers and their individual stories.
Loooooooooved this. There aren't nearly enough books about second chance friendships and this was amazing.Loooooooooved this. There aren't nearly enough books about second chance friendships and this was amazing....more
Okay... I'm slightly disappointed because I was told it had a f/f romance (there isn't a clear romance, though there are slight nods here and there). Okay... I'm slightly disappointed because I was told it had a f/f romance (there isn't a clear romance, though there are slight nods here and there). However, the writing is beautiful and I would have loved to keep reading more about the intricate world....more
Loved this angsty m/m romance for a lot of reasons, but especially because the main character is Puerto Rican, and the portrayal was spot on. I felt lLoved this angsty m/m romance for a lot of reasons, but especially because the main character is Puerto Rican, and the portrayal was spot on. I felt like a part of Michael's family and you could really see that the author was really dedicated to having an accurate representation of a dysfunctional puerto rican family.
This was also a best friends to lovers story, mixed with the main character Michael dealing with different kinds of grief, anxiety, and so forth. This is a heavy read, with lots of trigger warnings (will list below), but I really did enjoy it.
Trigger/Content Warnings: (view spoiler)[ alcohol addiction, drug addiction, panic attacks, anxiety, parent deaths, dubious consent, sexual assault, homophobia/misia, suicidal ideation, unprotected sex, rape joke (hide spoiler)] those are all I could remember....more
Short and cute novella featuring two disabled main characters of color. One, a genderqueer person, another a man who's trans. They bond over their lovShort and cute novella featuring two disabled main characters of color. One, a genderqueer person, another a man who's trans. They bond over their love of bad movies and terrible coffee and its just so cute! Felt a little fast paced at times, but it's nothing that stops you from enjoying the story....more
Just when I think Thea de Salle is done surprising me, she does it again with The Queen of Dauphine Street.
Dauphine focuses on Maddy, our pansexual and eccentric heroine, and Darren, a Texan gentleman who cracks jokes, both of whom are tackling PTSD in their own ways.
What I loved about this book is the fact that the book never pretends to “cure” the characters’ PTSD with romance. We see these characters find some kind of solace in each other, but we know that their traumas aren’t suddenly erased.
Thea de Salle writes such wonderfully complex and highly lovable characters. I loved Maddy and her outrageous personality. She’s completely comfortable with her sexuality, and doesn’t really give a damn about what anyone thinks of it. We first met her in The King of Bourbon Street, as Sol’s ex-wife and former Dom, but in this book her personality is completely fleshed out and we learn so much more about her. Then we have Darren, who completely stole my heart with his corny dad jokes. Darren is a southern gentleman who’s recovering from an abusive relationship. He’s charming, and sexy, and funny, an absolutely perfect combination.I really just loved the interactions between Maddy and Darren. They clicked from the very beginning. Darren lived to make her laugh, and Maddy knew how to make him feel better at every turn.
“[Maddy] didn’t have designs on fucking him per se, but if she slipped and fell onto his dick? Well? Oopsie!”
This book is infused with trademark Thea de Salle charm and hilarity, which made it even easier to pass the pages. We also got appearances from Sol & Rain from The King of Bourbon Street, and we got to meet new characters that also stole our hearts!
The sex scenes as expected, are steamy, kinky, and overall just really sexy. They leave you breathless and giggling, and more in love with the characters than you were before.
Overall, this sequel/companion novel definitely meets expectations. This erotic romance is sexy, fun, and an all-around solid book in the series. I loved Maddy & Darren, and it definitely made me anxious to read the next book, The Lady of Royale Street.
I thought at first I wouldn't like the angst between Ian and Jesse but I loved them anyway and GOD how do I get so emotionally invested EVERY TIME? 😭I thought at first I wouldn't like the angst between Ian and Jesse but I loved them anyway and GOD how do I get so emotionally invested EVERY TIME? 😭...more
Marianne (Boricuan Bookworms)
>
Books:
lgbt
(42)
Loading...
