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aromanticreadsromance's reviews
242 reviews
The Influencers by Anna-Marie McLemore
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
I'm so sad that this didn't work for me :( I loved Self-Made Boys by Anna-Marie McLemore, so I was hopeful going into this one. I started reading this in December and didn't pick it up again until mid-February as a last ditch effort. I loved the idea, and the family dynamics were fascinating. I was honestly more invested in where March (one of the Iverson sisters) was than who murdered May Iverson's husband, August. There are so many mixed reviews on this book that I think you just need to pick it up and see for yourself; you might end up vibing with it! To me it just feels waaaay too long.
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc of this book!
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc of this book!
And They Were Roommates by Page Powars
What didn’t work for me:
I would definitely recommend this book! Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the e-ARC of this book!
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
What I loved:
- Charlie as a main character! I didn’t always LIKE him, but he felt very real to me. The total trans acceptance was amazing. There was only the fear of transphobia, never demonstrated transphobia.
- The setting! I just love boarding school settings, and a boarding school with a bunch of geniuses? Amazing
- The secret love letter sending club. Kids are so innovative; when they wanna do something, they’ll find a way to do it. So this seemed believable to me.
- The friendships between Charlie and Luis and Charlie and Xavier! These felt like two of the most developed side characters (see below), and I just adored them. Especially the big manly man gym bro Xavier who had a heart of gold.
What didn’t work for me:
- The ages of the characters: to me, this would have worked better if Charlie was a junior or senior in HS (rather than a sophomore). He met and fell in love with Jasper two summers ago, which seems kinda young to me.
- I found it unbelievable that Jasper was still pining over Charlie after two years. Again, he’s a HS sophomore.
- some of the side characters (like Delilah [Charlie’s best friend], Charlie’s mom, even sometimes Jasper) felt one-dimensional and like caricatures. They just fell flat and not fleshed out.
- Jasper grew on me, but his extreme self-centeredness is really off-putting. I mean, posters of himself on the ceiling? And a huge cardboard cutout of himself? We never really get an understanding of why Jasper is this way, but anybody this outwardly obsessed with themselves has a reason for it, don't they?
- The romance didn’t even really pick up until like 88% through the book. And even then we didn’t get to see them together as a couple like at all. So it didn’t even really feel like a slow burn, it just felt mostly non existent.
- OH almost forgot: is it not EXTREMELY weird that Jasper is supposedly one of the "sexiest" poets alive (according to a magazine or something)? He's 15 or 16. There's no discussion of how gross this in the book... are adults voting for a minor in a sexy poets contest? Bc that's v creepy
I would definitely recommend this book! Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the e-ARC of this book!
Make Room for Love by Darcy Liao
Did not finish book. Stopped at 12%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 12%.
dnf'ing (for now??) because i'm just not vibing with it. but there's so much to love about this, so i might come back at some point! there's trans sapphic awakening rep, it's pro union!
Rani Choudhury Must Die by Adiba Jaigirdar
Did not finish book. Stopped at 31%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 31%.
there wasn't anything "bad" about this, I just lost interest and am reading other things atm! not one of my favs!
Mika in Real Life by Emiko Jean
Did not finish book. Stopped at 13%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 13%.
All the lying is making me anxious!!! I might come back to this one day but today is not that day, lol
The Girl in Question by Tess Sharpe
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
I am not lying when I say I would die for these characters. I have not stopped thinking about these two books since reading them. Tess Sharpe weaves words together so well omg
The Girls I've Been by Tess Sharpe
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I WOULD DIE FOR THESE CHARACTERS
honestly now my favorite duology ever (did I have a favorite duology before this point? no but that doesn't cheapen my love for this omg) I think they will always be my top two favorite books EVER
honestly now my favorite duology ever (did I have a favorite duology before this point? no but that doesn't cheapen my love for this omg) I think they will always be my top two favorite books EVER
Futbolista by Jonny Garza Villa
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
This might be my favorite Jonny Garza Villa novel to date (and I've read all of their books!). It follows Gabriel "Gabi" through his first semester of college. He starts out thinking he has no room left for growth and he already knows everything there is to know about himself (said with all the overconfidence only an eighteen-year-old could have, LOL). We then watch Gabi eat his words and change A LOT.
This is JGV's first New Adult book, but it's a good mix of his YA (the biggest difference is the open door sex scenes). Gabi is a great MC; he knows he's good at football (soccer), but he's not obnoxious about it in the same way that Rafie is about mariachi in Canto Contigo. I'd say it's most similar to Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun, not only because of the football/soccer focus, but also because Gabi goes through a queer awakening/coming out journey. There's a ton of homophobia (coming from one person in particular who wields a lot of power over him), so be prepared for that.
I liked that this didn't feel like insta-love. Def insta-connection, but Gabi had a lot of self-discovery to do before he could fall in love with Vale. It was slow burn, friends to lovers yumminess. I loved them together! Gabi's friend group was also incredible.
Just FYI, Gabi is hooking up with Vale's best friend, Leana, in the beginning. Nothing graphic, all closed door, and they're never in a relationship (though Gabi had planned to ask her to be his girlfriend the same night she broke things off).
I'm so glad JGV is with Levine Querido after basically getting screwed over by Saint Martins Press. Thank you to Levine Querido for the advanced copy!
PS Jonny if you're reading this please write a book for Pérez!!!
This is JGV's first New Adult book, but it's a good mix of his YA (the biggest difference is the open door sex scenes). Gabi is a great MC; he knows he's good at football (soccer), but he's not obnoxious about it in the same way that Rafie is about mariachi in Canto Contigo. I'd say it's most similar to Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun, not only because of the football/soccer focus, but also because Gabi goes through a queer awakening/coming out journey. There's a ton of homophobia (coming from one person in particular who wields a lot of power over him), so be prepared for that.
I liked that this didn't feel like insta-love. Def insta-connection, but Gabi had a lot of self-discovery to do before he could fall in love with Vale. It was slow burn, friends to lovers yumminess. I loved them together! Gabi's friend group was also incredible.
Just FYI, Gabi is hooking up with Vale's best friend, Leana, in the beginning. Nothing graphic, all closed door, and they're never in a relationship (though Gabi had planned to ask her to be his girlfriend the same night she broke things off).
I'm so glad JGV is with Levine Querido after basically getting screwed over by Saint Martins Press. Thank you to Levine Querido for the advanced copy!
PS Jonny if you're reading this please write a book for Pérez!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Sexual content
Moderate: Biphobia
The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You by Lily Anderson
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
this was a reread from 2018! i remember loving it then
there are a few cringe harry potter references (keep in mind this was written in 2016) and weird talk about dating/being interested in boys being anti-feminist. but i do love a good much ado about nothing retelling!
there are a few cringe harry potter references (keep in mind this was written in 2016) and weird talk about dating/being interested in boys being anti-feminist. but i do love a good much ado about nothing retelling!
Get Real, Chloe Torres by Crystal Maldonado
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
disclaimer: I don't normally rate books, but since someone else on SG rated this 0.75 stars, I had to counteract it, and honestly, this book was near perfect to me so I'm okay with this rating!
It's no secret that I love Crystal Maldonado. The way she writes brings me back to when I was a teenager feeling all the things, and I particularly related to Chloe. She's sentimental, emotional, and dreading the next chapter of her life. For her eighteenth birthday, her dad gifts her with three tickets to her favorite boy band's reunion charity concert in Las Vegas. Four years ago, she had a falling out with her two best friends, Ramona (not sure if we're ever told her Latinidad, but she's brown) and Sienna (white Argentinian American), who she bonded with over Intonation. Her cousin/best friend, Diego, can't go to the concert with her because of work, her dad and stepmom, Karina, are expecting a baby soon and can't go, and her one friend Whit (loved Whit's cameos!) already has tickets. So Chloe gets all up in her feels and finds the BFF bucket list she made with Sienna and Ramona in middle school. One of the items on the bucket list was to go to an Intonation concert together. She decides she needs to try inviting both of them on a week long road trip as a final hurrah to high school before they go their separate ways. And maybe they can even be friends again....
As always with a Crystal Maldonado book, I loved all the characters. They were complex and imperfect and relatable. Diego is a new-ish drag queen (fun! we love her!). Chloe's papi is SO endearing/funny in his protectiveness of her. Karina mellows Chloe's father out. Ramona has a tough exterior but is a total softie (don't tell anyone). Sienna is so bubbly and cheerful with a lot of pressure in her home life. Chloe's character really hit close to home for me, as I alluded to above. She has ADHD, and while not all ADHD is the same, I related a lot to hers (especially the time blindness!). She's so nostalgic, which fuels her to invite her former BFFs on a road trip (honestly so bold). She's impulsive when upset, and she's upset when her big expectations don't match up with reality. Sometimes I wanted to scream at her to stop living in the past, but then I realized I also live in the past sooo we love the introspection!
I don't really remember Chloe from Whit's book, so this has made me want to go back and reread that. Whit's book was my first five star read of 2024 and Chloe's book is my first five star read of 2025! (forget that I said I don't normally rate books, LOL, I exist in multitudes)
Read this book for:
🩷 a cast of queer characters, and a queer (sapphic) main romance!
🩷 a semi-love triangle (more like Chloe starts crushing on one of them and then discovers, wait no, she has a crush on the other!)
🩷 the magic you feel when seeing your favorite band in concert (iykyk)
🩷 ALL Latine characters! (Chloe is Puerto Rican, like the author)
🩷 ADHD rep!
🩷 road trips
🩷 reconnecting with old friends and growing together
Thank you so much to Holiday House and Crystal Maldonado for the advanced copy of this book!!! Seriously one of my most anticipated of the year, and you blew it out of the park. Can't wait for the next one!
It's no secret that I love Crystal Maldonado. The way she writes brings me back to when I was a teenager feeling all the things, and I particularly related to Chloe. She's sentimental, emotional, and dreading the next chapter of her life. For her eighteenth birthday, her dad gifts her with three tickets to her favorite boy band's reunion charity concert in Las Vegas. Four years ago, she had a falling out with her two best friends, Ramona (not sure if we're ever told her Latinidad, but she's brown) and Sienna (white Argentinian American), who she bonded with over Intonation. Her cousin/best friend, Diego, can't go to the concert with her because of work, her dad and stepmom, Karina, are expecting a baby soon and can't go, and her one friend Whit (loved Whit's cameos!) already has tickets. So Chloe gets all up in her feels and finds the BFF bucket list she made with Sienna and Ramona in middle school. One of the items on the bucket list was to go to an Intonation concert together. She decides she needs to try inviting both of them on a week long road trip as a final hurrah to high school before they go their separate ways. And maybe they can even be friends again....
As always with a Crystal Maldonado book, I loved all the characters. They were complex and imperfect and relatable. Diego is a new-ish drag queen (fun! we love her!). Chloe's papi is SO endearing/funny in his protectiveness of her. Karina mellows Chloe's father out. Ramona has a tough exterior but is a total softie (don't tell anyone). Sienna is so bubbly and cheerful with a lot of pressure in her home life. Chloe's character really hit close to home for me, as I alluded to above. She has ADHD, and while not all ADHD is the same, I related a lot to hers (especially the time blindness!). She's so nostalgic, which fuels her to invite her former BFFs on a road trip (honestly so bold). She's impulsive when upset, and she's upset when her big expectations don't match up with reality. Sometimes I wanted to scream at her to stop living in the past, but then I realized I also live in the past sooo we love the introspection!
I don't really remember Chloe from Whit's book, so this has made me want to go back and reread that. Whit's book was my first five star read of 2024 and Chloe's book is my first five star read of 2025! (forget that I said I don't normally rate books, LOL, I exist in multitudes)
Read this book for:
🩷 a cast of queer characters, and a queer (sapphic) main romance!
🩷 a semi-love triangle (more like Chloe starts crushing on one of them and then discovers, wait no, she has a crush on the other!)
🩷 the magic you feel when seeing your favorite band in concert (iykyk)
🩷 ALL Latine characters! (Chloe is Puerto Rican, like the author)
🩷 ADHD rep!
🩷 road trips
🩷 reconnecting with old friends and growing together
Thank you so much to Holiday House and Crystal Maldonado for the advanced copy of this book!!! Seriously one of my most anticipated of the year, and you blew it out of the park. Can't wait for the next one!