Alexia Daria is a native New Yorker and an award-winning author writing stories about successful Latinx characters and their (occasionally messy) familias. Her debut, Take the Lead, was a 2018 RITA Award winner for Best First Book and was named one of the Best Romance Novels of 2017 by the Washington Post and Entertainment Weekly. Her superpowers include spotting celebrities in NYC, winning Broadway ticket lotteries, and live-tweeting her favorite TV shows at @alexisdaria. You can find more of my reviews of Daria's works here.
After burning out in her corporate marketing career, Michelle Amato has built a thriving freelance business as a graphic designer. So what if her love life is nonexistent? She's perfectly fine being the black sheep of her marriage-obsessed Puerto Rican-Italian family. Besides, the only guy who ever made her want happily-ever-after disappeared thirteen years ago. Gabriel Aguilar left the Bronx at eighteen to escape his parents' demanding expectations, but it also meant saying goodbye to Michelle, his best friend and longtime crush. Now, he's the successful co-owner of LA's hottest celebrity gym, with an investor who insists on opening a New York City location. It's the last place Gabe wants to go, but when Michelle is unexpectedly brought on board to spearhead the new marketing campaign, everything Gabe's been running from catches up with him. Michelle is torn between holding Gabe at arm's length or picking up right where they left off—in her bed. As they work on the campaign, old feelings resurface, and their reunion takes a sexy turn. Facing mounting pressure from their families—who think they're dating—and growing uncertainty about their futures, can they resolve their past mistakes, or is it only a matter of time before Gabe says adiós again?
I can't say I've read a lot of second-chance romances, but A Lot Like Adiós really makes a good name for the trope. It expertly combines second-chance with friends-to-lovers—even if there is a decade-year gap between those stages. And, for the real trope lovers, there's even a bit of fake dating tossed into the mix, due to some meddling family members. Daria is able to realistically craft a story that throws two unlikely people together, as well as their families, to create a happily-ever-after that also balances family and personal expectations. I read this book in less than a day, and so that also certainly speaks to the addictive nature of Daria's writing.
Unfortunately, there were some parts of the novel that I wasn't entirely convinced by. Firstly, I was relatively unconvinced of the fanfiction drafting sessions. Don't get me wrong, I love the element of fanfiction, and the way more and more people are openly talking about it. But, while the fanfiction played a role in their teenage friendship, it didn't play any role in their breakup, and it didn't seem like it was meaningful enough early on to play a pivotal role in their get together. I was confused at what the point was of drawing attention away from the rekindling of their romance by going back to past interactions that had no weight in the present moment. Once it becomes clear that Gabe thinks this is the way back to Michelle's heart, I wish I could have felt the same. But because the early chapters of the novel didn't do as much work to support the importance of having these breaks, Gabe's last-ditch effort with the fanfiction fell short for me.
There were also some gaps in the storytelling for me. I was not convinced that Gabe would have forgotten to call Fabian back after running into his dad at the convenience store (particulars aside), especially since Fabian contacted Gabe with an emergency, and at that point in the novel, Gabe attached his self-worth to the success of the gym. And, that emergency at all never truly came back into the story, leaving it completely unresolved. I also was confused as to how Michelle thought that Gabe would have connected Michelle's work to Nathaniel's if she had turned down Gabe's offered. Especially because it seemed like there was no connection between Nathaniel and Michelle's Victory campaign, and because we hardly got to know who Nathaniel was or his impact on Michelle at all. I wish the author had expanded on this, because it would have made Michelle's career moves and romantic life more rewarding at the end.
All-in-all, despite some of my reservations regarding the novel, I don't want to take away from Daria's ability to create an entertaining read that provide great representation for the genre. The Primas of Power series is slated to be a trilogy as seen on Goodreads, and I can only guess that Ava's story comes next, in The Rebound, set to be published in January 2023.
*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*
Comments
Post a Comment