Reread February 2023: I took the time to underline and tab all of my favorite things and Y'ALL. This book is just FABULOUS. NO NOTES.

I GET IT NOW.

My first Zapata book was, The Wall of Winnipeg and Me, and I thought it was…fine. I think it might have been over-hyped for me so I didn’t know how I would feel about another book. But decided, why not?

ENTER IN ALL RHODES LEAD HERE.

I get it all now. This is clearly the Zapata book for me and I LOOOOVED IT.

Oh my gosh, Rhodes is a new bookisk boyfriend forever favorite. I couldn’t get enough of his quiet, stoic ways. He was incredibly romantic in the best ways. I was wrapped up in every little (and big) way he showed Aurora he was falling for her hard. I don’t know how to better describe this other than it was some of the mest slow-burn romanticness I’ve ever read.

I thought Aurora was a great main character too. I cheered for her, wanted to hug her, she made me laugh and smile. Watching her work through her trials with a sense of hope that the next turn was going to be better was such a light. Aurora’s ability to smile and continue to love was fantastic.

All of these side characters had me wrapped around their fingers too. [Well, all of the positive characters — the terrible ones can go hide in a hole]. They all felt well built and had their own stories that wove well into the over-arching plot.

Even though some of these hikes went sideways, this book gave me major wanderlust. I would love to travel to some of these areas now and see them for myself.

What a gem of a book y’all. I will recommend this up and down if you’re looking to dive into a Zapata book.