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shealea 's review for:
A Match Made in Lipa
by Carla de Guzman
If I were solely rating Anton Santillan, I'd probably give him all the stars (and then some). That man sounds like a bad idea, but I'm down to make a bad decision.
Final impressions:
• First, before anything else, I want to commend Carla de Guzman for choosing violence. She really cracked her author knuckles and went, "Listen, we all make fun of Ateneans - but at the end of the day, we still want to get underneath them." (Kidding.)
• I delved into this novel with the expectation of finding an endearing, hopeful love story between childhood friends. But amidst the holiday warmth and merriment, there was a lingering undercurrent of melancholy and yearning that tugged at my heartstrings. With Santi torn between prioritizing his happiness and conforming to his family's ideals, reading A Match Made in Lipa felt very heavy and even triggering at times.
• Speaking of, Santi is truly the shining star of this book. Estranged from the Villa side of his family while constantly taken for granted by the Santillan side, behind that Uniqlo polo lies a hurting heart that just wants to love and be loved properly in return. (I'm a simp for him, your honor.)
• In contrast, I looked at Kira in the same way that you'd look at a pesky housefly. Not quite as annoying as a mosquito, but would still prefer its absence.
- While I liked her in the beginning, I struggled to connect with her as the story progressed. Which had initially baffled me because she's very much a confused, still-figuring-life-out millennial (and so am I).
- But I think the roadblock lies in her exceedingly privileged lifestyle and circumstances.
• I also can't help but feel that the writing in Sweet On You was much stronger in comparison. While I still really enjoyed the story, I occasionally struggled with the writing style due to the following reasons:
- A Match Made in Lipa often came across as, for lack of better adjectives, aggressively upper-class millennial. This was notably more evident in Kira's POV.
- Some attempts at humor did not land very well, while some jokes were overly repetitive.
• For a contemporary romance novel, I was genuinely more invested in Santi's character arc (and his struggles with his toxic family) than in the romantic development between him and Kira.
- My initial kilig died down once I concluded that I wouldn't be getting some nice 'will they, won't they' tension between childhood friends.
- Instead, Santi and Kira quickly established their mutual attraction and were essentially together without labels, so it felt like their relationship plateaued too early on. Moreover, while I recognize that malabo relationships are a common happenstance in real life, it wasn't particularly compelling to read about.
• On a more praising note, I appreciated how this book delved into the toxicities of some Filipino families and the additional burdens placed on panganay (eldest) children. I also really liked the emphasis on different forms of love, be it between partners, among friends, or within families - and how sometimes people just can't love us in the way that we need them to.
• Criticisms aside, I still think that this book has much to offer and is worth picking up. More than a romance, A Match Made in Lipa is an incredibly evocative story about growth and the difficult choices to be made in order to grow into the person you want to become.
Recommended!
* I received an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) of this book from its publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are all mine.
[ Content/Trigger warnings: ]
Final impressions:
• First, before anything else, I want to commend Carla de Guzman for choosing violence. She really cracked her author knuckles and went, "Listen, we all make fun of Ateneans - but at the end of the day, we still want to get underneath them." (Kidding.)
• I delved into this novel with the expectation of finding an endearing, hopeful love story between childhood friends. But amidst the holiday warmth and merriment, there was a lingering undercurrent of melancholy and yearning that tugged at my heartstrings. With Santi torn between prioritizing his happiness and conforming to his family's ideals, reading A Match Made in Lipa felt very heavy and even triggering at times.
• Speaking of, Santi is truly the shining star of this book. Estranged from the Villa side of his family while constantly taken for granted by the Santillan side, behind that Uniqlo polo lies a hurting heart that just wants to love and be loved properly in return. (I'm a simp for him, your honor.)
• In contrast, I looked at Kira in the same way that you'd look at a pesky housefly. Not quite as annoying as a mosquito, but would still prefer its absence.
- While I liked her in the beginning, I struggled to connect with her as the story progressed. Which had initially baffled me because she's very much a confused, still-figuring-life-out millennial (and so am I).
- But I think the roadblock lies in her exceedingly privileged lifestyle and circumstances.
Spoiler
Should I ever be unceremoniously fired from a corporate job (knock on wood), my family can't afford to soften the blow by gifting me a whole ass property to manage. At the end of the day, Kira is a wealthy, educated woman running a quirky business that's generously funded by her family's massive pockets.• I also can't help but feel that the writing in Sweet On You was much stronger in comparison. While I still really enjoyed the story, I occasionally struggled with the writing style due to the following reasons:
- A Match Made in Lipa often came across as, for lack of better adjectives, aggressively upper-class millennial. This was notably more evident in Kira's POV.
- Some attempts at humor did not land very well, while some jokes were overly repetitive.
• For a contemporary romance novel, I was genuinely more invested in Santi's character arc (and his struggles with his toxic family) than in the romantic development between him and Kira.
- My initial kilig died down once I concluded that I wouldn't be getting some nice 'will they, won't they' tension between childhood friends.
- Instead, Santi and Kira quickly established their mutual attraction and were essentially together without labels, so it felt like their relationship plateaued too early on. Moreover, while I recognize that malabo relationships are a common happenstance in real life, it wasn't particularly compelling to read about.
• On a more praising note, I appreciated how this book delved into the toxicities of some Filipino families and the additional burdens placed on panganay (eldest) children. I also really liked the emphasis on different forms of love, be it between partners, among friends, or within families - and how sometimes people just can't love us in the way that we need them to.
• Criticisms aside, I still think that this book has much to offer and is worth picking up. More than a romance, A Match Made in Lipa is an incredibly evocative story about growth and the difficult choices to be made in order to grow into the person you want to become.
Recommended!
* I received an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) of this book from its publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are all mine.
[ Content/Trigger warnings: