An inspiring coming-of-age story of a woman in Argentina who must decide how to prioritize her goals. I loved the romance in this book, and even more how Camila persevered and was able to put her future first, despite pressures from all sides. As an Argentine American author with Palestinian and Syrian ancestry, Yamile Saied Méndez brought incredible perspectives on race and colorism, as well as sexism and more, to this tale.

I’ve never been so grateful to have read a book. Beautiful, heart breaking, infuriating, personal, lyrical. Shehadeh somehow managed to fit everything into this book: a history of the land, his memories of the land and his own life, his family history, political histories, and current environmental, political, and personal realities. I’m unable to express what this book means to me. Many passages were so touching, I read them multiple times. 5 stars is an understatement.

An incredible story of family and roots  that beautiful touches on so many issues of our time. The way the modern story weaves in details of the older generation kept me on my toes. I loved the folklore and can’t wait to read this again. 

Despite the title, I was still shocked (as someone who doesn’t drink alcohol) at the amount of drinking in this book. Luke was childish and annoying, but it was a cute read despite my annoyance at him recognizing his miscommunications and proceeding to not fix any of his problems. 

Wasn’t in the mood. A slow,  repetitive start to the romance. Maybe I’ll come back to it later… 

This world absolutely swallowed me. The social commentary was woven beautifully into the plots. I was surprised how much I enjoyed this. More dystopian than gore, which I was happy about. My only issue was struggling to recognize chapter breaks with the audiobook. 

Beautiful and dark! The romance was great, I’d definitely read a sequel! The world building was incredible, my only gripe is with the jarring inclusion of a couple modern phrases in an otherwise clearly medieval and fantastical setting. 

Like any essay collection, some resonated more than others, but over all this was incredibly done. Beautiful, heart-wrenching, and thought provoking. 

Loved the banter and the romance, but once the unexpected pregnancy trope hit I 🤢 just can’t. Especially after that, if felt like the book was trying to save itself from everything that didn’t make the wrap-up make sense.

They didn’t know each other long enough to start a family, so why introduce a pregnancy? She needs more time to think about marriage, so it’s a huge red flag that he’s pressuring her about it after less than a year even knowing each other! And why was her promotion at the begging such a huge deal if she’s still in the same role by the end? Frustrating. The book could have spent more time on the relationships with their family members - who are great and felt real - rather than suddenly rushing for a wedding scene. It made me question their motives and goals as a couple.