I'm finally posting my thoughts on the five Hispanic Heritage Month books I read this year. I've read so many books this year (my total is up to eighteen!) which I am so proud of. I didn't read any five-star reads, but there were so many with great discussions on a variety of topics like masculinity, sexuality, undocumented immigrants and more. Let me know if you've read any of these before or what books you read for Hispanic Heritage Month!
No Place on Earth started off very strangely. I wasn't prepared to be dropped off in a dream world where one character is meditating with bison while the other is terrified of being trampled. I was making confused faces for a few chapters before I was pulled toward Gustavo's story. He is highly anxious and has frequent nightmares. He thinks his nightmares have caused his parents to separate, but we learn slowly that his father might not be the nicest guy. His mother is suddenly thriving in her new job and making friends, while his father is stuck in the same negative cycle. He even makes fun of his son and doesn't acknowledge that he needs help with his anxiety. I don't think I've read a middle grade centered on a boy that takes on misogyny the way this one did which was refreshing. I would have liked to peek a little more into Kordell's daily life rather than reading about it secondhand. I appreciated the story tackling mental health, especially centering boys' mental health. Kordell is dealing with his own mental struggles with depression which comes into play more in the latter half of the story.
I feel like this is a hard sell unless you are giving this book to someone who is already a big reader because those first chapters in the dream world are a little out there. This would be good for boys who enjoy realistic fiction. I'd recommend this to someone who enjoyed The Trouble with Heroes, which has similar character growth and father reevaluation. Octopus Moon might be a good readalike since the main character deals with anxiety and depression.
The second book in the Bubblegum Shoes series follows Maya Mendoza on a new case involving blackmail and AI technology. This was set during a big sleepover at her middle school. Each friend has their own thing going on while Maya gets pulled into another case. A popular boy who's British, cute, and a YouTube star asks for help. Someone is blackmailing him into not singing at the school competition that night. While Maya works on the case, she feels abandoned by her friends. Jordan is working on who knows what, Ava has another secret that will surprise you, and Clementine continues her rivalry with her theatre nemesis. A new addition to the story is Frito, a graffiti artist who matches Maya's intelligence. Maya can't wrap her head around the fact that Frito likes her. He presents her with a gift that she kind of brushes off at first but then catches herself. Before she can tell him how meaningful it is to her, she gets sidetracked with the case. Like last time, she hyper-focuses on her case, which can get in the way of her friendships. However, this time you could actively see her catch herself early and try to be a better friend. I enjoyed seeing her growth as well as this cute, developing relationship with Frito. Another aspect I surprisingly enjoyed was the story centering around AI. I think kids will relate and engage more with a story that you can tell was made with them in mind.
I'm enjoying this series; I think it's an easy recommendation for mystery readers, especially those who want a more modern sleuth story. I would recommend this story to readers who enjoy Nancy Drew or The Cookie Crumbles by Tracy Badua & Alechia Dow. The latter focuses on friendship dynamics that sort of mirror Maya's own friendships.
I read Mutual Discord for a romance book club. I initially wasn't interested in this story because of the cover. Before reading, I learned that this has to do with cheating, but not in the way you think. I will write about my thoughts on the "cheating," so if you don't want to be spoiled, you should skip this review.
Sofia Mendoza drunkenly records a TikTok about a historical female figure whose ideas were stolen by a man who passed those ideas as his own. She did this after being fired from her job for creating a "hostile environment" when she stood up for herself during a meeting after a man from her job presented her ideas. The TikTok goes viral, and suddenly she is supporting herself through social media while keeping this all from her family. There happens to be one commenter who always says the nicest things about her posts. Everyone under her comments wants them to collab together because they love to ship people. She caves and meets Alex Castillo, who is a dream guy. Always complimentary, respects her, and works for the marketing team (I believe) for a WNBA team where he is well liked. She later finds out he is dating her best friend, Caitlin. Her attraction to him grows as they spend time together researching women for her social media and her showing him around town (after Caitlin's insistence). But she can't hurt her friend... how will she control her growing affection?
This is the part that gets into spoilers. Let me tell you, I was thoroughly enjoying this book, especially since I read reviews before and knew that there was no actual cheating. I feel like I would have picked up on it anyways because Caitlin just says they went out for coffee and thought Sofia and Alex would get along. In no way did she say that she was dating Alex. I was fine with the absurdity of her not wanting to know more about her best friend's relationship. If she inquired once she would realize that they weren't together. It was all fine until... she kissed and then later slept with this man, thinking that he was cheating on her best friend. Alex and Caitlin even call her out on her BS. Caitlin asks why she would sleep with someone that she thought was her boyfriend. And Alex too was saying what type of person do you think I am that you think I would cheat on a girlfriend? I instantly didn't like her. I enjoyed learning about women from the past, the cute little outings with Alex, and reading how wonderfully this all-too-perfect man treats women. There were also talks about not feeling Puerto Rican enough by Alex and descriptions of Latin food that made me feel right at home. But no, you had to ruin it with fake cheating. I would never in my life trust Sofia as a best friend or girlfriend. I wouldn't have forgiven her even if there was no actual cheating. The intent was there. It's too bad, because I enjoyed the rest of the story so much that I still rated it 3.5 stars. At least it had some intrigue.
I was initially interested in Second First Dates because it has demisexual rep which I don't see much of in the romance genre or any genre really. I was pulled into the storyline quickly by two intriguing personalities, drama-filled family dynamics, and internal struggles with societal expectations.
Leti Maldonado is a librarian who never gets to do her job. She usually has to sub for high school classes which sucks, but at least her side hustle of being a video game streamer helps her channel one of her passions. She has a tumultuous relationship with her brother and parents. Her parents compare her to her siblings constantly. She's the one who won't cower down to their will and stands up for herself while the others let things go for the sake of peace. The comparisons to her siblings do get to her. They are mostly about not being married or in a committed relationship. Her last attempt at dating was disastrous, but she's ready to get back in the game. But of all the people that she connects with online, she ends up with the same person she dated all those years ago. She hasn't dated in all that time.
Julian Gutierrez can't believe his luck that Leti matched with him, but he's disappointed to find out that she can't remember him. He doesn't do well on their second first date again. Then Leti realizes who he is and she isn't happy about it. After that second first date, Leti finds Julian everywhere. They are living in the same apartment complex, working at the same high school, and somehow Julian is best friends with her brother. Her brother, who did something so messed up that she barely talks to him. This was a fun, drama-filled story with discussions about sexuality, societal norms, and family dynamics.
I loved both Leti and Julian's personalities. This was dual POV so I felt like I really got to know each character. Leti can be very defensive (for good reason) while Julian is more open-minded. He's very curious to why she won't talk to her brother and wants to mend their relationship. He doesn't meddle or force them to meet each other. He just encourages her and her brother to work things out. He is respectful and drops the conversation when asked. Julian and Leti are both bisexual and on the asexual spectrum, with Julian identifying as demisexual. Leti always had that spark with Julian and is frustratingly attracted to him. I wish that wasn't the case as I like slower-moving romance but it does push her into seeking him out more. I enjoyed all the drama of them keeping the fact that they know each other from her brother and other family members. The basis of her dislike for her brother was interesting, although sad considering her parents' response. I loved everything about this but I am not into steamy scenes and I felt like them getting "caught" the way they did was silly. I'm still delighted that I read this story. I would love to read more romance books with demisexual rep in the future.
I enjoy Goldy Moldavsky's middle grade mystery series, so I thought I would give her teen book a shot. It has a cute premise with some real-world implications. Jimena Romero discovers that she's undocumented right before her senior year in high school. She comes up with a plan to get married so she won't miss out on college. The first person she tells about her new discovery? Her nerdy neighbor (who was her first kiss!) Vitaly. She keeps her new status from her best friend for fear of judgment. Vitaly reluctantly keeps an eye on her as she goes on dates to try to find the right one to marry. All the while, she keeps asking him, "Will you marry me?"
Jimena is the bubbly, popular type, which makes her a fun character to follow around. She makes some dumb decisions that hopefully deter other teen girls from making them that are reading her story. I couldn't blame her because she is so young and she's basically stuck while all her classmates will be moving forward. She is now looking at her mom's life with a whole new lens. She's afraid of being discovered but she doesn't want to be stuck. This is before DACA, so she doesn't have that hope that she can become a citizen in the next few years or so. She can't get her driver's license; she would have to be stuck at a job that pays her under the table; she won't get to go to college; and she'll always be looking over her shoulder. I sympathized with her. This is such an important story now that there are ICE raids and people being taken in who are actively going through the process of getting documented. On the other hand, I did feel like Jimena's story dragged on. I felt like she was making the same mistakes. It did get tiresome at some points. There was some light in the story with her and Vitaly's friendship. Vitaly was always kind to her but was the needed rational person in the group.
I loved the way this story ended because there is so much uncertainty. I think it was the perfect conclusion because it mirrored the lives of other undocumented immigrants.
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