Jasmine Lin Rodriguez is an up-and-coming starlet looking to cement her rising career and recover from a bout of bad publicity after being dumped by her rockstar boyfriend. Ashton Suarez is a veteran telenovela heartthrob trying to break into the English language market while keeping his private life hidden from the public. When the two are cast as leads on a new Netflix drama, sparks fly after a very chilly start.
The plot of this book is–ok, listen. I don’t know how many times I’ve said this, but we all know that romance novels all have essentially the same plot, right? Y’all know exactly what happens so I won’t bore you with the play by play here. But I will say that it’s nice to have a story about Hollywood actors that isn’t just a long list of brand names and famous people nonsense. Jasmine and Ashton both have person-next-door charm and they’re genuinely sweet with each other and their communities once the initial misunderstandings have passed. The book also revels in Latinx #ownnormal and interestingly, Jasmine has a Filipina mom but an otherwise Puerto Rican family, which is explored well and comfortably.
I’ve been reading romance novels for decades now, and it’s interesting to see how my perspectives on these stories have grown and changed over the years. The obligatory third act fight and potential breakup is often caused by a lie but in this book, it’s a whopper, despite being a lie of omission, not deceit. Teenage me would have sighed and simpered over Jasmine’s devoted true love and forgiveness but middle-aged me is like “He didn’t tell you WHAT?!? Girl, no! Next!” The resolution of the lie is ok but the fact that it’s there at all annoyed me a bit, and I wanted Jasmine to squeeze Ashton a little more.
In contrast to the plot point lie, the spice level in this book is remarkably grown and I have to say, I like how this book managed to be fairly realistic about grown folk sex without sacrificing any of the heat.
Lumpia con gandules and a smack on the hand for lying to You Had Me At Hola.
(Beautiful people, fellow readers, lovers –thanks for reading! For more diverse romances, check out this booklist on the Equal Opportunity Bookshop page. I really need to update and create some new booklists, but until then, please be aware that if you buy anything from a link you find on this page, I’ll earn a commission. In the meantime, I hope you’re well loved and told the truth wherever you are. Now peace! Go read something good!)
Equal Opportunity Reader 
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