This had some really excellent elements, but I don’t think they fit together particularly well and it led to me struggling to stay engaged. Often slow and overly detailed, the portions that suddenly moved fast felt rushed in comparison.

First, the description of the Bribri—a lot of info dumping and a slow, boring pace, but at the same time, I was interested in learning about them. The descriptions of the little moments, from the cacao trees to the hammocks, were vibrant. If this had just been a story about a girl whose father died and she came to mourn him despite their complicated relationship, falling in love with his home, I think I would have enjoyed it more.

Then, we have murder mystery and on-going thriller elements. This is where the book is the weakest. They feel so out of place with the overall pacing, and while not unrealistic (the reveal/motivation made sense for sure), they just felt like such a switch from the rest of the story. They were too fast & abrupt while the rest was too slow, and for all of her investigations, it never felt like Ula accomplished anything. Most of the plot just happened to her.

Lastly, the romance-ish? I could have done without this element at all and I do think it took away from the rest of the story, especially with how little we examined the implications of the love interest’s family re: the rest of the plot.

While I did not find the ending unsatisfying in the factual sense (we wrapped up most loose ends I guess) it felt like these big revelations got 5% of the attention the author paid to random guilty thoughts about having a crush on a boy. I both would have liked to see a lot more go into the last few chapters and also wouldn’t be particularly excited to spend more time with this book.

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy.

This was a fun, sometimes frustrating read that did not go how I expected it to.

Ruby is a terminal people pleaser to an extent that actually defies all logic. Wanting to shape your life to meet your dead mom’s expectations and criticisms? yeah, I totally get that. but somewhere around the 90% mark, when she’s gotten herself dug in so deep you genuinely wonder if any human being has ever acted in this way before, and my ability to suspend disbelief was sorely, sorely tested.

Having said that, the “villain” of the book was a nice touch, and even if Ruby didn’t see the numerous red flags right away, there are plenty of hints dropped. I enjoyed the corporate espionage type plotline, and it had a lovely, chaotic wrapping up.

Is this a romance? I mean, technically? There is a genre-compliant HEA and I am not mad at it. But to me this is much more a book about letting go of some of other people’s expectations of you, of learning that your parents are flawed people even as you try to live up to their standards, and about the ebbs and flows of grief. It is a bit hairbrained, sometimes zany, wild ride of a plot, but the core is Ruby working on herself. If anyone needs it, it’s her.

This was such a unique audiobook experience. As a book where songwriting and music plays such a large part of the story, the addition of original music composed by narrator Abi Hardiman (with lyrics written by the author) creates an immersive experience.

I would characterize this as more of a book about main character Cubby Clark’s struggle with her mental health, unhealthy relationship with social media, depression, and discovering her own identify with some romantic themes/plots than a full romance. Don’t worry, though—there is still the genre sapphic romance HEA, so if you go in expecting a romance, you won’t be disappointed. Cubby is a tough character. Tough to enjoy, tough to watch make poor decisions, tough to watch suffer. The one thing that wasn’t tough was empathizing with her, since I think we’ve all felt her struggle with the pros and cons of modern screen time. She goes through a lot of growth by the end, and I found the ending satisfying.

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy.