Another crazy week down and another book read. So last year I noticed that even though we are getting more Black books that there is still a lack of contemporary romance books for Black teens. And I see so much Black women vs Black men wars on social media. I see young Black girls propping up the white boy of the month or the K Pop artist currently thriving off of Black culture while putting down their own men. I see Black men putting down Black girls while professing their love for biracials, white girls, and non Black Latinx girls. It's disheartening to see.
Last year I tried to list the books featuring Black girls and boys where the story was about them falling in love. Traditional romance not fantasy that has a love story in it. Not a contemporary that deals with other issues but happens to have some romance in it. I even reached out to some Black authors and we really were having a tough time naming any. We could only name two. This year I found 7 that I am determined to read and review for this blog. The first one that released earlier this year that I read was so choppy, dated, and filled with unoriginal stereotypes I wrote a rant review and pushed it to the back of my mind.
So needless to say I came into this book expecting something warm and fuzzy that would make me care about the characters. And though I was a little unsure at first because I thought their love moved very fast even for teen love I soon settled in for the ride. I really liked Liara Tamani's writing style. I've been paying for attention lately to how distinct a writer's voice is. Those opening chapters were so beautifully written that they sucked me in.
Rex and Carli meet and Carli literally falls into his arms. And from then on they are drawn to each other. So I'll admit I was like "Huh!" when he Rex tracked her down via her brother Cole's Instagram page and showed up at the hospital to see her. I was like, "Are the teens really doing that nowadays cuz that is not the wave!" At least the text acknowledged that that part was a little stalkerish.
I liked how Rex was a different portrayal of the Black teen males we usually see in the media. Sure on the outside he seems like the big basketball star destined for NBA stardom that all the girls are after. He craves love and affection and sometimes he cries. And it's not a bad thing. Rex feels unloved by his father who never seems to pay him any attention. He also has guilt because his mother died during childbirth.
Carli on the other other hand is also a basketball star but hates the sport. She plays to make her father happy and though she dreams of quitting is holding off on that dream while her parents are in the process of a nasty separation. I loved that she would cut things out of magazines and post up pictures to decorate her walls. It reminded me of me as a teen where I would cut out magazine pictures and print pictures of all the things I enjoyed.
This is a light read perfect to gift to a teen girl who could use a YA romance she can actually see herself in and see a healthy depiction of Black love in.
Great review✊🏾🔥
ReplyDelete