Month: April 2021

ADORABLE YA READ: Kisses and Croissants Review

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71vmkJOAG2LSummary (from the publisher):

As sweet as a macaron from Laduree, with writing as crisp as a freshly baked baguette, this romantic novel set in Paris about an American ballerina and a charming French boy is parfait for fans of American Royals and Netflix’s To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before.

Seventeen-year-old Mia, an American girl at an elite summer ballet program, has six weeks to achieve her dreams: to snag an audition with one of the world’s best ballet companies. But there’s more to Paris than ballet—especially when a charming French boy, Louis, wants to be her tour guide—and the pair discover the city has a few mysteries up its sleeve.

In the vein of romances like Love and Gelato, this is the perfect summer adventure for anyone looking to get swept away in the City of Love. 

My Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

My Thoughts:

If you’re craving a sweet YA contemporary this spring, look no further than Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau’s Kisses and Croissants. This book is the perfect blend of Stephanie Perkins’ Anna and the French Kiss and Disney+’s On Pointe documentary series, as rising high school senior, Mia, spends six weeks at an elite ballet program in Paris. Mia dreams of being a professional ballet dancer, and she spends her summer working towards an audition for one of the top ballet companies in the world, trying to figure out a family mystery involving a famous painter, and not-so resisting the temptation of a cute French boy. 

I spent one of the first warm & sunny Sundays this spring devouring Kisses and Croissants in just a few hours. Make sure you have a croissant or pastry near by as you read because this book will seriously leave you craving some French pastries and cheese. Mia’s adventures around Paris instantly transported me to the country from the first chapter. Soon after I finished reading, I found myself diving into Paris vlogs from my travel vloggers, Kara and Nate, and planning my trip there in my head. The setting was so well-described,  and I loved the book’s details surrounding art and museum culture in Paris, as Mia researches if one of the ballet dancers in a famous painter’s work was indeed one of her great grandmothers. 

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The Ex Talk Review & My Favorite Podcasts

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Summary (from the publisher):

exShay Goldstein has been a producer at her Seattle public radio station for nearly a decade, and she can’t imagine working anywhere else. But lately it’s been a constant clash between her and her newest colleague, Dominic Yun, who’s fresh off a journalism master’s program and convinced he knows everything about public radio.

When the struggling station needs a new concept, Shay proposes a show that her boss green-lights with excitement. On The Ex Talk, two exes will deliver relationship advice live, on air. Their boss decides Shay and Dominic are the perfect co-hosts, given how much they already despise each other. Neither loves the idea of lying to listeners, but it’s this or unemployment. Their audience gets invested fast, and it’s not long before The Ex Talk becomes a must-listen in Seattle and climbs podcast charts.

As the show gets bigger, so does their deception, especially when Shay and Dominic start to fall for each other. In an industry that values truth, getting caught could mean the end of more than just their careers.

My Rating: 5/5 Stars

My Thoughts:

I knew Rachel Lynn Solomon’s first adult contemporary romance, The Ex Talk, would likely become my favorite books of 2021, & I was absolutely correct with my prediction! As one of my favorite YA authors, I was so excited for Rachel Lynn Solomon to break out into my other favorite genre, contemporary romance. Set in a Seattle public radio station, workplace enemies Shay and Dominic are tasked to take their dislike for one another and pretend to be exes on a new dating show in hopes of boosting the station’s ratings. 

The Ex Talk was an absolute perfect contemporary romance because it balanced one of my favorite tropes, enemies-to-lovers, a unique premise, and other elements surrounding relationship development and personal growth. I guess The Ex Talk could technically also fall into the fake dating trope, since Shay and Dominic pretend to have dated, so they can act as exes hosting a radio show about dating, but I still say it’s an enemies-to-lovers because they are so annoyed with another at the beginning. Shay can’t stand how Dominic mentions his grad degree in journalism at any given moment (as a recent post undergrad & current grad student, I’m so used to this.. and probably done it a little bit myself…) and seems to have taken over the station despite working there for such a short time, while Dominic can’t stand how Shay is so stuck in her ways at the station. Their sarcasm and humor always had me laughing or smiling from the start. While I loved their dialogue throughout, I especially loved the transcripts of their radio show episodes. It really made me want someone to make The Ex Talk into a fictional podcast! 

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