A Cuban Girl's Guide to Tea and Tomorrow by Laura Taylor Namey

Her life was plagued by the trifecta. A disastrous triad of events impacted the very essence of who Lila was, not only her present but her future too. After pushing herself to the point of exhaustion and scaring her family, already struck with grief. The LAST NAME family has no other card left, but to send Lila to visit her family in Winchester, Hampshire, England. Separated from her family, beloved La Panderia kitchen, and left to confront her emotional inner turmoil with distant family. Lila finds solace in the neighborhood, with new friends and a friendly tea shop clerk, Orion.

As a Cuban woman who spent most of her life visiting family in Miami, this book spoke to my soul. All the family narrative mimicked something that would be overheard at reunions or muttered through the neighborhood chismosas (gossipers). It was such a slice of my life, one that I haven’t been able to find in literature before. What brings it to another level is that my sweetheart is British. When describing the plot of this book to him he simply said, “it’s like they took your life story...a Cuban girl coming to England and falling in love”. The dialogue between Orion and Lila is very reminiscent of our conversations..an unique mixture between Spanglish and British idioms. It’s something that has me smiling hours after reading and I often find myself reading passages aloud to him. My romantic and personal life aside, this book was captivating. It held my attention at every turn of the page and had me threatening to finish the book in one sitting. It’s only been a few months and I’ve already been recommending and handing my copy over for my loved ones to read and fall in love with this book. Very much looking forward to reading what Namey will publish in the future.

Where to Buy:

Barnes and Noble

Powell’s

Comments

The Necromancer's Library (Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper #12) by J.L Bryan

"We all have our little gardens of dead dreams, don't we? And sometimes we still try to water and tend those gardens, long after we should know nothing will ever grow there." In this installment of the Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper series, the team is sent to investigate a potential haunting at an antebellum mansion in the middle of the countryside. A pair of sisters currently reside there because the previous owner, a deceased reclusive professor, hired someone to transform his massive collection into some semblance of organization. The oldest sister Cherise is a university student who is cataloguing the entire collection. The issue is, it's a collection of ancient and medieval manuscripts and items. The library and mansion are filled with terribly haunting spirits-both helpful, lost, and frightening. Even when exploring the grounds they come across an eerie family cemetery in the overgrown woods and run into a figure trying to communicate something seriou...

The Hidden Letters by Lorna Cook

"It's people like your brother and me, being handed a weapon and told to kill someone we don't even know, who we'd probably get along with in everyday life. And all because someone in a gilded throne or behind a big desk decides that's what we have to do." On the brink of World War One, a forbidden romance is blooming between debutante Cordelia and the landscape architect Issac. Cordelia finds herself intrigued with learning how to cultivate the garden in preparation for when the men are called away to war. Issac, of course, teaches her in private and their forbidden love story began. Cordelia's parents find out and her mother is absolutely horrified to find her daughter digging in dirt, but reluctantly agree to let her continue her work. Even going as far as coming up with the idea to expand their garden to aid the estate and surrounding areas. Issac continues to teach her through letters when he is on the battlefield, but their correspond...

Finna by Nino Cipri (LitenVerse #1)

" It explores queer relationships and queer feelings, capitalism, and accountability, labor and love, all with a bouncing sense of humor and a commitment to the strange." This delightful multiverse sci-fi story is absolutely incredible. This universe there is a knock off Ikea prone to spontaneous wormholes and customers get lost or eaten in. Which is exactly what happens, except it is up to two employees who had just broken up to go inside the wormhole and track down the customer or the closest thing to them. This was such a wonderful read and perfect for finishing in one sitting. I wish there was more in this entire universe, it just seems so much fun, and that the possibilities are endless. I've passed this book to those I love, and I'm so excited for them to get to experience this universe!

Bethany's Book Nook

Search This Blog