Let’s just say, up front, I enjoyed every minute of this novel; and if Carmen in Charge were a real tv drama, I’d be all over it!
The romance is sweet, sexy and fully entertaining… I mean, it should be given the MCs are drama series stars. Jasmine is the ever unlucky in love heroine who wants someone she can love, respect and depend on. She has talent and major ambition to be a star. She also has the love and support of her fantastic cousins who call her out on her mistakes and push her to be a better person every time. I loved how she seemed flighty but yet, upon closer inspection, she’s a very passionate and determined young woman who values her family and culture above all else.
Her meet-cute with Ashton, as the novel opens, is the perfect way to showcase how conflicted the hero is. He seems aloof, confident and in control. It’s all an act, however, as he is desperately worried for his career (even though he too is talented and hard-working). He needs Carmen In Charge to be his breakout role. He wants to leave the telenovela stereotypes behind. He is driven by the need to protect and provide for his young son, father and grandparents. The elder Suarez family members, instead want him to live his live and maybe even find love too.
The chemistry is undeniable as these two clash and meld and discover in each other what they most need.
The Latinx factor: the novel is chock full of cultural representation. With the two central characters both from Puerto Rico and both being stars in a television drama series about Latinx characters, you can hardly be surprised. Jasmine’s family is used to highlight the diversity of the Latinx community. She is Puerto Rican and Philipino while her cousins (the primas of power) are Puerto Rican – Barbadian and Puerto Rican – Italian. There is an abundance of cultural references from the margarine tub of arroz con pollo to the chancletas. Family traditions are displayed and dance and music feature as well.
There are parts of dialogues in Spanish but also seamless translations included, so even if you don’t speak the language, you’ll never be lost!
Finally, I want to talk about the screenplay chapters. Several of the chapters are actually told through the Carmen In Charge script. Those scenes tend to mirror an aspect of the current goings-on in the Jasmine-Ashton storyline. There are little pieces where the emotions portrayed by the screenplay characters are inseparable from the book characters. It sounds confusing but in reality the plot device works wonderfully! I absolutely loved that aspect of the novel. And well… the screenplay is pretty crazy at times… it’s all good fun!
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More like You Had Me at Hola: A Novel (Primas of Power Book 1)
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Popular Highlights in this book
If you’re not wearing lipstick and earrings, you might as well be naked, Esperanza used to say. It wasn’t until Jasmine was older that the true meaning sank in. Those things were armor against a world that had wanted to treat her grandmother as someone smaller and duller than the brilliant and beautiful woman she was. Looking after her appearance forced people to take her seriously.Highlighted by 371 Kindle readers- Jasmine tried not to take it personally, but taking things personally was one of her greatest skills.Highlighted by 293 Kindle readers
- From now on, she would never again allow anyone to make her feel like her worth came from the man she was attached to.Highlighted by 283 Kindle readers
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Reviews with images
A steamy celebrity romance
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 Stars🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 4/5 Steam RatingJasmine & Ashton are about to begin filming a brand new show with a crew of predominantly Latinx individuals. The sparks start to rise for these costars from the very second they stumble into each other; the only problem is that neither of them feel like this attraction is the smart move. Sometimes though, our hearts have other ideas...First off, I loved that this book gave representation to cultures that are not widely seen in Hollywood. All of the characters in this book were Latinx, including one trans character. From the beginning, I really liked Jasmine’s character. She loved her family, she had real insecurities even though she was a “soap star”, and she showed her kind personality when she didn’t throw Ashton under the bus for the blunder of their first meeting. You can tell that there’s some sizzling chemistry between Jasmine & Ashton all throughout the book, which leads to some pretty steamy scenes. I also really loved experiencing some of the “behind the scenes” parts of filming a show. I enjoyed that not only were Jasmin & Ashton characters in this book, but so were their own characters of Carmen & Victor.Here were two main things that prevented me from giving this book a 5⭐️. First, I wish that there was a little more build up in the attraction between Jasmine & Ashton. Yes, there was sexual attraction from the very beginning but I wanted there to be a bit more build up in the genuine connection. Second, I found Jasmine’s reaction at the end to be extremely immature and selfish on her part; it honestly felt unfitting of the character she had been throughout the book. In the end though, I thought that these two things weren’t enough to dampen my overall enjoyment of the story.
Top reviews from other countries
kim_reads_and_rambles
Zwei Schauspieler, eine Seifenoper und ganz viel Anziehungskraft
Reviewed in Germany on April 24, 2022
kim_reads_and_rambles
Reviewed in Germany on April 24, 2022
"You had me at Hola" von Alexis Daria kommt mit einem großartigen Setting à la Netflix-Studios daher. Ich habe es sehr gemocht, den ganzen Background einer Serie mitzuverfolgen und finde, dass die Autorin da ein sehr überzeugendes Bild erschaffen hat. Besonders die Begleitung der intimeren Szenen durch eine sogenannte "intimicy coordinator" hat mir bewusst gemacht, wie fortgeschritten eine Film- oder TV-Produktion sein kann.
Die Show "Carmen in Charge" bringt nicht nur Latinx Figuren in den Vordergrund, sondern kommt auch mit ein paar queeren Figuren daher. Das Cover, das von Bo Feng Lin illustriert wurde, passt dementsprechend genau wie der Titel perfekt zur Geschichte.
Die Protagonist*innen Jasmine und Ashton waren glaubwürdig und sympathisch. Jasmines Entschlossenheit, an ihrem "Leading Ladies"-Plan festzuhalten, war süß, weil doch schnell klar war, dass sie Ashtons Reizen nicht lange widerstehen können würde. Ashton war attraktiv, humorvoll, der perfekte Love Interest, dessen Geheimnis mich berührt hat.
Zum Ende hin wurde die Geschichte leider recht vorhersehbar, was einfach an der Ausgangslage der Figuren lag. Mediendrama, eine Geheimnis ... ihr könnt es euch vermutlich denken, was geschieht. Das hat dem Buch aber keinen Abbruch getan. Ich habe mich aufgrund des Humors und der Chemie der Figuren trotzdem gut unterhalten gefühlt und zähle die Geschichte zu einem Highlight meines Jahres.
INSTAGRAM: @kim_reads_and_rambles
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Elaine Fairfield
Good characters, interesting events and Spanglish thrown in
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 27, 2021
