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emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Alcohol
Moderate: Biphobia, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism
Minor: Transphobia, Abortion
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This wrecked me. I almost cries so many times. The friendship between Kenny and Han is so precious. The way they both overcame their weaknesses (or are on their way to overcome them) in order to be together is amazing. The depiction of racism in the US is sadly extremely accurate and my heart broke for Han over and over again. The scene where they get pulled over by the cops made me cry and the racist manager just made me want to scream. And obviously Jackie‘s whole character made me want to scream as well. There are a lot of heavy themes, but I will probably read this again (and again)
5*
5*
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Deportation
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Transphobia
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
“If I couldn’t have Kenny for real, at least we could enjoy the pretending.”
I was so sure this would be the queer autistic romance of my dreams, and I am absolutely devastated that this book didn’t blow me away!
That being said, I greatly appreciate the incredible representation and important themes present in this book, and I’m grateful to @readforeverpub for gifting me an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
While this didn’t quite do it for me, there are so many things to love about it, and I’m sure a lot of readers would absolutely adore this. You might be one of those if you love:
🩵 friends to lovers romance
🩵 realistic autistic representation!!!
🩵 themes of abuse and trauma
🩵 marriage of convenience
The main reason I didn’t love The Broposal is that it had too many side-plots, and attempted to explore too many themes at once. As a result many of the plot elements weren’t satisfactorily resolved by the end, and none of the significant moments hit me as hard as intended.
Because of the many plot elements I also felt that the characters lacked depth, and I found myself struggling to understand the reasons behind their actions and thought processes. Both Han and Kenny are emotionally stunted, but I didn’t feel like this was properly explored, and as a result I was just mildly annoyed by both of them.
I was also incredibly frustrated by Jackie, Kenny’s almost cartoonishly evil ex-girlfriend, who is the driver behind the primary conflict of the story. I felt that the exploration of domestic abuse would’ve felt more nuanced and been more hard-hitting if there had been more depth to her character.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Deportation
Moderate: Drug abuse, Racism, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy
Minor: Ableism, Homophobia, Infidelity, Transphobia, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This highly enjoyable and very believable take on the fake-dating trope handled heavy themes with a careful touch. While I cried for almost the entire second half, a lot of those tears were happy ones. The support the MMCs demonstrate to each other, as well as the support of their families, is so touching. I think it's still rare to find explicitly autistic characters in fiction and I really appreciated Han's character and the way his autism affected his dating life and understanding of his sexuality. There are a lot of miscommunication moments in this book, due to the secrecy of the fake-dating plot and Han's autism, but the payoff feels worth the frustration. Now very tempted to break my 'no-YA novels' rule to finally read 'The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School'.
I received this digital copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received this digital copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Deportation
Moderate: Drug abuse, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Transphobia, Police brutality, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol
Minor: Mental illness, Vomit, Abortion
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I am not normally a romance reader, but I do love a good fake marriage/marriage of convenience trope, and that is why I decided to try The Broposal. Well, that and the funny title.
I ended up enjoying reading about Han and Kenny. They both show definite growth throughout the book. Jackie made for an interesting side character.
Han’s status as an undocumented immigrant especially made the story interesting, and of course important. My one complaint is that the discussion around ICE and immigration felt very surface-level. Of course, The Broposal is a contemporary romance and therefore should focus more on the romance aspect.
I would definitely recommend this to people looking for queer romance.
Thank you to Netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
I ended up enjoying reading about Han and Kenny. They both show definite growth throughout the book. Jackie made for an interesting side character.
Han’s status as an undocumented immigrant especially made the story interesting, and of course important. My one complaint is that the discussion around ICE and immigration felt very surface-level. Of course, The Broposal is a contemporary romance and therefore should focus more on the romance aspect.
I would definitely recommend this to people looking for queer romance.
Thank you to Netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia
Minor: Transphobia
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was fortunate enough to receive an ARC of this book, so thank you so much to NetGalley and especially to Sonora Reyes, who reached out to me when I couldn't access the site and made sure I got my e-copy!
As soon as I read the premise of this book I was hooked. Childhood friends to lovers? "Fake" marriage/Marriage of convenience? Sign me up!
I've become a fan of Sonora's writing because they're one of the few authors I've read who can really capture the essence of Latinx experiences and culture, more specifically Mexican people. Reading The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School was the first time I related so much to a character, Yamilet is so dear to me.
The Broposal also did an amazing job with the rep. Both Kenny and Han come from Mexican families, but Han's undocumented and Kenny's not. This plays a big part in the plot, as the main reason they're getting married is to get Han his green card. I've lived in Mexico my whole life, so I can only imagine how terrifying it is to be in Han's shoes. Even Kenny didn't really understand the magnitude of it until the possibility of Han being taken away hit him in the face.
Nonetheless I think Sonora dealt with the topic very well. Han's status wasn't just a plot device to move the story forward, it was an essential part of his character as well.
I loved how Mexican culture was integrated everywhere in this book, even in the small stuff. I grew up seeing shallow representation of my country in tv series and movies, full harmful of stereotypes. But not Sonora's books. From the accurate pronunciation and use of words in Spanish, to the parts of the culture that only people who love it dearly know it. One of my favorite parts of the book.
I can't not talk about Kenny and Han! Honestly these two made me giggle and blush so much! They're absolutely adorable. Everything about their friendship, how they cared for and protected each other. Their connection was so deep and pure. This is what I mean when I talk about good friends to lovers. I can't explain how cute they are, one of the cutest couples I've read.
The side characters were great as well. Charismatic, interesting and charming, especially Han's cousin. I love how families play such an important role in the story. Both Kenny's and Han's families were so involved and present in their lives. Han's struggles with his mother were devastating as well as relatable. It broke mehow both he and his mom wrote letters to each other all these years. I don't want to dive into details much, but I appreciate how much care Sonora took to write Han's mother. Loving someone with an addiction is complicated. It's difficult because you can accept it's an illness, but you can't help feel angry at them for it.
So to recap, the Mexican rep is great, the side characters are charming and Kenny and Han's relationship is the cutest and most precious thing. All correct. But why wasn't this 5 stars?
The reason is Jackie (rant incoming)
One of the things I absolutely despise in a book is when there's a character whose only purpose is to be hated. It's not even an antagonist. It's a caricatured version of a villain. That's what Jackie was. Ridiculously evil, it felt like she was only there to get the reader all riled up. Kenny's abusive relationship could've been such a great topic, because it's situations like his that get overlooked when talking about domestic abuse. Kenny himself couldn't admit Jackie was abusive. But it was overshadowed by the lengths to which Jackie was willing to go to get him back. It felt realistic at first, but it was taken too far that it stopped contributing to the story and it became something that held it back.
What I mean by this is that Jackie's absurd antics covered a large part of the book and took away pages that could've been great to Kenny and Han's relationships and develop Han's struggles more. By the end, everything felt so rushed and I couldn't even enjoy properly when Kenny and Han got together again. It disappointed me because the book was in its way to become one of my favorites, but Jackie ruined it for me. I finished the book tired, she exhausted me so much istg I wanted slap her every time she made an appearance.
Even with that I still choose to give this book 4 stars. I love Sonora's writing and there were more things that work for me that things that didn't. I just hope with each book they get better at managing characters like Jackie. Because people like her and conflicts are important in a story, but the way her character was handled didn't work for me. Let's leave caricatured villains in the past, please.
As soon as I read the premise of this book I was hooked. Childhood friends to lovers? "Fake" marriage/Marriage of convenience? Sign me up!
I've become a fan of Sonora's writing because they're one of the few authors I've read who can really capture the essence of Latinx experiences and culture, more specifically Mexican people. Reading The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School was the first time I related so much to a character, Yamilet is so dear to me.
The Broposal also did an amazing job with the rep. Both Kenny and Han come from Mexican families, but Han's undocumented and Kenny's not. This plays a big part in the plot, as the main reason they're getting married is to get Han his green card. I've lived in Mexico my whole life, so I can only imagine how terrifying it is to be in Han's shoes. Even Kenny didn't really understand the magnitude of it until the possibility of Han being taken away hit him in the face.
Nonetheless I think Sonora dealt with the topic very well. Han's status wasn't just a plot device to move the story forward, it was an essential part of his character as well.
I loved how Mexican culture was integrated everywhere in this book, even in the small stuff. I grew up seeing shallow representation of my country in tv series and movies, full harmful of stereotypes. But not Sonora's books. From the accurate pronunciation and use of words in Spanish, to the parts of the culture that only people who love it dearly know it. One of my favorite parts of the book.
I can't not talk about Kenny and Han! Honestly these two made me giggle and blush so much! They're absolutely adorable. Everything about their friendship, how they cared for and protected each other. Their connection was so deep and pure. This is what I mean when I talk about good friends to lovers. I can't explain how cute they are, one of the cutest couples I've read.
The side characters were great as well. Charismatic, interesting and charming, especially Han's cousin. I love how families play such an important role in the story. Both Kenny's and Han's families were so involved and present in their lives. Han's struggles with his mother were devastating as well as relatable. It broke me
So to recap, the Mexican rep is great, the side characters are charming and Kenny and Han's relationship is the cutest and most precious thing. All correct. But why wasn't this 5 stars?
The reason is Jackie (rant incoming)
One of the things I absolutely despise in a book is when there's a character whose only purpose is to be hated. It's not even an antagonist. It's a caricatured version of a villain. That's what Jackie was. Ridiculously evil, it felt like she was only there to get the reader all riled up. Kenny's abusive relationship could've been such a great topic, because it's situations like his that get overlooked when talking about domestic abuse. Kenny himself couldn't admit Jackie was abusive. But it was overshadowed by the lengths to which Jackie was willing to go to get him back. It felt realistic at first, but it was taken too far that it stopped contributing to the story and it became something that held it back.
What I mean by this is that Jackie's absurd antics covered a large part of the book and took away pages that could've been great to Kenny and Han's relationships and develop Han's struggles more. By the end, everything felt so rushed and I couldn't even enjoy properly when Kenny and Han got together again. It disappointed me because the book was in its way to become one of my favorites, but Jackie ruined it for me. I finished the book tired, she exhausted me so much istg I wanted slap her every time she made an appearance.
Even with that I still choose to give this book 4 stars. I love Sonora's writing and there were more things that work for me that things that didn't. I just hope with each book they get better at managing characters like Jackie. Because people like her and conflicts are important in a story, but the way her character was handled didn't work for me. Let's leave caricatured villains in the past, please.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content
Moderate: Addiction, Homophobia, Transphobia, Death of parent