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A review by malecluvbot
Café Con Lychee by Emery Lee
5.0
OH. MY. GOD.
THIS was what I was looking for without realizing it. This pretty pretty book was everything I could ask for- queer romance, rivalry, coffee, drama, emotions that made me FEEL. I just don't know if I can actually review the book but I'm gonna try.
So basically, the book revolves around two sixteen year old high school kids whose families own rival cafes in a small town. And like any other good book, they each have their own problems- most of then family related.
Theo, belonging to a biracial East Asian family has overbearing parents who keep pressuring him for better grades and keep comparing him with his elder brother who has left for college. And the fact that Theo is openly gay does not play in his favour. And he has an uncle who keeps torturing Theo's parents and keep squeezing the life out of them.
Gabi is a latino kid with "practical" parents who are too homophobic to realize that their son might be unhappy. God, I hated Gabi's dad- his homophobic comments made my blood boil at times. The mom was silent mostly on homophobia until eventually she does talk about it.
The main thing is that these two families have owned rival cafes for a while and the entry of a third cafe with fusion food and drinks complicates things and throws Gabi and Theo into an unexpected and unlikely alliance that surprisingly prospers for them (until Gabi's dad almost ruins it).
The romance blossoms in time and the language of the book just makes it all the better. The quotes here are so beautiful I could not have guessed. No matter what it seems like, this book is not a one dimensional romantic story with the enemies-to-lovers trope. It has so much more, with family problems brought out that just make it worth re reading (which I am gonna do).
THIS was what I was looking for without realizing it. This pretty pretty book was everything I could ask for- queer romance, rivalry, coffee, drama, emotions that made me FEEL. I just don't know if I can actually review the book but I'm gonna try.
So basically, the book revolves around two sixteen year old high school kids whose families own rival cafes in a small town. And like any other good book, they each have their own problems- most of then family related.
Theo, belonging to a biracial East Asian family has overbearing parents who keep pressuring him for better grades and keep comparing him with his elder brother who has left for college. And the fact that Theo is openly gay does not play in his favour. And he has an uncle who keeps torturing Theo's parents and keep squeezing the life out of them.
Gabi is a latino kid with "practical" parents who are too homophobic to realize that their son might be unhappy. God, I hated Gabi's dad- his homophobic comments made my blood boil at times. The mom was silent mostly on homophobia until eventually she does talk about it.
The main thing is that these two families have owned rival cafes for a while and the entry of a third cafe with fusion food and drinks complicates things and throws Gabi and Theo into an unexpected and unlikely alliance that surprisingly prospers for them (until Gabi's dad almost ruins it).
The romance blossoms in time and the language of the book just makes it all the better. The quotes here are so beautiful I could not have guessed. No matter what it seems like, this book is not a one dimensional romantic story with the enemies-to-lovers trope. It has so much more, with family problems brought out that just make it worth re reading (which I am gonna do).