Title: The Next Best Fling (Librarians In Love #1)
Author: Gabriella Gamez
Pub. Date: July 9th 2024
Genre: Contemporary Romance/Latinx
Format: eARC
Publisher: Forever
Pages: 384
GOODREADS | BARNES & NOBLE | LIBROFM | AMAZON
☆☆ARC PROVIDED BY PUBLISHER IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW☆☆
The Next Best Fling features a plus sized Latina female librarian who is feeling stuck with a case of unrequited love for her best friend. A bestie who is getting married to a mutual college friend leaving Marcela feeling like the ship has sailed on their second chance romance. They briefly dated years ago but Marcela always felt as if she was never quite enough for him. Fast forward to the events leading up to the wedding and with it, his older brother and ex-NFL Player Theo’s return. Theo is also harboring some unrequited love of his own and its for the bride-to-be. They were all friends at one point but his feelings for the bride led him to put some distance between them for some years. Now he’s back and is considering letting her know exactly how he feels before she marries his brother who he has some friction with. Cue Marcela who overhears his plan to stop the wedding with his confession and decides to stop him. Marcela talks some sense into Theo and so begins their friendship which leads some in their inner circle to believe they’re actually dating. Including the groom who begins to aggressively try to persuade his bestie Marcela that his brother is not the great guy she thinks he is. This leads Marcela and Theo to let the lie roll so to speak while actually exploring a friends with benefits relationship.
I’m always on the hunt for Latinx romance to feed my soul, these books typically have families as supporting characters and delicious dishes being cooked in the kitchen being served alongside the steamy romance. The Next Best Fling checked off all the boxes while also stirring my appetite for some authentic Mexican food. Marcela’s mother always having food on the stove or set aside for her was heart warming and made me think of my own dad who loved to feed his daughters. I also loved the library setting and actually seeing Marcela in her work environment where she thoughtfully chooses books for the Young Adult community reading in her branch. The fun nights of Cosplay she and her friend organize to really get kids excited to read and be a part of something had me smiling and wishing I had that as a teen. Marcela is one of the coolest FMC’s I’ve come across with the exception of the lack of transparency she had with Theo while he was confessing his years long feelings for the bride to be. They were in the same exact boat except Theo spent it mostly in the dark about Marcela’s feelings for his brother the groom. Other than this, I could relate to Marcela SO MUCH! her insecurities absolutely came into play while handling her feelings and it was empowering watching her come into the realization that she’s bad a**! and NOT undesirable. Theo being the sweet kind big guy that he is allowed Marcela to see she was settling before just by simply listening and observing all of the little things she loves. Instead of making someone the center of her world, she was being doted on like she deserved. Friends to Lovers is my favorite trope to read from and although there isn’t a foundation for their friendship, it does evolve as one first before it turn romantic. This is the first installment in the Librarians In Love series by Gabriella Gamez and I’m looking forward to reading more from this author.
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