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Nina Moreno

Author of Don't Date Rosa Santos

5+ Works 258 Members 10 Reviews

Works by Nina Moreno

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Reclaim the Stars: 17 Tales Across Realms & Space (2022) — Contributor — 126 copies

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Reviews

A lovely blend of realism and modernity with believable magic and superstition. It leaves you with a wholesome feeling, optimistic despite it all.
See the full review and more at mybookjoy.com!

Recommended: sure
For a blend of modern concerns and cultural influences, for a style of magic that might make you question your own beliefs, for perfectly timed jokes and references wound with community ties that go deep

Thoughts:
It took me a while to get through this. It also took me a while to like Rosa. The "saving the town" premise felt far too easy towards the start, and even by the end it felt like more of a footnote, a carry objective to learn about the characters. The writing kept me reading though, as the language is absolutely gorgeous, with startlingly powerful imagery and lines that you have to re-read a few times to savor.

There were definitely some laughs in here, as well. The reference to Pitbull from the veijos caught me off guard and totally cracked me up! The deeper exploration of identity builds towards the end, and that's what I found myself most interested in. Rosa's conflict over her family history and her unknown Cuban roots weave into every aspect of her life. Her attempted romance with a sailor is not the star of the story, but rather a well constructed foil to learn more about Rosa. I was surprised but impressed by that decision; romance typically gets shoved between the lines of a book, whether it's beneficial or not to the story overall.

The magic was such that I could accept it. It felt perfectly reasonable to imagine these charms and incantations working; that Rosa's mother truly did drag a storm with her wherever she went. This grows from a story about a girl trying to get a boyfriend and decide on a college, to a story of multiple generations and the way their shared grief affects each of them differently. The ending was absolutely perfect, and I'm grateful I got to taste it.
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Jenniferforjoy | 7 other reviews | Jan 29, 2024 |
I need to be more careful about when I read books. I haven't been on a boat in months so of course I wait until I'm on a 30 hour voyage to open the book about lovers lost at sea.
I'm still confused about how he made it to Cuba at the end, but the romance in this was a scintillatingly good amount. I really enjoyed the way that they embraced the dilemma over college, and the dilemma about what one's heritage means and how it changes and grows as families change. This was good fun!… (more)
 
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whakaora | 7 other reviews | Mar 5, 2023 |
As much as I complain about romance books, I’m a sucker for the-boy-next-door trope. Throw in a sprinkle of the-one-that-got-away, and I’ll be absolutely hooked. A quick glance at the book’s description and the cover design and it would seem Our Way Back to Always is out of my normal reading realm. In fact, I was dragging my feet getting to this book because I thought I wouldn’t like it. Thank you Past Me for knowing better, pre-ordering this, and making sure I read it. It was a great book to escape into.

Like so many YA contemporaries, Our Way Back to Always starts the summer before senior year. We meet Lou - Luisa - who is struggling to fulfill her own high expectations and trying to get into an elite college. We also meet Sam, whose future plans have been scrambled by his father’s recent death. Both POV characters struggle under the weight of expectation, whether it be the world’s or their own. Both characters are likable, and I appreciated the internal and external struggles that motivated them. The romance was well-founded, and I really enjoyed watching an old friendship rekindle.

Where Moreno excelled in building her protagonists, her supporting characters were a bit less enticing. Both Rocky and Benny were functional characters at best, existing only to help Sam and Lou along their journey. Sam’s family serves in a similar manner, as does most of Lou’s. The only supporting character who had depth and purpose was Elena, Lou’s older sister. After finishing Our Way Back to Always, I learned this is the second book in Marino‘s contemporary universe. If she were to write a third book, I would want to know Elena’s story.

The plot moves at a steady pace, with plenty of landmarks and side quests to keep things interesting. If anything, there was a little bit too much going on and sections felt rushed or underdeveloped. As somebody who is interested in coding and female coders, I was disappointed we didn’t delve further into Lou’s app. Similarly, marching band is described as one of Sam’s joys early in the book, but fades into the background as he takes a different path (except the fact he plays drums - that stays relevant). I liked that the little bits and pieces of the bucket list kept the story moving, but Moreno relies on the reader getting caught up in the adventure and not noticing how shallow some aspects of the plot are.

Stylistic criticisms aside, I enjoyed this book much more than I thought I would. I liked the complicated emotions and I think Moreno did an excellent job relaying the experience of somebody who fell in love with their best friend. I liked that Our Way Back to Always encouraged folks to take a less traditionally celebrated road to success. Our culture is extremely determined to enforce a rigid set of expectations upon young adults, but we need to recognize these expectations are not the only stepping stones to a good life. Moreno reminds us of that in her story and I adored it.

This book made me smile, made me sad, made me wish I had a private swimming pool, and made me want to build a treasure hunt. Our Way Back to Always is more than a light, fun beach read. In the guise of YA romance, this contemporary novel explores themes of familial responsibility, grief, and self acceptance. I really liked it, and I can certainly see myself reading it again.
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Morteana | 1 other review | Apr 13, 2022 |
I really liked Don't Date Rosa Santos, but this book didn't really work for me. Maybe it would be enjoyable for younger teens, but there were too many things that were implausible or unrealistic. Plus there was way too much telling and not enough showing.
 
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SGKowalski | 1 other review | Mar 4, 2022 |

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Works
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Rating
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ISBNs
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