After Hours on Milagro Street

De: Angelina M. Lopez

Narrado por: Stacy Gonzalez

Duración: 12 h y 42 m

Resumen del Editor

A WASHINGTON POST BEST ROMANCE OF 2022
A FATED MATES BEST ROMANCE OF 2022
AN ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY BEST ROMANCE OF 2022

Guapo pobrecito, her grandmother calls him. The “poor handsome man.”

Professor Jeremiah Post, the poor handsome man, is in fact standing in the way of Alejandra “Alex” Torres turning Loretta’s, her grandmother’s bar, into a viable business. The hot brainiac who sleeps in one of the upstairs tenant rooms already has all of her Mexican American family’s admiration; she won’t let him have the bar and building she needs to resurrect her career, too.

Alex blowing into town has rocked Jeremiah to his mild-mannered core, but the large, boisterous Torres clan is everything he never had. He doesn’t believe Alex has the best interest of her family, their community, or the bar’s legacy in mind. To protect all three, he’ll stand up to the tough and tattooed bartender with whom he now shares a bedroom wall—and resist the insta-lust they both feel.

But when an old enemy threatens Loretta’s and the surrounding neighborhood, Alex and Jeremiah must combine forces. It will take her might and his mind to save the home they both desperately need.

©2022 Angelina M. Lopez (P)2022 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited

The heroine was hard to take at first

This is a very good story, well written. The narrarator is also very good. What I struggled with was the FMC. she was not all that likeable for a long time. No spoilers, but we eventually find she has a good reason for why she is like that. I then struggled with how quickly and easily a lifetime of pain was "forgiven" and forgotten. I honestly had a hard time finding it believable. Also, it was hard to accept how quickly her family expected her to fix all the issues as well, considering how they had treated her for years. These are the reasons I can't quite give 5 stars. Worth a credit though.

Steamy. Sentimental. Stellar.

First book in the genre I’ve read that had me fully satisfied with the love scenes 😉 but that’s not even the book’s best parts. Incredible story of a badass lady I related to almost too well!

Where Do I Begin

I enjoyed the story and it took me a very long time to finish it. With that being said, the narrator grated on my nerves. the way that she read and pronounced words just didn't work for me. "Grandmaaaw" was one thing that I just hated hearing. Honestly, it was her narration that made me hate Alex. I didn't give a care about her at the end of the book. Alex had no redeemable qualities whatsoever. Alex was childish to the end. The story was very good. You get invested in the story and kinda come to like the characters, no matter how detestable they may be.

Refreshing change of pace

Alejandra was hard to root for and I found myself annoyed with her many times during the story. However, the story was good overall. It didn't follow the typical romance novel formula and for that I'm grateful.

confusing

Would have been helpful to have a separate male voice for the male parts. Half the time I was confused whether the protagonist's father or love interest was talking to her.

It's All About Family

Some might read this for the steamy sex scenes, and I admit that they're some of the best sex I've never had. But Lopez excels at framing the story in terms of family dynamics, history, and character arc, which give the story a richness and depth often missing in the Romance genre. Then again, it's not a straight-ahead Romance. There is also mystery and a ghost woven into the story. Narrater Stacy Gonzalez does a fine job of delineating a long list of characters.

A very unique storyline - a great listen!

I’ve been encouraged to read this book and author - I’m so glad I finally have, and even now have an ARC of the second in the series so I don’t have to wait until release day to continue the story of the small town of Freedom!

It was significantly more emotional than I was expecting - each character had really difficult childhood trauma they had to overcome, and while one was trying to come home and reconcile and reconnect, the other was estranged but had a new found family in the other characters actual family.

It was unlike anything I’ve read before and it really was hard to stop (I did have to take a couple life breaks but pretty much listened straight through). A great multicultural romance by a Latinx author.

The audio version was fantastic. I recommend this over the ebook. Definitely 5-stars!

#23for23

Spicy Latinx Love Story

I absolutely loved the story line, the intense flirtation and love story, the suspense of the family, and the narrator. I cried, laughed and blushed through this story. I will definitely seek this author out again.

Great story

Omg! The hot factor is 100,000,000 sizzling. Amazing story and character development. Enjoyed the middle America perspective a lot

Yes, fantastic narration, excellent story!

Where do I begin with trying to write a non spoilery comprehensive review for this story. This book took me through some feelings! Mostly feelings of rage, tbh! Not going to lie, I was mad at Alex for a good portion of the book. What I had to remember was "hurt people, hurt people." Alex had been hurt deeply by people she completely relied on, loved and trusted. Her behavior was more understandable once you knew where it stemmed from. I was also pretty mad at her family for a good part of the book. Even though I was mad at Alex, I knew she was lashing out. I wanted her family to fully support her rathern than doubt her or challenge her motives. She had given them reasons though...

What almost sent me through the roof was the audacity- no, the blatant racism of the "leadership" of the town of Freedom. I mean, historically, yes. Historically I know the racism was authentic. And I'm not naive enough to not KNOW racism IS alive and well today. But these people were so dang blatant! I wanted to punch some people! Like punch them in the face! 🤬

Speaking of history. I thoroughly enjoyed learning some of the history of Mexican American people in the Midwest. It was fascinating stuff I definitely didn't learn in American History class. The research that went into adding these facts to the story were much appreciated. Romance books get a bad wrap for being frivolous but I've certainly learned a whole lot of different types of facts and information from reading romance.

So, speaking of the romance... The progression from adversaries, to partners for a cause, to lovers between Alex ans Jeremiah was fantastic. They started off with a bang. Literally. But then they really got to know each other through a lot of push and pull. I was here for it. Jeremiah was The Nerdy Professor in the streets and a complete freak in the sheets! Whew!! 🥵

There was a paranormal element that I loved, and also the very timely question of appropriation. This book had so much! I really wanted just a little bit more after the big discovery. A bit of an epilogue would have set this book over the top! Still a top read of the year.

Okay, I hope I covered everything without spoiling anything. This review has gone long. So thanks so much if you are still reading. 😊 Happy reading!