Romeo adn 

A contemporary take on Romeo and Juliet with rival families in competing mariachi bands, West Side Love Story is a sweet romance with familial love right at the heart of it. I love the family dynamics. I love how Mariana and Angelo were both the main caregivers for their younger siblings, and how their love for their respective families influenced and deepened their love for each other. There’s a recurring bit about Mariana teasing that Angelo is ‘a nice guy’, and that phrase just describes Angelo to a ‘T’. He’s super sweet and considerate and caring, and in the midst of all the drama surrounding their families, and all the stress Mariana has to deal with, he just seems like such a wonderful partner to have. I love how openly they communicate with each other, how gently Angelo nudges Mariana to open up when she shuts down, and how they’re both super clear on their feelings for each other in spite of their families’ rivalry.

The mariachi band angle to the classic Romeo and Juliet set-up was cool, but I kinda wish we’d actually seen more of the mariachi songs (e.g. lyrics) that just descriptions of the performance. Those scenes felt a bit thin to me, and I think seeing the lyrics (especially since much is made about how brilliant Cat’s songwriting is) would have helped make the scenes come alive.

I like that Oliveras adds a class component to the Capuleta / Montero rivalry. The Capuletas are in danger of losing their beloved home to an unreasonably tough bank loan, and suspect Angelo’s uncle, Hugo Montero, is pulling strings behind the scenes. The Montero family is also known for gentifying the neighbourhood, which puts them at odds with the Capuletas, and especially with Mariana’s sister Cat, who worries about neighbours and neighbourhood businesses being evicted.

I do wish the reason behind Hugo’s animosity against the Capuletas had been fleshed out more. It’s explained away that he used to be in love with Capuleta matriarch Berta, but after so many years, his grudge just seems petty and small-minded. It makes him an obvious, but also super thinly developed, villain, and I wish there’d been more complexity to that part of the plot.

And finally, as a musical theatre fan, the little nods to lyrics from West Side Story were a total delight.

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Thanks to Thomas Allen Ltd for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Mariana Capuleta and Angelo Montero’s relationship starts with an anonymous kiss at a New Year’s Eve party, and quickly develops into something deeper and more tender. Both are the primary caregivers of their younger siblings, and both feel their responsibilities to their families very deeply. Both families being Hispanic adds even more layers to the family rivalry dynamic, and Oliveras heightens the tension by adding a marked financial imbalance between both families: the Capuletas are in danger of losing their beloved home to a high-pressure bank loan, and Angelo’s uncle Hugo  

I absolutely love murder mysteries set in convents. Blame it on my Catholic school upbringing; the secret lives of nuns have always fascinated me, and reading a novel about all the drama and intrigue that could lead to a murder within convent walls is just extra fascinating.

So The Darkest Sin hooked me immediately. Set in 16th century Florence? Extra drama! The Catholic Church was an even more powerful part of everyday people’s lives back then, so how would this setting influence the mystery? The person murdered in the convent was a man? Intrigue to the max! What was a man doing inside the convent?

And then as I read, the story drew me in even more deeply. I loved the protagonist, Officer Cesare Aldo and his co-worker / protegee Constable Carlo Strocchi, I loved their friendship and mentor/mentee relationship, and while they investigate separate crimes in this novel, there’s a wonderfully complex subplot about a strain on their friendship that just got me right in the feels. I felt for Aldo being unable to be with the man he loves, all because of societal prejudices, and there are tons of callbacks to plot points that I presume happened in the previous book, City of Vengeance. D.V. Bishop has crafted beautifully rich characters and.a complex world, and I was hooked all the way through.

The story follows two murder mysteries: Aldo investigates the dead man in the convent, and Strocchi investigates a dead body in the river. Both victims turn out to be horrible, unpleasant men, and I love how Aldo and Strocchi grapple with that. They’re committed to justice, because that’s their jobs, but when the killing is done by someone trapped in super complex and difficult circumstances, what would justice actually demand? It’s not so much a question of if killing can ever be justified, but rather, are there circumstances where punishing the killer may not actually be the just move? The characters’ stances are clear, but the questions remain for the reader to puzzle through ourselves.

I did also get all the intrigue I wanted from convent mysteries. The story delves into the politics within the Church — the abbey and the prioress are at odds over the future direction of the convent; the archbishop wants to shut the convent down; and the monsignor investigating the crime on behalf of the church just wants to check his boxes. I love how these politics dovetail with the intra-office politics of the courts — Aldo and Strocchi’s boss is a petty, small-minded man on a power trip, and while bad bosses suck in real life, they can be super entertaining in fiction! There’s also a lot about class differences and anti-Semitism and all sorts of other social issues that bring the story to life.

It’s a fascinating book, and given the way it ended, I’m curious where D.V. Bishop will take the story in Book 3.

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Thank you to Publisher’s Group Canada for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This children’s picture book is absolutely adorable! In Little India is a Biryani Cafe, run by a cranky Uncle who makes the most delicious biryani. Across the street from the Cafe lives Anni, a little girl who loves to cook and dreams of opening her own cafe someday. She’s determined to learn the secret behind Uncle’s biryani so she can make it for herself.

Both the story and the illustrations are super sweet and charming. There are some fun tips that Uncle shares with Anni about cooking biryani: use whole green chilies for one, and probably most important, stop asking questions and go try to cook the dish for yourself!

My only snag is that I wish the book included the recipe for Uncle’s biryani. For admittedly selfish reasons, I also wish that recipe would have included the secret ingredient that Anni says made it so special. But more broadly, I think that especially given Anni’s age, a kid-friendly recipe of how to make biryani yourself (with a grown-up, of course!) would have made this book even more special. The book does explain what biryani is, and it does give us a link to a biryani recipe online, but I think including a recipe on the actual pages would have been the perfect finishing touch.

Otherwise, the book is adorable. I love thinking of all the young aspiring cooks out there who’ll read this and be inspired to figure out the recipes behind their own favourite dishes. And with those descriptions and illustrations, I’m now super craving biryani myself!

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Thank you to Thomas Allen for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.