The Summer Solstice arrived and as many head to the playa or pool with their summer reads, I want to share with you some libros with choices much more relatable than the Barnes & Noble top picks.
Our theme for this issue is everything that el sol represents – libertad, desnuda – and honestly, I can’t help but think of sex. And it’s not because my mind is “in the gutter.”
During the summer, as moisture presses into the air and el sol kisses my skin, turning it from the color of tortilla to el color de cobre, I spend most of my time wearing as little clothes as possible. It started as a method of staying cool, but now, it’s because I love being in my skin. I love feeling it, I love seeing it, and I love being touched in it.
Can’t deny, this also leads to sweaty sexo, where I feel more goddess than anything.
Want to know un secreto on how to turn up the heat another level? A sexy AF read. My partner loves when I read these because my libido goes up ten-fold.
I hope these books serve as a reminder to love on your body (whether alone or with a partner) and help you get desnuda with some soul ponderings. For it’s when we are bare and open that we make space for liberation within ourselves and eventually our communities.
You Had Me at Hola by Alexis Daria
I’ll admit, it’s been a minute since I’ve read this one since it’s pandemic release, but it’s a likely reread for me this summer.
Soap star, Jasmine Lin Rodriguez, has three rules:
#1 Leading ladies do not end up on tabloid covers.
#2 Leading ladies don’t need a man to be happy.
#3 Leading ladies do not rebound with their new costars.
We all know how rules go…
When she’s on set with Ashton Suarez, she can’t help but break her own rules, and he can’t keep away either. The first of two stories in this summer list that jab at the film industry remain relatable in how as Latinx folk we are almost always walking on egg-shells and code-switching to make it.
In Daria’s novel, I felt culture. I loved (and felt frustrated by) the overwhelming Latinx family. I loved the representation of a Latinx character that doesn’t speak Spanish. And I love the sex scenes and the feelings that often come after sex in a dating relationship.
Overall, the story isn’t life altering, but it is fun and a perfect easy read with representation to enjoy on a chair while you get some sun.
Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert
Danika Brown pulled on my heart strings as she went after all her professional goals and Ph.D. in Take a Hint, Dani Brown. She’s obsessed with academia and becoming known in her field. Only thing she doesn’t have? A friend with benefits (any gender) to satisfy her needs. When a planned workplace fire drill catches her in an elevator and her post rescue experience by security guard Zafir Ansari goes viral, she aims to seduce him by going along with a fake relationship that can help his sports charity thrive. Dani’s journey of opening up and the topics of family loss and general anxiety disorder are addressed in sensitive and considerate ways.
Talia Hibbert is witty, perhaps the wittiest author I’ve ever read. I wouldn’t want to be joking with her because I know her comebacks would come to quick and strong for me. Despite her wit, she is one of the most sensitive authors. She takes the time to include real life shit and near-diverse people who are often left out of the bookish world. She creates the most astounding leading Black protagonists that we can see ourselves in, in both our strengths and ways we can grow. And she dreams up the dreamiest of partners that are doing the inner work themselves. I just hope a steamy Latinx partner is up next.
Additional note, Take a Hint, Dani Brown, is book #2 in the Brown Sisters series. It can be read alone, but do yourself a favor and read them all. It will feed your spirit like no other.
Reel: A Standalone Hollywood Renaissance Novel by Kennedy Ryan
Kennedy Ryan is hands down one of my favorite authors. Similar to Talia Hibbert, not only is she clever in her writing style, she also talks about real shit that needs to be in stories. Reel: A Standalone Hollywood Renaissance Novel is an example where black characters are literally taking over the show. Well known producer, Canon Holt, witnesses aspiring actress Neevah Saint and she stands in for the lead of a Broadway play. The moment he sees her, he knows he needs her for his upcoming biopic on Dessi Blue, a singer who should have been a household name, but like many other great black artists were lost in history. “I feel robbed sometimes.” I sigh, expelling my frustration. “All the things we don’t know, are never taught. Have to dig around to find out.” “History is so picked over, by the time you get to the tree, there’s barely any fruit left.”
Reel gets down to the gritty of not just the history of the past, but how hard it is for black folk to make it in white dominated Hollywood. As Canon and Neevah work to change the industry, they work hard to stay away from each other and not let their personal desires impact the film or Neevah’s reception as an upcoming star and the double standards set for women.
I especially loved Neevah’s character. She’s determined, poised, and has a high AF libido. What I especially respected about the story was Neevah’s experience with the progression of a chronic illness and how the illness was a part of her, but not all of her.
Of course, because we can love a story and critique it in thoughtful ways for growth, I find the romance trope of “this person is my everything” still present. In Kennedy’s work, she always challenges the traditional dynamic of relationships, yet I still feel room for improvement in a story showing we are whole in our own.
Ultimately, this is more than story with a lot of hot sex (on beaches too). Reel is Real. It’s deep, moving, and has us pondering life, immortality, health, and how we grow in and through the toughest situations in relationships. It challenges us to reflect on the parts we are playing in history for the world and ourselves.
May you soak in more than sun and words while reading these books; may you be inspired to honor the liberated you.
Your Bookish Homegirl,
Selisa Loeza
