TBP July 7th, 2020
384 Pages
After a messy public breakup, soap opera darling Jasmine Lin Rodriguez finds her face splashed across the tabloids. When she returns to her hometown of New York City to film the starring role in a bilingual romantic comedy for the number one streaming service in the country, Jasmine figures her new “Leading Lady Plan” should be easy enough to follow—until a casting shake-up pairs her with telenovela hunk Ashton Suárez.
Leading Ladies don’t need a man to be happy.
After his last telenovela character was killed off, Ashton is worried his career is dead as well. Joining this new cast as a last-minute addition will give him the chance to show off his acting chops to American audiences and ping the radar of Hollywood casting agents. To make it work, he’ll need to generate smoking-hot on-screen chemistry with Jasmine. Easier said than done, especially when a disastrous first impression smothers the embers of whatever sexual heat they might have had.
Leading Ladies do not rebound with their new costars.
With their careers on the line, Jasmine and Ashton agree to rehearse in private. But rehearsal leads to kissing, and kissing leads to a behind-the-scenes romance worthy of a soap opera. While their on-screen performance improves, the media spotlight on Jasmine soon threatens to destroy her new image and expose Ashton’s most closely guarded secret.- Goodreads
I too had an obsession with American soap operas. However, One Life to Live was my favorite one of all time and it was because of three men; Antonio (Kamar de los Reyes) and Cristian (David Fumero) Vega and Todd Manning (Roger Howarth). The Vega brothers were everything to me. I live to watch their stories and Todd. . . he was a mess but a mess with a soft heart.
This book. . . made me remember all of that.
First let me say how well this book was written. Not only do you get both Jasmine and Ashton’s point of views but you also read the show; basically you are seeing reading two stories at the same time. So you’re getting a bang for your buck. The transitions are clear and smooth. The writing is engaging, extremely detailed without the drag and there is a balance of color and culture. What I mean by that is the author is trying to tell a love story and within that love story give you a glimpse of the culture while not stressing the politics of the culture. Honestly it was refreshing. I say that with no insult. I say that because its nice to read a diverse book without a struggle. We see it all the time in books by Black authors, Hispanic authors and any non straight, white authors. This book was refreshing.
Jasmine and Ashton have pure, makes sense chemistry. There is an instant attraction that wouldn’t say is lust. But they are grown adults (with baggage) that responsible (ish). There are definitely some drama within their relationship but it doesn’t happen as sudden as other romances.
Beyond their chemistry, Jasmine and Ashton were great characters with their own personalities that were different from each other but complimented each other. They didn’t allow their individuality to change or shape their relationship. I love that. Too often you see someone in a relationship trying to be someone different because of the person they are with.
Both of them experience growth, not just at the end but also as you read. Also the author makes reference to their past growth (at least on Jasmine’s end).
I loved this novel and have every intention of buying a physical copy for my library.
Overall,
4 Pickles
Motif by Tanya 