Here to Stay is a fun, sexy contemporary romance About starting over. I love stories with found families and this book had a great one.!

FULL REVIEW ON FRESH FICTION

HERE TO STAY by Adriana Herrera is an emotional, heartfelt, and fun contemporary romance. Having two hardworking people admit their attraction to the other early on, fight it for a while, and then finally, deliciously give in to their desires was refreshing--it was easy to see from the start that Julia and Rocco wanted to be together. The Gotham Exiles is a delightful group of great friends who know exactly when Julia and Rocco need to be teased about their growing relationship as well as when they need to be supported through hardships. Hopefully, they all get their own love stories! Julia’s loud and loving family was wonderful; it was clear they wanted the best for Julia and welcomed Rocco with open arms, knowing he was right for her. Rocco’s family story was more fraught and his strained relationship with his parents and his need to make sure his sister and niece were all right was heartbreaking because it hindered his ability to fully open up to Julia and see his own self-worth. The details about the department store’s IPO started to muddle a bit, but the scenes where Julia was at work with students and families in need were great and gave insight to her character. Adriana Herrera’s love of New York City is clear and added an authentic voice to the Gotham Exiles, but anyone who has felt homesick will relate to missing home. HERE TO STAY is an entertaining and heartwarming romance!

I have to say that I liked the friend group (though they felt underdeveloped a little) and the family dynamics (though Rocco's was a little tragedy porn-ish) but the actual sex scenes....no. We follow two people from New York relocated for work to Dallas, Texas. Which is fine. The cultural representation of both places was good. The MC, Julia's family was great and I enjoyed their interactions. The work Julia did was important and the messages contained in her story arc were good. I liked the couple outside the bedroom for the most part.

But if that man SUCKED HIS TEETH one more time I was gonna be sick. I dry heaved, a lot. And what's with a confident woman actually asking a man who was clearly enjoying performing oral sex on her "doesn't the smell gross you out"? Because, what!? What grown man is saying yes to that? I can't. Their out of bedroom relationship was very cute pre sex and then turned into aggressive dirty talk out of nowhere. It was jarring and unsettling, to be honest. Again, the themes of loyalty, family, and friendships were good but the actual sexual side of the romance...hard pass. The romance itself--that was fine. But who hates the sex scenes in a book? That's not the way it should go.

Julia, a Latina Queens native who has recently relocated to Dallas, is a social worker at a foundation for a family-run, luxury clothing store that is soon to go public. Her job is dependent on the report of consultant NY-based Rocco, who has been charged with deciding the best way to make the company look good in potential stockholders' eyes. But while Julia is determined to not like Rocco, the physical attraction between them can't be denied. Can they keep it professional? Is it fair to ask either of them to uproot their their (finally) stable lives for one another?

I heard about this book in a book buzz preview (Library Journal Day of Dialog maybe??) late last summer, and I was excited when I saw it on NetGalley. Took me awhile to get to it, but I'm glad I continued to remember it as a TBR. I really enjoyed the conundrum of being professional at work/relationship issues, and I'm SO glad that wasn't what caused the Miscommunication. And then when Julia's dad gives here some really great advice, I thought, "Great! The Miscommunication also won't be from lack of talking-- MAYBE the final climax (no pun intended) won't be about miscommunication at all!" Unfortunately, it was, so the four stars. Overall, it was good; I was just excited that it wasn't going to be a "typical" romance ending, and then it was, so it was a bit of a let down.

She had it all figured out. New dream job, move, and boyfriend. Only the boyfriend end up dumping her and moving back. And her dream job doesn't come without a bump. A consultant was hired to help the story, and his first order of business, fire her.

It's up to her to show him, that her work matters. It would be easier if he wasn't so hot. :)

It's such a cute enemy to loves romance. It's was very quick to read and very fun too. :)

This author cannot fail. I love everything she writes, and this certainly wasn’t an exception.

Read it. Fall in love with it. I know I did.

Wanting something different with a "found family" trope? Try new-to-me author, Ms. Herrera's Here to Stay. When it comes to characters, I am used to basically seeing everyone in my mind as a white person. Not because I prefer to "white wash" characters, but because I am surrounded by white people and that is what I visualize for the most part, even if I am 100% Asian ethic ancestry. There have been arguments that there are not enough authors who write People of Colour (POC). Rather than go into the whining and griping of POC authors who think they aren't getting their books published because of their skin tone, I'm going to highlight all the wonderful things I see in Ms. Herrera's book and why I recommend it.

I know very little about people from a Latinx culture as I reside in the Midwest of the States. I have worked with several but we don't really share our cultures as much during work. Seeing a point of view in the business world from two characters that are of Latinx backgrounds is enlightening. I loved how Ms. Herrera peppers the dialog with Spanish. I don't know much Spanish but I understand enough to follow the words she used. Plus she does translate here and there.

But any author can pull in a few Google translates to add in the Spanish flair. What Ms. Herrera does, is create characters who live and experience what it is like to be a POC in a field that may not have that many POC in the States. The subtle difference of how people are treated and how they respond to others is educational and written in a very tasteful way. I also really liked the "putting the money at the mouth" culture in the business that was featured in the story. From the hard conflicts, feeling of isolation to finding the right "tribe", all the character building, world building and plots worked for me. Ms. Herrera did a lovely job, down to the ending where it wasn't exactly magically happily ever after, it is more true to the real world.

So why did I rate it a 3.5 star? This is 100% due to the miscommunications between the two main characters, Julia and Rocco. It frustrated me to no end with their mixed signals and inability to communicate. I say this because Julia's profession should have placed her in the position where she was able to use her words. She wasn't which surprised me because several times, she behaved in an empathic way and used her profession to respond accordingly to Rocco. The second reason why I rated it a bit lower is because the romance was too slow for me. Maybe I'm too straightforward or maybe I'm too old to play the texting games and "she loves me; she loves me not" games. This could have been left out or edited.

Overall, this book holds a bigger impact in shining a light to how to help those who need help. It is more than just food and shelter. In addition, the building of a "found family" is heartwarming and I loved it. This contemporary romance is recommended to readers who enjoy learning about other cultures and seeing example of what a true social justice warrior means. Because both Rocco and Julia are #rolemodels.

Here to Stay is a contemporary romance about starting over, learning to trust and value yourself, and found families. Julia and Rocco both grew up in the same part of New York City, but didn't meet until they'd moved to Dallas--her for a new hopefully permanent job, him for a temporary one. The problem? His job might mean the end of hers. So they probably shouldn't start hanging out together, right?

Easier said than done, it turns out. First, their jobs require they work closely together. Second, their brand new friend group keeps throwing them together. And of course they have some pretty solid chemistry complicating the heck out of things...

Ms Herrera did a nice job of balancing humor and angst in this story, giving us a slow burn romance that might have been frustrating at times (just have a conversation about your relationship, already!) but kept me turning the pages, hoping that Julia and Rocco would be able to pull together an HEA in the end.

Spoiler alert: they do! And OMG, it's delicious...

Rating: 4 stars / A-

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

3.5 Stars. This book took me a while to get into, which may have just been the state of the world or it could be because I have such high expectations for Adriana Herrera and this is a new series. Rocco ended up being such a delight. He was so sweet and really got me when he rescued the kitten. This book also ended up being incredibly hot!

I do wish that there had been a little more happening in the beginning/middle because it feels like there was a lot of action towards the end, but I look forward to reading more about the Gotham Exiles.

Thanks to Carina Press for my copy to review.

Herrera does it again! I felt Julia’s simultaneous love for her Afro-Caribbean family and the frustration she feels at their constant hovering over her. Julia is determined to make a life for herself in Texas, despite a breakup with her faithless ex that nearly brings her life grinding to a halt.⁠
⁠
Rocco, Julia's love interest, has his own struggles with his family, and a problem whose only solution might require him to crush Julia's dreams. ⁠
⁠
The chemistry is fantastic, the element of family, community, and doing good in the world is always a trademark of Herrera's stories. It's a gorgeous romance where the HEA is well-earned and believable. There is are so many Easter eggs for the Latinx reader, it was so much fun to see those aspects reflected in the narrative.⁠
⁠
Another five-star read!⁠

I've heard such good things about this author as a human being that, after not being incredibly drawn into American Dreamer, I wanted to give the author another go with this book.

And I'm super glad I did. My favourite was definitely Rocco, who is a white boy from New York who has a consultant job in Dallas where he ends up meeting Julia. From the very first time we meet Rocco, we see his vulnerabilities, his worries, his love of his sister and niece and how he will do anything he can do see that they are both okay.

When he comes to see what doing this job will entail, his vulnerability turns into something a lot more like desperation as he attempts to hold onto both his conscience and his job.

Julia is one of the ones who run a division within a company that it may become Rocco's job to shut down. From the first time these two meet each other, they are drawn to one another and that doesn't decrease just because they don't spend a lot of time together. Or because they work together. Or any other reasons that Julia puts up between them.

One of the things I absolutely adored about this was the found family we got to watch Julia and Rocco create with 4 other New York Exiles currently living and working in Dallas. Jose and Tariq--part of the Exiles group--are a cute gay side couple who also get together through the course of this novel, but don't be fooled, the majority of the drama happens right on top of Julia and Rocco.

I thought the pacing of this one was absolutely stellar. The contrast between Julia and Rocco's parents was moving and heartbreaking by degrees. Yeah I just really enjoyed this one.

Julia moves to Dallas from New York with her boyfriend who dumps her and returns to New York shortly after. Rocco Quinn is in Dallas to help Sturm's, the company Julia works for, go public. Sturms has been mostly run by a set of elegant twins, but their younger brother is ready to take the company to the next level. If they do, Julia's job could be in jeopardy. There is very strong chemistry between Julia and Rocco, but will that change his mind about what is best for the company? Which will matter more to them, finding happiness with each other or keeping their jobs?

Thanks to Carina Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is another book that I really enjoyed. It kept me entertained from start to finish. There were a couple of surprises along the way that I didn't see coming, but overall this was a cute romantic story that I would recommend to those who enjoy work romance stories.

I read this immediately after Herrera's Finding Joy as part of a roundup up romances by Latinx authors and while I still recommended it, it fell flat for me personally (and especially in comparison to Finding Joy).

Let's start with the pros: Herrera's writing is a delight. She knows how to build tension and OMFG her sex scenes. Dirty talk, explicit and sexy consent, and steamy—she writes some of my favorite in the industry. Her books are one-handed reads for sure! I also really loved the heroine's family, her dad especially, and wished we got more of them in the story. I was lukewarm on the friend group as I felt like they were super important, then disappeared, then back—but like their personalities and would be open to additional stories in this world. I also LOVED that it took place in a big city, and one that I haven't read many romances in.

And the cons: I really didn't like either MC to be honest. They had their moments but overall I found myself rolling my eyes at them more often than not. I also found it hard to suspend belief with some of the tension—doesn't he have a boss or coworker to talk through his concerns with? I also felt there were a few points that got dropped such as the side plot with Vicky (Julia's coworker at the clinic). The pacing felt slow and while the sex was so worth it once I got there, it was a long wait. The other thing that felt off was the pattern in which characters shared their Big Secrets. Rocco went from "vague hints" to "spill my guts" in seconds.

Even though this wasn't the right fit for me, I'm excited to dive into Herrera's backlist and would happily give other stories set in this world a chance.

4/5 stars

This was a really nice, light, and steamy office romance! I enjoyed this as a nice palate cleanser but it's really hard for me to give any contemporary romance 5 stars. There was nothing wrong with this book in the slightest I just don't think it's going to be extremely memorable for me.

I enjoyed the characters so much. Julia and her family were so crazy and fun! I also loved seeing the representation. I loved seeing her enjoy her job and having a good work ethic because I don't see that often.

Rocco was so charming and steamy but also extremely endearing. You can tell he truly cared about Julia and I loved the bond they had from both being ex-New Yorkers.

This book perfectly balanced office drama and a steamy relationship that has a ton of chemistry and leaves you smiling.

This is the first book that I have read by this author.
Julia is from New York, but she has been currently living in Texas because she followed her boyfriend that ends up dumping her shortly after. Due to that she is in a bind as had to have a roommate to help her pay for rent. She loves her job but feels like there is just something missing. She decides that she is going to make a club (Gotham Exiles) and have ex New Yorkers, so they feel more at home. There is one tiny problem, there is a guy in the group named Rocco who is the one that decides that if he going to merge companies.
Rocco who is also an ex New Yorker was hard to dislike lol. He and Julia were having to work with one another on Julia’s foundation and as they work together things start brewing and get very interesting.
I wonder what is going to happen in the next book in the series.

Special thanks to the author, Harlequin and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy, this book is available now.

New York transplant now in New York, Julia Del Mar hasn’t been having the best year but, that changes when native New Yorker, Rocco comes to town and is content on turning her world upside down. With the help of other NY natives now In Dallas, it starts to feel more like home and life starts feeling a bit more of an elevator ride. How does Julia survive Rocco?

I admit it started off a bit slow for me but, quickly gained momentum. I really enjoyed the characters and their quirkiness and fun they bring to the story. There was a bit of drama and an emotional ride but, it made for a wonderful story.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Here to Stay is a contemporary romance about starting over, learning to trust and value yourself, and found families. Julia and Rocco both grew up in the same part of New York City, but didn't meet until they'd moved to Dallas--her for a new hopefully permanent job, him for a temporary one. The problem? His job might mean the end of hers. So they probably shouldn't start hanging out together, right?

Easier said than done, it turns out. First, their jobs require they work closely together. Second, their brand new friend group keeps throwing them together. And of course they have some pretty solid chemistry complicating the heck out of things...

Ms Herrera did a nice job of balancing humor and angst in this story, giving us a slow burn romance that might have been frustrating at times (just have a conversation about your relationship, already!) but kept me turning the pages, hoping that Julia and Rocco would be able to pull together an HEA in the end.

Spoiler alert: they do! And OMG, it's delicious...

Rating: 4 stars / A-

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Read 9 chapters, around 100 pages

There wasn't anything wrong here really, but I didn't find either POV particularly convincing. The voice didn't click for me, which left me bored. I also feel like the chemistry is very "I hate them but also my panties are wet" which I find weird and forced.

Really enjoyed reading this one! I listened so part of this one on audio and partial read it and it was a great experience. I have been loving Adriana's books!

Julia and Rocco are both New Yorkers, in Dallas, Texas for different reasons. Julia has a wonderful dream job in Dallas but is only there because her boyfriend dumped her after it was his idea to move. She decided to make the most of it though and is doing her best. Her career is going well, her social life? Not so much.
Rocco is temporarily living in Dallas to help take the company Julia works ready for an IPO. The problem with that is it may cost Julia her job. These two have an attraction to each other, though at first, they both try like hell to fight it - for obvious reasons though. They kinda work together and his decisions could affect her livelihood soooo probably not the best idea.

However, when Julia starts a meetup group for fellow ex-New Yorkers, Rocco joins and their attraction reaches a full boil. They both see that there's more to each other than they had thought and soon their relationship turns from a potential one time, under the radar thing to so much more.

These two were really great fleshed out characters. Both with a sort of savior 'put others before myself' complex. They are very similar in that way and though their backgrounds are different, there's a certain commonality and bond between them that I enjoyed a lot. They let each other be. Rocco hasn't had the best upbringing and when we meet him in this novel he is still working through parts of that relationship with his parents. Julia doesn't pity him or try to become his therapist, she's simply there and that means a lot to Rocco. Julia, on the other hand, is a self-assured woman and while she still has some initial hangups over her last breakup, is a woman that is taking all of these changes in her life in stride. She doesn't take any shit from nobody, including Rocco's ass with this Superman attitude he got going on.

I must say, I really liked Here to Stay. When they said it was heartwarming, not one lie was told. While Here to Stay is a romance, it's definitely a story of family - not just the one we are born into but the one we find and build on our own. There's a real sense of community throughout this entire novel and I loved reading it, providing me with some much-needed smiles along the way. Adriana infuses this story with great Caribbean culture and FOOD! I won't lie, I was hungry reading some of the scenes LOL. Oh and my favorite line? "One thing is clean, a whole other is Caribbean-people clean." I FELT THIS! If ain't no bleach of Fabuloso was used, is it really clean? lol lol

Ooh and lastly, the secondary characters? Fantastic! I wouldn't mind revisiting these characters!