An equally wholesome and sweet queer story of a bartender who is trying not to let corporate America make its way into their small town and juggling motherhood and whatever is going on with their best friend.

This book was such a cozy queer read. Loved the friends to lovers vibes and all the familial vibes, too.

This was such a heartwarming story with Hallmark vibes - a town comes together to fight back against an evil corporation threatening local businesses. I really enjoyed how the romance was a sweet and slow transition for these two best friends who become lovers.

As someone who went on journey of self discovery and understanding about my own sexuality later in life, I really appreciated seeing it reflected on page and found Cash’s journey incredibly relatable.

Overall, this was very endearing!

A heartwarming and engaging romance that delves into self discovery and love. The writing is realistic and captures the difficulties of Cash’s journey with wit and emotion. The plot can be a little predictable but overaa very good read.
Many thanks to Random House and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This story appealed to me for two very big reasons. The first is that the friends to lovers trope is one of my favorites. And the second is that I came to question my own sexuality later in life, so I could really relate to Cash.

Cash has always thought she was straight, just that she didn’t really want to be in a relationship with any of the guys she hooked up with. When she starts questioning her sexuality, she goes through a lot of emotions and a lot of fear for how it will affect her life, her relationships, and, most importantly, her daughter’s life. It takes her time to fully accept herself.

I love the community in Ridley Falls. Everyone is very accepting and supportive, even though they initially kind of kept to themselves. But everyone proves to have both Jane’s and Cash’s best interests at heart.

The friendship between Inez and Cash is amazing, even before it develops into more. I don’t blame Cash for being afraid to mess that up and probably would have made some of the same decisions that she did. Inez is an amazing person, and you can see how much Cash and Parker mean to her from the beginning.

While I didn’t feel like distance between Inez and Cash before the final confrontation was true to their characters (or at least not true to Inez’s character), I did like the way everything came together in the end.

And I adored Parker.

Disclaimer: I received an eARC of this story through Net Galley on behalf of the publisher for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Cash Delgado never though that living behind a bar with her daughter and bartending would be her destination, but when that life is threatened by a former beau and his corporate business, she decides it is exactly what she needs. Cash works with her best friend Inez O'Conner, to save Joyce's Bar from isolation by capitalizing on what makes it unique. The people in their small town need to be convinced that they do not need chain store coming in and ruining the local flavor. Additionally, Cash finds herself attracted to Inez and wonders what that means about her sexuality. Author Tehlor Kay Meja weaves in characters from her book Sammy Espinoza's Last Review, which makes it a fun flashback.

Cash Delgado Is Living the Dream by Tehlor Kay Mejia was a cute queer read! It was nice to see how Cash discovered her identity later in life and liked how the romance flourished between her and Inez. The dreams were a bit unrealistic but other than that I enjoyed this!

Cash is living a life that she finds
enjoyable but like anything else in life things are changing. What she doesn’t expect is to fall in love with her best friend. She finds herself on a journey of self discovery and it was great to follow along.

Thank you #randomhouse and #NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

A cute love story about finding your soulmate in the most unconventional ways.
Thank you, NetGalley, for an advanced copy of this novel.

Latine Heritage Month

Not the same vibes at all, but I loved Tehlor's Lucha of the Night Forest. And like everything else I've read recently, I sort of read this out of order with its companion piece, Sammy Espinoza's Last Review.

I guess I didn't realize this was sapphic friends-to-lovers, which is one of my favorite genres within the queer scope. Cash is living the straightest existence known to humankind in Ridley Falls. She manages Joyce's Bar and her six-year-old daughter, Parker. Her best friend, Inez, is a lesbian. You know where this is going.

I loved nearly every minute of this. While both books by Tehlor that I read span different genres, they are easily becoming a must-buy author. After I finish my disordered reading order, I will look for more from them.

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Dell

I love Cash Delgado!! Friends to lovers is my absolute favorite. Even the support characters in this book felt complete. The small town vibes gave me the best Gilmore Girls feel as well. I was rooting for Cash throughout this entire book. The ending was completely swoon worthy! 4 stars

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

Cash Delgado has a job she enjoys working in a bar alongside her best friend, a comfortable home with her smart and confident daughter, and her life mostly figured out. She's coasting in comfort when her ex comes back to town as a representative of a big franchise bar that would destroy everything Cash loves. And then there's the fact that she's suddenly seeing her best friend as a potential lover despite never before thinking it possible that she was gay. So Cash has to fight to keep her job, her home, and her best friend all while trying to figure out what it is she truly wants.

This one gets 3.5 forward-leaning stars because it's enjoyable but didn't blow me away. There's something almost performative about Cash's struggle with recognizing that she's in love with her best friend that just didn't gel with me. It's obvious they love each other and I get that suddenly realizing that you're attracted to someone of the same sex is disorienting, I just wish it wasn't so much about how other people would potentially react instead of Cash sitting down and thinking things through. The rest of the story is pure small-town goodness that I loved, from everyone being in everyone's business to the amazing amount of support shown, it's happy goodness all around. Honestly, I enjoyed saving the local bar from evil franchise overlords more than the romance.

Overall, it's not as romantic as I was expecting but it'sa good small-town story with solid queer representation.

Happy thanks to NetGalley and

- Tehlor Kay Mejia is lowkey one of the best romance writers out there. Their books are brimming with love and hope and queerness and I want to scoop everyone up into a big hug.
- CASH DELGADO IS LIVING THE DREAM deals with a later in life queer awakening, and I am so so glad it exists. I think regardless of when you come out, you’ll relate to a lot of Cash’s confusion, justifications, and ultimately feelings of freedom.
- Plus, Sammy from SAMMY ESPINOZA’S LAST REVIEW plays a key role in this book, which I loved!

This was a cute and easy read. It was just an okay read for me. I didn't really feel the chemistry between the two main characters as strongly as I would have liked. It could be because Cash spent a lot of time pining after Inez. I can definitely see a lot of people being able to relate to this and really enjoy it, especially those looking for a queer sexual awakening story.

Thank you Netgalley, Tehlor Kay Mejia, and Random House Publishing Group - Random House | Dell for the eARC.

Thank you, Netgalley & Tehlor Kay Mejia, for the e-arc. I am leaving this review voluntarily and all opinions are my own.

I thought this was a cute romance with a diverse set of characters. Cash's daughter was just sooo cute, and such a joy to read about.

This book is a self discovery book and I really enjoyed it!

I was very excited to read this after absolutely loving Sammy Espinoza’s Last Review, and I’m happy to say that this one was really good! The writing is very bingeable for me, and I enjoyed the heartwarming sapphic friends to lovers story. While this one wasn’t as emotional for me as Sammy Espinoza, I did enjoy that Cash was a mother. And I loved that Sammy was featured in this book some.

I really, really enjoyed this small town, single mom, bartender, best friends to lovers queer awakening romance set in the Ridley Falls universe. It was heartfelt, funny and had a great cast of secondary characters. Great on audio and perfect for fans of authors like Alexandria Bellefleur and Ashley Herring Blake! I can't wait to read the next book in this queer Sapphic romance series! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!

Cash Delgado is Living the Dream is a best friends-to-lovers contemporary romance and a queer awakening story.

Cash has a lot on her plate. She’s a single mother raising her daughter, Parker, in the small, cozy town of Ridley Falls. She hosts a successful karaoke night each week at the bar she manages, but her ex is set on opening a chain restaurant and bar that could threaten her stable employment. On top of that, she’s started having vivid sex dreams about her best friend, Inez.

I’m becoming a big fan of Tehlor Kay Mejia's contemporary romance novels. This is the second one I’ve read, and I’m consistently impressed by her ability to create diverse casts, nuanced characters, charming small-town settings, and realistic portrayals of people navigating real problems. In Cash Delgado is Living the Dream, we meet Cash, a Latina single mother who loves her job and is questioning her sexuality later in life.

Although this is a romance novel, and the romance itself is both cute and steamy at times, what stood out most to me was the portrayal of community support and Cash’s approach to parenting. These elements add depth to the story, making it more than just a typical love story.

I’d recommend this book to romance readers who enjoy stories that tackle nuanced themes. It’s not a fluffy read, but it is delightful in its own way. I’d also recommend it to anyone struggling with their sexuality later in life. While this story isn’t a one-size-fits-all narrative, it offers a perspective that might resonate with some readers. That said, even though this is a sapphic romance, a significant portion of the story is spent in Cash’s head as she tries to convince herself that she’s straight.

I hope Mejia continues to write contemporary romance novels because I truly enjoy her work.

Content Warnings: Homophobia (challenged)

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for an advance reader's copy of Cash Delgado is Living the Dream.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for Cash Delgado is Loving the Dream By Tehlor Kay Mejia. The book is about small-town bartender juggles motherhood and a sexual awakening in this heartwarming queer friends-to-lovers romance. Cash Delgado has a good life in the quaint town of Ridley Falls. She has Joyce’s Bar, and she has her six-year-old daughter, Parker, whose spunky attitude always keeps life interesting. She also has her best friend, Inez O’Conner, who improves Cash’s sometimes overly responsible outlook with one full of joy and potential. Out of nowhere, Chase Stanton, the former bar manager at Joyce’s (not to mention Cash’s last hookup), returns to town with business prospects that could threaten the local institution and all of Cash’s plans to someday bring new life to the place. And if that isn’t enough, Cash starts having very intimate dreams of Inez. Dreams that could threaten the foundation of her well-ordered life. I felt there could have been more between Cash & Inez, similar to the spark between Cash & Chase in the beginning. I would recommend if you like contemporary women fiction, friends-to-lovers, lgbtq+ romance, and contemporary romance. 🥰🥰🥰

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was the perfect book for me at this moment. I immediately loved Cash and her daughter, her plight as a single mom working as a bartender, and her best friend-turned-lover Inez. The conflict was melodramatic as always with these adult contemporary romances, but this book had a certain charm to it that made it impossible to hate any of the characters (except Chase). I loved the friends-to-lovers storyline, especially the sweet relationship Inez had with Cash's daughter, Parker. I also loved the late-in-life discovery of sexuality storyline. It was very relatable.