3.5/5 stars. I'm a huge Sonora Reyes fan! I absolutely loved "a lesbiana's guide", and I enjoyed "luis ortega" a lot. Unfortunately, I would definitely rank this one 3rd out of their books. While it wasn't bad, I think it felt tonally confused. As far as I know, this is being marketed as adult fiction, and the characters are in their early twenties. However, a lot of the writing and character dialogue felt like I was back in YA land! Nothing wrong with YA books, it just felt out of place for the scenario's and character ages. Overall, it's a good read, but I don't know I'd recommend it the same way I recommended " A lesbiana's Guide" to everyone. I also didn't dig the back and forth POV switching every chapter. I felt like the Han chapters were stronger, or I just connected to his character more, and was less excited for a Kenny chapter. Looking forward to whatever Sonora Reyes writes next, I will always be a fan!

This book was such a adorable, queer romcom. I will say there are times you do have to suspend belief because of the situation the characters find themselves in. But once you do that you'll enjoy the story and the romance even more.

For fans of movies like The Proposal and I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry, The Broposal is follows two friends who jump into a marriage in order protect an undocumented citizen and keep the bromance alive, but what happens when feelings grow?

I found this to be overall a sweet read, but oh boy, the level of trauma AND drama took away from it a tad.

Immediately, the premise and marriage of convenience trope pulled me in. I also appreciate the Latinx and queer representation. I feel like through side characters and conversations, the culture really shone bright throughout.

However, there are definitely a few issues on execution for this one.

- For the amount of truly HEAVY subject matter that was interesting and relevant, the writing felt extremely simplistic. It's approachable but almost YA despite these characters to be in the almost mid 20s. With that, there is A LOT going on here: abusive relationships, undocumented MC, sexuality awakenings, addicted parents, sketchy bosses, possibly neurodivergent MCs, drag performances, and a lot more. The side plots could've been consolidated for a more impactful and less chaotic read. Especially because some of the side plots (see: crazy, abusive ex girlfriend) felt SO over the top that it was hard to focus on the others and see them play out.
- I struggled with the chemistry of the two MCs . Despite being friends since second grade, their banter didn't feel fully realized and the amount of "bros" thrown around felt incredibly forced. And as individuals, they both had great support systems but these boys are so sad. I wanted more for them. Han feels aggressively "straight" and emotionally constipated and chalks up his feeling for Kenny as "homophobia" for the first 3rd of the book which was incredibly frustrated; while Kenny is being straight up abused which isn't addressed or thoroughly taken care of kind of towards the end of the book. We eventually leave them better than we find them, but there's no on page work done to make that happen as it's all just kind of solved through their final love declaration.

With that being said, it is a bingeable read with great representation that I would recommend if you're considering picking it up. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my free eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I loved Han’s and Kenny’s story! Their friendship that evolved from when they were children into adults was so special. I think it’s rare to read about friendships like that between men so I enjoyed their closeness. I also loved their budding romance and how Han came to lean into his true self and identity. The miscommunication trope is not my favorite thing (probably because I’m an oversharer and just want to yell at the characters to talk to each other the whole time-hahahaha) but it was integral to this story. Sometimes it felt like the chapters ended kind of abruptly but overall I really enjoyed this book. (Can’t stand Jackie, though! Haha)

Received an advanced copy of this book via netgalley for review purposes.

I was so excited for this one. Sonora Reyes is one of my favorite authors who consistently knocks it out of the park every time. This book was no different.

The depth, the humor, the cute & I always love a dual POV.

Such an easy five stars.

Even with all the serious topics included in this one (which Sonora did an excellent job explaining in their author's note/content warnings), I had so much fun watching these two dummies dance around the fact that they were in love with each other. I had a hard time putting it down once I started!

the lesbiana's guide to catholic school is one of my all time favorite ya novels, so I was so excited to read Sonora Reyes's next novel. They are an objectively good writer, who is capable of creating lifelike and funny characters and charming supporting casts. This book was fun, and the premise was great, I think it just isn't quite my thing, that's all. There was nothing wrong with it, but I was just expecting a ya romance from Reyes, and this was not. That being said, this is a really impressive adult debut, and Sonora Reyes is now one of my go-to authors. If they write it, I will read it.

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

Where do I start here? The fact that I saw someone compare this to the movie The Proposal had me interested. I needed to know more.

I will start by saying this book deals with some heavy topics. There are a number of things that could be triggering for readers, so proceed with caution. Also, if you're not a fan of OW drama, then this is a doozy of a book. The OW stuff happens all the way up until the 88% mark, with some extra mentions of it even past that.

Now, having said all that, I will say I still enjoyed the book. These two - Han and Kenny - are OBLIVIOUS. It's the cutest thing to watch them fall in love despite their somewhat reluctance. The parents and side characters make their lack of 'seeing the truth' about their love for one another all the more hilarious.

Without giving spoilers, I will say there is just enough romance between the two to balance out the side quest stories.

As far as steamy times, there are 2 full scenes, though I'd only give this 2 chili peppers if I were to use that scale. 1 CP = barely any steam, 2CP = more obvious steam, 3CP = fanning my face levels of hot, 4CP = I had to pause because WOWZA, 5CP = erotica/no plot/all smut

Thanks to NetGalley and Sonora for the eARC of this book.

This was a wonderfully done romance novel and I was hooked from the first page. It had a great topic and the story worked well overall with what I wanted. It uses the genre perfectly and had that character development that I wanted. Sonora Reyes wrote this perfectly and can’t wait for more.

Love this book! This was one of the most adorable love stories I’ve read in a long time! I definitely would recommend this to anyone! I love a good mm romance but this wasn’t your typical friends to lovers story. It has so much depth and the story was so relatable! Mixing MM romance with social and political issues, trauma, grief and finding your tribe was the cherry on top! If you love a good love story with a bit of education and a bit of sass you would definitely love this book! This story hit home because my sister in law is an undocumented Mexican immigrant and I love to see the representation! I loved how there was light shown on how undocumented people are treated and what people have to sacrifice just to live the American dream! Definitely going on my bookshelf! Excellent job! Thank you so much to Sonora Reyes, NetGalley, and Forever publishing for letting me read this advanced copy for an honest review!

Okaaayyyy. Some books are so hard to review. Because they’re sweet and caring and, at the same time, have this stupid side plot that ruins everything for me. This is such a book.

I really loved Han and Kenny and their bro code. I loved how Kenny wanted to take care of his best friend, and I appreciated the heavy themes in this book. Most of you know by now that heavy topics make me happy—or better: make me an invested reader.

But can I rant for a moment about Jackie and how she ruined this story for me? I mean, the topic itself was really good: an abusive girlfriend who ironically works at a women’s shelter for abused women. But she felt so over the top, especially when she got <I don’t want to spoil>. Rage ran through my body. And then all those things happening, including Jackie who caused the third-act breakup? Come on! So much drama. I love tackling heavier topics, but this kind of drama? I hate it. I almost threw my e-reader against the wall out of frustration.

So, yeah, I liked this story. For the first half, I thought it would be a 3.5-star read and probably would have rounded it up to four. But after reading the second half, my rating plummeted down and now I’m going to round my 2.5-star rating down to two. And I’m so mad about it because I hardly rate books two stars.

I like the cover, though.

This was a lovely story of friends-to-lovers. Part of what made the story so good was that if offered up not just the two characters in a closed world, but the community that surrounded them—distinctly supportive family members and co-workers. Each of the characters faced significant, though different, challenges but there was also a lot of love not just between them but surrounding them. It was also cool to see two neurodivergent characters who just were. We see how each of them navigate the world, but it’s all pretty matter of fact and they primarily accept themselves as they are. TW: there are important storylines about about the impact of substance abuse and domestic abuse. The latter definitely shows how neurodivergent people can be more vulnerable to emotional abuse. At the heart of the story is the amazing friendship between Han (Alejandro) and Kenny, and it’s really beautiful how they listen to and support each other. The story did take a couple of chapters to find its groove. But once it got going it hooked me in and I was so invested in Han (Alejandro) and Kenny’s journey I hardly put it down. I'm really excited to hear the audiobook as well, as it features two of my favorite narrators, Alejandro Antonio Ruiz and André Santana!

Ah I loved the premise of best friends falling for each other.   Simply love it. Best friends since the first grade, Kenny and Han were unaware of their romantic feelings for each other. When Han losed his job he also lost  his work visa. Kenny came up with a plan for Han to stay legally by getting married to each other.  With family, friends, and an utterly abusive ex girlfriend they have to convince the world they are madly in love. What I loved about this was the friendship between the two of them. Han had struggled to voice his feelings and sexuality for awhile. While Kenny was struggling with low self esteem and an abusive relationship. Both suffered from anxiety that was represented in a beautiful and kind way. I loved how they understood and supported each other. When given an ultimatum by his ex Kenny chose to be with his best friend. I cheered for Kenny in finding himself after a long struggle. The ex was definitely bad news and needed help. And the heavy topics were done in a gentle way throughout the book. The ending was simply beautiful!! Overall,  if you love a sweet,  poignant m/m love story this one is for you.  Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my review.

This was so precious.

I was delighted to see this was available now on Netgalley this weekend from the publisher, so I leapt on the opportunity to read this early. I started it on the train this morning to work and couldn't put it down so I ended up finishing it on the ride home after reading it during every free moment of the day.

It's certainly not perfect, and at times it did feel like Reyes bit off more than they could chew with hard topics (immigration, unexpected pregnancy, substance abuse and abusive relationships), but I do still feel like these topics were handled adequately at the same time. It just sometimes felt a little overdramatic with the amount of things that just kept happening. the whole unexpected pregnancy addition felt a little Glee to me, which is to say, ridiculous for the sake of causing problems, and it did...way too conveniently go away at the end

Buuuuut all that said, I did just adore the romance and the childhood friends to lovers trope will ALWAYS be my favorite, so this really filled that hole for me. It wrapped up a little fast at the end (and tbh the sex scenes were good but a little forced in weird moments...I kind of wanted to see them be able to do it when they weren't rushed for time and could actually explore things lol), but I was smiling nonetheless.

A solid four star read that I won't hesitate to recommend come Februrary 2025!

This story had a lot more umph behind it than I was initially expecting with having "bro" in the title, but I really enjoyed it. I've read two other green-card marriage romances, both of which had a MC from a european country, and after reading this book those almost seem trivial after seeing Han's experiences being undocumented.

We see Han live an emotionally closed off life with the exception of Kenny and we see him live in fear about being reported, unable to seek medical attention, and his hopelessness about not being able to plan for a future since he fears it can be taken away at any point. Kenny's ex plays a much bigger role in the story than the blurb lets on and is probably at the top of one of the most evil contemporary romance antagonists I've come across. I really empathized with Kenny and the love he has for Han and his want to try to protect him from his ex's wrath.

I don't think the romance between the pair was shown that strongly, but it's clear how much love and respect they have for one anothers friendship and how they were able to transition it to more relatively easily. With the amount of external conflict they face it also makes sense as to why romance takes a backseat. I think that this book is a perfect example of why telling marginalized stories matter and makes me want to go back and read Sonora's YA backlist.

Thank you NetGalley and Forever for an arc of this book!

The Broposal

I was immediately pulled into this story, and although I was extremely frustrated at times, I couldn’t put it down.

Some of my favorite things:
✅ POC main characters
✅ Queer representation
✅ Neurodivergent representation
✅ Believable friends to lovers trope

My not so favorite things?
➖ This is new adult but felt VERY YA
➖ I wanted the final conflict with the “big bad” to be more impactful. The resolution was anticlimactic.

Still an enjoyable story.

#TheBroposal #NetGalley

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

4/5 for me. It's clear that this was the author's first time writing an adult novel after writing YA - the writing was fairly basic and the plot resolved itself rather easily - but they nailed the emotions and I was honestly still really invested in the story and rooting for the happy ending. A whole new take on friends-to-lovers with two friends deciding to get married so that one can get a green card. The catch? One is straight and the other is bi. So why are they catching feelings?

When I tell you I have never clicked so fast on a "Read Now" on Netgalley IN MY LIFE! I've also never immediately started reading an ARC after downloading it, but with this one, how could I not???! Sonora Reyes has become one of my favorite authors this year, and for good reason. I fell in love with their books because of the queer, mental illness, and autism reps (OwnVoices), all focused on Mexican-American characters.

Like Sonora Reyes' other books, The Broposal is not without trauma (pleeeease check content warnings!!), so don't go in expecting a just light and fluffy fake dating/marriage of convenience romcom. Like seriously, this book is HEAVY. Of course, Han and Kenny together are FLUFFY PANCAKE MAGIC (pancakes have nothing to do with the book or their relationship, but the word fluffy reminds me of pancakes because who doesn't love a fluffy pancake). If you're not a fan of friends to lovers romance books, I still think you'd like this one! The way Han and Kenny slowly come to realize their feelings for each other is beautifully done. The buildup in tension was just... UGH. Chef's kiss. At so many points I just wanted to (consensually) smush Han and Kenny's faces together and be like "WAKE UP ALREADY, YOU'RE PERFECT FOR EACH OTHER GOSH DARN IT." Han's realization that he was in love with Kenny was also complicated by the fact that he thought he was "straight," LOL.

When Han loses his job that promised him a green card, he fears impending deportation to a place he hasn't been to since he was a young child. His best friend and roommate, Kenny, offers to marry him so Han can get his green card and eventually become naturalized. Kenny has been in an on-again-off-again abusive relationship with a girl named Jackie since high school. Abuse is about power and control, and I loved how Sonora Reyes depicts its cyclical nature and how it typically gets worse over time. They made it clear that no matter the reason for it, there is no excuse for Jackie's abuse. She is a grown woman making her own choices. Ironically, Jackie works at a shelter for women escaping abusive relationships; I appreciated this detail because a) I'm sure there are more employees who abuse their partners working at shelters than we'd ever be comfortable with knowing, and b) it made it that much harder for Kenny to acknowledge the abuse (not that I wanted it to be hard for him, but it was that much more realistic in showing how abuse can have a stranglehold on so many people).

I also loved the jellyfish motif, and how it kept repeating itself throughout the book!

Last point: I was endeared by Han's emotional constipation and his overuse of the term "bro" to avoid expressing any type of vulnerability. I loved that he watched Disney movies to make himself cry (relatable, honestly).

I can't wait to read whatever Sonora Reyes writes next (which will apparently be out in 2026)!

Could not put this down, I read it in like 3 hours. I love it when gay people it's so fun. The icky characters got what was coming those parts were great and I loved all the side characters.

This was an incredibly sweet and genuine portrayal of what friendship turned to romantic love looks like. The two main characters have such distinctive personalities and it was clear to see what they saw in each other. I appreciated the communication that they had with each other when things were going down.

The "villain" of the book seemed very exaggerated probably because of how the reader was meant to see Kenny's abuse while he was blind to it. And I just wanted to give him a hug at all times.

❤️ For the representation: cultural, mental health, queer

Would recommend for lovers of slow-burn, friends to lovers and anyone that wants a deeper love story.