I received this free eARC novel from NetGalley. This is my honest review.

This has been on my TBR pile for so long, and I'm glad I finally got around to it. I really enjoyed the storyline and seeing the characters change throughout the story was a great character development. The plot was great and kept my attention. I'm glad I got the chance to read this and will be on the lookout for more in the future!

Dreams Things True has been called a modern day Romeo and Juliet. It follows the romance between an undocumented teenage Mexican female and a rich white Southern male who fall in love and try to fight against his Conservative family. I enjoyed how this book tackled the issues of undocumented immigrants and the political stances that often work against them. Unfortunately, the romance fell flat for me, and it made it made difficult to enjoy everything at its fullest potential.

Dreams Things True does a fantastic job portraying how perceptions of an individual being undocumented can blind people to who they actually are. Evan, a wealthy white teenage soccer player, falls for Alma not knowing that she and her family are undocumented immigrants. It was interesting to read his reaction once she told him what was going on and find that he still had feelings for her regardless of her circumstances. However, Evan is also a bit naive and blinded by his privileged as a white boy who comes from a political family. Dating Alma forces him to open his eyes in ways that she has had her open for years. Marie Marquardt does a really good at portraying these differences and how each has been blinded by the realities of their lives.

Even though the differences between the characters were portrayed well, I felt that the main characters of Alma and Evan were not fully fleshed out. In a way it felt like their characteristics were based primarily on pre-conceived stereotypes that were never really pushed past the surface. I also never fully felt their connection. Yes, there was an attraction but, their “connective” felt very insta-love to me, and I’m just not particularly a fan of that. But then again, if this a Romeo and Juliet retelling – Romeo and Juliet’s love was also pretty instant, wasn’t it?

All in all, I think reading Dream Things True is going to come down to personal preference. If you are someone who enjoys more of an insta-love connection with the characters fighting the odds to be together, this is likely going to be a good book for you. Or if you’re someone who is interested in reading books about immigration and politics with a touch of romance this may be the book for you. Personally, I just wish things had been a little bit more fleshed out. If they had, I think I would have been able to enjoy it more.

Sadly this book was a DNF. I couldn't seem to get passed the 20% mark so I decided to call it. I just couldn't connect with the writing or the story. I'm sure it is for someone else. Sadly was not for me.

Love in the times of immigration.

Alma is an undocumented Mexican teenager. Smart and hard-working, she dreams of a better future.
Evan is a rich boy, successful football player, enjoying the good lifestyle.
But what happens, if they fall in love? And if Alma and her family faces the deportation process?

This is partly a love story of crossed lovers from different backgrounds, partly a political issue raising story.
And I have mixed feelings about both. I see what the authoress meant by having the characters like that to bring the issue of immigration-but they are clichey. Strong, hard-working and beautiful girl? Popular footballer with an heart of gold? Strong focus on their physical looks and hormone-driven desire (even if the novel is in reality quite clean)?
But the main emphasis is on love, not body-and I like that.

Also the immigration issues-while I understand the impact on people's lives, I do think that there are two sides of this coin, so to say. Being European in the times of immigration crisis here (although it is different), I see both pros and cons. I know that is is a novel and not an academia thesis, yet some balance would be nice.

But I applaud to the covering of another dark issue-the sexual abuse. Flor's story is just heartbreaking. And I wish for more justice to be served here.

All in all, this is not a bad book. There are values and stories to be valued. It just does not personally work for me that much, but this might not be the case with other readers.