All Rhodes Lead Here

All Rhodes Lead Here is my third Zapata book and my least favorite so far. BUT I still enjoyed it, always excited to pick it back up.

What I enjoyed: The setting of Pagosa Springs, Colorado. I've been to Pagosa, but in the winter. The book is primarily set in the summer and it made me want to go back and hike. And I'm not a hiker. I also enjoyed the grumpy/sunshine romance trope. Our main character Aurora is such a joy, a bundle of kindness. And Rhodes is ultra grumpy but not in an annoying way. The side characters are great, too. Zapata is wonderful at fleshing out her characters and painting a vivid setting.

Now what bugged me: This will sound so silly, but I've glanced at other reviewers who had the same reaction as me, which made me feel better. Rhodes has a nickname or term of endearment for Aurora that took me out of the story every single time it appeared. Which was way too often and at the sweetest moments. He called her "Buddy". BUDDY??!! It seemed creepy and odd, especially since he's ten years older than her. He does eventually explain why he calls her that and it helped a bit, but not much. I'm not a fan of terms of endearment in books. They never seem to translate in my head the way the author intends.

In Zapata's signature style, this is a major slow-burn, but it didn't seem as slow as Kulti, my previous Zapata book. She kept me invested in the story with the simplest moments. A brush of a finger, a shared look, a surprise hug. So much so, any negative aspects of the book were diminished.

I would say this one would make a great vacation read, preferably in the mountains. A book you're happy to pick up but isn't all-consuming. But I feel like it'll be a book I forget quickly, unlike Kulti and From Lukov With Love.

First off. Salt and pepper single dad? Sign me up! Rhodes was just perfect. He is what we mean when we want a man who is supportive of us and our growth. This book had me sighing in jealousy of how beautiful Rhodes and Ora’s relationship was. The writing was amazing as always and I now have a desire to go on a hike.

The fact that all of these books are slow burns just makes everything better because we really get to see everyone grow and see the little details in how things came to be.

I really enjoyed this book once I got in to it. It starts off rather slow and Mariana Zapata's writing, the way she describes Ora's inner thoughts, is a little long-winded for me.

BUT, once the story picked up (around Chapter 10 or so), I was completely hooked. I loved the way Ora and Rhodes relationship developed. They both had things to work on and helped each other grow throughout the book.

This book had some really unexpectedly funny parts and several parts that were so sweet they made me tear up.

I read Wall of Winnepeg last year and only thought it was ok. With how much people loved that book, I was very apprehensive going into this Mariana Zapata book because people seemed to like this book just as much. Turns out I loved All Rhodes Lead Here.

I saw this complaint, but it didn't bother me - Aurora does act like someone in their mid-late 20s instead of early 30s. I thought part of that was because she had been in a relationship since she was 19yrs old so she was a little emotionally stunted.

Maybe I missed it early on but I had no idea her ex was a country music star for a solid chunk of the book. The whole time I was imagining a Justin Bieber type.

I love that her best friend Lady Yuki was coded as Lady Gaga. Awesome chill person in her personal life, but kick ass performer.

Amos stole my heart. I loved that the author wrote him as a real teenager. He was moody and secretive, but sweet. He didn't end up getting a crush on Aurora (that god).

Rhodes. Oh Rhodes. The moodiest man but so unbelievably sweet. He was the epitome of grumpy to Aurora's sunshine. These two did grumpy/sunshine perfectly *chefs kiss*

Mariana Zapata never disappoints

I loved this book as much as I’ve loved all her other books! So sweet and cute and just a nice read overall. :)