Author: Tellulah Darling
Series: Get Real #1
Publisher: Te Da Media
Release Date: September 26th
My Rating: 4.5 cups
Source: Netgalley
Blurb (from Goodreads):
Get Real is a New Adult romantic comedy with sass, sex, and swoon, set in the world of “Cadabras"–humans with magical powers.
Francesca Bellafiore is a good Jewish girl, living up to family expectations that she use her magic to heal others. Underneath, she’s a wannabe badass with her heart set on becoming a detective and solving magical crimes. But nice girls don't disappoint their moms.
Party boy Rafael Muñoz does everything possible to publicly disappoint his high profile father. Privately, it's a different story. His carefully crafted bad boy reputation masks the fact he’s a master illusionist, forced into solo covert ops. The role is wearing thin and Rafael longs to be part of a team.
When Francesca meets Rafael at a friend's party, she's taken by the sexy stranger. Until he speaks. Beautiful plumage doesn't compensate for spectacular ego. Rafael finds Francesca's sweetness a turn-on. For about five minutes. Judgmental golden girls are more trouble than they're worth. Then a terrified girl with reality warping powers, locked and loaded on their destruction, whisks the pair to Manhattan. Francesca and Rafael are caught in a web of magic, minions, secrets, and enough sexual tension to power NYC. Desperate to prove themselves, their only chance to save the city and survive is to team up, trust each other–and maybe even fall in love.
Provided they don't kill each other first.
*Disclaimer: I received an eARC from Te Da Media and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
It's no secret that I love Tellulah Darling's books. So it should not surprise anyone that I adored Get Real.
Francesca was such a funny heroine. I loved her sense of duty. I was so sad for her because she was willing to give up her dreams to keep her family traditions alive, but in a way I also understood her and her reasons. I loved her relationship with her friends. I can't wait to read more about her in the next books and see how other characters perceive her.
Rafael....Oh my. He was cute. It was interesting to see things from his perspective too. It also helped me like him a lot, because I feel like I wouldn't have been too fond of him had the story been told only from Francesca's POV. This way I got to understand his reasons and I really felt bad for him.
What was interesting about this book was how the subject of sexual orientation was approached. It didn't give me the impression that it was something out of the norm and it wasn't taboo or something that needs to be kept a secret. Which was great and I really want to read more books like this. It was also refreshing to see how certain relationships are mended in a way, how sometimes we have the wrong idea about a person really close to us and how we can judge them harshly for something they didn't do. Lots of cold truths in there and I really enjoyed that.
At times the story moved a little too fast, but while a bit confusing, it also helped experiencing a little of what Rafael and Francesca were experiencing. I loved the phrases in other languages. It made the characters feel real in a way. It helped that I knew what the phrases meant, I know, but for me it made it real that these characters have a multicultural background.
I did not expect that ending. I really, really want to know what happens next.
