It really is the season for lighthearted romances and enchanting fantasies right now! With the weather finally starting to stay warm, we’ve been craving new books to review.
Today, we’re reviewing Alex Crespo’s new novel, Queerceañera! As you can probably guess from the title, it’s about a quinceañera-style party but for the coming of age and coming out celebration of Joaquin Zoido.
Written with the flair and drama that comes with any big party planning, we absolutely loved reading Queerceañera! And while you’re still deciding, we’ll tell you three of our favorite things about Queerceañera by Alex Crespo!
Book Overview
Content Warnings: homophobia, divorce
Summary: Joaquin Zoido is out and proud of it. And while he knew his dad and sister, Carmen, would be super supportive, he wasn’t quite ready for them to surprise him with a queerceañera, a coming out party to celebrate him. Between all the talks of tastings and venues, and the chirping of his family’s RSVP texts, the question of who will be his chambelán is on everyone’s minds.
What Joaquin is decidedly trying to not think about is whether his mom is going attend or if she’s finally replaced him with her favorite godson, Felix—the boy who made Joaquin realize he was gay and who was his first kiss. But when an impromptu lie snowballs into a full-fledged family-group-chat rumor, every Zoido from Texas to Mexico starts believing that Felix is not only Joaquin’s chambelán but also his brand-new boyfriend.
To avoid the pity and sympathies of an ill-timed breakup, Joaquin and Felix strike a deal—they’ll stay fake boyfriends until the party. Yet, as the day draws nearer and old feelings spark anew, Joaquin will have to decide whether a picture-perfect queerceañera with a fake boyfriend is worth giving up the chance of something real.
The Fake Dating
Fake dating is quickly becoming one of our favorite tropes to read, thanks to Queerceañera by Alex Crespo! Felix’s lie about being Joaquin’s chambelán becomes a rumor that they’re childhood friends turned boyfriends. But the fauxmance benefits both of them, as Felix wants his parents to think he’s fine after a recent breakup. Felix does not hold back on his flirting and affection toward Joaquin, but Joaquin’s too oblivious to tell if it’s part of the act or not. We ate all of it up!
Joaquin’s Family And Friends
The Zoidos have our hearts, along with all of Joaquin’s friends in Queerceañera! We can just feel the love and support from all his aunts, uncles, and cousins. They showed up and showed out for him, and we honestly teared up when Joaquin’s abuelo had a heart-to-heart with him. The energy whenever the whole family gets together is unmatched! And the interactions between the Zoidos, Felix, and April (Joaquin’s best friend) warmed our hearts.
The Queerceañera
We’ll always be down for a celebration at the end of a book! After a month of planning, Joaquin’s big day comes and goes with minimal mishaps. His surprise for Felix and their waltz together had us cheesing. While Joaquin wanted his mom to be there, she couldn’t fully accept Joaquin’s identity since he came out. She doesn’t quite understand how her homophobic comments online isolate Joaquin. But by the end of the book, she learns that she has a lot of work to do and actually starts to make progress.
Alex Crespo’s new novel, Queerceañera, captures everything we love into one delightful rom-com about fake dating, taking up space, and most of all, celebrating yourself with family.
Queerceañera by Alex Crespo releases May 7, and you can preorder a copy of it here!
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