Anytime a book dives into the struggles of love and family, it's always tugs at my heart strings. Azere has promised to keep her culture alive by marrying someone like herself as her father is dying. However, she no longer lives in her native culture and has fallen for someone outside her culture. Struggling between her promise and what her heart wants, Azere is fighting a losing battle.

Azere's mother is less than understanding and pushes back. In this context, I considered her the villain and she was very good at playing this role. My heart broke for the pressures on Azere, but thankfully she is a strong woman.

I enjoyed reading this, but found it frustrating at times as I wanted Azere to speak her mind. I appreciate Berkley and Netgalley for allowing me to read this and give my honest opinion.

Marie Claire includes this new release in its 2020 Books You Should Add to Your Reading List. Elite Daily lists it as Books Featuring Interracial Relationships You Should Read In 2020. It is one of Betches 7 Books by Black Authors You Need to Read This Summer. Well, I'm here to tell you when a new novel has this many co-signs, it is worth believing the hype. In this case, my Bookhearts, you can most certainly take my word for it. Ties That Tether is such a good read in winter, spring, summer or fall!

Can I first take a moment to gush over the book cover? What a colorful image of a beautiful black woman with a handsome white man in her eyesight. The background print gives it an ethnic vibe. It is definitely a book to be read while in public or on display in a local bookstore. It would quickly catch a browsing eye!

Let me tell you more. Azere is a single Nigerian woman with Canadian citizenship. At only twelve years old, she promised her dying father that she would marry a Nigerian. It is her mother's mission to find the perfect Nigerian so she routinely sets up dates hoping for a match made of Edo descent. Despite her one simple dating rule, life happens and Azere ends up having a one-night stand with a white stranger. Then it evolves into something way more. She knows her mom would strongly disapprove. Does Azere follow her heart and fight for happiness? Or should Azere accept her fate and give in to an arranged marriage?

Ties That Tether may be fiction but it addresses real life situations. Tradition, heritage, interracial couples, culture preservation and acceptance are just a few themes. It is not your average arranged marriage story. Nor is it simply about a woman falling in love with the wrong man. Kudos to Jane Igharo for writing characters' voices with easy to read dialect and informative enough for a reader to understand the story's conflict.

For book clubs, it is sure to start a lively debate! There are discussion questions included to help guide the discussion. If you choose to read it solo, as I have, you will probably have moments of sympathy, eye rolling and gratefulness that it's not you in Azere's shoes. Though it is important to note this actually happens!

Ties That Tether reminds me of a modern-day fairy tale. It gives Family vs. Everybody vibes. My only gripe was the swift revelation of a secret. It was too rushed for no evident reason. Had the secret been given more than a few pages, it could have added even more realistic value to the story. However by the end of the novel, I had a sense of Nigerian culture and expectations. We can only hope love wins in the end, right? Needless to say, I recommend Jane Igharo's debut novel, Ties That Tether. What a perfect title, by the way!

Happy Blog Tour Day! Ties That Tether is now available.

LiteraryMarie

Azere promised her dying father she would do whatever it takes to keep her culture, even marrying a Nigerian man. At twelve years old still living in Nigeria that doesn't seem like a hard promise. After moving to Canada her mother does everything she can to make sure Azere keeps her promise. After another setup date from her mom goes bad she meets Rafael at a bar...a white man. After their one-night stand turns to something more serious she is stuck choosing between her feelings for Rafael or pleasing her mother.

Ties That Tether shows the emotional struggle and toll it takes on oneself to pleasing your parents and preserving your culture even when it may not be what you want. I really enjoyed Azere but she was also very frustrating. She knows what she wants but she will do whatever it takes to shove those feelings down in order to please her mother. She's kind and loving but also fierce! I also really like Rafael, he was sweet and patient. He made sure Azere knew how he felt about her.

I could not stand her mother! I wanted to throw the book at Azere! But I understood why Azere wanted to obey her mother and keep her culture. Culture is a big part of oneself. This book shows the importance of accepting other cultures and molding them to oneself.

Not to mention the cover is BEAUTIFUL!

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for my copy for review!

This book definitely wins the award for the most beautiful cover!

Let me start out by saying, there's a lot of good things going for this book. I loved the talk on culture and family. I think this author has so much to offer!

However, this one just did not work for me. There's too many troupes, one of them being my least favorite troupe of all time. The characters are so one dimensional, I don't understand how they even fell for each other? It seemed too insta-lovey to me. There's not a lot of depth here and it's all very predictable. I wish we were given the opportunity to get a better sense of the characters.

Like I said though, I think this author will do great things! Adding some layers to the characters, not so many troupes, maybe another round of editing, and we're golden.

This book, featuring an interracial romance, brought forth some really relatable feelings for me (as someone who is in an interracial marriage) — especially worrying about losing culture. It’s something I’ve thought about even more since having a daughter (who is half Chinese, half white). It was wonderful exploring those feelings through Azere’s story. As a side note, I wanted to eat all of the food in the book! 😋

Ties That Tether started out funny and morphed into something more serious. I did find that the pace slowed down partway through the book, but appreciated the direction the story took in the end. This was an easily binge-able read -- I finished it in one sitting!

Thank you Berkley Publishing / Berkley Romance for including me on the blog tour and providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. 🖤

Ties that Tether by Jane Igharo which Berkley Publishing gifted me was a rollercoaster! Because I felt all the emotions possible.

My blood boiled red hot, my stomach swirled with disgust, I found myself rolling my eyes in frustration, kissing my teeth at characters and my heart ached for the characters but when I swooned, I felt all the feels hard and because of this strong emotional reaction I enjoyed the story within the pages of the book and I’m completely inspired by Jane Igharo.

The story starts with our female main character on a disastrous date that will do nothing but infuriate you.

Azere is an Edo girl, a Nigerian Canadian whose mother is on her ass to get married to no other than a Nigerian man, especially an Edo one, which the story constantly reminds us as well as hammers down on her culture, which I understand is something a lot of people in diaspora or immigrants in general have to cherish.

From this disastrous date, she meets our male main character who is her love interest Rafael, who by the way is the sweetest dude ever. Although he comes with his own set of issues, one thing this story portrays is how pure his heart and love is. I loved that.

Throw in some usual romance tropes, and the problematic antics of a meddling mother and you have a very dramatic but endearing story. I really loved the romance movies sprinkled all through the book, I can say I’ve only not watched three of them and the way this is used to move along the story was amazing work.

I crackled when I saw the name Dr. Jackson Avery, like I paused to laugh for a minute because I can relate, Dr. Avery is a very fine man.

Ties that Tether is a very interesting book to read, it gave me some insight into how relationships come to play for people in diaspora and their struggles.

Some things were relatable as a Nigerian and many things were not as well, I also loved this about the book because as much as we all like to relate with the books we read, every single persons reality is different, just because we share a race or culture etc. it doesn’t mean we are singularly minded capisce?

I recommend this lovely romance novel that is out now!

I don’t always read romance, but this is a wonderful read: powerful fiction about the weight of family expectations and how much of an impact those can have on our choices and happiness, if we choose to let them.

Azere and Rafael are well crafted, fascinating and credible characters, and I was rooting for both of them to make better choices, and work through a surprise pregnancy, but more importantly Azere’s hesitation at going against her family’s wishes and being with someone from outside her Nigerian background.

I loved the insights into Nigerian culture and traditions, which were so well delivered. I was googling various outfits and food along the way, which just added to the pleasure of this book.

A well-written story that keep me engaged, with richness in descriptions of Nigerian culture and traditions. A fascinating, entertaining and fun read.

This was SUCH a good book! (Also I'm sure everyone else has already mentioned this a million times but come on, look at that cover)

Ties That Tether is about more than two people falling in love. It's about the importance of family, culture and tradition and the roles they play throughout our lives. This novel is a beautifully captures the Nigerian and Spanish cultures that mean so much to Azere and Rafael and immerse the reader in both of those worlds. It didn't feel like I was simply learning about a culture but actually experiencing it. Alternatively, the author also captured how cultures so rich in their diversity and tradition served as an obstacle for the young couple to overcome. It was interesting to see how both families were so protective of their traditions but how that protection manifested in different ways.

I also loved these characters. Azere and Christina (her best friend) remind me so much of myself and my friends. Listening to them talk reminded me of the shenanigans me and my BFFs reminisce on so much. Most of the story was told from Azere's POV but there were moments where we heard from Rafael too. However, I will say that their voices were pretty similar so I had to make a note to remember who I was hearing from.

Thanks to Penguin Random House Global for the e-galley in exchange for an honest review!

I was really excited to read this book as a first generation Nigerian American. I knew this story will resonate with me and feel as personal as it ended up being. This story wasn't as much a love story as it was a Coming of Age story where the heroine had to find her own way in life.

Much like the heroine Azere, I was often subjected to my parent's constant stressing about the importance of not losing cultural identity, traditions and language even if one is living in a foreign country. For the foreign parents, it seems like a rejection of their ancestral lands, ways and ultimately a rejection of them.

I admired Azere because she showed a great desire to please her parents especially her dying father. She really made an effort to find a way to make peace with marrying her suitor who is also from Edo State (Nigeria) even though she made a connection with Rafael, a white Canadian. There comes a time in everyone's life where you have to decide what makes you happy. Some people's need to please others leads them to make choices that make them miserable and that is where the character had to grow and develop.

I found the story relatable and thought provoking. I really liked the characters and their journey together. The story wasn't an easy one, in fact it was full of angst. But I thought the author did a great job of trying to convey the societal and cultural pressures that children of immigrants face when it comes to marriage choices. A really good novel about familial traditions, love and finding your own way in life.

I could not look away from this book. Ties that Tether is an exploration of family relationships as much as much as romantic ones. Azere made a promise to her father as he died that she would marry a Nigerian man, ensuring that she and her family would preserve their culture. Her mother has taken every opportunity to remind Azere of her promise and tries endlessly to set her up with someone suitable. Azere’s single-minded approach to dating based on this promise is upended when she meets Rafael, a white man who just might steal her heart.

Azere struggles between her desire to maintain her culture after immigrating to Canada and her longing to also be able to adopt influences of her new country into her life. Her bond with her mother and entire Nigerian family is so strong, and her fight to try to please them is heart wrenching. It’s clear how important Azere’s Nigerian roots are to her, but her difficulty in conveying this to her mother while also trying to steer her life in a direction that makes her happy tore her up. Igharo includes descriptions of different parts of Nigerian culture smoothly in the narrative, so readers who are unfamiliar with them are able to seamlessly learn about it without feeling disjointed from the storyline. I would encourage you to read Own Voices reviews to get a deeper sense of how Nigerian culture defines familial relationships and personal values.

I loved the romance in this book. It was steamy and oh so bingeable. The banter between Rafael and Azere was believable and flowed naturally. Toward the end, there was definitely some whiplash with ‘will they, won’t they,’ which felt like a bit much, but overall, their story was wonderful.

Ties that Tether is a powerful contemporary romance that covers a lot of depth. I’ve never read a romance story before that also had such a focus on the importance of culture, the difficulty of trying to combine cultural traditions from different parts of one’s own life, and the impacts that may have on family.

Reviews Posted 9/29:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CFvBEhDg7j5/
https://treatyourshelf.home.blog/2020/09/29/ties-that-tether-by-jane-igharo-book-review/

I love the family dynamic of this book I loved that it had to do with someone from a different culture that I don’t know much about. I love the romance aspect and I love the fact that the main character as an adult still wants to have her culture and she also wanted to respect her parents and her culture. This book is a 6/5 ⭐️ for me.

This one had drama after drama and I'm not sure I would label it romance because the romance often took a backseat to the family drama taking place.

Ties that Tether is a story about cultural identity and balancing more than one culture. The main character Azere has been balancing being Nigerian and Canadian for years and then this new relationship with the Spanish Rafael has thrown yet another identity in the mix.

It's revealed fairly early on however I wish it wouldve been in the synopsis that this book contains a surprise pregnancy. And that surprise pregnancy determines how fast the romance moves along. And it also makes this other potential love interest more of an annoying bug who doesn't really have a chance but won't go away.

While the African culture and immigration identity politics kept me reading the romance and it's lack of chemistry turned me off.

View more in depth review here
https://womenofcolorreadtoo.blogspot.com/2020/09/ties-that-tether-by-jane-igharo.html?m=1

Ties That Tether
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Officially available today! Isn’t this cover GORGEOUS!?

First of all, I am so here for diverse romance books. I love reading a book that contains multi-racial relationships. As a Latinx woman that is married to a White man, I personally love being able to connect with a book on a higher scale because of the representation.

*𝙏𝙒: 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝 𝙤𝙛 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨, 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙖 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙, 𝙪𝙣𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙜𝙣𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙮, 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙝*

I loved learning more about the Nigerian/Edo culture; amazing how most cultures somehow blend together right? 𝘚𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦: 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯/𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘯𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥. Igharo’s writing kept me engaged, finished this shy of 4 hours. The whole story just flowed beautifully and all the twists helped the pace of the story. Jane delivered that ‘HEA’ we all seek in romances - with a lot of romance movie references too! I got so teary-eyed when a name is chosen (no spoilers). Overall, this was such an uplifting and heartwarming romance (with a little bit of steam). Jane Igharo is officially one of my favorite debut romance authors. I look forward to Jane’s future work.

When a Nigerian woman falls for a man she knows will break her mother’s heart, she must choose between love and her family.

At twelve years old, Azere promised her dying father she would marry a Nigerian man and preserve her culture, even after immigrating to Canada. Her mother has been vigilant about helping—well forcing—her to stay within the Nigerian dating pool ever since. But when another match-made-by-mom goes wrong, Azere ends up at a bar, enjoying the company and later sharing the bed of Rafael Castellano, a man who is tall, handsome, and…white.

When their one-night stand unexpectedly evolves into something serious, Azere is caught between her feelings for Rafael and the compulsive need to please her mother. Soon, Azere can't help wondering if loving Rafael makes her any less of a Nigerian. Can she be with him without compromising her identity? The answer will either cause Azere to be audacious and fight for her happiness or continue as the compliant daughter.

What great Own Voices debut novel!
I really enjoyed this book, it was messy, complicated and full of angst; I got a little bit frustrated with the relationship between Azere and her mother, but I loved the characters, the chemistry between them and the plot.
Ties That Tether is a powerful story about family, love, culture and traditions.

Thank you Netgalley, BerkleyPub and Jane Igharo for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

http://www.instagram.com/booksandcoffeepleasemx

Title: Ties That Tether
Author: Jane Igharo
Publisher: Berkley Publishing Group
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Four
Review:

"Ties That Tether" by Jane Igharo

My Speculation:

"Ties That Tether" was quite a unique read of how a 'cultural deep-rooted expectations' can control a person's life choices as it was for Azere. It was enjoyable to see how this author gave the reader the internal and external battles that many interracial couples face in not being able to go against the grain of it all as it was in this story. I did learn a lot from the information about this Nigerian culture. I will say that Azere and her micromanaging mother got on my last nerve, especially with Azere not speaking up for herself. Be ready for a roller coaster of emotions all over the place. I was indeed happy when Azere was finally able to find her voice and go after what she wanted.

So, will Azere be willing to honor the promise she made to her late father to marry a Nigerian man? This is where I say you will have to pick up this read and see how well this author brings it out to the reader. Be ready for an enjoyable multi-cultural romance read that captures 'culture, love, family, promises to a HEA.'

Thank you to NetGalley and the author/publisher for providing me with a free advanced copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I love stories about the immigrant experience. Azere, who is a Canadian of Nigerian descent, made a promise to her dying father that she'd marry a Edo man and carry on her family's culture and traditions. But then she meets a guy (white) who is the last person who fits the bill. He's also someone she can't get out of her mind. The two of them do have a lot in common, just not the one thing that was important to her dad.

I loved the family and cultural aspects of this. I didn't love the romance quite as much, as it was a big source of drama rather than furthering the character development. But overall I definitely recommend this one for the way it handles family expectations!

HJ Recommends!

Ties that Tether by Jane Igharo: In our contemporary world, we often need reminders that family, social structure and traditions are the things that shape our identity, and in turn, create who we become for better or for worse as a tie to our cultural heritage. And sometimes it is essential we push painfully beyond those cultural expectations to discover who we are as opposed to who we should be as a means of truly following our heart. As if by fate, a blind date prearranged by an overbearing mother and a random hook up that shortly followed said date disaster, was a thrilling way to launch head first into Ties that Tether.

Azere and Raphael, are immediately magnetised; the chemistry and comfort between them leading to a steamy and out-of-character one night stand in a Toronto hotel, that even a month down the track still had both of our central characters reeling from. And then, the job that brought Raphael to Toronto in the first place, just happens to be at the same advertising company that Azere works for. And then, even better, Azere realizes she is pregnant. As one fateful moment shifts to another, our two star-crossed lovers end up in a bitter sweet romance that is punctuated by Azeres’ mother who insists and expects she marry a Nigerian man.

This future marriage obligation is also manifest given Azere had promised her late father before he passed and prior to her family’s immigration to Canada, that she indeed would. Sadly, the road to happy ever after is potholed with cultural clashes for both Raphael and Azere; Raphael similarly coming from a strong Spanish background wherein his mother, whilst not as controlling as Azere’s, still expects his child to hold a Spanish name as a way of keeping his culture alive.

For our true fairytale believers, Ties that Tether will become a cross-cultural conundrum of the heart, not dissimilar to Rome and Juliette (minus the tragedy), in that duty, obligation, expectation and age old traditions pave the way rather than the very soul-mateish bond that should ultimately be the driving force. This, mixed in with some secrecy from Raphael leads to some age old questions – what are we willing to give up for the person we love, and ultimately, at what cost? Well paced and beautifully written, this modern and romantic take on interracial relationships will leave you frustrated, heart-sore and completely sympathetic to the plight of our two heroes and crossing fingers, toes, legs and arms that a happy ever after is somehow attainable.

3.5 rounded up to a 4
So first of all let me start by saying how gorgeous this cover is! I’m obsessed! It’s so colorful and beautiful.

Ties That Tether tells the story of a Nigerian woman that immigrates to Canada as a child. We learn about her culture and her desire to marry a Nigerian man to please her family.

I enjoyed the plot. As a Latina married to a white man I completely understand the fear of losing your culture.
But I did feel like the dialogue was a bit too cheesy even for a romance novel.
I also felt like the main characters didn’t have much chemistry.
I also couldn’t stand some of the characters though I understand that was part of the story. I still wanted to chuck my book at times because of how frustrated they made me!

I liked the book and it was a quick read I was just hoping for more.

Thank you @netgalley and @berkleypub for the early copy of this book!

This is a page turner. I really felt for Azere and the struggle of keeping her culture, honoring her family but falling for someone outside of it. The chemistry between Azere and Rafael was hit and miss at times, largely due to a plot line that overshadowed it. BUT when it was a hit - it was a HIT! I absolutely loved Azere and the strong, loyal character she was. Romance fans are going to want to pick this one up.

I absolutely loved Ties That Tether! It was a beautiful story of love, family, and identity. It was a fantastic debut novel by Jane Igharo, but it was was definitely so much more than just romance to me! The chapters were paced so well and I flew right through it, I could not put it down!

I was immediately attached to the main characters and rooting for them. Azere was such a strong and driven woman that just wanted to make her family proud. After one reckless and amazing night when she lives her life for herself for once, her life will never be the same. Rafael has his own baggage, besides that he is so supportive and stands up for her against her family. Azere's struggle to honor her culture and stay true to her heart felt so honest and raw.

Azere's mother was just so awful! The guilt that Azere felt was so strong that she let it and her mother control her. My heart was breaking for her while I was reading it. I was so glad that she had Christina... she was the PERFECT BFF!

Igharo's descriptions of her Nigerian culture added so much to the book. I loved the education on everything Edo from the the towns to the clothing and food!

And on top of all that, I really just adored the theme that there was a irresistible pull between them, a string that tethered them together the first time they met.

Thank you to Berkley Publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.