I was drawn to the main character, Tatum because her background and experiences in higher education similar to mine. Parts of the book were set in Texas and during the time that I was also in college, which brought back alot of my own memories. This book is told in two timelines, in the past that tells the story of her strange relationship with her favorite author and the present where she is being interviewed about allegations concerning said author. I'm sad to say that the realtionship between the two wasn't all that engaging and I don't remember how the book ended.

Thank you NetGalley and Celadon Books for an ebook of "Like Happiness" by Ursula Villarreal-Moura in exchange for an honest review. This queer contemporary fiction is for anyone who loves a coming-of-age story. The way this is written is so unique, I was unable to put it down. It is very heavy, and I would recommend reading the trigger warnings! A large theme that it discusses is imbalanced power dynamics.

Like Happiness by Ursula Villarreal-Moura is a collection of short stories exploring happiness’s fleeting and often elusive nature. Each story delves into the characters’ lives, grappling with moments of joy, despair, and complexities. Set against various backdrops, the narratives weave together themes of love, loss, identity, and the small yet significant moments that shape our lives.

Ursula Villarreal-Moura’s Like Happiness is a sharp and insightful collection that masterfully captures the intricacies of human emotions. Each story in this collection is a snapshot of life, filled with vivid details and keen observations that make even the ordinary feel profound. Villarreal-Moura has a gift for creating characters that are both relatable and deeply flawed, reflecting the messy, beautiful reality of existence.

The strength of this collection lies in its ability to evoke a wide range of emotions without resorting to sentimentality. The stories are often bittersweet, offering no easy resolutions but a sense of acceptance of life’s unpredictability. The writing is crisp and unadorned, yet it carries a quiet power that resonates.

Like Happiness is not a book that promises easy answers or neatly tied-up endings. Instead, it offers a contemplative look at what it means to seek happiness in a world that is often indifferent to our desires. Villarreal-Moura’s storytelling is honest and unflinching, making this collection a rewarding read for those who appreciate the complexities of the human condition.

Coming of age novels with two different timelines don’t always work for me, but this one did. Following Tatum as she tells a journalist of how she came to know Mateo and what their relationship really was enticing. I would find myself saying oh, just a bit more. I can read one more chapter before I set it down.

The chapters were like Cheeto chapters, but juicy. So good you want just one more.

A beautiful debut novel about a Chicana who is reflecting on her toxic past with a famous author and the power dynamics between them. Tatum meets M. Dominguez in college after sending him a fan letter; in alternating timelines between early 2000s to 2015 we learn of the complicated relationship between them. Villarreal-Moura’s writing is mesmerizing. The way she captures what it feels like to fall in love with a book was so spot on. This novel encapsulates how naïve we truly are in 20’s. I really liked this novel and can’t wait to read more from Ursula Villarreal-Moura. Many thanks to NetGalley & publishers for a digital copy to read.

Content Warnings: Grooming, Toxic Relationship, Drug Use

For the sex averse, there are some semi-graphic sex scenes included in the work.

Tatum Vega, a Latina from San Antonio, narrates Villarreal-Moura’s novel, which switches between Tatum describing a 10-year long relationship with an author named Mateo and Tatum being interviewed in 2015 in relation to sexual misconduct allegations against Mateo. Tatum’s experiences as a Latina, a bisexual woman, and a first generation college student are all integral parts of the book, and exploring Tatum’s reflections on herself and recognizing these aspects was satisfying. The switch in time periods is a little jarring at first because only the shifts to 2015 are labeled with a clear date. However, after a while, I didn’t struggle with it as much.

After a strong start, I was really excited about this one. Mateo and Tatum have an unusual relationship. Mateo is older and a celebrated author. Tatum sends him a fan letter and their relationship takes off from there. There are glimpses back over the relationship and we're really able to see the nuances of the relationship through Tatum's eyes. I always love when authors do this!

Unfortunately, by the end, I wasn't totally sure Villarreal-Moura accomplished what I think she was trying to do. Many of us have had relationships like this one - selfish, uncaring, egotistical jerks - the difference is, most of us realize it sooner than Tatum did. The dynamics became tedious after awhile. There was no shocking discovery - it all felt pretty rote.

There was potential here, but it did ultimately fall flat for me.

Like Happiness was a really enjoyable read. I appreciated Urrea’s exploration of his characters, they felt relatable.

Oof. A really great job at highlighting a difficult issue and power imbalances in relationships. Really thought the intricacies of this relationship was well done and showing the nuances that could make it grooming.

I really loved this story! It bounces back and forth from her past to her present to examine her relationship with someone who was in a position of power over her. You see what it was like for her and what she learned from the experience and how now with age seeing it from an outside perspective.

This story takes on the issues and developments of a mentor/mentee relationship and how it can be manipulative and abusive.

This novel came off more of an essay describing the issues with this instead of telling a story with it as a subplot.

This was definitely a slow burn.

Thanks Celadon and NetGalley for the gifted DRC book.

LIKE HAPPINESS was gripping from the beginning and I couldn’t bear to put it down. I loved the author’s choice of a dual narrative for this coming-of-age tale which alternates between present day and Tatum’s letter to M. Reading her story of power dynamics and toxic relationship experience was gut-wrenching. Well-developed and with searing writing, LIKE HAPPINESS provided a nuanced exploration of gender, identity, race, power, and memory that made for an unforgettable read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Celadon Books for providing me with an eARC of Like Happiness in exchange for my honest review!

I found this to be a solidly compelling read in the growing category of tales that focus on people who have to reflect back on their teenage lives and wrestle with the ways in which they'd been groomed by adults they'd looked up to. My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell, which had riveted me, is one major example. In the case of Like Happiness, we get to follow Tatum Vega as she engages in her own rumination over her life and the toxic and predatory relationship she once had with revered writer M. Domínguez. This is a relationship where we, as the reader, gain such a clear view of how much the young version of Tatum had been lured into the author's sphere, how much of a manipulative and mercurial person he is, how much this abusive dynamic has left a damaging impact on Tatum, and how much it's forced her to reckon with the importance of discovering her own identity rather than keeping her sense of self connected entirely to this past relationship. I do think there could have been ways to flesh out the narrative more deeply and to add nuance to Tatum's character growth, especially towards the ending. I also think M. could have been executed more charismatically in order to sell me on the notion that Tatum truly does find attractive qualities in him.

But even with these criticisms, I enjoyed Like Happiness enough that I'm officially rating it 3.25 out of 5 stars, which I'm rounding down to a flat 3 stars.

"Like Happiness" is a very good read with compelling characters.
It's a portrait of contemporary issues of fame and power.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I love a book that weaves between timelines (skillfully), and this was one of the best. The story was a complex take on the dynamics of power in relationships, and the degrees to which someone can hurt another person. I found the main character relatable while still seeming honest and unflinching about herself.

I got this as an ARC from Netgalley! I think one of the best things about this is how it handled very large topics in an accessible way (being Latina in a white world, representation in novels, feeling like a minority in work situations, being a woman, etc.) I wish more happened with her sexuality. Every several chapters there would hint at some sort of bisexuality and confusion surrounding it but then it would drop off. I wish we got more of that. I really enjoyed the dual time line and felt like it was woven in very well. After reading this I discovered that it is a debut novel- and it totally didn't read that way. This was incredibly impressive and i throughly enjoyed this. I wanted to binge it every time i picked it up but i was quite busy during the time i read this. I'm sure reading it in one sitting would have made me love even more.
I couldnt relate to the woman Tatum was, I felt I saw alot of Mateos flaws earlier into the novel than she did. It felt like in her excerpts later on that she did alot of the things later in life that never happened with her and Mateo BECAUSE they never happened with them. I felt like she kept trying to prove herself and prove a point that she did all of these things without him when she intially felt like she couldnt, which made me think internally she didnt really feel all as confident as the novel portrayed. Nonetheless I enjoyed it (way more than I thought I would)

eu acho que a autora fez um belo trabalho ao escrever essa história e como as vezes colocamos alguém num pedestal que no momento que eles fazem cagada a gente não percebe... a gente não reconhece as relações de poder e como homens tendem a usar mulheres.

na verdade, o ponto principal é: nenhum homem é tão interessante. ele provalvelmente conhece uma mulher que pensa muito mais que ele e ele "suga" toda essa inteligencia dela pra usar em outras mulheres....

resumo da opera, tatum se correspondeu por anos com um escritor e quando pedem para ela contar como foi o seu relacionamento com ele, ela percebe que ele era um bundão. e digo mais: toda aquela admiração que ela tinha por ele só acontecia pq ela estava longe, pq a medida que ela conhecer ele de perto, ele simplesmente é um vazio, egoista e mediocre.

aff, odeio homens machistas e que sabem que tão sendo ruins, mas continuam a se servir do sistema que facilita a vida dele em 1000x em relação a qualquer mulher, especialmente uma latina.

nota 4 ⭐ para o livro debut da Ursula Villarreal-Moura. bem tranquilo de ler com audiolivro pq amei a narração da Marisa Blake ♥

The most shocking thing about this is that it is a debut. As Tatum unpacks the toxic relationship she had for a decade with Matteo, it was emotionally jarring to see her realize that she'd been a victim as well as those that were also accusing him. This was certainly an emotional rollercoaster.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I found this book to be a well written, thought provoking novel. The story is about Tatum Vega after she gets a call from a reporter asking her about her decade long friendship with a famous author. I found the idea of re-examining our past relationships, noticing power dynamics that we didn’t when we were younger to be very compelling to read and applicable to my own life. I found myself telling friends about this book because I found it so compelling!

Like Happiness is a thought-provoking novel that explores a disturbing entanglement between a young Latinx woman and a famous, manipulative writer.

The story follows Tatum as she recounts the toxic relationship between her and acclaimed author, M. Domínguez, who has recently been accused of sexual assault. The timeline alternates between Tatum’s present life in Chile with her partner and to the troubling interactions between her and M in her early adulthood years. Tatum is such a captivating character and I really enjoyed seeing her reclaim her narrative over time. Villarreal-Moura’s nuanced, beautifully written novel explores racism and micro aggressions, toxic relationships, power imbalances, cultural identity, and coming of age. A truly impressive debut that will stick with you! Thank you so much @celadonbooks for my gifted copy.