[arc review]
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
Cash Delgado Is Living the Dream releases July 2, 2024

3.5

<i>“My whole body feels electric, like I’m a dryer sheet and she’s a staticky sweater and we’re destined to come out of this tumbling cycle together.”</I>

Cash is a single mother to 6-year-old Parker, and juggles the joys and chaos of motherhood with being a bartender.
What happens though, when you’ve always identified as straight, but suddenly start having sex dreams of your best friend/coworker who’s a lesbian?

This sapphic, friends-to-lovers romance hooked me from the start as the personalities of all the characters were so distinct and really shone through.
It’s equal parts an exploration of your sexual identity and a community coming together to support a local establishment (though at times, I did find the plot of the bar overshadowed Cash’s queer awakening and the development between Cash and Inez).
Books with kids aren’t always my favourite, but I loved how seamless the integration of a new romantic partner was with the single parent dynamic since Inez was already such a huge part of Cash and Parker’s everyday lives.

Bonus: this is set in the same world as <I>Sammy Espinoza’s Last Review</I> and features cameos of previous characters in Ridley Falls.

cw: homophobia and homophobic slurs

This was a cute small-town friends-to-lovers romance that heavily featured a FMC discovering her sexual identity.

The setting was fun - the MCs work in a neighborhood bar in a small town, and spend the book trying to stop a franchise corporation from opening a competitor in their neighborhood - run by a homophobic ex.

We meet different people in the community, spend time with an insightful first-grader, and see the FMC work through her sexual identity crisis and come to terms with who she is.

The plot itself was a bit slow moving, and much of the book took place inside the MC’s head rather than in dialogue, but I still enjoyed reading this book. I wish we had more times with the MCs developing their relationship and seeing them fall in love, rather than the the entire book being the build up, and only during the epilogue do we get them as a couple.

“Cash Delgado is Living the Dream” is by Tehlor Kay Mejia. Technically this book is a sequel to her previous book, but this can be read as a stand-alone book. Sapphic romance isn’t something I typically read, but I liked the author’s first book, so I decided to give this one a try. In this book, we follow Cash Delgado, a single mom who manages a bar in a small town. This book has a small town feel - and is a feel good one where the town gathers together to try to save a business from being threatened by a larger business. But that’s not the main story … Cash’s best friend is Inez, who also works at the bar. Over the course of a few evenings, Cash has rather “more than just friends” dreams about Inez. Those dreams lead to Cash doing a lot of questioning - not only her sexuality, but also consulting Google for answers. I thought the questioning parts were handled very well. I did think, at times, that Cash’s daughter read a lot older than six - which bugged me a bit, even counting in an advanced grasp of the English language. Overall, if you like sapphic romances but also a “good guys win” in the end book, set in a small town - this might be one for you to pick up. Ms. Mejia’s writing continues to be engaging and enjoyable.

It's safe to say that Mejia's contemporary romances are just going to do it for me, and not only because they take place in a delightful small town that I would want to live in if it were real. Cash is a character to root for from the beginning, with her burgeoning feelings for her bestie and coworker Inez slowly creeping up on her until she realizes she's well on her way to an even bigger journey of self-realization as far as her identity is concerned. While I would've liked a little more from Cash and Inez's romance post-revelation, the overall story is really rewarding to follow along with. Plus, an incredibly adorable kid in Cash's six-year-old daughter Parker!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this edition from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC!

I loved this book, Tehlor, you've done it again. It was such a patient book with the FMC's journey and her discoveries of who she is. I really enjoyed that it wasn't rushed towards the conclusion that everyone could see coming except Cash. All the side characters are really sweet and well developed. I'd love a series about Mars and their story, and some of the other side characters as well. Such a cute small town that made me want to go to a karaoke night at Joyce's asap!

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC!

This book spoke to me in a couple of big ways. First, it is nice to see a character who is working class. Cash is not down on her luck or between jobs, she's someone who has made a life as a high school dropout, single mother, and bartender, and who sees the value in her job and her community. Second, she was a punk rocker! I can relate to that as a former suburban punk rock girl. Third, I love to see a later-in-life growth and discovery. Cash isn't old, by any means, but she is still learning things about herself, what she is capable of, and who she might like.

Cash's steamy daydreams about her best friend and coworker Inez REALLY freak her out. Where are those coming from? Why would she suddenly feel these things? She has a daughter to take care of and a best friendship to maintain, She can't explore these feelings...can she?

This one was steamy! After the first few chapters, I got a little flushed whenever these two were in the same room together.

AND, I appreciated the "small town takes on corporate intrusion" plotline that had me yearning for the direct action of my punk rock days.

Thank you Tehlor Kay Mejia for creating this amazing world, and for the direct connection to Sammy Espinoza's Last Review. This was a small town and a cast of characters I could actually relate to.

I give it 9/10 stars and recommend it for those who loved Sammy Espinoza but wished it were more queer and more political.

Sapphic romance isn't my typical genre but occasionally I do read them. I am so glad I decided to give this one a shot because it is great! It is funny and steamy with a bit of self doubt and eventually found-self. This book is on the shorter side but that does not detract from the story in any way. It is well told and compete and had me smiling and questioning what I would do in Cash's situation. I have definitely had dreams that made me feel a certain kind of way about someone, but they have never been someone I was friends with. Not sure if I'm happy about that or not after reading this.

If you are into sapphic romance, add this one to your TBR immediately!

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Random House | Dell and Tehlor Kay Mejia for access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and I liked the mentions of Sammy to bring everything together.

Cash is a single mother who runs a bar for this couple who likes to go away on trips regularly. Inez, Cash’s best friend, helps her with the bar and, well, just life in general. I loved their dynamic and Cash’s whole journey if rediscovering who she truly is as I believe everyone does that throughout their lifetime to figure out what they truly want. I like Granny, Mars, and Jaz and their respective roles in helping Cash through her journey.
However, the one thing that truly irked me throughout the entire book is that Parker, Cash’s six year old daughter, doesn’t sound like a kid the majority of the time. I felt like things were thrown in to enforce she was a young kid and those made sense but I’ve never met a six year old who uses the word navigate or turn a conversation around on a parent to ask how they were really doing. A lot of her thought processes seemed to jump between adult and kid for me and that really threw me off. I understand that kids pick things up all the time from those around them but it seems far fetched to me. I also was trying to figure out what happened to Inez’s girlfriend that I could have sworn was mentioned in the beginning. I knew Inez wasn’t happy in the relationship and I totally could have missed that they broke up but I didn’t catch it, especially before she went out in a sate with someone else.

I received an eArc from Penguin Random House through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This reminded me of the Starz show Vida.
The romance here has a lot of the same vibes as Emma & Nico (the best couple in the show!).
I really enjoyed reading about Cash's journey of self discovery and figuring out what's going to make her happy.
The characters and the bar setting will keep readers invested.

I really loved the plot and concept of this book; however, the writing style wasn't very engaging for me. There was a lot of telling versus showing. I also had a hard time relating to the main character, who's a single parent. Despite that, I still enjoyed the themes of this book and the world building.

Note for Publisher: my review will be posted on Goodreads once the book has been published (in July), as per the note on the arc!

“Baby you could kiss a hundred boys in bars, shoot another shot, try to stop the feeling… you could say it’s just the way you are, make a new excuse, another stupid reason! Good luck, babe! Well, good luck, babe! You’d have to stop the world just to stop the feeling” - Chappell Roan
All I could think of after reading this was Chappell Roan!

This was a solid 4.25 star read! I pretty much inhaled it in only a couple days. “Cash Delgado is Living the Dream” is a story about the importance of community, acceptance, and learning to love yourself, regardless of societal ‘expectations’. I really enjoyed the dynamics between all of the characters—even the side characters had their own depth, relatability, and even comedic relief! The town of Ridley Falls has some really remarkable and interesting people. Normally, I’d ask to see more of the community, but I think this book did an amazing job of showcasing not just the main characters, but the minor ones as well. Parker was an extremely intelligent (especially emotionally intelligent) 6 year old, and I think that her character serves as a reminder that children are not born with preconceived notions—hate is taught (or not!!) In Cash’s case, she did a great job of raising an accepting daughter, wise beyond her years and one who said lesbian rights!! That being said, Cash’s character was also super intriguing, because her struggle with her identity and sexuality at the age of 30 (didn’t you know, women are decrepit by then! Kidding.) was something that I think a lot of women can relate to. Heteronormativity is quite difficult to unlearn, but Cash managed to do it! She may have tried to stop the feeling, find a new excuse, another stupid reason, but in the end she finally came to terms with her sexuality—on her own terms and on her own schedule, which is super important. I will say, however, that the reason why this book wasn’t a 5 star was because of the way that Cash treated Inez. I know everything worked out in the end, but I just didn’t love how she kind of used Inez (and Inez was ok with just being an experiment/“get it out of your system” for her “straight” friend????) Inez was honestly too good for the world and I thought there would be more to a third act conflict (there still was one but it was a tad anticlimactic, I don’t know) Suffice to say, Inez, stand up get up 😭 She deserved so much better throughout the book, but I was pretty satisfied with their ending! I also love how much positive media is surrounding lesbians these days: Cash Delgado, Renée Rapp, Chappell Roan, need I say more?

Overall, I really enjoy Tehlor Kay Meija’s writing! Their books feel like a really warm hug. Much like “Sammy Espinoza’s Last Review,” this book tugged at my heartstrings!!! It didn’t make me sob like Sammy Espinoza though, thank god because I do not have the mental capacity for that right now (and this was more of a feel-good book anyway—minus the Chase parts that man can ch0ke). I also loved the references to “Sammy Espinoza’s Last Review.” I love when authors have their own little world and characters from other books make cameos. They’ve created this little world of Ridley Falls and I actually really hope that there may be more to come. Pleeeease keep expanding the Ridley Falls universe! We need more of it. Maybe in the next book chase can go to prison for being an ugly annoying bigot!!! 😁

Anyways, I would highly recommend this book for lovers of Tehlor Kay Mejia’s writing, fans of Emily Henry, lesbians, and those who want to read books that feature more queer characters and focus on self love, questioning, and the importance of community.
Tehlor Kay Melina is honestly one of my go-to authors at the moment, I think they’re gonna be an auto-buy, similarly to Emily Henry. And I love that for me!!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Tehlor Kay Meija, and the Random House Publishing Team for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Charming and heartwarming.

Cash has an adorable daughter, amazing best friend, and a job she loves. When a big chain of bars is looking to expand in her neighborhood (and in proximity to the bar Cash manages), Cash is determined to fight for the community and the small local businesses who would be crushed by this move. If this wasn't enough to think about, Cash starts to question her sexuality after she has a dream about her best friend.

This was a lovely story and I appreciated the update on Sammy and Max, featured in the author's other novel set in Ridley Falls.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a copy.

adored this book! I loved the PNW setting, friends to lovers (my fav!!!), small town vibes. I loved the community and found family, and the bar setting was so fun! I could absolutely envision everything I was reading like I was watching a movie. It was awesome. Highly recommend this one!

BOOK REVIEW

Pub date: July 2, 2024

Spice: 🌶️

Read if you like:
-PNW setting
-strong single moms
-best friends to lovers
-small town romance
-rom-coms
-second chances
-found family
-dirty dreams 😉
-live music/karaoke + bar vibes
-parents who allow their kids full freedom of expression

Cash Delgado Is Living the Dream is a sapphic romance about hope, second chances, and the importance of community. A small-town bar owner and single mom, Cash, is juggling motherhood and a new romance. She’s independent, hardworking, and doing the best she can. She is trying to build a future for her daughter, Parker. And her queer bestie, Inez, is along for the ride with her. Then, Chase, an old “fling” comes back to town with plans to open another bar, which would mean major competition for Joyce’s, Cash’s bar. Cash decides that she wants to do reservations and save the bar! And it’s definitely worth checking out! You will love these characters! I promise!

This was funny, hot, and incredibly sweet. I thoroughly enjoyed the small-town setting, Ridley Falls in the PNW. I seriously want to live there and be friends with all of the locals. The friendship between Cash and Inez is incomparable. We all NEED an Inez. She cracked me up the entire time.

The chapters were short with just the right amount of detail to keep me hooked. This was such a quick read because I was so intrigued to see which the direction the story was going to go. Tehlor’s writing made me fall in love with these characters and wish more than anything that they were real.

Rep:
-lesbian
-bisexual
-non-binary
-half Mexican FMC
-anxiety
-two dads/two moms as parents

Trigger warnings: homophobia, bigotry

Final thoughts: I’m obsessed with these characters and this story. I have absolutely no complaints. It was perfect to me. AND I need a producer to pick this up and make it a movie ASAP! The ending made me tear up. It was so sweet! I will 100% be reading Tehlor’s other books.

If you’re looking for a queer sworn-worthy romance, please consider adding this to your TBR!

Thank you to Tehlor Kay Mejia, Random House, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for a honest voluntary review!