It’s National Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15–October 15) which means it’s time to celebrate the full range of romances by Latin authors. These writers bring new perspectives to familiar tropes and settings, reminding us how wide the genre really is. We honor them all and here are a few recent ones AAR reviewers have enjoyed.
Adriana Herrera’s A Tropical Rebel Gets the Duke isn’t centered on the usual white, upper-class English society; instead, it gives us a Caribbean heroine whose story unfolds on her own terms. Liana De la Rosa’s Isabel and the Rogue threads espionage and political intrigue through a Regency romance without losing the intimacy of the love story. Priscilla Oliveras’s Kiss Me, Catalina captures the drive of a mariachi heroine determined to succeed on stage and in love. And Alana Quintana Albertson’s Ramón and Julieta takes Shakespeare’s outline and remakes it in San Diego, where family ties and neighborhood loyalties shape every choice.
These are only a few recent examples and we know there are many more. Which romances by Latin authors have mattered to you, and which ones do you return to or recommend?
Mexican Gothic bySylvia Moreno-Garcia is hands down my favorite. She nails the creepy gothic vibe, and the love story is a pleasantly sweet drop of joy in an otherwise macabre situation.
Liana De la Rosa’s To Love a Scandalous Duke and On a Midsummer Night are both on my reread list.
I thought of Adriana Herrera as soon as I saw this. I really enjoyed her Dreamers series. I also love Allie Therin and only recently realized she is “bicultural” as she puts it, Cuban-American. Honestly, I’m not 100% sure of the heritage of most authors I’ve read.
I’m slowly but surely making my way through Abby Jimenez backlist after enjoying her latest two novels quite a lot: Part of Your World and Just for the Summer. In fact, I have Part of Your World on my reread list this week.
I always enjoy Jimenez’s books. She posted on IG last week that while her married name is Jimenez, she is not Latinx. She is 23 years married to a Salvadoran man, but she herself is Sicilian.
Wow! Thanks for the clarification.
Man, shoutout to my forty billion fave fellow Latine authors! Adriana Herrera is always tops with me, but there’s way too many to name!