the wedding date | by jasmine guillory

for several months, several people had been recommending a book to me that i wasn't entirely interested in. once the recommendations for this particular book hit the double digits, i thought, "ok, if so many people are suggesting this book to me, they can't all be wrong, right?" but i still had my reservations. this book is unilaterally categorized as a romance novel, and the romance genre is not one i really into which i delve. don't get me wrong, this isn't me trying to be a snob, truly. it's just not my jam. other genres i don't care for: crime thrillers, self-help, and mysteries.

i wasn't crazy about this book as i don't fully appreciate the romance genre nearly as much as i used to. i found it predictable and cliche and cloyingly sweet at times.

however, i do remember that it made me laugh out loud at least once, and it does truly capture the struggles of dating today really accurately. like, eerily accurate. there was this part in the book where either alexa or drew were thinking about how much they'd wish the other person would text and the rush they'd feel when they felt their phone buzz and then the utter disappointment that would crush them when it was someone else, even if that someone else was some other loved one. that was pretty on the nose.

i'll also give it props for touching on the complexities of being in a biracial relationship, particularly that of a woc dating a white man. it went in deeper than i expected with alexa schooling drew on his white privilege. i also appreciated that alexa would ask how many other pocs would be around at whatever social event drew was taking her to. as a woc married to a white guy, i know what that's like.