Review: AN ENJOYABLE ROMANCE THAT BRINGS UP REAL LIFE ISSUES
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 11, 2013
I enjoyed reading Yours to Keep. Although this was a romance novel, it was centered around a very real life and many times controversial issue: immigration. The main character, Serena came to the United States legally as a young child, from the Dominican Republic. Due to circumstances beyond her control her eligibility to be in the US expires. Her and her family continue to live and work in the US as illegal immigrants. Years later, Serena meets Ethan when he hires her to tutor his somewhat rebellious son, Theo, in Spanish. Serena does not tell Ethan about her illegal status. She has been taught from a very early age to keep her status a secret. She has become a professional at being elusive, providing only information she has to.The author does a wonderful job of letting the reader get to know the characters before any romantic relationship begins. She allows the chemistry between Ethan and Serena to develop naturally. Because of that, when the steamy parts did come, I felt more invested in both characters as a couple....he slid into her with one sure, deep thrust, and, as she'd imagined, she offered him no resistance, only slick welcome."Ohhh," he said, drawing back and thrusting into her again and again--long, deep thrusts with a rocking, rubbing motion at the end that drew an answering rhythm out of her. "Yeah," he said. "Like that."She whimpered and lifted her hips to meet him again and again, the tension and heat rising in her until it was almost unbearable. "Don't stop," she whispered."I-- can't-- stop," he whispered back.I enjoyed Theo's involvement in the story line. It was refreshing to read about Ethan's struggles as he tries to deal with Theo as well as his frustration in trying to juggle being a single dad. And while Ethan's brother plays only a minor role, I thought he was funny and appreciated him keeping things "real".I ended up a little confused as to Serena's exact ethnicity. She originally is from the Dominican Republic and she refers to herself as Latino. She then says that her father was white and her mother was black. To me that is a bit confusing but in the end it doesn't really matter. The differences between Serena and Ethan are many and while Ethan doesn't see their differences as a problem initially, being in an inter-racial relationship does provide some challenges. The issue of Serena's illegal status is a major issue that has to be dealt with and provides most of the drama in the second half of the book.While this was a romance, the book did open my eyes to some of the struggles illegal immigrants face day to day. Simple things like getting a job, a driver's licenses, or opening up a bank account are impossible unless immigrants use fake documentation. It can also be difficult or dangerous to report crimes and that can lead to new sets of dangers as Serena saw early on in the book. Those are things I've never really thought about before. While I'm sure the author didn't set out to bring awareness to readers about immigration, I appreciated the backstory she provided and it's something I'll be thinking about in "real life".Overall, I really enjoyed this book. At times I thought it may have dragged a little but I enjoyed getting to know all the characters and appreciated the time the author took developing each of them. A 3.5 STAR READ.Copy provided by publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review