Name: Tsu 💙's review of A Proposal They Can't Refuse by Natalie Caña
Item: A Proposal They Can't Refuse
Rating: 5
Author: Tsu 💙

Natalie Caña

Natalie Caña turns up the heat, humor and heart in this debut rom-com about a Puerto Rican chef and an Irish American whiskey distiller forced into a fake engagement by their scheming octogenarian grandfathers. Kamilah Vega is desperate to convince her family to update their Puerto Rican restaurant and enter it into the Fall Foodie Tour. With the gentrification of their Chicago neighborhood, it's the only way to save the place. The fly in her mofongo--her blackmailing abuelo says if she wants to change anything in his restaurant, she'll have to marry the one man she can't stand: his best friend's grandson. Liam Kane spent a decade working to turn his family's distillery into a contender. Now he and his grandfather are on the verge of winning a national competition. Then Granda hits him with a one-two punch: he has cancer and he has his heart set on seeing Liam married before it's too late. And Granda knows just the girl...Kamilah Vega. If they refuse, their grandfathers will sell the building that houses both their businesses. With their futures on the line, Kamilah and Liam plan to outfox the devious duo, faking an engagement until they both get what they want. But soon, they find themselves tangled up in more than either of them bargained for.

A Proposal They Can't Refuse

Genesis (@whisperingchapters)

This is so cute and my little curly haired Puerto Rican heart loved every single second of it. 

Tsu 💙

Bria

i usually love fake dating/engagement tropes but i was a little bored

This one kind of flopped for me. The premise interested me but once I started getting into it I personally got bored. The characters irritated me when it came to the third act break up because while it tried to make sense the process was sped up and just lacked from what most of the book talked about. It  really wanted to focus on the FMC and glaze over the MMC when it was him it cast a lot onto. I don’t know if I just misunderstood what the book was doing but I didn’t like how it happened. 

Priscilla Stanfield

This book was absolutely adorable. Definitely embodies the grumpy-sunshine trope, with so many wonderful, sweet moments. I loved switching back and forth between their perspectives. And Liam’s attention to detail! Ugh my heart. 

I loved the Puerto Rican culture throughout this story and the emphasis on family and what family means in the context of your own life. Also, the grandpas were the best part hands down. We can all only hope to have a best friend like that. I also really actually loved that even though there was a miscommunication trope here, it wasn’t because of a stupid reason (or an ex - though I was worried there for a hot second). It was very much a realistic situation, and entirely relatable.

Absolutely recommend if you’re looking for a quick read, with a lot of love, and a little spice. 

Tace

This book was absolutely adorable. Definitely embodies the grumpy-sunshine trope, with so many wonderful, sweet moments. I loved switching back and forth between their perspectives. And Liam’s attention to detail! Ugh my heart. 

I loved the Puerto Rican culture throughout this story and the emphasis on family and what family means in the context of your own life. Also, the grandpas were the best part hands down. We can all only hope to have a best friend like that. I also really actually loved that even though there was a miscommunication trope here, it wasn’t because of a stupid reason (or an ex - though I was worried there for a hot second). It was very much a realistic situation, and entirely relatable.

Absolutely recommend if you’re looking for a quick read, with a lot of love, and a little spice. 

Hope Gamble

Super cute rom-com. I'm excited that it's going to be a series!

rowan !

(4.5) RTC BUT LIAMKAMILAH YOURE COMING HOME WITH ME

2.5 rounded down.   This book had so much flipping potential and just fell way short.   I stayed for the cooking and whiskey, the diverse characters, fake dating, second chance romance, and the hilarious, meddling grandpas.   It should be criminal to introduce characters that are this complex, with such potential, but are just… not developed? We weren’t told the prom story? There’s so much alluded to but not actually explained so the characters just have no real chemistry.   The writing style was juvenile, the sentence/paragraph/dialogue structure wasn’t good (four sentences starting with “he” in a row?! in the middle of the spicy scene?!).   I hope this author continues writing because she certainly has great stories and great characters to share with the world, but they need an editor willing to go hard for them to help push the writing and story to a better place.

Gretchen Sartele

sydney

This book gave me everything that I needed. The fact that it was their grandfathers that forced them to get engaged was so funny and added a layer of comedy that I really enjoyed. I liked that we got to see the depth of their feelings for each other. The fact that they just know each other more than anyone else and support each other unconditionally makes me so happy.

I received an arc through netgalley.

Abby Frey

This book is just delightful to read. The family relationships are spectacular. Just thinking about the food talked about in this book makes my mouth WATER because it sounds so good. Liam and Kamilah are just so amazing together. Childhood friends to strangers to fake engagement to lovers perfection. This book does give you Liam’s point of view and Kamilah’s which is great as well. My only complaint is that random incidents from the past would be brought up and not completely explained which got a bit confusing but otherwise this book was spectacular.

This book needs sequels NOW!!!!!!

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for giving me an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Karen Wheeler

All in all, I enjoyed this book. Most of of the characters were well defined, but I felt there was a little too much family bickering through out the book, which served to make me zone out and pay little attention to the dialog at those times.  There were portions of the book that I had to force myself to continue through, but then there were moments that  left me wanting more!  You could feel the emotions between the 2 main characters and I have to be honest and say I cried near the end when the new wine was presented… overall, I’m glad I chose the book! 

A Proposal They Can't Refuse by Natalie Caña will be available May 24, 2022. Preorder your copy today!

Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &
A Proposal They Can't Refuse by Natalie Caña

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Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &A Proposal They Can't Refuse by Natalie Caña

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Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &
A Proposal They Can't Refuse by Natalie Caña