“Are you lonely?” she asked quietly. “Aren’t we all a little lonely?”
A quarter-life-crisis leads to a second coming of age novel about a 25 year old Gen Z who finds herself fired because “her heart isn’t in it” in her Corporate World job. Shortly thereafter she finds herself in jail for having a bit of a meltdown in the presence of a police officer. But Camille’s Knight in Shining Armor comes in the form of her best friend Danny, who takes her back to her hometown and allows her the privilege of working at Beau’s, his tavern, while she finds out what is next. Armed with a mountain of personal and student debt, Camille has done nearly everything right and is still not thriving.
“I’m not averse to seafood. It’s just . . . at the bottom of the list of food I want to eat.”
Camile, naturally, falls in love with Danny, who has some of the most romantic and gorgeous expressions of love. It is a best-friends-to-lovers trope with side characters who have a lot of potential. Her ex boyfriend Cory has found love and is getting married, but 2 other friends are about to have books of their own. I am sure this will be first in a series, and I can’t wait to read the others. Ramirez absolutely captures the voice and the spirit of Gen Z, and brings the reader to the feeling of malaise we all feel at the point in which the government thinks we are an adult but the workforce very much treats us as a child. The characters are really quintessential 25 year olds and their voice and struggles are really authentic- Student loan debt and rent are 80% of her now non-existent income. Boomers and Millenials in the work force are very confused by Gen z not wanting to put work at the center of their world.
“Twenty-five is about figuring stuff out. It’s okay to be lost.”
I give this book an enthusiastic 4 stars- it is very well done as a debut and it is a romance that has some deeper themes. I look forward to what is coming next from this talented new voice in fiction.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC. Book to be published May 12, 2026.
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