This was a fantastic contemporary romance from Herrera! She approached these characters with much love and care as she brought them to life. The audiobook narrator was also fantastic and truly made them realistic. 

Desta and Elias's story is romantic and, at times, incredibly soft, but at others, it deals closely with societal homophobia, expat behavior in Africa, mental health conditions, and parental approval as these characters make hard decisions in the process of their developing relationship.

Desta's grief for his father is also an important recurring theme, so I encourage anyone who might find that triggering to pay attention. It is gorgeously written as someone with a dead father myself, and while it was hard to hear at times, the way Desta grows in this respect is fantastic for a book that is not very long at all.  

This book also really considers Ethiopia, the American influence there, its people, and its historical experiences. I wasn't fully aware of Ethiopia's history, and Herrerra does a great job of weaving it in.

Herrera's writing is great, and I'm glad to read more of it!