Here To Stay by Adriana Herrera

Here To Stay by Adriana Herrera

Published by Carina Press ISBN 9780369700926

Ebook, $3.99 

If you think that a romance novel whose main characters are a social worker and financial analyst/consultant sounds a little on the tame side, Adriana Herrera's Here To Stay is here to prove you wrong.

Julia left her Dominican mother and grandmother, Puerto Rican father, and her younger sister to move from New York City to Dallas to follow her boyfriend to his new job. After a few weeks, he left her for another woman, and she was stuck with a two year lease on an apartment.

She found a job working for a foundation, funded by Dallas' most prominent luxury clothing store. She works with immigrants and their children, helping them stay in school and adjust to their new life. 

Julia loves her job, which could be in jeopardy.  A member of the family who owns the store wants to take the company public, and has hired a consulting firm to analyze and make recommendations, which he hopes means getting rid of the foundation to increase stock prices and executive salaries.

Rocco is the head of the consulting firm, the one who will make the recommendation. He is also from New York and Julia is attracted to him, but after her last romantic fiasco, she is skittish. Rocco is attracted to Julia and would like to get to know her better, even though that will make both of their jobs more difficult.

When Julia forms a Gotham Exiles Club, made up of young people from New York, Rocco ends up with an invitation and sparks fly between the two of them. How long will it be before they give into temptation? (The answer is not long.)

There is so much to enjoy about this book. I loved getting to know Julia's family when they come to surprise her at Thanksgiving. Reading about the delicious-sounding Dominican dishes that are served had me searching recipe boards to try them out, and the sprinkling of Spanish words and phrases gave me the opportunity to recall my high school Spanish.

The Gotham Exiles Club members are interesting, and their text chain is humorous. The twin sisters whose family owns the store, fifty-somethings Muffy and Mitzy, are delightful. Maybe we will see a sequel (or prequel) with these interesting characters in the future?

This is not your grandmother's romance novel; the sex scenes are graphic and the language is as well. If that is not your thing, this book is not for you. But if you like a novel that gets you gets you hot and bothered, with characters you care about, you should put Here To Stay on your To-Be-Read list. 

Thanks to Harlequin for putting me on Adriana Herrera's tour.