“A fresh and vital new voice in romance.”—Entertainment WeeklyFrom award-winning author Adriana Herrera comes a novel hailed as one of Entertainment Weekly’s 10 Best Romance Novels of 2019 and a TODAY Show Hot Summer Read.No one ever said big dreams come easyFor Nesto Vasquez, moving his Afro-Caribbean food truck from New York City to the wilds of Upstate New York is a huge gamble. If it works? … Read.
No one ever said big dreams come easy
For Nesto Vasquez, moving his Afro-Caribbean food truck from New York City to the wilds of Upstate New York is a huge gamble. If it works? He’ll be a big fish in a little pond. If it doesn’t? He’ll have to give up the hustle and return to the day job he hates. He’s got six months to make it happen—the last thing he needs is a distraction.
Jude Fuller is proud of the life he’s built on the banks of Cayuga Lake. He has a job he loves and good friends. It’s safe. It’s quiet. And it’s damn lonely. Until he tries Ithaca’s most-talked-about new lunch spot and works up the courage to flirt with the handsome owner. Soon he can’t get enough—of Nesto’s food or of Nesto. For the first time in his life, Jude can finally taste the kind of happiness that’s always been just out of reach.
An opportunity too good to pass up could mean a way to stay together and an incredible future for them both…if Nesto can remember happiness isn’t always measured by business success. And if Jude can overcome his past and trust his man will never let him down.
Dreamers
Book 1: American Dreamer
Book 2: American Fairytale
Book 3: American Love Story
Book 4: American Sweethearts
Book 5: American Christmas
more
This book, Romancelandia! Read it now!!
I’m in the middle of a crazy, harried 12-day indie rom-com movie shoot of my m/m romance, OUT OF BODY, but i had to pop in to give AMERICAN DREAMER my 100% YES!
Truly delicious!!
I adore this debut Latinx m/m food-truck romance between two delightful heroes who are a perfect, romantic pair. But beyond the romance, this book has a wonderful cast of characters–a giant Afro-Dominican family that will make you wish you were a part of it….and not just for the delicious dinners.
This book was so sweet and steamy! Can’t recommend it enough!! Adriana is fantastic and I predict she has a long career ahead of her.
A really impressive debut with heart, brain, and vibrant characters. I’m looking forward to the next story.
I loved this first one in this series or Adriana’s. It was my favourite
American Dreamer is a deeply moving, sexy and wonderful male/male romance, part of Adriana Herrera’s Dreamers series. The story centers on Nesto (aka Ernesto), who moves to the college town of Ithaca from NYC to open his Afro-Dominican food truck (whose food listings definitely made me hungry!). He’s totally focused on his business, but still finds time to flirt with local librarian Jude Fuller. Jude is scarred from his family’s homophobia and rejection, a sensitive soul who’s chosen to keep himself safely single rather than risk getting his heart broken. While they grow closer, moving at a slow rate that still allows for some very hot sex scenes, they are each still wary of admitting how serious they each want the relationship to be. I also really liked how much each of their jobs played a role in the story, even though sometimes ambition warred with emotion for Nesto. Jude helps out in Nesto’s food truck, in one of the most charming scenes of the book, his enthusiasm bubbling over into the crowd. Herrera does a great job of amping up the tension between them, as well as situating them each against the larger world, including our sadly anti-immigrant political moment. Their struggles make the moments they do show up for each other all the more powerful, and the sex scenes are hot as can be, and really felt like each of them were doing things together they hadn’t done before, physically and emotionally. There are occasional tearjerker moments but also a lot of fun and playfulness throughout. Herrera also excels at creating the small but intimate community that forms around Nesto and Jude feel very real, including Jude’s best friend and coworker Carmen, Nesto’s wonderfully charming and supportive mom, and his trio of friends who know him better than almost anyone. I’m so glad there are more books in this series because I didn’t want this romance to end.
A beautiful book that is not only a love story, but an ode to the immigrant experience in America.
What do you get when you mix a talented, career-driven, Dominican food magician with a quirky librarian on a mission to bring teenagers a refuge in books? A spicy, all-encompassing love that overwhelms them both before they figure out how to navigate it. I fell for Nesto and his family and friends. I adored Jude and Carmen. We’ve all known a Misty, unfortunately. And yes, we catch a glimpse of the horrors that religious fundamentalism can cause in families. The story was at moments hilarious, mouth-watering, and heartbreakingly sad, and I would have read it in one sitting had it not been the middle of the night and sleep won. I’m so looking forward to more from Herrera. She does funny and the feels in equally potent parts.
Has one of the most infuriating antagonists I’ve read in a long while. I wanted to reach through my device and give her a hard shake. I loved the way the protagonists dealt with her in their own ways. It really showed the nuances of how people of different backgrounds are forced to navigate the world.
I was already impressed by this great read from this new to me author. Now I realize this is her debut novel and I am blown away. Her characters are memorable, real, and deep while the storyline is unique, fresh, and fun. Her writing style is very descriptive and since this story is about Nesto, the owner/operator of a food truck, you will walk away from this book hungry and craving Caribbean fare. I really enjoyed the nice slow build romance between Nesto and Jude. Overall this is a fantastic M/M contemporary romance that will have you smiling and cheering for all these incredible characters. I highly recommend this one.
I finally did it. I read my first Adriana Herrera book an it was everything I thought it would be. I’m obsessed with Nesto and Jude from chapter 1 and I fell instantly in love with the writing, the side characters, all of it. I disliked who I was supposed to and my stomach is angry at me because it’s not eating the food. This was SO good and I’m stunned this is her debut. It’s only going to go up from here.
It was like watching life happen. I wanted to get close, feel what it was like to have all that joy and passion directed at me.
American Dreamer is my first read by Adriana Herrera.
I. Fucking. Loved. It.
We are following Ernesto, or Nesto as his friends and family call him, who is an owner of a food truck named OuNYe which serves Afro-Caribbean food. He is making the move from New York City to Upstate New York in order to see if this is a career he can truly make something of. While on his first day, he meets Jude, a nerdy librarian who is sometimes flirty. The two instantly connect and sparks fly after Jude flirts in español.
In that moment, I felt glad for Nesto and a bit sad for myself, because he had people in his life who knew his story. Who understood the ways in which he was strong and the ways in which he wasn’t, and they still loved him. Not despite, but because of it.
This story was cute, hot, spicy, heartwarming, heartbreaking, and so full of food I was hungry the whole way through. The writing was amazing, the couple had chemistry, and individually they both shined. I loved Nesto’s warm and caring groups of friends and family. They were a favorite part of the book, especially Nesto’s mother. Jude isn’t quite as lucky in the friend and family department but the one friend he has, Carmen, was spectacular. They were ride or die besties and I loved seeing Jude have someone in his corner. There was a certain scene toward the end that had me so enraged and saddened on Jude’s behalf that all I could do was sit on my couch and cry. I know many LGBTQ+ people go through this and I wish I could take their pain away. What makes it better is that Nesto’s support group of family and friends welcomes Jude into their loving circle with open arms. Nothing made me happier knowing that Jude was loved because that dude deserves it. Everyone does. Jude isn’t the only one that goes through his own tribulations though. From day one in the new town, Nesto deals with racism mainly from one source, and man is she a nasty and hateful bitch. While it was tough to read about, just like Jude’s story, it made the story feel REAL.
I have all the rest of the books in this series on the way to my house and I cannot wait to continue.
Overall rating 5 stars
Steaminess 3.5 stars
Read this if you enjoy:
MM romances
Foodie romances
CW: this story contains racism and homophobia
I couldn’t help but fall in love with Nesto and Jude. They lifted me up, they made me cry, and they left me hungry for more. And as perfect as this book is, the unbelievable Adriana Herrera made me love each new book, in this series, more and I’m not sure how.<3
I can’t tell you how much I loved this story. Okay, maybe I’ll try to use my words…
I lived in the Dominican Republic when I was a kid and the idea of a young Dominican man trying to make his dream come true by owning his own food truck – spoke to me. Plus the love story is both sweet and hot.
Nesto and Jude are so sexy and lovely together. Get this book now!
I loved this book–like so much. I enjoyed watching Nesto and Jude figure out what they wanted from each other and how to balance that with their dreams and fears. Their chemistry was amazing and believable. Their groups of friends were adorable and fun. And the villains, well Misty will haunt my dreams forever and all the folks from Jude’s former world…heartbreaking but realistic and just well done so many ways over. The food descriptions were luscious and yes, just loved every party of it.
This was such an enjoyable romance!
It felt real and rich, with a lovely family–both found and not–aspect. And the food. I am so hungry! I enjoyed the way Nesto’s and Jude’s relationship developed…including the bumps and communication issues, and how each owned up to their own flaws and worked to change.
When I first saw the marketing push for American Dreamer, I was ecstatic. M/M Romance? Check. Interracial romance where the other half is a sexy librarian? Check.
Wait, Afro-Latino from the Dominican Republic? Are you kidding me? This is what I LIVE FOR! Throw all the check boxes away.
The level of personal anticipation that I experienced for the March 4th release of Adriana Herrera’s debut novel was nothing short of ridiculous. I haven’t waited for a book in this way since, well, forever.
Nesto is wonderful. An immigrant from the Dominican Republic, you understand his priorities right from page one. He’s moving to Ithaca from NYC to launch his food truck, OuNYe Afro-Caribbean Food, with the help of his family and life-long friends (all of whom get their own novel). He has one goal – to become successful within six months or go home. He enjoys the support of his people and possesses the willingness to put in the sweat and blood to make success happen. But Nesto’s x-ray focus wavers when Jude, an adorable librarian, arrives at his food truck to buy his scrumptious food.
The attraction between the two men is palpable. Nesto and Jude’s respective culture and sexuality are presented as a fact of life, something the author reinforces by making sure that the novel is populated by diverse characters as a matter of course, including several of Jude’s gay friend, and Carmen, his Dominican co-worker and best friend. Jude speaks Spanish and has lived in Central American, which lifts the onus on Nesto being solely responsible for teaching Jude the ins and outs of his culture.
Every aspect of this novel is respectful of the full humanity of each character. There is no stereotyping, no othering of anyone. The landscape of the novel is a reflection of a diverse world. The challenges Nesto and Jude confront are rooted in aspects of the character’s personality and the way they feel about intimate relationships. Nesto and Jude’s journey takes center stage, and it is such a refreshing take for a novel featuring an interracial couple.
As a daughter of Puerto Rican parents who relocated to the US with the same dreams as Nesto and his mother, I can identify with Nesto’s ambition and his mother’s pride as well as the pitfalls of being a brown person in a white world. As one who was also brought up in a fundamentalist faith that grew increasingly inconsistent with the way I viewed the world, I can also identify with the pain Jude experienced of not feeling fully accepted by those whose job it was to love him unconditionally. Herrera captures so many dynamics in this novel, which serves as equal parts romance, equal parts commentary on what it means to function, find love, and eventually flourish in a world that is not always willing to accommodate your existence.
Oh, and the food descriptions are divine! That absolutely has to be said.
This debut novel recieves an enthusiastic 5/5 stars.
Great DR rep!
Do you ever finish a book and just want to hug it to your chest because you’re speechless with love for it? Well, that’s how I felt when I finished reading American Dreamer. That it’s a debut makes it all the more impressive. Herrera is such a welcome voice in the romance world.
Ernesto is a first generation immigrant from the Dominican Republic. He moves from NYC, where he’s lived for 27 years, to Ithaca where his mother and younger sister now live in order to make a real go of his Afro-Caribbean food truck business, OuNYe. He’s giving himself six months to turn his side hustle into a success.
Jude is a white youth services librarian. He lives a mostly quiet life as he’s still processing the pain of being cut off by his family for being gay. He doesn’t trust people to be there for him or for relationships to go anywhere. Instead, he’s focused on getting funding for a library bookmobile, as a way of getting services to children and teens in more rural areas. The library truck will help fill in the gaps of what those smaller town libraries can provide. This is especially important to Jude because he learned to love himself in part because of his library.
You may not want to read this on an empty stomach because it’s guaranteed to make you hungry. I was highlighting all of Nesto’s food descriptions so I can track down recipes. And I’ll for sure be trying to find some Afro-Caribbean establishments in my new town. It’s not just that the food sounds amazing. It’s what the food means to Nesto and his friends and family. How it’s a way of maintaining their cultural roots and it’s a way of nourishing their community in the US. I could not get enough of his philosophy behind the restaurant and what he served in OuNYe, as well as the meals he’d make for Jude.
Nesto and Jude were so sweet together. I loved the uncertainty despite their clear attraction to one another. Nesto doesn’t want to be distracted from the food truck and Jude doesn’t want to be hurt again. And yet they really like each other and so a slow exploration of a relationship begins. The pace was so true to who these men are and respectful of Jude’s fear of being discarded by the person he loves. When they finally do take the next step, it was magical.
The story also delves into some hard topics. Nesto and Jude are both hassled by Misty, a racist white woman. She’s the kind of person who talks about plight of marginalized groups but only so long as they “stay in their place.” She made me so angry and while I wanted her to have more of a comeuppance and it’s true to life that she might not face consequences for all of her actions. But this part of the storyline brings attention to the micro-aggressions and outright aggression Latinx people face. There are also references “stop and frisk” and “Zero Tolerance” being a part of Nesto’s NYC neighborhood experience as a black or brown person.
Jude has a moving arc as he comes back into his family’s sphere when his sister’s cancer comes back. This part of the story could be triggering for some so exercise caution as needed. I can only imagine how hard it would be to grow up in a religiously homophobic environment, knowing you could lose everything if you come out. That’s just what happened to Jude. It was good to see him have a chance at reconnecting, although it doesn’t go as he hoped. And while Nesto is there for him in tangible ways at first, Jude eventually has to face his biggest fear.
Part of the appeal of this book was it’s emphasis on the characters’ jobs. Their work isn’t an afterthought. We see Nesto doing food prep the night before and cooking or interacting with customers during the day, beyond when he and Jude first meet. They talk about the jobs he’s picking up, like serving by a B&B one night a week. Jude’s work is more stationary but he’s working hard on putting information together for the grant application and meeting with his boss and his coworker/best friend Carmen. I loved learning about their jobs and seeing how passionate they were about their work.
The secondary characters are also amazing, with the exception of the evil Misty. There’s Carmen, of course, Nesto’s family members, and the GA Crew, also known as Nesto’s friends: Juan Pablo (Puerto Rican, PT for Yankees), Camilo (Cuba and Jamaica, activist, works for local nonprofit providing services for survivors of domestic violence), and Patrice (Haitian, PhD student.) I’m looking forward to their stories as this series continues!
The author’s social service background really came through in a variety of details, such as Nesto hiring employees from a local nonprofit which helps refugees and immigrants with job placement, and that deepened my enjoyment. It was such a holistic development of the characters and world. It shines as an #ownvoices Latinx story by focusing on a variety of backgrounds through Nesto’s family and friends and highlighting the immigrant experience and what it’s like during this political climate. Herrera’s experiences made for a richer—and more realistic—world and we’re better for it.
The characters faced difficult things but they persevered and still chose each other. The grand gesture at the end was amazing. This is the kind of book that restores your faith in humanity. This is bound to be one of my favorite romance novels of 2019.
CW: racism and xenophobia (this is countered), religious homophobia (including a scene where a pastor tries to make the gay character “repent”), family cutting ties due to religious homophobia, cancer/death of a family member, grief, use of the word “spaz” (this may only have been in the ARC; the author is aware it is ableist language and it was flagged to be removed during final revisions)
Disclosure: I received an advanced copy from Carina in exchange for an honest review.
American Dreamer By Adriana Herrera
Dreamers #1
Nesto has a dream. He already has one successful food truck in New York city but feels it is time to branch out and try his luck building his business so off he heads to Ithaca to give it his all. He is focused on his goals and really has no time for romance. But, what’s a guy to do when the perfect guy appears in his life…not once…but again and again?
Jude works hard and has dreams of his own. His dream is to provide those not near enough to lending libraries mobile libraries that will come to their neighborhoods. He is fighting hard to get his proposal passed and doesn’t have time, energy or trust enough for romance. But, what’s a guy to do when the man who seems to fill all of his dreams practically drops in his lap?
This feels like it will appeal to the New Adult reader. It has the friends of the men to support them, a family that does and one that does not support them, religious drama from one family, the nasty person causing problems for both of them, someone dying and feelings to deal with, a situation that keeps them apart for awhile and eventually a happily ever after for both of them.
Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Yes
I will say that I believe this author will grow as she writes and gets feedback. This is her first novel and she has tackled some very big issues. There were times I thought – Really? – but then I thought – Maybe? I did like both men and really would like to get to know more about Nesto’s friends and the men he hired to work for him. In some ways this is more of a fairy tale with the wicked witch and the fairy godfather but it is one that I am sure many would like to have come true.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin-Carina Press for the ARC – This is my honest review.
3-4 Stars