Girl, I guess!! My meme review for this book does a lot of the critical work, so I’ll keep my written feedback *relatively* brief (it is me, after all.)

I enjoyed:
--This book’s incorporation of Dani’s African spiritual traditions, and how they connected her to her ancestors.
--The portrayal of Zafir’s strategies to cope with his mental health challenges, and the indication that he shares these strategies with his mentees (the counseling work of Tackle It is really
"off-stage" in this novel)
--The meta-discussion of why romance novels are so important to one of the main characters. The gimmick could’ve fallen apart, but I actually think it was a cute way for Talia Hibbert to talk about what she’s trying to do in the book.
--The sex scenes are really lived-in, and hold up on their own as quality erotica. I would have enjoyed reading more of these.

I rolled my eyes about:
--This book’s constant woke posturing! Hibbert namedrops concepts like heteropatriarchy and misogynoir (76, 151, other pages I don’t want to cite)...and then continues right on reinforcing heteropatriarchy with this story line. To be fair, that’s the name of the game when it comes to romance novels, so I’m not saying it’s all her fault. But I wish she realized the limits of her story: these “diverse characters” still reinforce most societal norms about who is supposed to be in relationship with one another.
--The main example of this is the relationship between Dani and her former FWB, Jo. This storyline reminded me of a lot of the discussions I’ve seen on my timeline and in Clubhouse as of late. These discussions have noted a trend many queer and/or trans people have experienced in intimate relationships with bisexual cis women, where these women prioritize their relationships with cishet men above their relationships with people of marginalized genders and/or sexualities. This can shake out in many different ways, but the crux of it is these women reserving their “best self” in terms of support, care, and attention for a primary relationship with a partner that is generally seen as “acceptable” by society.
--As with many of the real-life instances, it’s not a problem that Dani desires a more serious relationship with her male "soulmate" than she does with her female fuckbuddy. She's not a self-hating bigot for dating a man, nor is she less “genuinely” queer. However, when you start to look at how she was emotionally detached from Jo for the entire book (save for a half-hearted bathroom apology), and how she rapidly surmounted these challenges when she wanted to be with Zafir, you start to see how this dynamic aligns with the notions we all internalize about who is “worthy” of our love. Even more notably in this book, there's a lesson about who we deem "worthy" enough for us to resolve the trauma that keeps us from love. Perhaps subconsciously on the part of the character (and even the author!), Dani’s queer relationships become collateral damage on her journey to emotional wholeness with Zafir.

So, long story short, Justice for Jo!!! Do not read this book if you’re queer (unless you are also a troll.)