Tia WilliamsRecensioni

I don't know what I was expecting based off the cover - but this book was so good! I love the cover, I just don't know if it fits the book. Ricki Wilde has never lived up to her family's expectations. They own one of the largest funeral home corporations in the US. Fired as a receptionist, Ricki decides to pack up her life in Atlanta and move to Harlem to open a flower shop. She's done trying to placate her family, she's going to live authentically from now on. She moves in the first floor of a gorgeous old brownstone, putting her business in the front and her living spaces in the back. Her elderly landlady lives above and soon becomes like the grandma she never had. When she runs into a mysterious man one night, life as she knows it is about to change. Ezra Walker has been around the block a time or two. All his life he's dreamt of a woman who will change that life. When he meets Ricki he is certain she is the one, but if she is, time is running out. Lyrical, funny, and romantic (with a few good steamy scenes to boot!). This is a romance for the ages!

I’m still not sure what to rate this book yet, but I will hopefully try to summarize what I thought about it. This book, simply put is a tragic love story. A tragic love story, where maybe I should warn you right now check out the TW! There were sentences that I loved, that I actually wrote down. But there were moments where I was frustrated, with the author and even the editor.

One thing is for sure, Tia knows how to write the life out of emotions. Knows how to set a scene and you feel it, hear it, smell it and see it so vividly; it’s actually amazing. The book reads like fan fiction IMO, and it definitely has a whole lot of pop culture references which was intriguing but also surprising.

All in all, it left me wanting more, and I think it was worth my time.

Again check the TW!!

“Maybe they’d always be disasters—but couldn’t they support each other and grow together? No one was perfect! And maybe that was what real, adult love was. Being fearless enough to hold each other close I matter how catastrophic the world became. Loving each other with enough ferocity to quell the fears of the past. Just fucking being there” (322).

I sometimes get impatient with second-chance lovers, especially when half of the plot is devoted to flashbacks. But that didn’t happen at all with this one. It wasn’t a predictable one chapter present and the next past set-up. That can feel like a forced formula. I like the way this ebbs and flows between June then and June now.

The younger G&S are consuming and tumultuous and deeply emotional. I enjoyed seeing them in their younger days. Their backgrounds are equally tragic, causing them to feel unworthy and alone—like true misfits. Because of their similarities, their connection is combustible—and authentic for two troubled, self-destructive teens who have been wronged by so many.

The adult version of Eva (Genevieve) and Shane are equally enticing as characters—albeit, a bit more cautious—as they navigate their flaws as successful, adult writers. In present June, we see the effects of decades of unhealthy behavior and their need to atone for or hide from their brokenness. I love that their reunion is just as passionate and intense and frenzied. I love that they’re writers in different genres (hello, Gus and January from Beach Read) who have devoted their careers to writing about the other. They truly are each others’ muses.

I especially like the authentic ending—they see (with a little help from Audre and Cece) that they’re able to work through their shit—to accept themselves and forgive themselves—and still be able to be in a relationship. The former does not precede the latter. They don’t have to work to be perfect before they deserve a relationship. They can grow together. Like a family.

There is way more to this book than you might expect. Yes, it is rom-comish, yes, it is happy ever after. Yes, it has the boy and girl meet, fall in love, split, and get back together curve - but the undercurrent makes this book so much more.

Disclaimer: When I started the book, I was a little concerned I wasn't going to "get it." There is no denying Tia Williams and I come from different backgrounds, and I would be remiss if I didn't say that there were parts of the book I didn't understand, references to people, artists, and events, that are out of my wheelhouse. (This is nothing new, I don't understand a lot about many things, part of the joy of reading is what you learn.) BUT, what started as unknown for me became pure respect and fun as the pages turned.

Seven Days in June is a light-hearted book with sprinkles of middle-of-the-road issues and some intense and disturbing ones. There is a well-spun mixture of all sorts of subjects in this book: children of neglectful parents who come together to help each other, invisible disabilities that need to be recognized and not shamed, self-harm, drugs, loss of life, great parenting, open communication, understanding. Seriously, this book runs the gamut.

Eva and Shane have history. They knew each other when, and after 15 years apart, their lives collided again. Both have become well-known authors, Shane in a more traditional sense and Eva as a fantasy erotica novelist. When the two find themselves face-to-face at an event, their next seven days are a whirlwind of hot sex, deep conversations, uncovered truths, and unexpected realities.

The book is great, but my favorite part is how it is written. Tia Williams doesn't shy away from her truth and the truth of those she writes about. Tia Williams is a black author writing about black people. I loved the way she wrote with the correct vernacular, slang, and terminology. Yep, I'm a 55-year-old white woman, and some of it went way over my head - and it was beautiful. I don't want to read the same ole same ole written only by white, heterosexual cisgenders (not that this book had anything to do with sexuality or gender, but you get the point). I truly enjoyed the new perspective I got from reading/seeing things from a different point of view.

I also appreciate how Tia Williams spun the breakup part of the typical romance, HEA. In Seven Days in June, there isn't a huge deal-breaking, "I never want to see you again" moment where the girl (guy) storms out and bawls for days to his/her bestie and then 'poof' all better by some magical discovery of, 'oh, I didn't realize that was the case,' event. In Seven Days, the breakup is more subtle, realistic, and organic. Sometimes things don't work out, and we need time and space to figure ourselves out; that is precisely what Tia Williams allowed her characters to do, and I loved it so much.

Read Seven Days in June. You will get a whole new perspective on invisible disabilities (more needs to be written about this), you will need to wipe your brow during the steamy passages, you will fall in love with Eva's daughter, you will root for Eva and Shane to get their s*** together for each other, you will appreciate the realness in the sweet story. And, you will understand and appreciate the difficulties involving family.

Mixing the nightlife and artistic creativity of the Harlem Renaissance with modern times, Tia Williams weaves a love story between 2 people who are ages apart. Ricki Wilde wants to get away from her family and their funeral business. She goes to NYC to follow her dream of opening a florist shop. She finds a benefactor, Ms. Della, who offers her space to open the shop. One night, Ricki meets a handsome man who intrigues her. Along with her friend, Tuesday, they search for him, and once found, he begs her to stay away. However, they are destined for each other. One problem, Ezra, a pianist, is 28, but can't age, as he has been cursed to be immortal. If Ricki and he fall in love, then Ricki will die on Feb 29, leap day. Weaving these 2 storylines together, along with the people that influence their lives led to an interesting and unique story.
You will find yourself rooting for Ricki and Ezra, and hoping they can find a way to live together in love.

I absolutely loved this. Ricki is the underachieving member of a well established funeral parlor family. Striking out on her own she moves to Harlem and falls in love with not only the community but her landlady Ms. Della. There is an instant gravitational pull when she meets Ezra and the two begin a passionate love affair. Ricki is gobsmacked whenezra tells her the truth of his past. There are so many intricate layers around this and they all involve leap day. There is so much to love about this- Rickis relationship with extra and Ms. Della,her embracing Harlems history and how she shows her appreciation of it and her showing her family that there’s more to get than they thought.

I enjoyed this immensely until the 3rd act when it fell apart a bit and suddenly extraneous characters were centralized for inadequate reasons. I liked the resolution though.

At first I wasn't so sure but this was really fresh, fun, and her daughter was a hoot!

I felt like the romance side was a bit too played out. But the mental health side and reactions to things was really well done. You can see how each generation has inherited certain traits, even as they avoid directing inheriting one trait, they take on something else as a response. That alone made me give this book a 4 instead of a 3.

This started so well, with such a great mix of feminism, invisible disability recognition, near completely all-Black characters, and insight into trauma/abuse. But something happened at the end where it just fizzled and lost focus, almost like the whole thing was rushed at the end. I loved the chemistry between Eva and Shane, two authors who used the other as inspiration. But something didn’t click with me in the end. It was still a great read, and I would recommend it.

4.5
This was so good! Audrey is my favorite person

4.5
I loved it! The banter was top-tier, the characters were excellently written and well fleshed out. The steam was absolutely steaming and I loved the ending!!! This book is slept on but it was beautiful. I 100% recommend.

The issue with audiobooks is that there is no way to skim the sex scenes and my ace self was highly uncomfortable through parts of this!

The relationship with the daughter was the coolest part of this, and I'm glad Eva went to find her family. I chose to believe they had known each other for seven years and not seven days when they were teens so that I wouldn't be yelling instalove the whole book.

this might just be me but i thought the ending was really weak. Also, it felt like a bit much for just one (pretty short) book.

A pretty good example of the current over use of trauma plot.

Mon avis est tout simplement mitigé. Je déteste lorsque ça m’arrive, j’étais tout simplement trop enthousiaste. J’ai été déçue de chez déçue. J’ai aimé pas mal de choses et en même temps je n’ai pas aimé pas mal de choses. On commence par les bonnes?

Pros:

- Belle petite couverture qui te donne l’impression que le livre va être super (NE JAMAIS SE FIER AUX APPARENCES)
- La première page seulement peut accrocher un lecteur car il ne manque pas d’humour.
- La relation mère-fille entre Eva et sa fille Audre était juste trop chou. On aime bien voir des mères à l’aise avec leur fille comme ca.
- C’est intéressant de voir deux personnages noirs qui sont des écrivains supers connus.

Cons:

Il y a tellement de points off dans le livre , enfin, où commencer?

- Le livre est plein de TRIGGER WARNING . Comment est-ce qu’on peut ne pas avertir le lecteur qu’il va lire sur des sujets sensibles? Comme le suicide? La mutilation ? (moi même ça m’a dérangé parce ce que ce sujet me concerne directement) , relations abusives? la drogue?
- QUI tombe amoureux de quelqu’un en étant une adolescente en 7 jours ? QUI ne voit pas son “amour de jeunesse” en 15 ans mais qui retombe amoureuse de lui en 7 jours? Cette partie de l’histoire m’a rendu perplexe. On peut dire que cette romance est tout sauf réaliste. Les deux personnages s’écrivent à travers leurs livres ( les deux sont des écrivains connus) pendant 15 ans sans jamais se croiser? bref. C’est une histoire d’amour entre adultes matures, je m’y attendais à plus.
- Je ne me suis sentie attachée à aucun des personnages, la romance entre eux était juste MEH . Quelle romance d’ailleurs. Le livre ne vaut pas toute la hype qu’on lui donne.
- Ok je peux comprendre que ton livre parle de deux personnages noirs , on essaie d’impliquer la race noire le plus que possible mais à un moment ça semble juste forcé et il y a des passages où c’est tout simplement inutile. Trop c’est trop.
- Les deux personnages principaux Eva et Shane doivent se faire traiter, on est clairs là-dessus. Ils ont pas mal de traumas qui n’ont pas été gérés ce qui prouve que leur relation est plutôt une relation de codépendance et non une relation saine.

Pourquoi 3 étoiles?

Tia Williams a une belle plume mais je pense que l’histoire aurait pu être mieux exploitée. Elle avait vraiment réussi à capter mon attention dans les premiers chapitres mais après tout s’est tout simplement passée trop vite. Beaucoup trop vite et cette histoire de 7 jours pour retomber amoureux, non merci cela ne sonne pas bien a mes yeux (mais qu’est ce que je raconte? ) En passant, le livre n’a rien de spicy.

I love how I knew this would be 5 stars after reading the first line of chapter one.

3.5 stars

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

When Eva Mercy was little, her mom had told her that Creole women see signs.

Seven Days in June was the story of two high-school kids who didn't have the best home life finding each other for a week and then losing each other for 15yrs. Genevieve Mercer suffers from debilitating headaches and the stress of having an unstable home life doesn't help. Her mother Lizette lives a nomadic life going from boyfriend to boyfriend and as Lizette ages, the boyfriends and paid apartments get shabbier and shabbier. When they're in D.C., Genevieve decides to try and make a friend and picks the loner boy on the bleachers.

He'd never composed even one sentence sober, and frankly, he was scared to try.

Shane Hall has went from foster home to foster home and doesn't want to be bothered by the new girl trying to make a friend, until they start talking and he ends up in a fight for her and they runaway for a while together. They had a drug fueled, emotionally open, and deep connection week until they get pulled apart but Genevieve never really knows the answers to the why and what happened after her mother comes for her and she found Shane was gone. Shane has sobered up and with two years of sobriety under his belt, he decides to reconnect with Genevieve.

They'd stayed out of each other's way for fifteen years.

Genevieve now goes by Eva Mercy and is a popular author of a supernatural erotica romance series about vampires. When Shane shows up at a panel she's at, the connection they had 15yrs ago, is instantly back, along with the pain of not knowing why Shane left her. Shane says he's there to make amends and when Eva's daughter gets into trouble at school and Eva has to ask him a favor, they're back in each others lives.

“We have unfinished business,” he said. “You know we do. We've made careers off it.”

If you're a writer, I feel like you need to read this story immediately, the way that Eva and Shane (Shane's a popular lit fic writer) communicated with each other through their works and wrote out their emotions was so good. The scene, around 30%, where they call each other out on this was chef's kiss, the intensity and passion, GAH. In fact, in the beginning, the chemistry between Eva and Shane was sparking hard, they're a little raw nerve and, you can tell, excited thrilled to be back in each others company. There's also numerous shout-outs to the literary world and general, what I see as, writer's world emotions. The story is told more from Eva's point-of-view, so we know more about her and then it periodically jumps back to give readers flashbacks of Eva and Shane meeting and a few high emotion scenes of their week together. The pain and anger comes from Shane disappearing on Eva and Eva and the reader don't know the full story until later in the book, around 70%.

“I'm not just writing about you,” said Shane. “I'm writing to you.”

If you've ever read a Sonali Dev, I'd say this was close in story and tone of hers, there is the romance but, especially Eva's background family life, and Shane's childhood, play a big part; they're well rounded out characters that deal with trauma (self-harm plays a big part in both characters) and that personal journey shares equal footing with the romance, if not eclipsing it at times. I was reading this with more of a romance view and the ending kind of lost me because of this, Eva's self-journey takes the spotlight and I thought this lead to a fizzled out, less firework romance ending that I was personally looking for between these two.

There was Shane. Exasperatingly handsome in a dark tee, dark jeans, and three-day stubble---and gazing at Eva like she hung the goddamned moon.

The relationships between all the characters felt real and I did feel encompassed into this world. Eva with her daughter Audre will make you desire such a relationship with your mom, that scene where Eva calls out everything she's done for Audre to have the life and opportunities she had, hit so hard and good with the different generational view points. It felt right that Eva's relationship with her mother never got wrapped up with a bow (I would have liked Audre learning more about the true Lizette) and while I felt it deadened the romance for me some, I liked the personal journey Eva went on, in fact, could have read a book about her visiting all those places. Shane gets a little eclipsed by Eva, I felt this was more her story than his or theirs, but he's impactful. I would have liked a couple more flashbacks, him getting sober, from his point-of-view and while there was an incredibly sad moment for him, I don't think it hit as hard as it could because he wasn't as dived into as Eva and the relationship involving the sad moment wasn't as developed.

There was a lot here for people to relate, commiserate, feel, and cheer for and it also delivered some deep emotion, memorable scenes, and steam. The ending got a little more away from the romance than I would have liked, there was some outside planning to ultimately get these two together that I would have rather come from them directly choosing, but the idea of two authors writing to each other because they're not emotionally there yet to be together, beautiful story.

An angst ridden, second-chance romance between 2 authors who had seven perfect days in their teens but are struggling with their lives now.
For me , Audre stole the show with her innocent wit and smart observations. Tia Williams masterfully wove a plot encompassing history, heritage, struggle and romance.

As the case with all romances, I wish there was a longer epilogue but overall a pretty decent read.

Not only does this book end in my alternate hometown of Atlanta (where I happened to be when I read the book and where I am as I write this), but it ends in one of our favorite restaurants, Floataway Cafe. When my now adult son was little we used to go quite frequently. The wonderful, generous, brilliant chef/owner Anne Quatrano would always make E a special desert, just for him and not on the menu, and when he got a bit older sometimes she would take him into the kitchen and let him help prepare and plate. E's first fancy grown up meal was at one of Annie's other restaurants, Bacchanalia, and that is when he learned that a cheese course beats a sweet desert. He is in his 20's now, and Annie gets a chunk of the credit for his now being an excellent cook. So this was a solid 3-star book until the ending made a 3.5 for completely personal reasons.

The majority of this book happens in Park Slope and the West Village/Tribeca. My obsessive love of my current hometown is usually what sells me on books, but not so here. Williams does a great sendup of Park Slope. With its woke educational options, $7,000 strollers and $12 vegan muffins with chickpea flour milled onsite it is easy to do. The problem is that no one reading this could possibly understand why anyone would want to live in PS. As it happens I did live there for five years, and there are many things to love, but Williams makes it sound really awful. As for the West Village, other than the wonder of James Baldwin's townhouse (which according to the book one can rent on Air B&B) and a scene in the Dream House in Tribeca that was pretty fun, there is not much to hold on to. That would be fine, but Williams spends a LOT of time describing place, setting the scenes with an unusual attention to detail, so a more balanced and more interesting approach would have been welcome. I want to hear more about the energy of the West Village and the beautiful sense of community in Park Slope and less about people's Ikea furniture and 5000 sq. ft. penthouses.

I also wanted to hear less about Eva's chronic migraine. It is a key factor in most everything that happens in the book so I am not suggesting erasure. I am just saying once you have described the migraines once you need not do so fully again (and again and again.) I know the whole invisible disability thing is important to Williams, and that the book is as much about loving oneself as one is as it is about the actual romance, but for me it got very old and made me not really want to return to reading. I say this as someone who had had debilitating migraines since I was 14 (not a fraction as severe as our heroine) and has spent days literally struck blind and racked with pain in every cell of my body. If it was too much migraine talk for me, I am guessing it was too much for most people.

I really liked the group of women friends Eva was a part of. These accomplished ivy and black ivy educated women were supportive of one another without question and supportive of black men and women coming up after them. They built their professional capital and then used it to help the next wave of black writers. I liked the way in which single parenting a precocious child was described (again, this felt familiar to me) and I liked Shane as a character very much. That said, I did not get a whole lot of chemistry between Shane and Eva. The magnetic attraction is discussed in detail and frequently, but I did not feel it. Also, Shane seemed just a little too desperate for Eva. I read a lot of romance, so I have a high tolerance level for obsessive adoration, but I have limits. It really bugged me that Eva was to have the goal of loving herself for herself and Shane was to have the goal of making himself worthy of Eva. For me that is just wrong.

There was a lot of fun to be had here, it is an enjoyable enough light read, but overall I do not get the hype and I will not be running to recommend this to others.

Tia Williams is an author that flew under my radar until last year’s soul destroying, all-encompassing Seven Days in June. I knew I had to get stuck into her backlist. The Perfect Find is a bit lighter, but still packs an emotional punch towards the end. It’s also a fun look into the world of fashion and media – oh, and with a hot romance too.

Jenna Jones has come back to New York after everything falling apart – her love life, job, apartment and well…everything. She’s ready to face the world again, but things are not what they used to be. She’s working for peanuts for a fashion website, with her nemesis at the helm and she’s living in a not-so-great apartment in Brooklyn. She still has her friends and it’s at an event where she meets a hot young man. Later, that younger man turns out to be her new colleague Eric who she has to shoot a series of videos for. It starts off awkward, turns angry but then Jenna and Eric are the best of friends with a heavy underlying chemistry. Eric is much younger than Jenna but comes with his own baggage (not to mention the different stage of his life – weed and video games). Do they try a relationship? Will they get sacrifice their own dreams to be together?

The Perfect Find is more than the romance, it’s about each character working through what they do and do want in their lives and how to get there. Jenna has had a hard time, and feels like she wasted her thirties on someone who wasn’t what she thought they were. She has to reassess her priorities to see if they would work in her current life and make the decision whether to ditch some things to get those. Eric is younger at 22, and although he’s pretty mature, Jenna is very conscious that he hasn’t lived outside being a student nor launched his career. This is one of the pair’s sticking points – what should or could they give up for a relationship? It’s quite detailed and their differences in life stages are highlighted in both the funny (a dinner party gone wrong with drugs) and the uncomfortable (a child’s costume party with Jenna being really awkward). Jenna isn’t a saint in this novel, she makes dumb decisions (like showing Eric off like he’s her child or trophy) and she is also a fan of yellow Skittles (which to me, are firmly in the average category). Likewise, Eric has his flaws – betting on video games and playing them for hours – but he’s also sweet, emotionally mature and very level-headed. He’s also honest and ready to stick up for Jenna, even if it means telling some home truths to his (revolting) mother.

I loved reading about Eric and Jenna’s video series on the perfect fashion find and I wish there had been more about it. It was nice to reminisce about 2012 celebrities and fashion, but it did date the book a little (probably anything pre-COVID is now dated, so it’s relatively minor). I hear The Perfect Find is soon to be a Netflix film with Gabrielle Union and Kevin Powers, which I am 100% here for.

Thank you to Hachette for the copy of this book, my review is honest.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com½

This book completely absorbed my attention. It is super well written and I was completely engaged in Eva's life and thoughts.

While overcoming their upbringings and circumstances you still experience that they are forever going to be dealing with it all.

Highly recommend while adding that there is some sex, language, drugs, drinking, self harm and all versions of the n word.

Seven Days in June is a second chance romance story that touches several difficult topics (e.g alcoholism, chronic pain, drug abuse, racism, difficult childhood)

“I remember that I’m not lonely. I’m alone. When I’m comatose from writing and mothering, when I’m hurting too badly to cook, talk, or smile, I curl up with ‘alone’ like a security blanket…Alone never gets disappointed by me.”

The book follows the story of Eva and Shane, who met 15 years ago at a difficult time in their lives, and meet again at litherary panel.
Both characters are damaged and broken and I found them exceptionally well written.

Pros:
- I liked all book characters
- I enjoyed the literary panel discussion, especially when it is mentioned that the publishing industry has a hard time processing Black characters unless they are suffering, as if other human feelings are denied to them. This feels very true and I think it can also be applied to movies.
- I enjoyed the love story and was completelly invested in the outcome.

"We're expected to write about trauma, opression, or slavery, because those are easily marketable Black tropes. Publishers struggle to see us having the same banal, funny, whimsical experiences that every human has"

Cons:
- The book includes several pop references with which I am not familiar with.
- I found the descriptions of clothing to be excessive, adding no value to the story.
- Personally, I dislike books that make characters suffer too much and unnecessarily. I would have preferred that, instead of the final conflict (which seemed forced and unlikely in this day and age), the story of Eva's family was explored in greater detail and with Shane by her side.

Litereary value: 3 stars
Entertainment value: 5 stars

I COULD NOT PUT THIS DOWN!

I loved every, single character. I loved the banter, the dynamics, the realness. I, too, suffer from chronic pain and migraines. It is really tough to manage and this book made me feel seen and understood.

So I get that this took me 3 months to read, and believe me when I say it's because 3 pages were pretty jam packed and satisfying to me. I thought the style was refreshing without being too much, and I could just feel the emotions - quite simply it was a book that made me feel all the things and a joy to read. It really, really worked for me on nearly every level.

*Audiobook*
I put this book on my list after I heard about it on a book review. Sadly, this book just didn’t do it for me. Eva is an author who writes erotica. Shane is also an author, now a teacher. They were madly in love for 7 days in high school and now 15 years later meet again, after trying to forget each other.
Their ‘madly in love’ phase was alcohol and drug-fueled while both teens were in incredible pain. Not the best way to build a solid foundation.
I did like Eva’s daughter’s character, but I wasn’t crazy about either Eva or Shane.
I am sure this isn’t a popular opinion, but I just don’t understand the hype around this book. Yes, it drew attention to migraines and drug / alcohol abuse, but I don’t think it did a great job exploring them.
I did like the ending.