Soon by You is a romance in which two people who think they are completely wrong for each other, find out they are completely right for each other. After many years of writing YA romance, Dalia Adler is bringing the questioning of self into the firmly adult romance world. I enjoyed this so much.
I am not a reader who needs to self insert into a book to enjoy it. I love reading characters whose lives are wildly different from my own, and yet we share some common experiences. Ari and Judah a members of the New York City’s Modern Orthodox Jewish community. Ari is a bit of an outsider with her job writing erotic romance. Judah is a community celebrity – a wedding singer and musician. Both of them are at that uncomfortable part of adulthood when everyone is getting married and they are not. Ari isn’t sure she wants to, and Judah hasn’t met a woman that he is attracted to. I don’t remember if it’s named specifically, but Judah is clearly somewhere on the aromantic/asexual spectrum. This is a journey I am very familiar with, and I empathized with his frustrations on not being able to form a romantic connection the ways his peers have.
When Ari and Judah are together, they are explosive, first with the fighting and then with the kissing. For Judah, Ari is his first kiss, his first everything. Even with their explosive chemistry, a relationship between them seems unlikely in part because Ari doesn’t want to get married and because they are at such oposite ends of the spectrum within their community. One of the themes of the book is choosing to be a part of a community that doesn’t fully embrace you. Ari experiences misogyny and slut shaming because she’s more interested in making out than being proper, and Judah has to come to terms with the ways he chooses not to fully embrace the rules of his community.
Soon by You is lovely, funny, and emotional. There’s a rich vein of sadness (complimentary) that thrums through the story. It’s a sadness we all encounter as we settle into adulthood. The sadness of life not going exactly the way we planned, the sadness of the loss that comes with even positive change, the grief that comes when you realize you haven’t been the person you want to be. That everyday grief drives Ari and Judah to take risks with each other, and makes it sweeter when they do decided to hold on.
One of the things I ask myself when reading a reconciliation scene in a romance is – was that a grovel, or was that an acknowledgement of privilege in hierarchical system of oppression? Yes, I am fun at parties. Judah struggles with the slut-shaming and misogyny directed at Ari (this is not unique to the culture of Modern Orthodox Judaism). He never participates in it, but that isn’t enough. He has to fully embrace that things about her that challenge the norm are the things about her that he loves.
I received this as an advance reader copy from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley. My opinions are my own, freely and honestly given.
