Café Con Lychee
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4.7 • 3 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
From the author of Meet Cute Diary comes a delectable rom-com that’s brimming with zest and a sprinkle of sweetness. A must-read for fans of Casey McQuiston and Julian Winters.
Theo Mori and Gabriel Moreno have always been at odds. Their parents own rival businesses—an Asian American café and a Puerto Rican bakery—and Gabi’s lack of coordination has cost their soccer team too many games to count.
Stuck in the closet and scared to pursue his own dreams, Gabi sees his family’s shop as his future. Stuck under the weight of his parents’ expectations, Theo’s best shot at leaving Vermont means first ensuring his parents’ livelihood is secure.
So when a new fusion café threatens both shops, Theo and Gabi realize an unfortunate truth—they can only achieve their goals by working together to cook up an underground snack operation and win back their customers. But can they put aside their differences long enough to save their parents’ shops, or will the new feelings between them boil over?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
When their respective small-town Vermont family restaurants are threatened by a new establishment, two 16-year-olds must set aside their lifelong rivalry in this buoyant romance by Lee (Meet-Cute Diary). Openly gay Theo Mori's family runs an Asian American café; closeted Gabriel Moreno's parents own a Puerto Rican bakery. The boys have always been at odds—reserved Theo swears that popular athlete Gabi "was born to thwart me at every turn"—and their families' competing establishments fuel the duo's fierce opposition. The grand opening of a new fusion café puts their respective stores at risk, and the teens, desperate to save their parents' businesses, come up with an idea to increase their revenues and bump up publicity by covertly selling and delivering bakery items at school. After an injury affects Theo's ability to work, Gabi steps in to help, but he's quickly overwhelmed trying to juggle his and Theo's secret operation, as well as school and work responsibilities, his parents' expectations, and his blossoming feelings for Theo. Inconsistent character development occasionally muddles an otherwise touching and humorously told portrayal of intersections of culture, race, and sexuality, told through the lens of an inviting Romeo and Juliet–esque feud. Ages 13–up.
