by Nicai de Guzman

THE STORY

Is there life after having your heart destroyed? When ‘happily ever after’ crashes and burns? 

In the shadow of losing the love of his life, one man attempts to salvage his soul. He is Nigel Q. Bunnytail. Twenty-something, artistic warrior prince, and sex fiend par excellence. 
To accomplish this, he decides to leave behind the tainted trappings of his Philadelphia and his band of gifted friends, for the rustic charm of Spokane, Washington – and the white-haired therapist Sigrid Anderson, who can’t wait to either marry him or dissect him. 
Whichever. 

Mondo Bohemiano is a love and sex farce – sometimes funny, sometimes poignant – and maybe equally instructive on what to do as well as what to avoid. Read reviews: Goodreads

WHAT I LIKED

The author vividly describes the feelings each character goes through, including la douleur exquise or the exquisite pain of unrequited love. The thought processes and motivations of each character are fully fleshed out with each POV narrative, making them more believable and more relatable to readers.

The hipster or bohemian life in 90s Pennsylvania is also very detailed and exact—each quirk explored and their habits exposed. Throw in some witchcraft, simulated flight games, house parties, indie bands, art shows and monotonous yuppie life into the cauldron and you got yourself a book.

HOWEVER…

The abundance of details can also be confusing at times. The exposition introduced too many characters and revealed too much all at the same time. The reader may have to actively keep up with the pacing for the first few chapters but it eventually mellows down, with the narrative focusing on just one character’s experience and his or her back story one at a time.

The writing style can also be “telling” at some points, instead of “showing” to the readers, to describe what is happening.

And does everyone in Pennsylvania have a weird, hipster name?

tl;dr

In the foreword, the book warns its readers that it is  “the world’s worst adult bedtime story or the world’s greatest love story gone horribly, horribly wrong” and that may be debatable. It is incontestably an enjoyable read but it’s not exactly “great” or “horrible” in extremity. Overall it is your typical love story of a man who got caught up in growing up and finally conforming (or non-conforming) to the “real” world he tries so hard to escape. ☁

Bookbed received an ebook from the requesting author in exchange for an honest review. Read our Review Policy here.