From the Publisher
Inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion, Dass interweaves the allure of the source material with the warm tropical winds and scents of Tobago. Readers, even those unfamiliar with Austen’s work, will appreciate this cast of characters with believable motivations and fleshed-out ideas as they realize what they want and embrace second chances for love and for new adventures.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“What a delightful debut! It’s like the perfect island vacation: breezy, warm, romantic, lots of soul searching, and full to the brim with love.” — Jasmine Guillory, New York Times bestselling author
"Where the Rhythm Takes You is a literary breath of fresh air! An Austen remix filled with a vibrant cast of characters against the lush backdrop of the small island of Tobago, readers will root for Reyna as she navigates grief, dreams big, and falls in love all to the tune of sweet soca rhythms." — Ibi Zoboi, New York Times Bestselling Author of Pride
“Reyna’s voice rings clearly from the very first page, painting a beautiful and heart-wrenching picture full of grief, hope, and love. Readers will root Reyna on through it all, wishing for a future for her that’s just as beautiful as Tobago. Where the Rhythm Takes You sparkles brightly like the Caribbean Sea. Get ready to dive in!” — Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite, authors of One of the Good Ones
“A love story with classic beats and a unique rhythm.” — Kirkus Reviews
Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite
Reyna’s voice rings clearly from the very first page, painting a beautiful and heart-wrenching picture full of grief, hope, and love. Readers will root Reyna on through it all, wishing for a future for her that’s just as beautiful as Tobago. Where the Rhythm Takes You sparkles brightly like the Caribbean Sea. Get ready to dive in!
Ibi Zoboi
"Where the Rhythm Takes You is a literary breath of fresh air! An Austen remix filled with a vibrant cast of characters against the lush backdrop of the small island of Tobago, readers will root for Reyna as she navigates grief, dreams big, and falls in love all to the tune of sweet soca rhythms."
Jasmine Guillory
What a delightful debut! It’s like the perfect island vacation: breezy, warm, romantic, lots of soul searching, and full to the brim with love.
Kirkus Reviews
2021-03-13
Reyna still has feelings for the hometown boy who left to become a global pop phenom—but now he’s back staying at her family’s hotel and nothing will ever be the same.
When Reyna’s Mummy got sick more than two years ago and passed, the Plumeria Hotel became a lovely yet suffocating weight atop Reyna and her future. Now 17 and without much help from her relatively carefree father, Reyna essentially runs the hotel, leaving no time for her friends, her art, or boys. But Aiden isn’t just any boy; he’s the Grammy-winning songwriter for the soca EDM trio DJ Bacchanal, and he has only gotten cuter in the years since he left Reyna and Tobago for life in the States. When Aiden, his band mates, and their glamorous friends book the luxury villa at the Plumeria, Reyna’s relentless focus on work won’t be able to protect her from potentially being hurt again. Dass uses flashbacks to build dramatic tension in the story as readers see past relationships develop and present ones frayed by the sense that Reyna’s future is both limited and lonely. Jane Austen fans will enjoy this reimagining of Persuasion while some readers may be frustrated by the will-they-won’t-they element. Reyna communicates and narrates with an earnest and relatable amount of self-doubt and a propensity to deny obvious truths. Most main characters are Afro-Caribbean.
A love story with classic beats and a unique rhythm. (playlist) (Fiction. 13-18)
