Ari’s Aria: A Powerful Exploration of Love, Identity, and the Struggle to Fit In

 In a world where music and identity collide, Ari’s Aria invites you to discover what it truly means to find your voice—both on and off the stage.

Book provided by Nadine C. Keels
for honest review

Author: Nadine C. Keels

Genre: Historical Fiction, YA, Coming of Age

Trigger Warnings: None- Wholesome Book

Tropes: Self-Identity, Coming of Age, Clean romance, New Love, Interracial family, Self-love

Pace: Slow

Spice Level: 0 peppers

Page Count: 148 Kindle Edition

Format Consumed: E-book given by the Author

Seventeen-year-old Ari is still adjusting to life in West Hill, a tight-knit Black community where she stands out as the new, biracial girl. This summer, she hopes to join the neighborhood’s beloved annual pageant—even if it means being the only contestant who looks different. At the same time, Ari is dealing with a growing crush on a popular boy who only seems to see her as a friend. As she navigates first love, belonging, and self-acceptance, Ari must discover that being different might be exactly what makes her fit in. A nostalgic, heartfelt coming-of-age story inspired by classic “malt shop” books.

I did not think the third book would outshine Berta's Bounceback, as I enjoyed that one so much. How wrong I was because this one is now my new favorite malt shop story. The story was wholesome with a bit of romance to satisfy my romance sweet tooth. 

The characters in this book were well-developed throughout the story. It was nice to see how each character had struggles or flaws that they had to work through, and in the end, became better people. I liked Ari's journey of self-discovery during the time when an interracial family was taboo. I also liked how she became more and more comfortable with letting others know who her father was in terms of race as she developed new friendships. Bam was a really fun character, and I was happy to see he ended up with Ari in the end. I feel like he is the image of a boyfriend many girls would want for his understanding, emotional maturity, and kindness. 

The pacing of the book was on the slower side it but I still feel like the pace fit the storyline. The writing was well-developed, as seen in the other malt shop books. Nadine has a talent for writing young black characters that are relatable to anyone. I also think she did a wonderful job at making the story flow and develop evenly throughout the entire novel. 

I would recommend this book to any reader who is looking for a short read but something to satisfy the romance craving. I think this book does teach some valuable lessons that I find not to be too forceful, but more built into the story. I also feel like this would be good for younger readers who are looking to find a story that shares similar struggles. I think anyone will enjoy this book, and it will be the next inspirational series. 

“There’s no fear in love, you know.”

 (p. 73) Kindle Edition. 

“When you care about somebody and want to be with them, you can learn not to be scared.”

(p. 73). (Function) Kindle Edition. 

This book was the first book I read this year, and what a wonderful way to start my reading year off. I really enjoyed this novel as I was starting to get into a reading slump, but this kept me out of it. It did become a page-turner for me, even though it took a while to read (because I'm a slow reader). I hope to see another malt shop book come out in the series because I enjoyed this so much. I think these are books that I can reread over and over since they were so amazing. 

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Rating: 💫💫💫💫💫 (5/5+ stars)