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Bay Area Blues #1
Layover
Lena Ward is an unhappy travel blogger with a less than 24 hour layover in her hometown. She spends the day with Tony Dembélé, a podcaster she's been flirting with for a few months online. In their brief time together Lena confronts some hard truths about her life and her past and the two test the waters of their connection.
This is a short story with a sweet and satisfying happy for now ending.
This is a short story with a sweet and satisfying happy for now ending.
99 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 8, 2018
51 people are currently reading
337 people want to read
About the author
Katrina Jackson
56 books730 followersKatrina is a seasoned spinster with an active imagination, a love of romcoms and a keenly critical nature. She's a college professor by day who writes romances by...weekend. Right now she also happens to be on summer vacation. She enjoys yogurt, sparkling water and her three cats, who don't appreciate her love.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews
November 26, 2021
By turns fresh and nostalgic, “Layover” by Katrina Jackson is a powerhouse of a novella. At 124 pages, the author skillfully takes readers on an emotional journey highlighting music, friendship, grief, healing, self-discovery, new love, family, and creativity.
Lena Ward is a travel blogger/vlogger and playlist music maker who feels like she has lost her creative passion.
The traveling she’d done for herself and blogged about had been for the pure pleasure of seeing, experiencing and sharing. But now it was just work.
I adore Lena’s passion for music and creating playlists. After reading this story, I was on a road trip, playing my own playlist from years ago. Just like Lena, the collection of songs I put on immediately took me back to a different time and brought back a slew of memories. I felt such kinship to Lena because of her music passions.
Tony Dembélé hosts a weekly podcast interviewing Black creatives and reviewing Black art. He is an absolute sweetheart, and his affection for Lena is heartwarming. Looking at Lena through Tony’s eyes is like standing inside a bakery and smelling all the warm and yummy scents--pure comfort. Plus, Tony is Muslim, and I appreciated seeing this inclusion in a romance novel.
It was fun watching these two connect on social media. Sometimes it felt so real reading about all their social media antics that I almost tried following their accounts in real life!
Lena has a lot of soul searching to do in this story, and there are some difficult moments for her. Seeing her loving connection with her friend and with her sister was both cheery and heartbreaking. I am in awe at the author’s ability to pack so much emotion and character growth into a such a short(ish) story. This is truly a gem.
CW: deceased parent
Read via KU.
I loved this beautiful story and highly recommend it!
Lena Ward is a travel blogger/vlogger and playlist music maker who feels like she has lost her creative passion.
The traveling she’d done for herself and blogged about had been for the pure pleasure of seeing, experiencing and sharing. But now it was just work.
I adore Lena’s passion for music and creating playlists. After reading this story, I was on a road trip, playing my own playlist from years ago. Just like Lena, the collection of songs I put on immediately took me back to a different time and brought back a slew of memories. I felt such kinship to Lena because of her music passions.
Tony Dembélé hosts a weekly podcast interviewing Black creatives and reviewing Black art. He is an absolute sweetheart, and his affection for Lena is heartwarming. Looking at Lena through Tony’s eyes is like standing inside a bakery and smelling all the warm and yummy scents--pure comfort. Plus, Tony is Muslim, and I appreciated seeing this inclusion in a romance novel.
It was fun watching these two connect on social media. Sometimes it felt so real reading about all their social media antics that I almost tried following their accounts in real life!
Lena has a lot of soul searching to do in this story, and there are some difficult moments for her. Seeing her loving connection with her friend and with her sister was both cheery and heartbreaking. I am in awe at the author’s ability to pack so much emotion and character growth into a such a short(ish) story. This is truly a gem.
CW: deceased parent
Read via KU.
I loved this beautiful story and highly recommend it!
October 23, 2024
4.5 stars
What a great novella! And that ending?! So good!
What a great novella! And that ending?! So good!
November 12, 2019
This was a perfect novella. Lena is a travel blogger and Tony is a podcaster. The glimpses into their respective careers were fascinating, especially since I’m a long-time blogger who would never want to do it full-time. Lena has been using travel so she won’t have to process her mom’s death two years prior but coming back home for a layover shifts things for her in ways she did not anticipate and I loved how this was handled.
Music plays a great role in the story, pun intended. I also loved how the Oakland/East Bay setting factored in and what it meant to them. Tony is one of the swooniest heroes I've encountered in a while and the ending was so wonderful, I actually teared up.
Representation: heroine is Black, hero is Senagalese American and Muslim
CW: death of parent (heart attack), grief, side character announces pregnancy
Music plays a great role in the story, pun intended. I also loved how the Oakland/East Bay setting factored in and what it meant to them. Tony is one of the swooniest heroes I've encountered in a while and the ending was so wonderful, I actually teared up.
Representation: heroine is Black, hero is Senagalese American and Muslim
CW: death of parent (heart attack), grief, side character announces pregnancy
June 24, 2023
This one was short, but very sweet. Lena is at a cross roads in her life and during her layover she has a revelation that helps her determine what is next in her life. While her revelation happens Tony is there for Lena and their short time spent together, helps ground her and gives her something to come back for. Loved the ending and the surprise Lena had.
July 4, 2018
FREE on Amazon.
This book is so short but the story wrapped up so nicely, I love it. I love books that made me feel. I love that music was integral in the story (Lena made playlists for basically everything), and I love the connection between Tony and Lena. Also, Tony's a Muslim (!!!) which is cool, but I had to force myself to forget that fact during the sex scene I mean Astaghfirullah ya akhi you don't drink but you have sex outside marriage??? lololol but that's just a me thing, it's no big deal.
Might need to check out this author's other works later.
This book is so short but the story wrapped up so nicely, I love it. I love books that made me feel. I love that music was integral in the story (Lena made playlists for basically everything), and I love the connection between Tony and Lena. Also, Tony's a Muslim (!!!) which is cool, but I had to force myself to forget that fact during the sex scene I mean Astaghfirullah ya akhi you don't drink but you have sex outside marriage??? lololol but that's just a me thing, it's no big deal.
Might need to check out this author's other works later.
tbr-own-this
March 17, 2020Currently FREE on Amazon 03/17/2020
April 10, 2021
I liked this! It felt remarkably complete for a novella, which is not how I always feel, but I did want a little bit more. Really liked the characters professions and hustle, I feel like I don't see enough romances where it feels like they're truly of the moment. Podcast host and travel blogger do a lot to get you there.
July 18, 2018
This book is such a perfect story balancing so many great things. Will come back with a better review.
May 25, 2023
3.5 stars
Thought it would be fun to read this book on a seven hour layover after a 12 hour flight, but I think my brain was too fried to fully appreciate what Jackson is putting down. The book fits its pages, gives the MCs more depth than you would expect from 100 pages, and takes us some lovely places.
Content notes:
Thought it would be fun to read this book on a seven hour layover after a 12 hour flight, but I think my brain was too fried to fully appreciate what Jackson is putting down. The book fits its pages, gives the MCs more depth than you would expect from 100 pages, and takes us some lovely places.
Content notes:
September 12, 2018
AMAZING!!!
OMG, I do not have the words to describe how much I loved this book! I have no idea how I found it, but I'm so glad that I did! Despite the fact that this book is short, the author doesn't skimp on anything; the storyline and character development are so on point.
I absolutely loved Lena and Tony. She was such an interesting character a and I loved how she turned her passion for traveling into a full-time gig. I wanted to know everything about her, but knowing that the book was short, I assumed we wouldn't get to learn much. How wrong I was! We learned the why's who's and how's that made Lena...Lena.
As a person who lost their mother as a young adult, the feelings and emotions that the author described were so vivid and real. I was on the subway while I was reading the scene with the sisters at the cemetery and it almost had me doing the ugly cry, lol.
Tony was absolute perfection. I fell in love with him immediately. He was so smitten, and a little vulnerable, but in the best possible way.
Social media can be a mess, but I loved how these two used it to establish their careers, and to create a connection. So cute how their respective audiences were rooting for them.
Don't miss this book. I'm pretty sure you'll love it!
OMG, I do not have the words to describe how much I loved this book! I have no idea how I found it, but I'm so glad that I did! Despite the fact that this book is short, the author doesn't skimp on anything; the storyline and character development are so on point.
I absolutely loved Lena and Tony. She was such an interesting character a and I loved how she turned her passion for traveling into a full-time gig. I wanted to know everything about her, but knowing that the book was short, I assumed we wouldn't get to learn much. How wrong I was! We learned the why's who's and how's that made Lena...Lena.
As a person who lost their mother as a young adult, the feelings and emotions that the author described were so vivid and real. I was on the subway while I was reading the scene with the sisters at the cemetery and it almost had me doing the ugly cry, lol.
Tony was absolute perfection. I fell in love with him immediately. He was so smitten, and a little vulnerable, but in the best possible way.
Social media can be a mess, but I loved how these two used it to establish their careers, and to create a connection. So cute how their respective audiences were rooting for them.
Don't miss this book. I'm pretty sure you'll love it!
June 13, 2019
This was short, but the author managed to pack in a lot of feels! I found so much of this really refreshing, especially in that it felt really current with the protagonists being black creatives doing podcasting and travel blogging for a living. I LOVED the role of music in this--I honestly stopped reading so many times just to hop on Spotify and listen to songs I haven't heard in forever--and I loved the descriptions of Oakland and how this explored what "home" means to Lena.
Lena and Tony have only met once, briefly, but have been flirting online for months. Tony is really smitten, and ugh, I'm such a sucker for this!! He invites her over to do a podcast collab AND BUYS HER FAVORITE DRINK THAT HE HAD TO DRIVE WAY THE HELL OUT OF THE WAY TO BUY excuse me that is just adorable! They have great chemistry but also great conversations. I really enjoyed some of the storytelling choices made here, like rendering transcripts in place of dialogue. And the grief arc with Lena coming to terms with her mother's death was really well done. My only "complaint" is that this story wasn't LONGER because there was so much to explore and I loved these characters so much.
Lena and Tony have only met once, briefly, but have been flirting online for months. Tony is really smitten, and ugh, I'm such a sucker for this!! He invites her over to do a podcast collab AND BUYS HER FAVORITE DRINK THAT HE HAD TO DRIVE WAY THE HELL OUT OF THE WAY TO BUY excuse me that is just adorable! They have great chemistry but also great conversations. I really enjoyed some of the storytelling choices made here, like rendering transcripts in place of dialogue. And the grief arc with Lena coming to terms with her mother's death was really well done. My only "complaint" is that this story wasn't LONGER because there was so much to explore and I loved these characters so much.
July 5, 2024
This was a masterclass in character development. This author does so much in such a short page count that it left me wanting so much more. The title says it all, the fmc is a travel blogger and has a layover in her hometown. She connects with a podcaster she briefly met at an event a year before. He has been smitten ever since and set up an interview for his podcast. When they meet up, sparks fly but she's not ready for more. There was so much packed here that it's hard to do it justice but the author almost pulled it off. I just thought the HEA was too tentative. Great fast read.
CW: grief, loss of a parent (past)
CW: grief, loss of a parent (past)
March 24, 2020
A tightly written novella, about a podcaster and an influential travel blogger meeting for a one-night stand during a 19 hour layover between flights. I needed it as a palate cleanser after the intensity of Pansies by Alexis Hall and it did the trick perfectly. It’s got great rhythm, mild angst, and plays with forms in interesting ways, being partly told through music playlists, DM threads and podcast transcripts. Recommended.
dnf
December 9, 2020dnf dec 2020 @ 30%
not feeling this one at all
not feeling this one at all
March 30, 2020
Fun read!
Excellent intro into Katrina’s work! This story was the book candy I needed! I’ve got like 3 more of her novellas in the cue.
Excellent intro into Katrina’s work! This story was the book candy I needed! I’ve got like 3 more of her novellas in the cue.
April 20, 2020
OMG this book...just...why did i take so long to read this beautiful book???? How did Katrina pack so much emotion into this novella? I don't know but i adored Tony and Lena. Tony is so cute and sweet and his nervousness at meeting Lena, again face to face, was just *clutches chest*
Them together was perfection. THAT ENDING ! (i cry)
I also loved the entire concept of Lena's playlist. that nostalgia was real. When Lena was going through her memories via those songs? I felt that. Music can teleport you back to so many different moments and emotions and those just really shone through in this.
This was a gorgeously written novella.
Them together was perfection. THAT ENDING ! (i cry)
I also loved the entire concept of Lena's playlist. that nostalgia was real. When Lena was going through her memories via those songs? I felt that. Music can teleport you back to so many different moments and emotions and those just really shone through in this.
This was a gorgeously written novella.
July 23, 2024
Katrina Jackson is my favorite contemporary romance author so it's no surprise I think she writes some of the best novellas. Travel, sexual tension, music, grief - all things Jackson beautifully writes are all here.
December 5, 2019
Yessss
This was such a layered story! This novella covered friendship, family, grief, community, and of course sexy romance. I loved Lena's character as a travel blogger. I thought it was really great to see a Black female character in a career dominated by others. But then extending the field with the magazine. It felt full circle.
The way Jackson talks about grief as an ongoing process was so cathartic. The loss of a parent, that pain never goes away. I loved the flashbacks too, it was a nod to the things we remember most about the loved ones. Oh and the sister dynamic yeah felt so realistic. Lisa had her own family so Lena assumed she had to grieve on her own. Sounds so familiar. Then there's Aiya!!! We all need an Aiya in our lives e.g. gives us the space we need to do our own thing but provides consistency to come back. Loved.
Then there was Kwame and Tony. I love seeing healthy Black male characters. The way the were described was refreshing and gave me hope for an irl duo.
I think this must be my favorite novella from Jackson. It was the right amount of sass, wholesomeness, edge, and of course sex. As I was reading it I was imagining an episode of Insecure.
This book is a solid 4.75, the only take away was some of the passive tense writing which is just a me thing. I'm sure it was intentional to match the speaking cadence of the characters I just prefer writing that's more direct. Other than that tiny inconvenience I loved it and would recommend to everyone.
This was such a layered story! This novella covered friendship, family, grief, community, and of course sexy romance. I loved Lena's character as a travel blogger. I thought it was really great to see a Black female character in a career dominated by others. But then extending the field with the magazine. It felt full circle.
The way Jackson talks about grief as an ongoing process was so cathartic. The loss of a parent, that pain never goes away. I loved the flashbacks too, it was a nod to the things we remember most about the loved ones. Oh and the sister dynamic yeah felt so realistic. Lisa had her own family so Lena assumed she had to grieve on her own. Sounds so familiar. Then there's Aiya!!! We all need an Aiya in our lives e.g. gives us the space we need to do our own thing but provides consistency to come back. Loved.
Then there was Kwame and Tony. I love seeing healthy Black male characters. The way the were described was refreshing and gave me hope for an irl duo.
I think this must be my favorite novella from Jackson. It was the right amount of sass, wholesomeness, edge, and of course sex. As I was reading it I was imagining an episode of Insecure.
This book is a solid 4.75, the only take away was some of the passive tense writing which is just a me thing. I'm sure it was intentional to match the speaking cadence of the characters I just prefer writing that's more direct. Other than that tiny inconvenience I loved it and would recommend to everyone.
September 16, 2019
A short, but filled with emotion novella.
While I would have loved a little bit more from the story, what I got was unexpected and even beautiful.
I loved the meet-cute between Lena and Tony. I enjoyed how social media was played between them and how their flirting online was sort of not known, but in person, it was FIRE.
What I didn’t expect was how dreamy Tony was. Very much a man who is respectful and allowed to be a guy, but have his feelings.
Then there is Lena. How I connected with her was unexpected. How parts of my life really resonated with hers. A loss, a connection, a void. Whew, it really got me. In a way it made me understood the break and the feelings around it.
I loved the Oakland references. The meanings of songs in the playlists. It was just a fluttery read. Definitely enjoyed this.
While I would have loved a little bit more from the story, what I got was unexpected and even beautiful.
I loved the meet-cute between Lena and Tony. I enjoyed how social media was played between them and how their flirting online was sort of not known, but in person, it was FIRE.
What I didn’t expect was how dreamy Tony was. Very much a man who is respectful and allowed to be a guy, but have his feelings.
Then there is Lena. How I connected with her was unexpected. How parts of my life really resonated with hers. A loss, a connection, a void. Whew, it really got me. In a way it made me understood the break and the feelings around it.
I loved the Oakland references. The meanings of songs in the playlists. It was just a fluttery read. Definitely enjoyed this.
February 6, 2020
i should just change my goodreads name to 'should have written the review immediately after finishing the book instead of 2 months later', but that's like, really long. so.
yeah, i don't remember a whole lot about this book because see above. but i remember liking it well enough, just not absolutely loving it. good job kristen, great review, very helpful.
yeah, i don't remember a whole lot about this book because see above. but i remember liking it well enough, just not absolutely loving it. good job kristen, great review, very helpful.
December 9, 2022
I reviewed Layover and Back in the Day together:
I’m always frustrated with my own inadequacies when I try to describe why you should be reading Katrina Jackson’s books. Good authors have a voice and that voice brings the reader into their story and characters in a way that is unique to them. Jackson’s voice put me into her characters and worlds in a way that is very her and so satisfying.
One of Jackson’s primary concerns is the interior life of her main characters, usually the woman at the center of the story. The romance, the love interest, friends, family, and the job are all there in relation to her wants and feelings. In centering the interior life, Jackson gives us novellas that are layered with a whole rainbow of emotions. She does this in action packed books, and books that are vibes, not plots. Because I am immersed in the interior life, I care about her characters whether they are a betrayed bride starting something with a mafia hitman, a professor on the edge of burnout, or travel blogger trying to figure out what’s next.
Layover and Back in the Day are the gorgeous Bay Area Blues series. They are standalones, but connected by location, Oakland, California, and as Black romances, mixing grief, music, and love. As with Sabbatical, the interior lives of Lena and Tony are the lens through which we see their romance. Lena has been running away from grief. Tony has been pining for Lena. Individually, they are each remarkable people, and Jackson gives us a glimpse of who they might be with each other. I loved Lena’s relationships with her best friend and her sister, and Tony’s relationship with his best friend.
One of my favorite romance bloggers, Charlotte at Close Reading Romance, has given a passage in Layover her close reading treatment. I highly recommend giving it a read, because she is much better at the text analysis than I could ever hope to be.
I think my thesis about the importance of a woman’s interior life holds for Back in the Day, even though we never get inside Ada’s head. We only see Ada through the eyes of her husband, Alonzo, and her son, Amir. From the moment we see Alonzo meet Ada, he wants to understand her moods, make her smile and laugh, and be in her company. Alonzo is at the biggest professional opportunity of his life so far, the Monterey International Pop Festival, and his focus becomes Ada, the photographer assigned to take pictures for his story.
Back in the Day stretches the boundaries of the romance genre. For some people it may be a stretch too far, for me it was not, because the romantic relationship was still central and the HEA happened. Jackson isn’t trying to subvert those genre conventions, she is exploring them from a slightly different angle. The romance between Ada and Alonzo is told in retrospect 5 years after her death as Alonzo and Amir are packing up the house they raised their family in. Alonzo and Ada had their happily ever after – happily married for the rest of Ada’s life and successfully raised two kids to adulthood. Not that marriage and children are required for a happily ever after. Jackson shows us the evidence of their happy life through the memories her family and community share, through the ugly dolls and photographs she left behind.
So, why do I make an angry face when Nicholas Sparks gets mentioned as a romance writer, but not Katrina Jackson? In my opinion Sparks’ writing is manipulation not grounded in truth. He’s looking to rip tears out of the reader without genuine connection. Jackson is invested in the interior life of the character and how the reader responds to that is about the reader. The point of Sparks’ books is reader reaction. The point of Jackson’s story is an exploration of love.
It kills me that more people aren’t reading Katrina Jackson. I think she is a genius and one of the most entertaining writers in the genre. Do yourself a favor and pick up one of her books. None of them are a lot of money and several of them are in Kindle Unlimited.
I’m always frustrated with my own inadequacies when I try to describe why you should be reading Katrina Jackson’s books. Good authors have a voice and that voice brings the reader into their story and characters in a way that is unique to them. Jackson’s voice put me into her characters and worlds in a way that is very her and so satisfying.
One of Jackson’s primary concerns is the interior life of her main characters, usually the woman at the center of the story. The romance, the love interest, friends, family, and the job are all there in relation to her wants and feelings. In centering the interior life, Jackson gives us novellas that are layered with a whole rainbow of emotions. She does this in action packed books, and books that are vibes, not plots. Because I am immersed in the interior life, I care about her characters whether they are a betrayed bride starting something with a mafia hitman, a professor on the edge of burnout, or travel blogger trying to figure out what’s next.
Layover and Back in the Day are the gorgeous Bay Area Blues series. They are standalones, but connected by location, Oakland, California, and as Black romances, mixing grief, music, and love. As with Sabbatical, the interior lives of Lena and Tony are the lens through which we see their romance. Lena has been running away from grief. Tony has been pining for Lena. Individually, they are each remarkable people, and Jackson gives us a glimpse of who they might be with each other. I loved Lena’s relationships with her best friend and her sister, and Tony’s relationship with his best friend.
One of my favorite romance bloggers, Charlotte at Close Reading Romance, has given a passage in Layover her close reading treatment. I highly recommend giving it a read, because she is much better at the text analysis than I could ever hope to be.
I think my thesis about the importance of a woman’s interior life holds for Back in the Day, even though we never get inside Ada’s head. We only see Ada through the eyes of her husband, Alonzo, and her son, Amir. From the moment we see Alonzo meet Ada, he wants to understand her moods, make her smile and laugh, and be in her company. Alonzo is at the biggest professional opportunity of his life so far, the Monterey International Pop Festival, and his focus becomes Ada, the photographer assigned to take pictures for his story.
Back in the Day stretches the boundaries of the romance genre. For some people it may be a stretch too far, for me it was not, because the romantic relationship was still central and the HEA happened. Jackson isn’t trying to subvert those genre conventions, she is exploring them from a slightly different angle. The romance between Ada and Alonzo is told in retrospect 5 years after her death as Alonzo and Amir are packing up the house they raised their family in. Alonzo and Ada had their happily ever after – happily married for the rest of Ada’s life and successfully raised two kids to adulthood. Not that marriage and children are required for a happily ever after. Jackson shows us the evidence of their happy life through the memories her family and community share, through the ugly dolls and photographs she left behind.
So, why do I make an angry face when Nicholas Sparks gets mentioned as a romance writer, but not Katrina Jackson? In my opinion Sparks’ writing is manipulation not grounded in truth. He’s looking to rip tears out of the reader without genuine connection. Jackson is invested in the interior life of the character and how the reader responds to that is about the reader. The point of Sparks’ books is reader reaction. The point of Jackson’s story is an exploration of love.
It kills me that more people aren’t reading Katrina Jackson. I think she is a genius and one of the most entertaining writers in the genre. Do yourself a favor and pick up one of her books. None of them are a lot of money and several of them are in Kindle Unlimited.
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July 24, 2024The Smut Report team is participating in Wendy the Super Librarian's #TBRChallenge 2024. Our goal: to dust off our TBRs once a month and talk about the book we read.
Read our full TBR Challenge update at The Smut Report
This is a lovely story about a woman, who, when she comes face to face with the possibility of love, is jolted into making some changes in her life. One might argue that it leans a little bit women’s fic-y, as Lena is the only one who undergoes growth (or really, about whom we learn much of anything with emotional heft), but there’s enough sparkling chemistry in the interactions between Lena and Tony that when I finished, I had that zing of hopeful optimism coursing through me.
In addition, for a very short book—I read it in an hour—there is a lot of emotional heft. The big one is Lena grieving her mother, but we also see her relationships with her best friend and sister, in addition to the love story. Yet it doesn’t feel overcrowded or that any of these relationships are underdeveloped.
Part of the way Jackson is able to fit so much into such a small space is by using songs. Lena builds playlists for places she goes and people she knows, so there’s always music in the background—either literally playing aloud or as a soundtrack in her mind. The references to specific songs help set the tone for every interaction. Sometimes I find references to songs distracting or irritating or unrealistic for the characters, but in this case they really worked.
Anyways, I really enjoyed this book. Perfect romance snack.
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Read our full TBR Challenge update at The Smut Report
This is a lovely story about a woman, who, when she comes face to face with the possibility of love, is jolted into making some changes in her life. One might argue that it leans a little bit women’s fic-y, as Lena is the only one who undergoes growth (or really, about whom we learn much of anything with emotional heft), but there’s enough sparkling chemistry in the interactions between Lena and Tony that when I finished, I had that zing of hopeful optimism coursing through me.
In addition, for a very short book—I read it in an hour—there is a lot of emotional heft. The big one is Lena grieving her mother, but we also see her relationships with her best friend and sister, in addition to the love story. Yet it doesn’t feel overcrowded or that any of these relationships are underdeveloped.
Part of the way Jackson is able to fit so much into such a small space is by using songs. Lena builds playlists for places she goes and people she knows, so there’s always music in the background—either literally playing aloud or as a soundtrack in her mind. The references to specific songs help set the tone for every interaction. Sometimes I find references to songs distracting or irritating or unrealistic for the characters, but in this case they really worked.
Anyways, I really enjoyed this book. Perfect romance snack.
Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
March 27, 2020
𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗔𝗟𝗟 𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: 4.5/5 STARS
𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: Lena , Tony
𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗧 𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: N/A
𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗔𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗦: I’m on a Black Love™ kick and this falls right into that category. This was a very modern story with a well to do Black travel blogger and Black podcaster. It doesn't get any more modern than that. I love how their friends were appeared in the background and they weren't isolated from the rest of the world despite it being a short read. This book does tackle grief and a bit of gentrification in a spot on relevant manner. Lena, our heroine, has meshed her love for music and travel together and built a brand out of it.
I appreciate a Black romance that isn't afraid to be is unapologetically Black and not present American Blackness as a monolithic. Also, I know very little about Black Californians and it was nice to get a glisp into their world.
It‘s a solid novella that gives us a happy for now ending. It received 4.5 /5, because there's a bit of temporary ghosting that annoyed me with the character, but it was realistic givne her personality.I will definitely be rereading this story in the future.Tony and Leno had out of this world chemistry that made me want to know more about their futures together.
𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣𝗦: Lena and Tony
𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗢𝗥: Anyone who wants fluffy romance with a love for travel and Black creatives.
𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: Lena , Tony
𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗧 𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: N/A
𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗔𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗦: I’m on a Black Love™ kick and this falls right into that category. This was a very modern story with a well to do Black travel blogger and Black podcaster. It doesn't get any more modern than that. I love how their friends were appeared in the background and they weren't isolated from the rest of the world despite it being a short read. This book does tackle grief and a bit of gentrification in a spot on relevant manner. Lena, our heroine, has meshed her love for music and travel together and built a brand out of it.
I appreciate a Black romance that isn't afraid to be is unapologetically Black and not present American Blackness as a monolithic. Also, I know very little about Black Californians and it was nice to get a glisp into their world.
It‘s a solid novella that gives us a happy for now ending. It received 4.5 /5, because there's a bit of temporary ghosting that annoyed me with the character, but it was realistic givne her personality.I will definitely be rereading this story in the future.Tony and Leno had out of this world chemistry that made me want to know more about their futures together.
𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣𝗦: Lena and Tony
𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗢𝗥: Anyone who wants fluffy romance with a love for travel and Black creatives.
May 9, 2020
Lena, a travel blogger and music aficionado, finds herself back in her hometown - one she has been avoiding for years - to record a podcast with Tony, the cute guy she has been flirting with on social meeting ever since their first encounter at a conference. Her return home, and brief dalliance with Tony, has forced her to tackle head on some deep buried thoughts and feelings and reevaluate what she wants in life.
I entered into reading “Layover” knowing that this was a novella. Not a problem as that was exactly what I wanted. Although short, there were so many important themes explored and felt pretty relatable. I just was left feeling “meh” at the end of it, I think primarily due to some pacing issues and the romance aspect taking a backseat.
With all that’s going on in the world right now I have been craving really fluff stories and this didn’t quite fulfill that. I honestly think this is not a reflection of the book, but more so timing on my end. If I read this at another point in time, perhaps it would’ve been rated higher.
I enjoy the author’s writing and look forward to going though the her backlist.
I entered into reading “Layover” knowing that this was a novella. Not a problem as that was exactly what I wanted. Although short, there were so many important themes explored and felt pretty relatable. I just was left feeling “meh” at the end of it, I think primarily due to some pacing issues and the romance aspect taking a backseat.
With all that’s going on in the world right now I have been craving really fluff stories and this didn’t quite fulfill that. I honestly think this is not a reflection of the book, but more so timing on my end. If I read this at another point in time, perhaps it would’ve been rated higher.
I enjoy the author’s writing and look forward to going though the her backlist.
May 22, 2018
Emotional short centered around music
I loved this story! It’s more emotion than steamy compared to other books by this author I’ve read, and it worked really well. Music and friends are the largest themes in the story, and the ways they connect. I loved seeing Lena and Aiya and how they support each other, as well as all the ways they have maintained their friendship over the years. I found the friendship between Tony and Kwame entertaining, but there were also great moments of softness between them.
Katrina Jackson is quickly becoming a favorite author, and this story did not disappoint. So much emotion packed in, and still get steam between Lena and Tony~ Definitely a recommendable book~
Content notes:
📼 blog post comment with #triggered; read it as a joke
📼 death of mother (heart attack), grief
📼 menstration, first period, boy making first comment, embarrassment, stained shorts
📼 casual ableism
📼 on page sex - cunniligus, fellatio, fingering, piv
📼 pregnancy (side character)
📼 mention of naked baby picture that Mom pulls out
I loved this story! It’s more emotion than steamy compared to other books by this author I’ve read, and it worked really well. Music and friends are the largest themes in the story, and the ways they connect. I loved seeing Lena and Aiya and how they support each other, as well as all the ways they have maintained their friendship over the years. I found the friendship between Tony and Kwame entertaining, but there were also great moments of softness between them.
Katrina Jackson is quickly becoming a favorite author, and this story did not disappoint. So much emotion packed in, and still get steam between Lena and Tony~ Definitely a recommendable book~
Content notes:
📼 blog post comment with #triggered; read it as a joke
📼 death of mother (heart attack), grief
📼 menstration, first period, boy making first comment, embarrassment, stained shorts
📼 casual ableism
📼 on page sex - cunniligus, fellatio, fingering, piv
📼 pregnancy (side character)
📼 mention of naked baby picture that Mom pulls out
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 24, 2019
I picked this up after Alyssa Cole recommended it in a video. Then I saw novella and then I remembered, Alyssa recommended it. This book was 124 pages of pure enjoyment. It actually is a quick read, but I am reading several books and decided to read it just before bed. And I am glad I did it.
Lena is a travel blogger ( an music enthusiast who creates banging playlists on Spotify) who doesn't have a permanent residency in her hometown since her mother passed away and Tony is a podcaster on the come up. Both are well respected in the social media world with a great following. Their online flirting leads to Tony asking Lena to be a guest on his podcast and you can actually feel the sparks between these two.
This story made me remember what it felt like to fall in love again. You tend to forget when you have been in a relationship for a long time. You know those first love feels...butterflies in the stomach, every love song reminds you of him and may I add another song to the playlist "Ready for Love" by India Arie.
I will definitely check out another book by Katrina Jackson.
Lena is a travel blogger ( an music enthusiast who creates banging playlists on Spotify) who doesn't have a permanent residency in her hometown since her mother passed away and Tony is a podcaster on the come up. Both are well respected in the social media world with a great following. Their online flirting leads to Tony asking Lena to be a guest on his podcast and you can actually feel the sparks between these two.
This story made me remember what it felt like to fall in love again. You tend to forget when you have been in a relationship for a long time. You know those first love feels...butterflies in the stomach, every love song reminds you of him and may I add another song to the playlist "Ready for Love" by India Arie.
I will definitely check out another book by Katrina Jackson.
April 12, 2020
Checked my list, and say wha?? Only my second romance read for this year?? I chose well, though - or rather, @inwardfangirl on Twitter rec'd well! Thank you! Podcaster (who is Muslim, btw) and travel blogger in a kind of slow burn romance and LDR, which is just my thing, lol. The sweet and the humor and the steam are all in a perfect balance, and if this isn't going straight to my fave reads of 2020, then what kind of happy-ending/happy-for-now fan am I, really. CW for death of a parent
Everything I read in 2020 here :)
Everything I read in 2020 here :)
June 23, 2020
Just What I Needed
So, this book was not on my TBR. I snagged it a few weeks back and it was just sitting there. I picked up my Kindle to read and just couldn't — my mind just wasn't in a place for what I was supposed to be reading. I clicked the Kindle app on my phone (something I don't do because, like, notifications and distractions right?) and was going to just look at some pretty covers and add to my list, but then I thought, let me give this a shot.
My God, this book was everything I needed and was right on time.
This book gave me so many emotions. I laughed, I sighed, I shed a tear or two, I grinned in satisfaction. To say I feel refreshed after reading this is an understatement. I was taken in by this story and I'm grateful to Ms. Jackson for taking me on this journey.
Highly recommended for a quick fulfilling romance.
🤎 Chelsea.
So, this book was not on my TBR. I snagged it a few weeks back and it was just sitting there. I picked up my Kindle to read and just couldn't — my mind just wasn't in a place for what I was supposed to be reading. I clicked the Kindle app on my phone (something I don't do because, like, notifications and distractions right?) and was going to just look at some pretty covers and add to my list, but then I thought, let me give this a shot.
My God, this book was everything I needed and was right on time.
This book gave me so many emotions. I laughed, I sighed, I shed a tear or two, I grinned in satisfaction. To say I feel refreshed after reading this is an understatement. I was taken in by this story and I'm grateful to Ms. Jackson for taking me on this journey.
Highly recommended for a quick fulfilling romance.
🤎 Chelsea.
July 10, 2021
In Layover, Katrina Jackson curates the best connection.
This story centers a travel blogger interviewing about her globetrotting adventures from her estranged homebase. The most beautiful irony is that she's been searching for something she never had to leave to find. This story is vulnerable, powerful; it is inclusive, thoughtful, authentic.
This book is layered- the prose is at once subtle and descriptive, the characters are well-developed, the romance is smoldering. This book is a musical mood board with nods to your favorite back-in-the-day jams. This is a story of exploration- finding and connecting pieces both hidden from and lost to ourselves.
Between reads, take a layover and check out this beautiful novel by Katrina Jackson- you'll be happy you did it and mad when you're through. Seriously- I'm upset the book is done.
5 Stars. 5 Hearts. One Love.
This story centers a travel blogger interviewing about her globetrotting adventures from her estranged homebase. The most beautiful irony is that she's been searching for something she never had to leave to find. This story is vulnerable, powerful; it is inclusive, thoughtful, authentic.
This book is layered- the prose is at once subtle and descriptive, the characters are well-developed, the romance is smoldering. This book is a musical mood board with nods to your favorite back-in-the-day jams. This is a story of exploration- finding and connecting pieces both hidden from and lost to ourselves.
Between reads, take a layover and check out this beautiful novel by Katrina Jackson- you'll be happy you did it and mad when you're through. Seriously- I'm upset the book is done.
5 Stars. 5 Hearts. One Love.
April 22, 2020
"What's your favorite 90's R&B song," Lena asked Tony because at some point in the drive from 90th Avenue, to her favorite hood burrito shop in East Oakland and back to his apartment she'd decided that she was absolutely going to have sex with him, but his taste in music could still change her mind.
Oh the joy of finding a new author who can handle the challenging format that is the Romance Novella! This was SO good! To quote Tony: "Wow Wow Wow."
Their jobs (travel blogger and podcaster) played a big role and I really liked how authentic that whole aspect felt. There's also so much conveyed about the heroine's relationships with her friend and her sister in very few pages. There's even a Grand Romantic Gesture (very aww). And of course all the playlists.
Oh the joy of finding a new author who can handle the challenging format that is the Romance Novella! This was SO good! To quote Tony: "Wow Wow Wow."
Their jobs (travel blogger and podcaster) played a big role and I really liked how authentic that whole aspect felt. There's also so much conveyed about the heroine's relationships with her friend and her sister in very few pages. There's even a Grand Romantic Gesture (very aww). And of course all the playlists.
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