A review by bookstolivewith
Alex and Eliza by Melissa de la Cruz
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Alex & Eliza, the first in a trilogy by Melissa de la Cruz, is a sweet and fun middle-grade read for the Hamilton fans in your life. It was actually inspired by de la Cruz’s daughter, who after seeing Hamilton the musical had a lot of questions about Eliza — her life, her relationships, her thoughts, etc.
Eliza is definitely the main character here, and it’s somewhat refreshing to read the story from her perspective since the musical is clearly dominated by Alex’s narration. This book also contains more historically accurate information as to their courtship, the war and all that jazz.
However, being historical doesn’t necessarily make it better. I think this book relies pretty heavily on the idea that you are intimately familiar with the musical, as there are a lot of jumps between points of view and time lines and there’s ton of references to Hamilton songs. So you get some depth but not enough, and you get some history but it’s presented in a jarring way that took me out of the overall love story — because that’s what the book is about at it’s core: their courtship.
Also, Angelica is kind of a bitch and not in like the fun way. She’s mean, and I’m not sure I love that — although I do love that she’s not flirting with Hamilton every 10 seconds, since de la Cruz took a different historical interpretation.
So while this was fun and light with a couple swoon-worthy moments (as any romance set during a time period of restraint necessitates), ultimately, I don’t feel the need to read the next two in the series. If anything, I’d get them from the library!
However these could be good holiday gifts to the middle grade readers in your life, as I think a lot of my “issues” with the book come from an adult perspective.
Eliza is definitely the main character here, and it’s somewhat refreshing to read the story from her perspective since the musical is clearly dominated by Alex’s narration. This book also contains more historically accurate information as to their courtship, the war and all that jazz.
However, being historical doesn’t necessarily make it better. I think this book relies pretty heavily on the idea that you are intimately familiar with the musical, as there are a lot of jumps between points of view and time lines and there’s ton of references to Hamilton songs. So you get some depth but not enough, and you get some history but it’s presented in a jarring way that took me out of the overall love story — because that’s what the book is about at it’s core: their courtship.
Also, Angelica is kind of a bitch and not in like the fun way. She’s mean, and I’m not sure I love that — although I do love that she’s not flirting with Hamilton every 10 seconds, since de la Cruz took a different historical interpretation.
So while this was fun and light with a couple swoon-worthy moments (as any romance set during a time period of restraint necessitates), ultimately, I don’t feel the need to read the next two in the series. If anything, I’d get them from the library!
However these could be good holiday gifts to the middle grade readers in your life, as I think a lot of my “issues” with the book come from an adult perspective.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault