Leo found a summer job at the Magnolia House Hotel to help ease the burden on his single mother. He thought it would be an easy job of sitting behind the reception desk reading books, but it turns out that the guests are a lot more interesting than at a regular hotel. And not only that, but it falls to him to stop a ruthless takeover that would see the hotel torn down and its unique guests left with nowhere to go.

I'm giving this one 3.5 stars mostly because I see the potential in it as a read for younger readers, but it doesn't work when you can't turn off the part of your brain that picks at plot holes. For example, Leo's mom is so overworked and tired that he gets a job to help her out, but then she has the chance to go out of town for several days at the drop of a hat? I consider real-world details like that important to ground a story that's magical realism. And I also recognize that most of the readers in the target age range won't notice them and will just enjoy the many adventures that Leo gets to go on in his quest to save the Magnolia House Hotel.

The narration by Diana Bustelo really brings the world to life with distinct voices and accents for each character. You can instantly tell who is speaking, which makes the moments when several characters were interacting easy to decipher and, honestly, quite impressive.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for that chance to listen!

Leo And The Crazy Genre Hotel is a fun, creative book of hope, perseverance, and the power of books and all the places they could take you. The concept is wonderful - I love it for a younger YA read, and the writing gets you. I love that the author added Latin roots with language, food, and some heritage into the book. Overall, I thought the concept was magnificent, however, the execution wasn't quite it. The story felt like it needed a little more, and whenever we seemed to get that "more," it just never seemed to fit quite right.
I think this is a great book, and it is one that I wouldn't mind buying for my kids, but it just wouldn't be my favorite.
Thank you NetGalley and Tsvi Jolles for this ARC.

This book had so much depth and heart. I was blown away by how universally applicable this story was. It has adventure for kids and kids at heart, whimsy, and literary references. The story deals with deep emotions that we all deal with while highlighting how unique those experiences and emotions are. It was just an amazing experience.
The narrator did an amazing job. He brought a number of characters to life with a unique voice and brought the feeling of their language and culture feel authentic.