This is a new author to me. Marta Acosta is interesting in that much of this book refers to the notion of reading books and book styles throughout the book. I found this interesting because I mention some of the stylings when I talk about the books I read from time to time.
Along that line, I would class this Happy Hour as a nice easy read (or as Marta would say a “Summer Read”). The character development is simple and not very deep but what is there is fun and engaging. The plot is simple and moves along and though it has some predictability to it, is fun to get to the next step.
The heroine in the story is Milagro de Los Santos (“Mil” to all her friends which is nearly everyone). She is a simple hispanic girl who has good higher education in creative writing. She is very friendly and yet has a tough time holding down more traditional jobs. She is very adept with gardening and hopeful with her writing. She has some part time jobs as a reading consultants (for well to do folks who don’t want to belong to book clubs) and at a nursery. Aside from that, she is apparently gorgeous and exudes sex though she doesn’t see it.
The story gets interesting at a party where Mil meets Oswald. Oswald starts off being an eccentric character but evolves quickly into something more. Something close to a vampire. Mil get’s entangled into Oswald’s family and some intrigue with a mysterious organization which is run by an ex-beau from college, Sebastian.
The most interesting characters are Oswald, Mil, and Edna (Oswald’s grandmother). None of theme are extraordinarily deep but they are fun and interesting. Like I said it’s a fun easy read.