And Then They Fell in Rome is a novel structured as a compiled case report following a group of college friends called the Troubadours (Juan, Brian, Freddy, Jan, and Charlie) across a decade of love, loss, and self-discovery. In 2021, the friends are visited by a mysterious supernatural woman known as "the Stranger" (or "La Bruja"), who claims a "cosmic virus" threatens one of them and overlays herself into their memories to observe their lives.
The novel unfolds in interconnected "Books," each centered on a different Troubadour and the women who shaped them: Juan's fateful romance with Diana in Rome. Brian's creative ambitions tied to a woman he calls CorazĂłn. Freddy and Katelyn's entwined careers and dreamlike love story. Jan's spiritual searching through connections with Sally and Vivian. And Charlie and Brooke's journey toward marriage in Italy.
The narrative weaves through Paris, Casablanca, New York, Peru, and always back to Rome, blending cinematic references, spirituality, and magical realism. And regarding the Stranger, there's a final revelation (which I won't spoil...).
And Then They Fell in Rome is a novel structured as a compiled case report following a group of college friends called the Troubadours (Juan, Brian, Freddy, Jan, and Charlie) across a decade of love, loss, and self-discovery. In 2021, the friends are visited by a mysterious supernatural woman known as "the Stranger" (or "La Bruja"), who claims a "cosmic virus" threatens one of them and overlays herself into their memories to observe their lives.
The novel unfolds in interconnected "Books," each centered on a different Troubadour and the women who shaped them: Juan's fateful romance with Diana in Rome. Brian's creative ambitions tied to a woman he calls CorazĂłn. Freddy and Katelyn's entwined careers and dreamlike love story. Jan's spiritual searching through connections with Sally and Vivian. And Charlie and Brooke's journey toward marriage in Italy.
The narrative weaves through Paris, Casablanca, New York, Peru, and always back to Rome, blending cinematic references, spirituality, and magical realism. And regarding the Stranger, there's a final revelation (which I won't spoil...).
Year: 2021
New England, Fall 2021. An empty space. No bigger than a typical college classroom of thirty. Hints of sunlight leaked in from the few windows that covered the walls of this warehouse-like location. Two fluorescent bulbs on the ceiling, connected at the seams, did most of the work. One by one, the Troubadours arrived. Freddy Bustamante, five-foot-seven with unnatural blond hair that faded at the sides, was the first one. He sat on a folding chair in the middle of the room. Jan Luis Larose, heavy-bearded at the neck with evidence of weight loss, arrived shortly after. He sat next to Freddy.
âSup, loser,â Freddy said. âItâs been a while. Too long.â They shook hands, like bros.
âLast time we saw each other,â Jan started, âwas it right after spring break, 2018? Senior year? How was Rome?â
âYeah. It was fun. Charlie ditched us near the end, off to Portofino, then came back, and Juan fell in love with some girl I think, but it was all right. You shouldâve come.â
âJuan Fernandez fell in love?â Jan said, unconvinced. âOur Juan?â
âYup. Diana, I think her name was. Believe me, Iâm still trying to figure it out.â
A few minutes later Charlie Costa entered the room. His black jeans were paired with the yellow-and-green Neymar jersey he often sported. Brian Verdugo came in next, on him the ZARA combinations that paired well with his standard buzzcut. Brian sat next to Jan. Charlie next to Brian.
âWhatâs with the seat formation?â Charlie said. âI feel like weâre in AA.â
Brian smirked. âUs? A bunch of alcoholics sitting in a circle?
Seems accurate.â
They all laughed. Finally, the infamous Juan Fernandez arrived. He was taller than the others, just by a smidge, with a face that screamed telenovela and a motor jacket that sat well over his chiseled physique. He sat next to Charlie.
âOkay,â Juan blurted, âwhich one of you pendejosâ genius idea was this?â He then looked around the room.
âOur dearest friend, Juan,â Jan said, with sarcasm, âthis is an intervention. It seems you have fallen in love? Is this true?â
They all started laughing again.
Juan just shook his head. âBut seriously, though, why the fuck are we all here? And whose seat is this?â
There was still one empty seat left among the group. No one knew what was going on.
âAlright,â Juan continued. âSince no one is talking Iâm just going to leave.â
âWait.â Brian faced the group. âCome on guys, we didnât drive out here for nothing. We are all here, so whatâs the deal?â
Then, out of the blue, the ceiling lights turned off. For a moment, not even the leaking sunlight showed its colors. It was pitch-black.
âDid you do this?â Charlieâs gaze was on Freddy. âWhy are you asking me?â
Then the light returned. All of them. The empty seat was now taken. A dark-haired woman, brunette, wearing an all-black suit, now sat with the Troubadours. The Stranger.
âHello, boys.â
Startled, they almost fell out of their seats.
âHow did you justâŚâ Brianâs face screamed fear. âLa bruja,â Juan whispered.
The Stranger only smiled. âDonât be afraid. Iâm not a witch, no. I have been called that before, though.â
Jan squinted his eyes. âWhatever, who are you?â
The Stranger then looked around the room, eyeing every Troubadour. âIâm a friend. An observer of your most personal experiences. Through the âlady of your storybooksâ in some cases. I believe you coined that term, Jan Luis. Iâve been there since the beginning.â She looked at Jan again. âThe very beginning.â
Jan didnât know what that meant.
âWhat kind of bullshit is this?â Charlie blurted.
The Stranger relaxed on her seat, leaning back with two chair legs in the air, inches from the floor, as if gravity would ignore
the expectation of falling. âYou donât believe me,â she then said. âOkay, how about now.â And she snapped her fingers.
In an instant each Troubadourâs eyes dilated, static sounds ringing in their ears. Reality drew back, as if entering what they could only describe as a dream, or a memory that was not a memoryâor rather, an experience that had not yet happened. A memory of the future. Brian was back in Casablanca, in Morocco, with his CorazĂłn. But then the scene changed: he now was somewhere else, a beach, had wrinkles in his face, with someone else, flipping pages on a photobook. Freddy was shaking hands with someone of authority, in white clothing, royalâthat was the feelingâyet couldnât see who it was. It all happened in milliseconds. With another âsnap!â they were back. The Troubadours were paralyzed, figuratively. Their faces of pure âWhat the fuck.â
âBoys, do you believe now? Iâve been there from the start, planting myself in situations throughout the course of your lives. To learn.â
âThat was a memory; Casablanca, 2019,â Brian said. âYes.â
âBut the restâŚâ Brian followed, shaken a bit, âI donât remember any of that.â
âNot yet,â the Stranger confirmed. âConsider it a preview.â Juan turned to Jan. âBro, what did you see?â
Jan pondered for a second. âMetal on concrete,â he said. âAnd the smell of coffee, and exhaust. Felt so real. You?â
âI saw you. A road, house⌠We were just chilling. In Texas?
Felt peaceful.â
Freddy nudged Charlie. âWhat did you see?â
âIt was weird, honestly.â Charlie shook his head. âCheese, pepperoni, crackers, Aperol Spritz⌠and Brad Pitt.â
The Stranger laughed. âWe all have ways of interpreting our memories. Ainât that right Frat-boy Freddy?â
Freddyâs eyes opened wide. âWait. What happened with Maddy⌠on Halloween, all those years agoâŚâ
âYes, Ishtar, queen of Venus, blah blah blah. Not a fan, may I add. But yeah, I was there. I experienced that, through your friend Maddy Adams.â
âSo, every interaction, those people, was really you?â Brian asked.
âNo,â the Stranger replied, cryptic in tone. âDiana Mansouri, Brooke Cavalieri, Gianna, even James Calhoun. Experiences, Mr. Verdugo.â
âYou just expect us to believe this?â Jan wasnât fully buying it, his rationale landing more on shared hypnosis. âSpitting out names like a phone book, like some kind of casting call. What are you trying to prove with any of this?â
âSally.â That was all the Stranger had to say.
A sudden cold sting raced through Janâs spine, like the sound of the hard press of a minor keystroke. âHow do you know that nameâŚâ
âI was curious as to why you didnât go to Rome in 2018 with the rest of the Troubadours, Jan Luis. TroubadoursâI always
found that word funny⌠You didnât go to Rome because you wanted to spend time with her. With Sally.â
âYes, I made that clear with the boys.â
âRight,â the Stranger said. âTroubadours, thereâs a reason why you are here. Thereâs a reason why I planted myself in the sandlot of your experiences. Despite what your college textbooks say, us cosmic beings donât just fool around in human affairs for the fun of it. I mean, sometimes we do, but not this time. Not me.â
The Stranger now stood up and pointed her finger straight at Jan. âJan Luis Larose has been compromised. On a cosmic level⌠because of me. Not too long from now, an old college hook-up buddy will come back into Janâs life. Vivian.â
âThe Vivian we both hooked up with?â Juan whispered, looking at Jan.
Freddy shook his head. âYâall hooked up with the same person? The fuck? A Troubadour threesome?â
âDude,â Jan clarified, ânot at the same time. She and I hooked up⌠from time to time during senior year.â
âSure, Jan.â Freddy moved his hands in air-quotes. âFrom time to time.â
The Stranger continued. âVivian Arjona and Jan will vacation to Peru together three years from now, but I will use that moment in time to learn, through Vivian. With the goal of understanding Janâs love toward Sally. However, my search for knowledge came with consequences. Yâsee, something will happen in that Peruvian jungle that brings their souls together, for a short stint. In my exploration, I inadvertently observed Jan
and Vivianâs experiences, concurrently. In other words, two POVs at the same time. That's not supposed to happen. I fucked upâbig time.â
The guys just pondered, some with hands over their faces.
And still, Jan wasnât fully convinced anything the Stranger was saying was real. He broke the silence. âThis is ridiculous.â
The Stranger looked at Jan again, this time seated upright, with all legs of her chair on the ground. âI didnât want to do this, but you leave me no choice now.â
All the guys, startled, âWhatâs that supposed to mean?â Again, she said, âDo not be afraid.â But this time, as she spoke,
the Stranger transformed into an indescribable manifestation, fear-inducing and grand, with wings, fire, and colors fringing around its body, like light hitting crystal, a being straight out of a verse from the Book of Ezekiel.
The Troubadours sat terrified, at levels incomputable. Eyes wide, they clenched their fists as if endearing the most petrifying roller coaster ride of their lives. Just as quickly, the Stranger reverted to her human form. The boysâ terrible fear gradually resided. It took them a minute to land. But now, they believed.
âGround control to Major TomâŚâ A slight grin formed on the Strangerâs face as she uttered those words. âSorry, I had to.â
âThis is fucking crazy, man!â Brianâs cinematic mind was on overdrive.
Jan turned to the Stranger. âOkay. Keep going.â
âDiana, Brooke, Maddy, Vivian, I experienced their experiences,â the Stranger explained. âCall it an overlay; a hidden,
invisible observer. I never replaced those people. These people were real before me, are real now, and will be real after me. I only wandered along their moments to learn more about you. But even angels make mistakes.â
Charlie chimed in, hands in his pockets, still wrapping his head around the whole situation. âJan is compromised. On a cosmic level? Why are you telling us this? And Brooke⌠My BrookeâŚâ Charlie was lost for words. His girlfriend was now in the middle of this.
âYes, Carlinhos,â the Stranger said. She then winked at him. âYou are doing it right, friend. Keep it up. Itâs worth the wait. Charlie and Brooke, HEA.â
Charlie didnât quite understand.
Freddyâs mind, on the other side of the circle, only ruminated on one specific person: a woman named Katelyn OâNeill. Among the many names that carried history with the Troubadours, the Stranger hadnât mentioned Katelyn whatsoever. She caught hold of this, and with a sudden smile, signaled to Freddy that Katelyn was all right. Donât worry, Freddy, weâve only just begun; this is all part of the story. Your arc is gorgeous⌠Donât forget.
Juan interrupted. âDonât tell me Jan is like the savior of the universe, and we need to go back in time or forward in time and stop something from happening so that the future, or the past, or the present, or whatever, can be saved? âCause if anyone should be that itâs definitely me. I came up with the name Troubadours, damn it.â
âNo, Juan Fernandez. A Savior already came. Iâve got bigger problems, more personal problemsâŚâ
âWhat is it then?â Jan asked.
The Stranger faced him. âIn a way, you⌠have a part of me.â The boys, still confused, all said, âWhat???â
Freddy scratched his head, his attention on Jan now. âYou can fucking do whatever the fuck she just did, and you didnât tell us? Thatâs some fucked up shit, Jan.â
âNo, he canât,â the Stranger confirmed. âLook, Troubadours, when I did what I did to Jan in the futureâor when I do, from your perspectiveâthrough Vivian, I left a little bit of me behind. I didnât know that would happen. That moment Jan and Vivian shared, or will share, is a glimpse into a cosmic plane your minds canât fully comprehend. My intrusion under those circumstances caused a disruption; letâs call it a virus. A retroactive virus that infects through space and time. Consequences of my curiosity. Two souls became one for a short speck of time and I didnât account for that.â
âSo, Iâm sick?â Jan asked,
âYes. But more specifically, what you are is dying.â
Confusion, concern, all the worries in the world, spread across all the Troubadour's faces.
âWell, how do we fix it, bruja?â Anger carried Juanâs words.
The Stranger eyed Jan. âWith Love, thatâs how. Jan Luis, try to fall in love again. As much as you did when you fell for Sally. You see, my intent was to unravel that love, through Vivianâs
experience with you; to learn why that love for Sally persisted. That same intent will save your life.â
Jan sighed. âLoveâŚâ
âYou keep sticking to Jan,â Juan said. âDid Vivian also get
infected?â
âNo. My intent was to experience her experience, not Janâs. He was only the subject of my curiosity, of my experiment, not the instrument. While I can overlay Jan, or any of you, it wonât teach me anything. But since I never intended to overlay him in the first place, well, shit happened.â
The Troubadours were trying to understand.
âGuys,â explained the Stranger, âI donât replace human beings. I only walk alongside them, through their eyes. Ever heard of âtreat others how youâd like to be treated?â Iâve dug my way through each one of you through the way you treat other people. To use some film terms, by overlaying myself over the supporting characters of your experiencesâgoing along for the ride per se, as a passengerâIâve learned more about you through their lens than by cosplaying as the protagonists of your stories. But back to whatâs at stakeâŚâ
âFalling in love again, I know,â Jan said. âI have a hard time accepting thatâs ever going to happen.â
âYou see,â Brian added, âJan is what Juan calls a Shakespearean fuckboy.â
âIâm sorry,â Juan said. âHe learned that from me.â
âI like to have fun, sure,â Jan admitted, tone somber, âbut Iâve been single for so long, rejected by my muses, Iâm certain the
Architect of the universe doesnât want to grant me a happy ending. No love for Jan.â
Lament consumed the Stranger; she felt for him. âThatâs not true, Jan. Itâs hard, I know, but you must persist.â
Charlie then interrupted. âI feel for you, Jan, but that still doesnât explain why La Bruja over here decided to play theater with our experiences.â He was furious, it felt like an overstep; a boundary crossed without consent. âBruja, why so curious?â
âIt was an experiment. My experiment. Iâm a sucker for love; itâs the Creatorâs essence rooting within you. I wanted to see if in the face of true love your hearts would fall. Even Juan Fernandez. I saw some bumps along the road, but indeed, there is a happy ending.â
Jan shrugged off the sermon as pure guilt banter, but now a curious undertoneâa grain of faithâwas forming in his heart. A cosmic being is the one saying this shit after all. Maybe it was always there, but at this moment he believed more in his sensational âcosmic virusââdeath a la cinemaâthan the outcome of love fulfilling, of love knocking at his door.
Freddy jumped in. âSeems easy enough. Jan, go back to your old ways, and boom! Better yet, Bruja, why canât you just stop yourself from doing what you did to Jan in the future? You are a cosmic being after all. Your words, not mine.â
âUnfortunately, it doesnât work like that,â she admitted, now taking the nickname of La Bruja as a souvenir from her Troubadour crusade. âEverything thatâs already happened cannot
be changed. I may operate outside space and time, but even I am limited to my own linear perspective. Your future is my past.â
âThen whatâs the point of altering the present if everything is already set in stone?â Juan asked.
La Bruja sighed, brushing both hands over her hair. After another sigh, âYou know, I once heard a preacher say: âThe present is the only time when time touches eternity.â It was a beautiful sermon.â She then looked at Jan, with a smile. âIt doesnât hurt to try. Have some faith.â
Jan, confused, âWait a minute, you are saying this is just a theory? A god just comes down from the sky, tells me it infected me with certain death, and then says that time cannot be changed, yet has the balls to say that maybe, just maybe if I fall in loveâwhich is not an easy thing to do, might I addâthat I will magically be cured⌠Bruja, I want to speak with Jesus.â
She laughed. âNow thatâs Truth. Letâs not open that door, just yet. Truly, truly, thatâll be the end of the world, but moving onâŚâ
That truly confused the guys; all said nothing.
She continued. âLook, Troubadours, I donât have to help you, but I too, like you, feel guilt. I hate this feeling. I want to make it right. Brian, Charlie, Freddy, Juan, youâve all shown me that thereâs love in your hearts, if you just choose to let it in. I need you to help Jan find that same spark. That same flame. My intentions have left a crack in Janâs soul. Those same intentions could maybe save his life, if he chooses and allows himself to fall in love again. As a token of appreciation, Iâll give you a promise.â
âAnd whatâs that?â Freddy said, making a mental note of everything.
La Bruja smiled, her arms crossed. âIâll make you forget me, all of this, this conversation, as if I never existed.â She looked at Charlie before turning to the rest of the boys. âYou and your Brooke, everybody else, they will stay in your memories. Not copies. Remember, they are real people. I never replaced them. Youâll forget meâall of meânot them. Just help Jan not die because of me.â
âHow would that happen, exactly? The dying part. Just curious,â Jan said.
âI donât know. I suppose youâd cease to exist. Like my promise to you all, no one would remember you. Not now, future, or past. Never. But thatâs just me thinking out loud.â
âWell, fuck,â the Troubadours said.
Juan, then, intrigued, âSo you can erase peopleâs memories? Can you also bring them back?â His mind was on Diana, 2018.
âNo,â La Bruja said. âOnly memories where Iâm involved, in the nowâin the flesh, like this moment. Help Jan and thisâright nowânever happened. That terrible fear you felt earlier: no recollection. Again, as if this conversation never even happened.â Juan shook his head. âThatâs⌠a feeling I never want to feel ever again.â He turned to the boys. âGuys, how do we even start
this? Mission Objective: Find Jan a girlfriend.â
âRome,â Charlie suggested. âJan got his cold heart from you, and you met Diana in Rome.â
âThe kiss in the rain, who could it be?â La Bruja said, with a cheeky inflection. âWhere Juan Fernandez found the One.â
Juan rolled his eyes. The rest of the guys had grins on their faces.
Charlie continued. âYeah. Thereâs an aura to that city I just canât explain. Rome: If it worked once, it could work again.â
âYeah, I agree,â Brian said. Freddy nodded. âMe too.â
âThat sounds like a plan,â La Bruja said. âThe start of one, at least.â
âOne last question,â Jan blurted. âIf we succeed, I donât cease to exist and then forget everything concerning you, as if we never met, and everything just flows, just without us knowing you, then how do we know if we even succeeded?â
âYouâll know, Jan Luis.â She winked. The smile of an angel came next. âSome things transcend memory.â
Freddy turned to Jan. âWell, loser, seems like you are going to Rome after all. Itâs a matter of love or death.â
Spoilers: C.L. Rosario's novel And Then They Fell in Rome, is a powerful Magical Realism Contemporary Fantasy book that says a lot about love, romance, fate, coincidence, synchronicity, and maturity. Mostly it's a book about the importance of friendship between men. A novel that is largely concerned about romance is told primarily from the points of view of a group of male friends, a circular bromance if you will.
A group of friends called the Troubadours meet up in 2021. They are Freddy Bustamante, Juan Fernandez, Charlie Costa, Brian Verdugo, and Jan Luis Larose and are reuniting for the first time since their Senior year in college three years prior. In the middle of their drinks, laughter, and reminisces, a woman appears. She is called âLa Brujaâ (âThe Witchâ) or âThe Stranger.â She says that she had been following them for some time, entered the minds, and took the forms of people that they met.
La Bruja has a challenge for the guys. One of them, Jan Luis, was âcompromised on a cosmic levelâ and is in danger of dying young. The only cure is love. The other Troubadours need to help him find love. To make things even more complicated, La Bruja removes the memories of their conversation from The Troubadoursâs minds. So they know that they have to help Jan Luis but not how or why.
The book is rich with moments of magical realism with more emphasis on the realism than the magic with the exception of the appearance of La Bruja who comes straight from the latter. Her presence is reminiscent of Latin American novels that fit the magical realism subgenre. She is a mythical and legendary creature in a real world setting. The guys are talking about everyday things in a commonplace setting then BAM, she appears and moves things in a different direction.
Most of the book focuses on situations that can be magical, mundane, coincidental, or from a more cynical perspective contrived. When the characters, except Jan Luis, go to Rome, a series of serendipitous moments lead them to the right people at the right time. After one relationship is threatened, one of the Troubadours encounters another woman who is connected to his previous lover.
Conversations and encounters are told through multiple perspectives so we don't realize that characters are supposed to meet and fall in love until it happens. Going down the right street, visiting the right cafe, and looking up at the right time leads to a meeting with the love of a lifetime. Even Jan Luisâs later trip to Rome seems to be fated to occur at that specific moment in time.
Similar to works like One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez and The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende, La Bruja 's presence is tied to the real world conflicts concerning the characters. However the two books merge magic with politics, war, colonization, authoritarianism, and other global issues.
The focus of And Then They Fell in Rome is exclusively on personal friendships, romantic attachments, and the interactions between men and women. Romance in and of itself can be considered magical with people looking and acting like the best versions of themselves to attract and enchant someone else. Sexual and emotional attachments are often described in fantastic ways (âShe enchanted me.â âHe's so charming.â âI am drawn to your presence.â)
Even the ideas of creating lasting relationships, finding compatibility, and finding that perfect partnership are actions that often resist being analyzed and quantified because there are always exceptions, variables, emotional experiences and situations leading to other potential outcomes. So this book just injects literal potential magic where figurative magic already existed to give a slight nudge to the characters.
Speaking of characters, this book has some well written multifaceted characters. While La Bruja is my personal favorite, the Troubadours and their love interests convey richness and complexity.
The Troubadours are a group that doesn't play on conventional male stereotypes when guys get together. They aren't looking to drink, party, have wild and crazy adventures, and score as many hot willing babes as possible. They are ready to enter the next stages of their lives, as professionals, committed boyfriends, potential husbands, and maybe someday fathers. They aren't looking for one night stands. They are looking for a lifetime.
The complexities of modern relationships are shown through the Troubadoursâs romantic experiences as they look for their potential partners. Juan goes through three separate romances before he realizes that he let his jealous assumptions interfere with what could have been a great relationship. One woman leads him to face his regrets so he can change his future.
Cinephile Brian keeps comparing his love life to favorite films and hopes to find the leading lady in his life. He is faced with the reality that real people don't act according to a script. They need to be recognized for their frailties, flaws, and insecurities, not his fantasy projections of them.
Former frat boy Freddy is caught between two women: Maddy who represents his lost wayward wild youth and Katelyn who offers a chance at adulthood, maturity, realization, and authenticity. He also has a previous close association with La Bruja and is the only one who remembers her conversation with them and sees the truth that no one else does.
Charlie is tempted to cheat on his girlfriend with unexpected results. This encounter forces him to confront his own thoughts about fidelity, desires, commitment, and adulthood.
What about Jan Luis, the central focus of these romantic journeys? His past of an unhappy childhood with separated parents and a previous break up of his own have made him reluctant to seek or accept love. He is in danger of closing himself off emotionally and achieving fulfillment only in dreams and fantasies.
The love interest characters are just as brilliantly written. These are characters with their own stories, identities, and agencies. They aren't there solely to fulfill the Troubadoursâs romantic desires but are meant to stand toe to toe in equal footing with them. The relationships happen because the characters work on improving themselves as individuals before they become coupled.
While the romance and magical realism are important aspects of the story, by far the central relationship is not between the Troubadours and their significant others. It is among the Troubadours themselves.
These are five friends, who are brothers in heart and spirit. The conflict of helping Jan Luis find love becomes a catalyst that leads to their own conflicts and questions. They would be unable to evolve without each other. It's easy to recognize that these men deserve romantic love when we see that they are capable of maintaining a filial love. They are there for each other through university, work, romance, and marriage. Chances are their future kids will have not only loving fathers but four honorary uncles that will protect them with their lives.
It's also a kind of brotherly love that inspires change in each other. They aren't afraid to give one another advice or criticism to say exactly what they did wrong and how they can be better people. It is among the best bromances that I have read in recent novels. They aren't just there for each other in good times but bad as well.
And Then They Fell in Rome is a book that is magical, realistic, romantic, and bromantic.