Paradiso presents a collection of poems about love, loss, and healing.

The book’s first section, “thunder,” uses a storm metaphor to describe a tumultuous relationship’s end, while the second, “daisy,” explores the speaker’s emotional growth following that painful experience. In the opening poem, “passing storm,” Paradiso describes a love that shakes the speaker awake, lights up her eyes, and opens her up to love; then the energy shifts, and lies and games tarnish the relationship. In the aftermath of the failed romance, the speaker in “running” wonders if starting over in a new city would provide relief, writing, “i’ll fill my head with different thoughts / there won’t be the promises you whispered / your touch / or other precious things that can’t be bought.” The pitfalls of technology in modern relationships are the foci of “virtual disconnect,” in which texts, photographs, and screens keep love interests at a distance. The speaker laments that her ex preferred to be alone with their fantasies rather than reciprocate affection; after much introspection and mourning, the speaker comes out the other side, able to make beauty from the ashes. Among the lessons learned are to “see people for who they are / not who you wish them to be” (“slow down”) and to not “let the people / who don’t deserve your energy / take it from you”(“note to self”). Confident that they will find love again, the speaker in “my kind of peace” disavows lukewarm love and mixed feelings, instead seeking “passionate peace.” Some readers may feel that the book’s themes feel limited in scope, and that the storm and daisy motifs lack originality. However, others will find that the poet effectively blends raw vulnerability with empowering recovery, acutely depicting the difficulties of dating in the digital age, when reminders of one’s ex are online and unavoidable. Some readers are likely to find solace in lines such as “look past your heartache / see yourself as i see you / you’re not your bad experiences / you’re not your mistakes” (“look closer”). Simple, tasteful line drawings of female figures enhance the poems’ intimacy.

A tender, relatable set of works on experiencing and overcoming heartbreak.