Reviews with content warning for Transphobia - Ich wünsch' dir nur das Beste

I think my only issue was with dr Taylor. She was very biased and unprofessional. It felt like the author didn’t have much experience with therapy (or didn’t do a lot of research about it).

Nevertheless, a great book! I really enjoyed reading it and I absolutely adore Ben and Nathan!

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kristin_kk05's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

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mavemarie's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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lupabianca's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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mbs76's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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livelaughlesbian99's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

This book was mid for me. I’ve liked Deaver’s other work more. BUT the nonbinary representation is fantastic. I really enjoyed Ben’s family and how that was handled. Ben feels like a very real person. However I wasn’t very invested in Nathan or the other side characters. They felt less like people to me. This book is by no means bad, though. Give it a try!

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cogowno's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful informative lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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elijah__'s review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I think this is generally a good book I'm just not in the target audience for; I picked it up for an LGBT book club, but it felt oriented to a much younger audience. That being said, I think Mariam and Ben's relationship feels deeply inappropriate; Mariam is an adult, college graduate YouTuber who refers to a high school student as their "bestie" and ultimately

has them move to their area, or possibly even home, (it's unclear) to recruit them to their business the moment Ben graduates.

While the character of Mariam means no harm, the relationship mirrors YouTuber scandals in an unsettling way, and I feel it glorifies an inappropriate relationship to the teens this book seems to be aimed towards. While being friends with someone outside your age group is not inherently bad, a full adult with celebrity status calling a high-school-aged fan their "bestie" doesn't sit quite right with me. Making Mariam closer to Ben's age would make things feel a lot less questionable, and wouldn't be unrealistic, as plenty of teens have "made it" on social media.

That being said, the family drama feels realistic and well-written, as does the portrayal of mental illness. The romance is alright, if not particularly unique or interesting, and I enjoy the character of Nathan. The family plot really takes center stage for me, and I feel Hannah in particular is a very interesting and well-written character. While I like the characters, I do feel Nathan and Hannah are a bit lacking in flaws - - that being said, Hannah does exhibit some, and is (in my opinion) the most interesting character in the book; a guilt-ridden elder sister, now stepping into a parental role for her younger sibling, who would do anything to make up for lost time.

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