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aus10england's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
I’m so mad I put this one off for so long!
What a cute story, really loved the characters and the exploration of identity. I’m so happy for queer kids who can see themselves reflected in media and might help them understand themselves a bit better. :)
What a cute story, really loved the characters and the exploration of identity. I’m so happy for queer kids who can see themselves reflected in media and might help them understand themselves a bit better. :)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Transphobia
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Vomit
radiocryptid's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Cute with good trans rep but I found the main character annoying, even though he is sixteen and is obviously going to be somewhat annoying. Felt like a book for middle grade readers more than YA
Content Warnings
Minor: Transphobia and Suicide attempt
rayne_1906's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-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
4.5
Audiobook - 3 hours 30 minutes - I adored this book. The character's were loveable and mostly realistic, and the book didn't seem repetitive and overly drawn-out like a lot of books in the genre can sometimes be. I love reading from trans perspectives, and it was especially interesting to read about a character using gender neutral pronouns other than they/them, considering I think I've only read those a couple of times in the first place. I think it was interesting to see how the main character's views on relationships changed as he grew and experienced more things - I could relate to a lot of that. Being blinded by your first proper relationship, thinking it is perfect when in fact it is incredibly toxic and manipulative, and I think this character was cleverly written so we learned this alongside the main character, rather than it being obvious from the start and mentally screaming at the character for not seeing the frankly obvious red flags. I'm weak for LGBTQ books with happy endings and this did not disappoint.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Alcohol, Vomit, Transphobia, Suicide attempt, and Drug use
montyalmoro's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Transphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
booksargram's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
tw: transphobia, bigotry, past off page suicide attempt, vomit, panic attack, cyber bullying
cool facts: lgbt+ (trans, gay, nb, lesbian, ace!) lgbt+ author, BIPOC author, my first book by them, no steam (level 1), medium length chapters, cute illustrations, pop culture references, partly takes place in a bookstore, fake dating trope, imposter syndrome, CONSENTTTTT 😍, this is the first book i’ve read where a character uses the e/em/eir pronouns, flawed but lovable characters, good writing.
tldr summary: after moving to a new city, our main character, noah, who is trans, is called out for posting untrue meet cute stories on his tumblr blog about trans people meeting and falling in love. noah quickly meets a boy he’s attracted to and they stage a relationship specifically for the blog.
vibes: tense, romantic, funny, cute, a little secondhand embarrassment, light with some darker themes, frustrating, millennial slander! “(they’re all 40 and married by now)” i will have noah know that i am only 32 and single tyvm (lol 😭), brotherly love 🥺🤗, my heart 🥰😭, hea, squeal! ❤️❤️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia and Vomit
Minor: Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicide attempt
icarusandthesun's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
A funny and emotional book with a twist I didn't expect!
Loved the queer representation (also of folks questioning/trying out different sets of pronouns, etc.) and all the pop culture references!
I thought the main character was rather unlikeable, though (especially towards the end), and the bit of character development couldn't make up for it.
The plot, on the other hand, was refreshingly unpredictable and nearly random (but in a good way)!
Loved the queer representation (also of folks questioning/trying out different sets of pronouns, etc.) and all the pop culture references!
I thought the main character was rather unlikeable, though (especially towards the end), and the bit of character development couldn't make up for it.
The plot, on the other hand, was refreshingly unpredictable and nearly random (but in a good way)!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Transphobia and Suicide
prehistoricpotatoes's review against another edition
hopeful
medium-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? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Minor: Suicide attempt and Transphobia
moonyreadsbystarlight's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
This was really wonderful! This is a sweet, trope-ey YA that manages to balance in quite a few important themes and capturing specific nuances that I don't often see in other stories. This whole story is about Noah, who is in love with love and runs a blog all about trans meet cutes. When someone tries to expose his for fabricating stories, someone from a real meet cute offers to help -- but love turns out to be much more than a sweet first moment. As the story goes on, we see quite a few topics addressed relating to the trans community, being multiracial in a predomenantly white space, communication, mental health, friendship, and (of course) love. Noah is messy and brash, but really learns throughout the story. I really like the turn that this took plot-wise and what it did for the theme.
In general, I really loved the nuance that is put into this. There are a lot of details and experiences that aren't often explored, like trying new pronouns. But also, I think the blog itself is easy to overlook as maybe even a heavy-handed plot device, however I think a lot of that speaks to a broader experience of many trans people as well. Obviously it's about media representation (and the not-trans-specific experience of reactionaries on the Internet, particuarly Tumblr-brand reactionaries) but it goes beyond that. I feel like I could write an essay integrating the trans experience of existing and exploting in digital space (particularly the specific space of tumblr) and the way this peice of that story taps into that. So I won't go into all of that here. Suffice it to say, I think the auther put in a lot of nuance here.
Also, I didn't see the comparison to <i>Felix Ever After</i> in the blurb until I was done reading it, but even so I found myself thinking back to that book as I read. They're both trans characters who make brash (poor) descisions and wind up in a love triange -- but more than that, they act largely from a place of not understanding how to accept love (or not knowing what love even is). They do have quite different approaches and end up looking at different kinds of misunderstandings of love. But even so, those messy lessons were done well. I was tickled to see that it was compared to FEE when I was thinking about their similarities/differences near the end of the book.
Also, I didn't see the comparison to <i>Felix Ever After</i> in the blurb until I was done reading it, but even so I found myself thinking back to that book as I read. They're both trans characters who make brash (poor) descisions and wind up in a love triange -- but more than that, they act largely from a place of not understanding how to accept love (or not knowing what love even is). They do have quite different approaches and end up looking at different kinds of misunderstandings of love. But even so, those messy lessons were done well. I was tickled to see that it was compared to FEE when I was thinking about their similarities/differences near the end of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Transphobia, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Suicide attempt and Vomit
noceur's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
1.5
I was so excited for this book but unfortunately it didn't meet my expectations. I thought this book was gonna be a cute romance story but honestly i didn't like the main character. I thought he was annoying, entitled and selfish. First of all he lacks basic human deceny and empathy like if someone throws up on you, you would ask them if they're okay not worry about your suede pants (i hated his suede pants btw they made me so furious idk why) Also the whole getting a job and his money problem(!) was stupid too. You can't expect that your parents will just throw money around for you. The romance was icky from the beginning too. I mean sorry but the dude he meets like one or two times happens to recognize the blog and they start dating ?? And don't get me started on the blog it overall didn't make sense. I can go on all the negative things i can say but i don't this to be any longer so i'm gonna talk about the only think i liked about this book : Devin. He was such a great character. I liked Devin exploring eir gender and changing pronouns throughout the story and honestly the whole book would have been so much betterit Devin was the MC. Even in the end i felt like Noah didn't really had any character development and Devin deserves better.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Transphobia
Moderate: Alcohol, Deadnaming, and Hate crime
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Vomit
elephantshoes4's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
relaxing
medium-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
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gaslighting
Minor: Transphobia