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herfleurs's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
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? Yes
3.0
Noah é extremamente mimado, e autocentrado, obviamente não fui muito com ele. Quando ele começou a choramingar por cartão de crédito eu juro que quase abandonei o livro! Durante o verão inteiro parece que nem sequer um prato ele lavou mas passa o livro inteiro reclamando do tamanho do quarto na casa do irmão, sério.
Pra uma pessoa que depende tanto de relacionamento romântico ele é extremamente não romântico. Ele não moveu um dedo praticamente pra fazer nada especial! Mesmo no primeiro romance que a gente tem que aguentar no livro, ele passa só reclamando dos encontros que a pessoa planeja pra eles, e eu sei qual foi o ponto aqui mas pelo amor! E quando a gente finalmente se livra, tem o outro romance que é uma fofura mas de novo ele não se move e sinceramente recebe muito mais que merece! Eu tentei entender a lógica do blog mas não funcionou pra mim, pior ainda quando Noah dá o discurso que odeia pessoas mentirosas! Foi hilário, levando em conta toda história!! Então tudo acaba se tornando uma bagunça, sobre isso sabe.
Devin é perfeite! Eu adorei demais esse personagem, queria tanto ler alguma narração que elu fosse ê narradore sabe, seria maravilhoso! Ou que pelo menos tivesse acontecido mais cedo :(
Pra uma pessoa que depende tanto de relacionamento romântico ele é extremamente não romântico. Ele não moveu um dedo praticamente pra fazer nada especial! Mesmo no primeiro romance que a gente tem que aguentar no livro, ele passa só reclamando dos encontros que a pessoa planeja pra eles, e eu sei qual foi o ponto aqui mas pelo amor! E quando a gente finalmente se livra, tem o outro romance que é uma fofura mas de novo ele não se move e sinceramente recebe muito mais que merece! Eu tentei entender a lógica do blog mas não funcionou pra mim, pior ainda quando Noah dá o discurso que odeia pessoas mentirosas! Foi hilário, levando em conta toda história!! Então tudo acaba se tornando uma bagunça, sobre isso sabe.
Devin é perfeite! Eu adorei demais esse personagem, queria tanto ler alguma narração que elu fosse ê narradore sabe, seria maravilhoso! Ou que pelo menos tivesse acontecido mais cedo :(
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Transphobia and Toxic relationship
Minor: Suicide attempt
booksandprosecco's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia and Toxic relationship
Minor: Suicide attempt and Bullying
kay_63194's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
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? No
3.0
The beginning wasn't the best and the main character came off as rude, but I think his behavior is realistic for a 16 year ago. I liked that the main relationship did end, but in general the only likable character is Devin, who is my favorite and I wish E was the main character instead. Overall good rep for people with neopronouns and the ftm rep was good. If your looking for a simple summer romance story with trans rep it's a good book.
Content Warnings
Minor: Suicide attempt
irisheyz77's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, and Vomit
lizziealex's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Transphobia, Homophobia, Vomit, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Suicide attempt
memorable's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book is just so pure! I loved every minute reading it! I especially liked the way Emery Lee portrayed Devin’s way of finding eir pronouns.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia
Minor: Abandonment, Acephobia/Arophobia, Bullying, Drug use, Suicide attempt, and Vomit
Divorce Use of wrong pronounsemily_mh's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-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
This was just a really joyful book on trans love and trans joy. It really spoke to me given what I am discovering about my own gender identity, and the endgame romance made me feel all mushy (I basically fell in love with Devin). The reason this book did not get 5 stars is that I wish the ending was slightly different. Basically, I wish Noah hadn't had a tiff at the end over Becca. This felt really irrational and kind of against his character development and left his and Becca's relationship in a weird place again. I didn't so much mind his freak-out over Devin, but NOAH should have been the one to make the grand gesture for Devin, not the other way around. This would have given their relationship a little more power equality, and cemented more of Noah's character development, which I otherwise loved.
The main criticism of this book that I see other people have is that Noah is a bad main character. I want to challenge this as I think for the most part that's an unfair reason to dock the book stars. First of all, his narration is conversational and engaging. People say he is annoying, when really he is just cocky and confident which is a trait lauded in other beloved fictional characters (e.g. Tony Stark). And yeah, he's definitely not a perfect person, but that's a lot to expect 16 year-old - plus, he does undergo character development during the novel and recognises his own flaws. Finally, his flaws make him intensely relatable. Everyone messes up, especially at that age, and Noah's character shows how you can grow from those experiences. I really think that the ending of the book is just the beginning for his personal development. This is not to defend some of the decisions he makes, but to drive home the point that imperfection doesn't equal a bad character!
The main criticism of this book that I see other people have is that Noah is a bad main character. I want to challenge this as I think for the most part that's an unfair reason to dock the book stars. First of all, his narration is conversational and engaging. People say he is annoying, when really he is just cocky and confident which is a trait lauded in other beloved fictional characters (e.g. Tony Stark). And yeah, he's definitely not a perfect person, but that's a lot to expect 16 year-old - plus, he does undergo character development during the novel and recognises his own flaws. Finally, his flaws make him intensely relatable. Everyone messes up, especially at that age, and Noah's character shows how you can grow from those experiences. I really think that the ending of the book is just the beginning for his personal development. This is not to defend some of the decisions he makes, but to drive home the point that imperfection doesn't equal a bad character!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Vomit, Cursing, Transphobia, Bullying, Suicide attempt, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
Minor: Religious bigotry, Racism, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Mental illness, Infertility, and Infidelity
xoodlebooks's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I really wanted to like this book, but I didn’t. The story and writing style just weren’t for me. Also, the main character was super unlikeable. I normally don’t mind unlikeable characters, but this character really irked me. The way he wasted money also bothered me. Yay for rep, though! I am sure other people will like this story more than I did. Also, this is probably the first traditionally published YA book I’ve read that has neopronouns on the page!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Alcohol, Drug use, and Transphobia
Minor: Bullying and Suicide attempt
possumspringz's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
i enjoyed this for the most part! if im being fully honest tho, noah bothered me quite a bit and i felt like the whole diary thing + noahs whole like Love Expert Thing to be a bit over the top and kinda silly. anyway devin was like the coolest character and i Mainly cared about em tbh!
yeah devin was probably the part the felt the most well done to me, eir character was interesting and i really like thateir being nonbinary was treated very normally, especially considering e changed eir pronouns several times thoughout the book. every time, even when talking to other people, noah just corrected them on their pronoun use and nobody did or said anything weird about it, which was super super refreshing to see, especially considering the way people respond when people are questioning their gender and either change their mind completely or change their pronouns (which devin does talk about eir experience with, though it wasn't something we see on page). i loved that eir being nonbinary was something that they had the space to explore without any harrowing transphobia to deal with (mega appreciate that as a trans reader).
i didn't like how drew's whole "omg im not gay noah's just special <3" thing was never addressed tho, and i know that part of the thing was that drew wasnt like. good for him, but also that really fucking sucks and it was just thrown in there. and as a trans guy that sets off Mega alarm bells about like. not actually believing noah is a guy and/or being Weird about him being trans. idk
um unfortunately i also felt a bit frustrated w the way gender and sexuality was talked about? calling people "masc" and "femme" as an equivalent to men and women, especially in the context of gay men = likes "masc" people. its so frustrating to run into this perception of like: men (automatically masc), women (automatically femme), and nonbinary people are grouped like based being "masc" or "femme" instead of their gender ? its like people just repackage the same shit in PC Inclusive Language instead of thinking about what any of it means? its so frustrating to see that peoples framework around gender is still stuck in this man/woman = masc/femme dichotomy that really doesn't account for anyone who falls outside of that, Including "binary" men and women who happen to be gnc (especially gnc trans people lol). i mean its also so weird to me to try and put nb people essentially back into the binary based on whether they present masc or femme?
(spoiler for tangential rant! not actual spoiler)
and take this with a grain of salt, but i personally think that this idea of ultra-exclusive, hard-cut boundaries about sexuality is such a bad idea.... like the idea that youre only gay or a lesbian if you exclusively like (implied: cis) men or women and you cant like..... be either of those things if you are nonbinary or like nonbinary people is so wild. when are people gonna get that being nb is not a distinct third gender that people are or arent going to be attracted to ? like how do you know that the person youre interested in isnt nonbinary? and being nb for one person may be completely different for another.
idk like the idea of separating sexuality into these ultra specific categories of who and when and how and why youre attracted to someone is really unhealthy, and i think ultimately it just separates people into so many tiny categories that you end up being separated from people who are ultimately similar to you (and isolating yourself tbh!). plus the idea that sexualities are inherently exclude nb people is so messed up, like some people still think trans people as a whole are/should be excluded from most sexualities and its soooooo. i mean fucked up obviously, but it also feels very dehumanizing to me personally and i can imagine its especially isolating for nonbinary people. and like ok if trans men/women are included but nonbinary people arent its. still not trans inclusive lol
and obviously i cant stop people from calling themselves whatever they want, and if it feels good and right to them, all the power to them, but i seriously feel like people are put through much more stress trying to figure out where they belong when being gay/straight/bi is treated as if its strictly binary and like they are inherently not included. (also super not a fan of people saying being into men/women and nonbinary people means you are bi, as if nb people are again, their own Third Gender and cant be straight/gay/lesbian ?)
anyway again its all very personal and these are just my thoughts! but it bothers me the way people continue to push the same views on gender, just repacked to sound more progressive and neutral!!! this is a tangent but yes <3
(tbh this is probably more of a 2 but. whatever!)
yeah devin was probably the part the felt the most well done to me, eir character was interesting and i really like that
i didn't like how drew's whole "omg im not gay noah's just special <3" thing was never addressed tho, and i know that part of the thing was that drew wasnt like. good for him, but also that really fucking sucks and it was just thrown in there. and as a trans guy that sets off Mega alarm bells about like. not actually believing noah is a guy and/or being Weird about him being trans. idk
um unfortunately i also felt a bit frustrated w the way gender and sexuality was talked about? calling people "masc" and "femme" as an equivalent to men and women, especially in the context of gay men = likes "masc" people. its so frustrating to run into this perception of like: men (automatically masc), women (automatically femme), and nonbinary people are grouped like based being "masc" or "femme" instead of their gender ? its like people just repackage the same shit in PC Inclusive Language instead of thinking about what any of it means? its so frustrating to see that peoples framework around gender is still stuck in this man/woman = masc/femme dichotomy that really doesn't account for anyone who falls outside of that, Including "binary" men and women who happen to be gnc (especially gnc trans people lol). i mean its also so weird to me to try and put nb people essentially back into the binary based on whether they present masc or femme?
(spoiler for tangential rant! not actual spoiler)
idk like the idea of separating sexuality into these ultra specific categories of who and when and how and why youre attracted to someone is really unhealthy, and i think ultimately it just separates people into so many tiny categories that you end up being separated from people who are ultimately similar to you (and isolating yourself tbh!). plus the idea that sexualities are inherently exclude nb people is so messed up, like some people still think trans people as a whole are/should be excluded from most sexualities and its soooooo. i mean fucked up obviously, but it also feels very dehumanizing to me personally and i can imagine its especially isolating for nonbinary people. and like ok if trans men/women are included but nonbinary people arent its. still not trans inclusive lol
and obviously i cant stop people from calling themselves whatever they want, and if it feels good and right to them, all the power to them, but i seriously feel like people are put through much more stress trying to figure out where they belong when being gay/straight/bi is treated as if its strictly binary and like they are inherently not included. (also super not a fan of people saying being into men/women and nonbinary people means you are bi, as if nb people are again, their own Third Gender and cant be straight/gay/lesbian ?)
anyway again its all very personal and these are just my thoughts! but it bothers me the way people continue to push the same views on gender, just repacked to sound more progressive and neutral!!! this is a tangent but yes <3
(tbh this is probably more of a 2 but. whatever!)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Toxic relationship
Minor: Racism, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, and Vomit
kapbanana's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
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? Yes
2.0
I'm so sad that I didn't enjoy this book :( I was really looking forward to a cute trans romance. While the queer rep was lovely, the main character and overall story were not. I did not like Noah. He came across as immature and selfish. Too often he was so self-centered and rude, I couldn't understand his actions. Because of this, his characterization felt unbalanced. For example, early in the book he gets upset when his parents freeze his credit card (or rather, a credit card they lent him) after he spends over $400 in one week. For me, this event set the tone for his character throughout the entire book; he's just super entitled and unreflective. Further grating, he continuously makes harsh assumptions/judgements about others. I don't mind unlikeable characters, but in this case, I didn't enjoy how Noah was written. Idk. Perhaps this a "me thing" rather than the Meet Cute Diary's problem.
The other issue I had with the book was the plot. This might be a problem of expectations, but I was expecting a cute contemporary romance, not a mostly toxic relationship with a little bit of romance sprinkled on at the end. From the beginning, it was pretty apparent that Drew is a douchebag. So spending some 300+ pages watching Noah and Drew date was frustrating.
In terms of plot, I also didn't understand the whole controversy around the Meet Cute Diary tumblr blog. I liked the idea of it (making a story around an online trans positive blog), and the interspersing of blog posts and comments was fun, but the actual controversy felt unrealistic and underdeveloped. Why can't Noah just say that the posts are made-up stories? How does dating Drew actually help his blog? Who was behind the initial call-out blog and later published accusations? I honestly thought this whole controversy would play a more central role in the story, but it ended up never really being addressed and eventually just fizzling out. In the end, the plot just wasn't engaging enough for me to overcome my annoyance with Noah. Plus, the pacing felt disjointed.
I will say, Lee is a great writer. While I didn't like Noah and the plot wasn't what I hoped for, eir writing was easy and enjoyable to read. I think I'll give eir work another try on the next book.
The other issue I had with the book was the plot. This might be a problem of expectations, but I was expecting a cute contemporary romance, not a mostly toxic relationship with a little bit of romance sprinkled on at the end. From the beginning, it was pretty apparent that Drew is a douchebag. So spending some 300+ pages watching Noah and Drew date was frustrating.
In terms of plot, I also didn't understand the whole controversy around the Meet Cute Diary tumblr blog. I liked the idea of it (making a story around an online trans positive blog), and the interspersing of blog posts and comments was fun, but the actual controversy felt unrealistic and underdeveloped. Why can't Noah just say that the posts are made-up stories? How does dating Drew actually help his blog? Who was behind the initial call-out blog and later published accusations? I honestly thought this whole controversy would play a more central role in the story, but it ended up never really being addressed and eventually just fizzling out. In the end, the plot just wasn't engaging enough for me to overcome my annoyance with Noah. Plus, the pacing felt disjointed.
I will say, Lee is a great writer. While I didn't like Noah and the plot wasn't what I hoped for, eir writing was easy and enjoyable to read. I think I'll give eir work another try on the next book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying and Emotional abuse
Minor: Suicide attempt and Transphobia
There is no on-page suicide attempt; rather, the character's discuss it in the past tense.