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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
Meet Cute is a delightful collection of "meet cutes" from today's most popular Y.A. authors. The collection was refreshingly diverse and inclusive, shattering heteronormative rom-com tropes. While some stories didn't ring as true as others, there's a little something for every Y.A. fan, ranging from realistic fiction to sci-fi. In particular, I really enjoyed the stories from Nina LaCour, Jocelyn Davies, and Emery Lord (the super-hero flirting was GREAT). If I had any complaint it is that the stories ended, leaving me wanting more. This is my first time reading the works of any of these authors, but I'll definitely be checking them out now that I'm done with Meet Cute.
Read this if you like YA romance. There is a nice diversity of characters and the stories are generally well done and cute, but few stuck with me.
I adore meet cutes, so this was right up my alley. This book was flipping adorable. It was basically a bunch of little starbursts of happy that I could use if I needed a quick pick-me-up.
Honestly, if I averaged out my ratings of all of each of these stories, it would probably be somewhere between 3 and 4, but I’m going to round up just because I love cutesy-ness.
There was a LOT of F/F rep, which I loved, loved, loved, but I also wish there had been some M/M rep.
Here are my ratings for each short story:
Siege Etiquette: 2/5
Really enjoyed this when I first read it. Wolf and Hailey were pretty cute. Dunno how well the second person p.o.v. works, but the writing was very, very good. The twist in the middle definitely shocked me. But then I realized that Hailey totally cheats on her boyfriend with Wolf, and I feel really bad for him, even if Wolf would’ve listened to Hailey better or whatever. At one point Hailey even tells Wolf that she’s not breaking up with her boyfriend and it doesn’t phase him at all. I’m confused.
Print Shop: 4/5
Beautiful writing. Of course, I always expect beautiful writing from Nina Lacour, and she always delivers. I loved the print shop setting. And Lauren and Evelyn were pretty cute. Not 5 Star cute, but still very cute. I think Lauren was the one that knocked this down from a 5 to a 4, but I don’t know what it was about her.
Hourglass: 4/5
Great story, great writing (want to check out more of Ibi Zoboi’s work now), but not sure how the romance is going to work out bc Cherish is going to college in Florida.
Click: 5/5 (LOVED this one)
The concept of the Click app was so well thought out and thought-provoking. The writing was great. The characters were great. Everything was so great omg. And it wasn’t even cheesy-cute. Loved the message that you can click with someone while having different interests. I could have a whole novel about Click. And Alexa developing her app.
The Intern: 2.5/5
I mean, I actually did enjoy reading this. There was a lot of potential in this story. But the execution made it come across pretty damn cheesy. I liked both characters, but still.
But, I would like to point out that I love this quote: “Someday, you’ll be yourself again. But you know what? That doesn’t have to be today.”
Somewhere That’s Green: 3/5
Again, there was potential here and yay for trans rep and F/F rep, but the writing sounded pretty bad to me.
The Way We Love Here: 4/5
Beautifully, and I mean beautifully, written. Makes me want to pick up The Belles really soon actually. I just can’t really tell whether this was fantasy or not, and that bothers me a little.
Oomph: 5/5
LOVED it. Not only did I love the F/F rep, but the characters were realistic and likable and the ending was to die for (yes, I just used that phrase). Loved reading about when Cass realized that she was good at acting, and watching Cass and Jo go airport camping. This was really, really well written. And I love how it all happens in an airport. Oh, and there’s actually some really helpful advice in here if you’re starting college soon and are nervous about having to decide what you’re doing with your life. If you read one story in this book, make it this one. And Click. Read Click.
The Dictionary of You and Me: 2/5
It was cute when our two characters met, and I enjoyed the holiday library setting, but how creepy is it that Moss practically fell in love over the phone with this guy she’d never met.
The Unlikely Likelihood of Falling in Love: 1/5
So much potential here. The idea of this story is great. But the writing sucked. I couldn’t even finish this one.
259 Million Miles: 3.5/5 stars
Didn’t have the heart to give this only 3 stars. Blythe and Jordan we’re both very likable. Their time spent in the isolation chamber was very very well written and cute. These two characters have a lot of chemistry. However, the Mars premise, while intriguing, wasn’t explained as well as I would’ve expected, and the ending of this story felt thrown together. 1. I feel like the ending was too bittersweet to be in this book. And 2. It wasn’t very well written. Right after I read what had happened, I half expected it to be another test conducted by the team. It just seems so out there.
This one lived up to its potential for the most part, until the end.
Something Real: 4/5
This was a surprising one for me. I would’ve expected the premise to not be my cup of tea. I don’t watch reality TV or read stories about it, and for the most part, I think celebrity super fans are silly to say the least. But this was such a pleasant surprise. Julie Murphy’s writing is charming, and I totally couldn’t have predicted June falling for who she did (WHICH I LOVED). I love the theme of what’s really real in this, and everything was a great mix of cheese and substance.
Say Everything: 3/5
Good writing and interesting enough plot, but whatever went down between the two families wasn’t explained enough, and I was left still confused. The characters were very cute though. Sean was precious. Just, it didn’t seem fleshed out enough.
The Department of Dead Love: 4.5/5
As always, Nicola Yoon’s writing was beautiful. She crafted a very unique and interesting world. I loved this take on breakups. This had a lot of similarities to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind actually, but I didn’t mind. I feel like the overall message is something that will help a lot of people that are scared of moving on.
“Do you know why I was crying before? It wasn’t because of the pain of your heartbreak. It was because you felt so much in the first place. And anyway, isn’t that what you’re doing here? Hoping that I’ll reset your memories and you can have a Do Over so you’ll feel that much again?”
^
This quote!!! It was actually really thought-provoking for me, and I think I needed it when I read it.
Overall, this book was hella enjoyable for me. If you don’t usually pick up romance novels, I still think there would be a story or two in here for you. Try Click or Oomph. There’s so much variety in here that there’s really something for every one (unless you really really hate cutesy stories). If you love cutesy-ness like me, you’ll enjoy the whole thing, even though the quality of the writing varies quite a bit. This is the first anthology I ever read, and it was such a nice experience. I enjoyed the writing style and voice switched up every twenty pages or so, and seeing all these different takes on the meet-cute trope!
Honestly, if I averaged out my ratings of all of each of these stories, it would probably be somewhere between 3 and 4, but I’m going to round up just because I love cutesy-ness.
There was a LOT of F/F rep, which I loved, loved, loved, but I also wish there had been some M/M rep.
Here are my ratings for each short story:
Siege Etiquette: 2/5
Really enjoyed this when I first read it. Wolf and Hailey were pretty cute. Dunno how well the second person p.o.v. works, but the writing was very, very good. The twist in the middle definitely shocked me. But then I realized that Hailey totally cheats on her boyfriend with Wolf, and I feel really bad for him, even if Wolf would’ve listened to Hailey better or whatever. At one point Hailey even tells Wolf that she’s not breaking up with her boyfriend and it doesn’t phase him at all. I’m confused.
Print Shop: 4/5
Beautiful writing. Of course, I always expect beautiful writing from Nina Lacour, and she always delivers. I loved the print shop setting. And Lauren and Evelyn were pretty cute. Not 5 Star cute, but still very cute. I think Lauren was the one that knocked this down from a 5 to a 4, but I don’t know what it was about her.
Hourglass: 4/5
Great story, great writing (want to check out more of Ibi Zoboi’s work now), but not sure how the romance is going to work out bc Cherish is going to college in Florida.
Click: 5/5 (LOVED this one)
The concept of the Click app was so well thought out and thought-provoking. The writing was great. The characters were great. Everything was so great omg. And it wasn’t even cheesy-cute. Loved the message that you can click with someone while having different interests. I could have a whole novel about Click. And Alexa developing her app.
The Intern: 2.5/5
I mean, I actually did enjoy reading this. There was a lot of potential in this story. But the execution made it come across pretty damn cheesy. I liked both characters, but still.
But, I would like to point out that I love this quote: “Someday, you’ll be yourself again. But you know what? That doesn’t have to be today.”
Somewhere That’s Green: 3/5
Again, there was potential here and yay for trans rep and F/F rep, but the writing sounded pretty bad to me.
The Way We Love Here: 4/5
Beautifully, and I mean beautifully, written. Makes me want to pick up The Belles really soon actually. I just can’t really tell whether this was fantasy or not, and that bothers me a little.
Oomph: 5/5
LOVED it. Not only did I love the F/F rep, but the characters were realistic and likable and the ending was to die for (yes, I just used that phrase). Loved reading about when Cass realized that she was good at acting, and watching Cass and Jo go airport camping. This was really, really well written. And I love how it all happens in an airport. Oh, and there’s actually some really helpful advice in here if you’re starting college soon and are nervous about having to decide what you’re doing with your life. If you read one story in this book, make it this one. And Click. Read Click.
The Dictionary of You and Me: 2/5
It was cute when our two characters met, and I enjoyed the holiday library setting, but how creepy is it that Moss practically fell in love over the phone with this guy she’d never met.
The Unlikely Likelihood of Falling in Love: 1/5
So much potential here. The idea of this story is great. But the writing sucked. I couldn’t even finish this one.
259 Million Miles: 3.5/5 stars
Didn’t have the heart to give this only 3 stars. Blythe and Jordan we’re both very likable. Their time spent in the isolation chamber was very very well written and cute. These two characters have a lot of chemistry. However, the Mars premise, while intriguing, wasn’t explained as well as I would’ve expected, and the ending of this story felt thrown together. 1. I feel like the ending was too bittersweet to be in this book. And 2. It wasn’t very well written. Right after I read what had happened, I half expected it to be another test conducted by the team. It just seems so out there.
This one lived up to its potential for the most part, until the end.
Something Real: 4/5
This was a surprising one for me. I would’ve expected the premise to not be my cup of tea. I don’t watch reality TV or read stories about it, and for the most part, I think celebrity super fans are silly to say the least. But this was such a pleasant surprise. Julie Murphy’s writing is charming, and I totally couldn’t have predicted June falling for who she did (WHICH I LOVED). I love the theme of what’s really real in this, and everything was a great mix of cheese and substance.
Say Everything: 3/5
Good writing and interesting enough plot, but whatever went down between the two families wasn’t explained enough, and I was left still confused. The characters were very cute though. Sean was precious. Just, it didn’t seem fleshed out enough.
The Department of Dead Love: 4.5/5
As always, Nicola Yoon’s writing was beautiful. She crafted a very unique and interesting world. I loved this take on breakups. This had a lot of similarities to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind actually, but I didn’t mind. I feel like the overall message is something that will help a lot of people that are scared of moving on.
“Do you know why I was crying before? It wasn’t because of the pain of your heartbreak. It was because you felt so much in the first place. And anyway, isn’t that what you’re doing here? Hoping that I’ll reset your memories and you can have a Do Over so you’ll feel that much again?”
^
This quote!!! It was actually really thought-provoking for me, and I think I needed it when I read it.
Overall, this book was hella enjoyable for me. If you don’t usually pick up romance novels, I still think there would be a story or two in here for you. Try Click or Oomph. There’s so much variety in here that there’s really something for every one (unless you really really hate cutesy stories). If you love cutesy-ness like me, you’ll enjoy the whole thing, even though the quality of the writing varies quite a bit. This is the first anthology I ever read, and it was such a nice experience. I enjoyed the writing style and voice switched up every twenty pages or so, and seeing all these different takes on the meet-cute trope!
I don’t like to give bad reviews about the books I read but honestly I felt like I was reading fanfiction. Some of the stories were cute and got me hooked, others were just really not appealing and I caught myself skipping over them. Definitely not what I was expecting.
Siege Etiquette 2 stars
Print Shop 3 stars
Hourglass 3,5 stars
Click 3 stars
The Intern 3 stars
Somewhere That's Green 3 stars
The Way We Love Here 4 stars
Oomph 5 stars
The Dictionary of You and Me 1,5 stars
The Unlikely Likelihood of Falling in Love 4,5 stars
259 Million Miles 3,5 stars
Something Real 3 stars
Say Everything 2,5 stars
The Department of Dead Love 3 stars
Print Shop 3 stars
Hourglass 3,5 stars
Click 3 stars
The Intern 3 stars
Somewhere That's Green 3 stars
The Way We Love Here 4 stars
Oomph 5 stars
The Dictionary of You and Me 1,5 stars
The Unlikely Likelihood of Falling in Love 4,5 stars
259 Million Miles 3,5 stars
Something Real 3 stars
Say Everything 2,5 stars
The Department of Dead Love 3 stars
Some of the stories were 4 or 5 stars, some were 2 or 3 stars. So I guess that’s a 3 average
more like a 3.5! a lot of these were cute, some where kinda eh. such is the nature of anthologies. my favorite stories were Emery Lord’s and Nina Lacour’s!
CUTE
I´m really happy I bougth this book because this stories were ADORABLE.
I´m also glad most of them aren´t just a basic story of 2 people meeting, instead they turned into a original, smart and cute shortstory, like "Click", "The unlikely likelyhood of falling in love" (my personal favourite),"The way we love here" and "259 miles".
The thing I liked the least of reading these shortstories was the predictability of most of them. I know it´s kind of the whole point of the book but when reading a normal book (not a recollection of shortstories), I love the surprise when 2 characters show some chemistry between them that I wasn´t expecting. In these case, you can pretty much know what´s going to happen in most of them.
I also have a little problem with some of them ending with the characters kissing (hello? You have just met)
Another problem with reading cute shortstories is that when you finish one of them, that´s it. You can´t read more of the characters or their future relationship and that´s a bummer when you fall in love with them. I need to know the future of Sam and Dev, or Cass and Jo.
(Now I´m going to write some things for future me in case I want to remember the stories, it will have spoilers)
Siege Etiquette: I was kind of confused through the whole story, first because it was in second person and then because I saw zero chemistry between the characters. Probably my least favourite.
Print Shop: A little simple but cute (and that´s what it´s all about). I really liked the idea of the print shop.
Hourglass: Didn´t really like it at first, but I did want to know some more of how their relationship built up. I liked the boy and we barely saw anything of him.
Click: A little predictable, I liked the whole idea of Click, it was original. But I didn´t love the story.
The intern: Cute. That´s pretty much it. I didn´t like how they were suddenly super close after knowing each other for like 2 hours
Somewhere that´s green: I´m so happy there´s a trans girl in one of the stories, we need more diversity. But I didn´t see any chemistry between the two girls, I didn´t really like them together.
The way we love here: Very original, I loved the different future possibilities and how they got closer (because in this one they do have a reason, they are literally soulmates)
Oomph: Yes, yes, cute, gay, cute. And that Marvel refference? Yes please. I think this one is my favourite of the "simpler" ones.
The dictionary of you and me: I really liked the idea of them getting to know each other via phone call because of the dictionary. But then the boy is the shy hot new guy that she has a crush on? Not for me.
The unlike likehood of falling in love: YEEES. I normally don´t like "love at first sight" but this was so original, cool and fun to read. Who uses math for love? I don´t know, but it was great. I loved it. Definately my favourite.
259 miles: Cool. I liked how it´s not clear what they´re doing until a few pages in. And how it doesn´t have a happy ending (I did like the characters, I´m just glad not all of them end the same)
Something real: Yes for not going with the obvious. Ok, I was expecting (mostly hoping) them to get together after the first few pages but still, I´m glad they she didn´t end up with that jerk.
Say everything: More confusion. It was all really random and kind of weird. It was cute that he took her to see the house for one last time but that´s pretty much it.
The Department of Dead Love: The story concept was amazing. I would love to read more about Young Love. But the characters' story was kind of a let down. I didn´t like him that much and I thought it was a little sudden that we was in love with the girl and the next day he was over it and wanted to date the HeartWorker.
I´m really happy I bougth this book because this stories were ADORABLE.
I´m also glad most of them aren´t just a basic story of 2 people meeting, instead they turned into a original, smart and cute shortstory, like "Click", "The unlikely likelyhood of falling in love" (my personal favourite),"The way we love here" and "259 miles".
The thing I liked the least of reading these shortstories was the predictability of most of them. I know it´s kind of the whole point of the book but when reading a normal book (not a recollection of shortstories), I love the surprise when 2 characters show some chemistry between them that I wasn´t expecting. In these case, you can pretty much know what´s going to happen in most of them.
I also have a little problem with some of them ending with the characters kissing (hello? You have just met)
Another problem with reading cute shortstories is that when you finish one of them, that´s it. You can´t read more of the characters or their future relationship and that´s a bummer when you fall in love with them. I need to know the future of Sam and Dev, or Cass and Jo.
(Now I´m going to write some things for future me in case I want to remember the stories, it will have spoilers)
Siege Etiquette: I was kind of confused through the whole story, first because it was in second person and then because I saw zero chemistry between the characters. Probably my least favourite.
Print Shop: A little simple but cute (and that´s what it´s all about). I really liked the idea of the print shop.
Hourglass: Didn´t really like it at first, but I did want to know some more of how their relationship built up. I liked the boy and we barely saw anything of him.
Click: A little predictable, I liked the whole idea of Click, it was original. But I didn´t love the story.
The intern: Cute. That´s pretty much it. I didn´t like how they were suddenly super close after knowing each other for like 2 hours
Somewhere that´s green: I´m so happy there´s a trans girl in one of the stories, we need more diversity. But I didn´t see any chemistry between the two girls, I didn´t really like them together.
The way we love here: Very original, I loved the different future possibilities and how they got closer (because in this one they do have a reason, they are literally soulmates)
Oomph: Yes, yes, cute, gay, cute. And that Marvel refference? Yes please. I think this one is my favourite of the "simpler" ones.
The dictionary of you and me: I really liked the idea of them getting to know each other via phone call because of the dictionary. But then the boy is the shy hot new guy that she has a crush on? Not for me.
The unlike likehood of falling in love: YEEES. I normally don´t like "love at first sight" but this was so original, cool and fun to read. Who uses math for love? I don´t know, but it was great. I loved it. Definately my favourite.
259 miles: Cool. I liked how it´s not clear what they´re doing until a few pages in. And how it doesn´t have a happy ending (I did like the characters, I´m just glad not all of them end the same)
Something real: Yes for not going with the obvious. Ok, I was expecting (mostly hoping) them to get together after the first few pages but still, I´m glad they she didn´t end up with that jerk.
Say everything: More confusion. It was all really random and kind of weird. It was cute that he took her to see the house for one last time but that´s pretty much it.
The Department of Dead Love: The story concept was amazing. I would love to read more about Young Love. But the characters' story was kind of a let down. I didn´t like him that much and I thought it was a little sudden that we was in love with the girl and the next day he was over it and wanted to date the HeartWorker.
Super cute. Really surprised me. Loved, especially, The Intern!