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jmbq_reads's review against another edition
4.0
After her boyfriend Devin breaks up with her at the end of their next-to-last year of high school, Samaya spends her summer moving from heartbreak to getting her life back on track and enjoying her online gaming with her new gaming buddy, LostAxis, Once school starts, though, her parents want Sam to focus on studies, building her leadership resume for college applications, and catching up her volunteer hours. Unfortunately, the school's gossip mill/Whispers Instagram account brings her breakup back to the fore when Devin starts dating a mutual friend, implying he might "win" their breakup.
Sam makes the rash decision to let her friends doctor a photo from LostAxis to imply that Sam has moved on, but when her first day at her volunteer shift at the local family shelter introduces her to her new volunteer buddy Daniel, she realizes that Daniel matches the young man in the photo -- but Daniel doesn't play online games and can't be LostAxis himself. Angry at being catfished by someone she trusted, Sam persuades Daniel to pretend they're dating so she can win the breakup over social media.
I really wasn't sure if this book was for me because the idea of "winning" a breakup seems so petty to me. I get that it's probably a pervasive attitude toward high school relationships, but it still had an ick factor that I didn't think I would get past. However, Heron is skilled at taking situations like this and characters you might want to shake and turning them into well-crafted growth arcs and relatable people who learn from their mistakes. Sam makes a lot of dubious choices in this book, but she has excellent friends (Cass and, later, Daniel) willing to call her out in a loving way and to show her how to see her own worth. (Shoutout to Cass, a nonbinary character with depth and a good growth arc of their own.) Daniel is a delightful foil to Sam's serious, nerdy nature, and I really appreciated how his character had room to express different emotions, reveal difficult parts of his past, and find the strength to move forward.
High school friendships and relationships can be fraught with baggage at the best of times and backstabbing at the worst, and Heron brilliantly creates the tangle of drama here and unravels it slowly for a satisfying happy ending. 4 stars.
Read this if you love: gamer girls, women in STEM, social media drama, thriving after a breakup, fake dating, baking the blues away, pi pie, hockey heroes, being true to yourself
Thank you, Skyscape and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.
Sam makes the rash decision to let her friends doctor a photo from LostAxis to imply that Sam has moved on, but when her first day at her volunteer shift at the local family shelter introduces her to her new volunteer buddy Daniel, she realizes that Daniel matches the young man in the photo -- but Daniel doesn't play online games and can't be LostAxis himself. Angry at being catfished by someone she trusted, Sam persuades Daniel to pretend they're dating so she can win the breakup over social media.
I really wasn't sure if this book was for me because the idea of "winning" a breakup seems so petty to me. I get that it's probably a pervasive attitude toward high school relationships, but it still had an ick factor that I didn't think I would get past. However, Heron is skilled at taking situations like this and characters you might want to shake and turning them into well-crafted growth arcs and relatable people who learn from their mistakes. Sam makes a lot of dubious choices in this book, but she has excellent friends (Cass and, later, Daniel) willing to call her out in a loving way and to show her how to see her own worth. (Shoutout to Cass, a nonbinary character with depth and a good growth arc of their own.) Daniel is a delightful foil to Sam's serious, nerdy nature, and I really appreciated how his character had room to express different emotions, reveal difficult parts of his past, and find the strength to move forward.
High school friendships and relationships can be fraught with baggage at the best of times and backstabbing at the worst, and Heron brilliantly creates the tangle of drama here and unravels it slowly for a satisfying happy ending. 4 stars.
Read this if you love: gamer girls, women in STEM, social media drama, thriving after a breakup, fake dating, baking the blues away, pi pie, hockey heroes, being true to yourself
Thank you, Skyscape and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.
trisha_thomas's review against another edition
4.0
Absolutely adorable! Fake boyfriends aren't really my romance trope favorite but this one was just perfect! Our MC is Samaya and she's a hard working, driven teen in her last year to wow the universities. But unexpectedly being dumped by the highschool golden boy has derailed her summer volunteering and now she's starting the year behind in volunteer hours and heartbroken.
It was hard to like Samaya at first, as she tried to assert herself in to the breakup game and try to stay on top. She was hard on her friends and Daniel as she demaned nothing short of what she was giving to the game. I liked the additional wonder of who was the player over the summer and who was running the site. It was easy to point fingers at the rough 'friend group' Samaya surrounded herself with.
I loved the volunteer work. I think the shelter and residents were handled with respect and care and I liked how it was gently put in to the story and held as a main theme. I also loved that Cass's gender neutral pronouns were seemlessly put in the story and were not the main focus. Instead it felt natural and easy, exactly as it should be.
And I love that there was a little recipe in the back! How fun, I'll have to try it out! Sweet but with interesting themes, a story that sucked me in and held me to the end. I even loved the injected video game lingo (but it's staves! not staffs!) I'm so glad I gave this one a try, it was so much more than I thought it would be!
A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.
It was hard to like Samaya at first, as she tried to assert herself in to the breakup game and try to stay on top. She was hard on her friends and Daniel as she demaned nothing short of what she was giving to the game. I liked the additional wonder of who was the player over the summer and who was running the site. It was easy to point fingers at the rough 'friend group' Samaya surrounded herself with.
I loved the volunteer work. I think the shelter and residents were handled with respect and care and I liked how it was gently put in to the story and held as a main theme. I also loved that Cass's gender neutral pronouns were seemlessly put in the story and were not the main focus. Instead it felt natural and easy, exactly as it should be.
And I love that there was a little recipe in the back! How fun, I'll have to try it out! Sweet but with interesting themes, a story that sucked me in and held me to the end. I even loved the injected video game lingo (but it's staves! not staffs!) I'm so glad I gave this one a try, it was so much more than I thought it would be!
A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.
shannanh's review against another edition
4.0
This was a cute ya romance full of drama, antics and gaming. set in Toronto, a young teen girl gets dumped by her boyfriend at the end of the school year, (and the reason behind it will have you looking at the adults in the situation sideways). So she pretends she has a new boyfriend, and when she needs volunteer hours and volunteers at a soup kitchen, there he is. She eventually tells him the situation, and and he agrees to be her boyfriend, and what happens will have you howling and cheering.
I'm not a gamer, but this gamer rep was so cute and adorable. I enjoyed reading this story, and especially her friends who are the kind of friends ladies of any age needs. such a cute, adorable and enjoyable read
I received a copy of the book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review of my own thoughts and opinions
I'm not a gamer, but this gamer rep was so cute and adorable. I enjoyed reading this story, and especially her friends who are the kind of friends ladies of any age needs. such a cute, adorable and enjoyable read
I received a copy of the book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review of my own thoughts and opinions
teesbookjourney's review against another edition
4.0
Samaya is recovering from the very public breakup with her boyfriend and her best friend. Her summer was blown up by the one person she thought she could trust. Now she has found someone online to who she can relate. she has the new year to deal with and her boyfriend is now dating her friend. she can't be seen as the one losing although she is for sure over the ex.
She happens to run into the boy whose photo was sent to her by her mysterious online friend and this person is for sure not him. so they develop a fake dating plan in exchange for her to help him with his math
Daniel and Samaya become fast friends and genuine feelings start developing.
This was such a nice story, I loved Samaya and Daniel and the mystery they had to figure out with the person who catfished her this summer.
I truly enjoyed learning more about Samaya and Daniel - they were good at communicating with each other.
Some chapters in the middle could have been taken out to make it a touch shorter but all in all, this is a great read
She happens to run into the boy whose photo was sent to her by her mysterious online friend and this person is for sure not him. so they develop a fake dating plan in exchange for her to help him with his math
Daniel and Samaya become fast friends and genuine feelings start developing.
This was such a nice story, I loved Samaya and Daniel and the mystery they had to figure out with the person who catfished her this summer.
I truly enjoyed learning more about Samaya and Daniel - they were good at communicating with each other.
Some chapters in the middle could have been taken out to make it a touch shorter but all in all, this is a great read
desertbookworm's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jevon_mommy's review against another edition
3.0
Thanks to NetGally for the advanced reader copy of this book. After a pretty devastating breakup with her high school boyfriend of two years Devin leaving Samaya in shambles, our main character decided with the help of her friend to doctor a photo of her and a pretty good looking guy who just happened to be a volunteer at a shelter she also volunteers at!! Um what a coincidence! However, Samaya pushes on and gets Daniel, Mr. volunteer to date her to make it look like the breakup with Devin meant nothing and she will have the last laugh. And therein lies the drama that unfolds in this YA romcom!
Let's start with the good. The representation of different backgrounds, nerds and gamer life, and sexual orientation was well received. I liked the writing and some of the characters very relatable coming from a first generation immigrant, your typical high school scene...and drama! There is definitely a Gossip Girl influence in the story and I love that!! Any book that ties in food and cooking...I think if done well adds another layer to the story and the author did amazing at that.
Now on the other side of the coin, these things weren't bad but the story kinda became boring after the first half of the book. I also felt like Samaya was so easily influenced by her friends..like girl STAND UP!! I do like a fake dating trope but I don't think 17 year olds are equipped with experience and emotional intelligence needed to actually fool anyone! I wasn't convinced sometimes as a reader.
Overall, three star read!
Let's start with the good. The representation of different backgrounds, nerds and gamer life, and sexual orientation was well received. I liked the writing and some of the characters very relatable coming from a first generation immigrant, your typical high school scene...and drama! There is definitely a Gossip Girl influence in the story and I love that!! Any book that ties in food and cooking...I think if done well adds another layer to the story and the author did amazing at that.
Now on the other side of the coin, these things weren't bad but the story kinda became boring after the first half of the book. I also felt like Samaya was so easily influenced by her friends..like girl STAND UP!! I do like a fake dating trope but I don't think 17 year olds are equipped with experience and emotional intelligence needed to actually fool anyone! I wasn't convinced sometimes as a reader.
Overall, three star read!
livreads4fun's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
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
4.25
thechristinereads's review against another edition
5.0
Fake boyfriend, Jealous Ex, Secret Identities, High School Shenanigans, Math Genius gamer MC, Family, and Friendship.
These and so much more are what you'd find in How to Win a Breakup. Samaya is trying to get over the fact that Devin dumped her right before summer camp, and now school is back in session. How will Samaya cope when Devin returns from India but is now dating Samaya's friend?
Then she meets Daniel, who is supposed to be her online gaming friend, but isn't. One thing I loved about this book was the reverse grumpy sunshine trope. We constantly see the male MC in books as grumpy, but this time, that wasn't the case, and it brought all the emotions you could think of, lol. Because he wasn't portrayed as the stereotypical male, Daniel was such a unique and adoring character. Apart from being a hockey player, he loved baking and was kind to everyone he encountered. And he loved to love, despite the number of parameters set.
These and so much more are what you'd find in How to Win a Breakup. Samaya is trying to get over the fact that Devin dumped her right before summer camp, and now school is back in session. How will Samaya cope when Devin returns from India but is now dating Samaya's friend?
Then she meets Daniel, who is supposed to be her online gaming friend, but isn't. One thing I loved about this book was the reverse grumpy sunshine trope. We constantly see the male MC in books as grumpy, but this time, that wasn't the case, and it brought all the emotions you could think of, lol. Because he wasn't portrayed as the stereotypical male, Daniel was such a unique and adoring character. Apart from being a hockey player, he loved baking and was kind to everyone he encountered. And he loved to love, despite the number of parameters set.
fishpantspeacock's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
3.5