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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
Another cute and sweet romance novel. I've read so many YA romances that I can predict the plot from the first few chapters, but I stayed for the STEM stuff in the end.
Cute concept, but not for me. DNF at about 26%, it was too stressful to read about these high school students obsessed with school and competing against each other. Also didn't really buy into the main female character who is just a natural genius who doesn't care about school at all.
I am not going to lie. I went into this book with very high expectations, as Olivie Blake (who went by her real name Alexene Farol Follmuth for this book) is one of my favorite writers, that being said, I know I am in the minority of people who disliked this book, and now I believe we can have a conversation about it. This is my disclaimer that this isn’t a super serious “attack” on the author, nor to the people who like this book, I just simply want to share my own personal thoughts and opinions.
I am not one to be hypercritical of the YA genre. It’s cheesy and it’s childish but the target demographic for these books are oftentimes cheesy, hopeless romantic teenagers. I understand why someone wouldn’t enjoy this book because it “reads like Wattpad” but that is not my main criticism of this book at all.
At first, I was very excited seeing the announcement of this book. The title is an obvious My Chemical Romance reference. However, the marketing for this was very misleading and touches upon another subject I want to discuss about how TikTok has affected the way new books have been published lately.
I would say there was some underlying internal racism from both Bel and the author. The reason this whole rant had come to mind for me to write was due to the fact that reading the words “Luke in particular likes to jokingly call us “dumb Asian” or “jungle Asian” because we’re half Filipino” had me taken aback and had me questioning why no one was talking about how unapologetically racist these two descriptions were.
full review - https://mylastconfessions.wixsite.com/blog/post/how-to-not-write-filipino-characters-a-my-mechanical-romance-review-rant
I am not one to be hypercritical of the YA genre. It’s cheesy and it’s childish but the target demographic for these books are oftentimes cheesy, hopeless romantic teenagers. I understand why someone wouldn’t enjoy this book because it “reads like Wattpad” but that is not my main criticism of this book at all.
At first, I was very excited seeing the announcement of this book. The title is an obvious My Chemical Romance reference. However, the marketing for this was very misleading and touches upon another subject I want to discuss about how TikTok has affected the way new books have been published lately.
I would say there was some underlying internal racism from both Bel and the author. The reason this whole rant had come to mind for me to write was due to the fact that reading the words “Luke in particular likes to jokingly call us “dumb Asian” or “jungle Asian” because we’re half Filipino” had me taken aback and had me questioning why no one was talking about how unapologetically racist these two descriptions were.
full review - https://mylastconfessions.wixsite.com/blog/post/how-to-not-write-filipino-characters-a-my-mechanical-romance-review-rant
Ok this was SO cute and wholesome and we have a female future engineer blossoming and learning she can belong wherever she wants to be
ARC copy provided in exchange for an honest review. This in no way changes my rating or review.
4 FUN STARS
Three Minute Thoughts:
This was SO DAMN ADORABLE. It was fun, swoon-worthy, hilarious and relatable – plus WOMEN IN STEM and BIRACIAL REP, two of my biggest weaknesses. Bel and Mateo were hilarious and so cute; their rivals-to-lovers, opposites-attract relationship was all the best tropes in one, and I loved every second of watching them and their relationship grow. While this book also hit some deep topics, it was masterfully written to keep the novel light and fun overall, and I literally read this in 4 hours – I could barely put it down. Highly recommended!
The Extended, Long, and Very-Probably-Messy Review:
I loved this so much. The characters were beautifully depicted and I became instantly invested in their storylines, both individual and connected. Bel was such a wonderful MC – not only was she flawed and so funny, she was also incredibly relatable. Bel wasn’t sure what she wanted to do in life – uni applications were her worst nightmare, and she wasn’t particularly motivated in school – and I loved this about her! It was such a nice change from the usual MCs, who are often incredibly set in their ways and know exactly what they want from life, and I really enjoyed reading from her perspective. She was also half-Asian half-white, and while there wasn’t too much about Bel’s identity as a biracial Asian overall, I still loved that inclusion to the story (as half-Asian myself), and I’m so glad we’re getting more of that rep.
“Everyone at this school has plans, and then they want me to have plans, and I’m just so overwhelmed by their good intentions that I constantly feel the need to lie down for a solid five minutes before trying again.”
(This quote may not be in the published version of this novel, it was copied from the advanced reader’s copy.)
And there was Mateo. Precious little Mateo – struggling with the perfection that he was consistently expected to produce in school, soccer and life overall. We got less of Mateo’s POV but I still really enjoyed his little snippets, and his character was so splendidly written – I loved watching him and Bel grow with each other. Mateo was also wonderfully relatable, and – though privileged in many ways – he faced his own difficulties.
Plus the romance was just the sweetest! They were both so adorable, and as they each learnt more about each other and their relationship developed further, they both helped one another develop as people.
But honestly, the thing I loved most about this was the subtle themes outside the romance. It is widely known that women are the minority in the STEM field, and I really enjoyed this novels depiction of the struggles that many women face within STEM fields, especially women of colour.
“‘The world is not very helpful to a smart girl… more often it will try to force you inside a box. But I urge you not to listen.'”
(This quote may not be in the published version of this novel, it was copied from the advanced reader’s copy.)
I thought Neelam was such a vital character to the story just for this representation of WOC in STEM, and I also appreciated the addition of a character who was – undeliberately – mildly sexist. It shows how the patriarchal society we grow up in influences everyone, no matter how forward thinking they may believe themselves to be.
Overall, this was just such a fun book, with brilliant inclusions of amazing rep, women in STEM (woo!) and adorable romance. I’m so glad I read it! Thank you so much to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC copy provided in exchange for an honest review :)).
4 FUN STARS
Three Minute Thoughts:
This was SO DAMN ADORABLE. It was fun, swoon-worthy, hilarious and relatable – plus WOMEN IN STEM and BIRACIAL REP, two of my biggest weaknesses. Bel and Mateo were hilarious and so cute; their rivals-to-lovers, opposites-attract relationship was all the best tropes in one, and I loved every second of watching them and their relationship grow. While this book also hit some deep topics, it was masterfully written to keep the novel light and fun overall, and I literally read this in 4 hours – I could barely put it down. Highly recommended!
The Extended, Long, and Very-Probably-Messy Review:
I loved this so much. The characters were beautifully depicted and I became instantly invested in their storylines, both individual and connected. Bel was such a wonderful MC – not only was she flawed and so funny, she was also incredibly relatable. Bel wasn’t sure what she wanted to do in life – uni applications were her worst nightmare, and she wasn’t particularly motivated in school – and I loved this about her! It was such a nice change from the usual MCs, who are often incredibly set in their ways and know exactly what they want from life, and I really enjoyed reading from her perspective. She was also half-Asian half-white, and while there wasn’t too much about Bel’s identity as a biracial Asian overall, I still loved that inclusion to the story (as half-Asian myself), and I’m so glad we’re getting more of that rep.
“Everyone at this school has plans, and then they want me to have plans, and I’m just so overwhelmed by their good intentions that I constantly feel the need to lie down for a solid five minutes before trying again.”
(This quote may not be in the published version of this novel, it was copied from the advanced reader’s copy.)
And there was Mateo. Precious little Mateo – struggling with the perfection that he was consistently expected to produce in school, soccer and life overall. We got less of Mateo’s POV but I still really enjoyed his little snippets, and his character was so splendidly written – I loved watching him and Bel grow with each other. Mateo was also wonderfully relatable, and – though privileged in many ways – he faced his own difficulties.
Plus the romance was just the sweetest! They were both so adorable, and as they each learnt more about each other and their relationship developed further, they both helped one another develop as people.
But honestly, the thing I loved most about this was the subtle themes outside the romance. It is widely known that women are the minority in the STEM field, and I really enjoyed this novels depiction of the struggles that many women face within STEM fields, especially women of colour.
“‘The world is not very helpful to a smart girl… more often it will try to force you inside a box. But I urge you not to listen.'”
(This quote may not be in the published version of this novel, it was copied from the advanced reader’s copy.)
I thought Neelam was such a vital character to the story just for this representation of WOC in STEM, and I also appreciated the addition of a character who was – undeliberately – mildly sexist. It shows how the patriarchal society we grow up in influences everyone, no matter how forward thinking they may believe themselves to be.
Overall, this was just such a fun book, with brilliant inclusions of amazing rep, women in STEM (woo!) and adorable romance. I’m so glad I read it! Thank you so much to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC copy provided in exchange for an honest review :)).
Ugh, I can tell this is a really lovely YA romance with amazing characters and the concept sounds fun... so it pains me to dnf this but the writing style unfortunately is not for me.
To rambly for my liking and I suspect this will not change throughout the book. So bummed 😔
To rambly for my liking and I suspect this will not change throughout the book. So bummed 😔
A super cute young adult book about two seniors trying to figure out life during their senior year of high school. I absolutely loved the women in STEM representation in this book. Bel and Teo were cute young narrators, I enjoyed reading their story.
A huge thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book!!!
I loved this book. The whole academic rivals to lovers, the relationships between different characters(there were so many personalities and relations executed very well- you would assume something but then find out their reasoning and they would instantly become your favorite character!)
The main relationship Bel & Teo was honestly so cute and healthy, they're my favorite book couple now. With their banter and understanding of eachother. Beautiful.
I really liked the "finding yourself" trope cause the author wrote it really well.
If you want to read a fluffy but also more directional book about romance AND?!!? science, academic achievements, the pressure of parents... I- READ IT. comes out on May 31.
I loved this book. The whole academic rivals to lovers, the relationships between different characters(there were so many personalities and relations executed very well- you would assume something but then find out their reasoning and they would instantly become your favorite character!)
The main relationship Bel & Teo was honestly so cute and healthy, they're my favorite book couple now. With their banter and understanding of eachother. Beautiful.
I really liked the "finding yourself" trope cause the author wrote it really well.
If you want to read a fluffy but also more directional book about romance AND?!!? science, academic achievements, the pressure of parents... I- READ IT. comes out on May 31.
4.75/5 stars.
THIS BOOK Y'ALL. Anyways.
I loved this book so much. The feminism, the engineering, BEL, TEO. Holy shit. So good. Girl Power was real with this one. This book made me believe in myself, and I love it when they do that.
My one critique is that Teo got off a little too lightly as an asshole in this one. He never apologized to Neelam, and he really didn't to Bel very much. But he sorta redeemed himself (he should have done more groveling to Bel imo, but I always think that).
THIS BOOK Y'ALL. Anyways.
I loved this book so much. The feminism, the engineering, BEL, TEO. Holy shit. So good. Girl Power was real with this one. This book made me believe in myself, and I love it when they do that.
My one critique is that Teo got off a little too lightly as an asshole in this one. He never apologized to Neelam, and he really didn't to Bel very much. But he sorta redeemed himself (he should have done more groveling to Bel imo, but I always think that).