Reviews

The Friend Scheme by Cale Dietrich

blazenaat's review

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funny lighthearted relaxing fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

strangeclaykitty's review against another edition

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2.0

my og review from the 7th of november:
"i-... hHiwOqaodhsiaiw77h2bdjciai3iur so-
....
???? ok im
i have no idea" (☆☆)


oK its been some time since i finished the book and after thinking ab it, ill give it 2,5 and ill actually talk ab it

(btw i havent read the book in a month so its all pretty much from memory so.........)

ill start with their first few interactions. in 2 words, fast and stupid.
both in a good and bad way, since it actually makes sense by the end of the book. but at the same time... you spend majority of your reading time thinking "lol this is so stupid". tbh nothing wrong w that, i personally like that kinda stuff lolol, it keeps me entertained:^).
but still

bookishslut's review against another edition

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4.0

I feel sad at a happy ending. like- there was no big shit to it, at least to me. BUT THE HAPPY ENDING THO- LIKE AHHH
I liked it.

thepetitepunk's review against another edition

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4.0

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Friend Scheme is a Romeo and Juliet type story following Matt and Jason, two teenage boys who start to fall for each other despite being from rival families. As their relationship advances, they must keep secrets from their families and each other as they figure out where their loyalties lie.

I thought this was a super fun, fast-paced story about forbidden love and identity. The romance was great and I liked the characters. There were quite a few twists that kept me engaged. I also appreciated the conversations about being queer. I honestly had a hard time putting this one down!

However, I think The Friend Scheme should have been marketed differently. This was really just a romance. I would have loved to see more of the thriller aspect in this story because I felt like it was really only briefly touched upon. I loved the romance, but if the goal of this book was to be more than a contemporary romance, then I think there should have been a bit more action, emotion, and twists outside of Matt and Jason’s relationship. The Friend Scheme had the potential to be so much bigger.

I also have a feeling that this book is going to be pretty hit or miss based on age group. I personally enjoyed the rather simplistic, short writing and the plethora of pop-culture references, but if a reader doesn’t mostly read YA or doesn’t know most of the shows/movies/bands/songs/video games/etc. mentioned then I could see these aspects becoming a bit annoying. But again, for me personally, I thought this writing style was enjoying.

Overall, The Friend Scheme is a quick story about love and secrets. I’d definitely recommend this to someone looking for something simple, cute, and entertaining with relatable gay representation.

josworld96's review

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mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.0

nextdoorleft's review

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emotional hopeful sad fast-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

3.75

weebna's review against another edition

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3.0

Eh. It was okay. I had this on my tbr for so long so I expected a little bit more

eatto3's review against another edition

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3.0

Pacing was not itttt and ending was SOOOOO rushed

maxtaz's review against another edition

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hopeful lighthearted 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? It's complicated

3.5

haneyhaney's review against another edition

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funny fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

read this to fullfil the prompt "read the book on your tbr that has the lowest rating on gr" and. well. the results are as expected! i will say i did enjoy this. it's so ridiculous i couldn't not laugh at it. but it's bad 😭