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sebbyreads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-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
5.0
Thank you to NetGalley and St.Martin's Press/Wednesday Book for the eARC! I loved this so so much!! I've been in a little bit of a slump where getting through thigns felt like a chore and this was the first book in at least 6 weeks that had me actually grinning and crying and staying up way later than I should because I couldn't put it down.
Firstly, the teens in this are so good? They're insufferable at times, have problems that could so easily be avoided through communication, and do really awful things sometimes because they think it's good and other times just to be petty. In other words, they are very much like real teens. I've been seeing a pretty good trend of this lately among YA releases and it's all so *chef's kiss* I really loved all the characters too and I think it did a great job of not villainizing any one person too much, because at the end of the day, they're a bunch of teenagers making mistakes that hurt each other, but learning and doing better in the process. Even people who at times I was like hmm I don't see how I could possibly forgive this character I wound up genuinely rooting for by the end.
The premise is also just so fun and a little goofy. What teenager these days doesn't watch like 3 YouTube videos on something and go hey! I can do this better! Darcy is such a mess. I mean she pulls it off a lot of the times somehow, but she is such a mess. I loved the snippets of her advice at the beginnings of chapters and seeing how her judgments (particularly on herself and Alex) changed throughout the story the more she actually reflected on what she was doing.
Lastly, I loved how very queer this whole thing was. There was rep from all across the board (trans, ace, bi, lesbian, gay) that all felt really natural. Biphobia - both internalized and not - is a big part of Darcy's arc and I thought it was handled really well. I'm not bi myself so of course take this with a grain of salt and listen to bi reviewers, but I know this story partly came out as a result of Sophie Gonzales' personal experience with biphobia and the unique issues that come from being bi in a m/f relationship. There is one particular scene that was just so heartwarming and cathartic and had me grinning and hugging my phone very close.
I went in with high expectations already from my experience with Only Mostly Devastated and the early reviews and somehow they were still exceeded. An absolutely sweet and wonderful YA romance that is queer in ways we haven't explored much before and will have you gushing.
Firstly, the teens in this are so good? They're insufferable at times, have problems that could so easily be avoided through communication, and do really awful things sometimes because they think it's good and other times just to be petty. In other words, they are very much like real teens. I've been seeing a pretty good trend of this lately among YA releases and it's all so *chef's kiss* I really loved all the characters too and I think it did a great job of not villainizing any one person too much, because at the end of the day, they're a bunch of teenagers making mistakes that hurt each other, but learning and doing better in the process. Even people who at times I was like hmm I don't see how I could possibly forgive this character I wound up genuinely rooting for by the end.
The premise is also just so fun and a little goofy. What teenager these days doesn't watch like 3 YouTube videos on something and go hey! I can do this better! Darcy is such a mess. I mean she pulls it off a lot of the times somehow, but she is such a mess. I loved the snippets of her advice at the beginnings of chapters and seeing how her judgments (particularly on herself and Alex) changed throughout the story the more she actually reflected on what she was doing.
Lastly, I loved how very queer this whole thing was. There was rep from all across the board (trans, ace, bi, lesbian, gay) that all felt really natural. Biphobia - both internalized and not - is a big part of Darcy's arc and I thought it was handled really well. I'm not bi myself so of course take this with a grain of salt and listen to bi reviewers, but I know this story partly came out as a result of Sophie Gonzales' personal experience with biphobia and the unique issues that come from being bi in a m/f relationship. There is one particular scene that was just so heartwarming and cathartic and had me grinning and hugging my phone very close.
I went in with high expectations already from my experience with Only Mostly Devastated and the early reviews and somehow they were still exceeded. An absolutely sweet and wonderful YA romance that is queer in ways we haven't explored much before and will have you gushing.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Biphobia, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
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