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erikariehigano22's review against another edition
5.0
Every single part of this book is so lovely and adorable!!! I only have to say a few "hmm" moments into it.
This is a lovely change of setting compared to Adam Silvera's We Both Died At The End. I love Ben and Arthur so much I hope one of them moves to a common state at least and live together as boyfriends please :(
This is a lovely change of setting compared to Adam Silvera's We Both Died At The End. I love Ben and Arthur so much I hope one of them moves to a common state at least and live together as boyfriends please :(
At first, the whole dynamic and issue between Ben, Hudson, Harriet and Dylan were skeptical for me. I thought it was some angsty typical teenage drama like what happened with Jessie, Ethan and Arthur. But how it was so emphasised that the friendship between the friends from New York were broken after getting into relationships made me realise this is beyond teenage angst but actually something that can happen even to adults in their friend circles. That is why the depiction on how the four friends were able to amend their ties and reconcile were realistic and resonating for me.
The whole 'New York' being spectacle was a nice theme in the book to add in the humour and extra sweetness between Ben and Arthur's relationship. Between the two of them, I felt as if their relationship was not too sensationalised nor too romanticised compared to other YA novels. This is why I'm willing to read the 2nd book of this and hope for the best Arthur and Ben are endgame!!
I 100% recommend this book. It is everything you would want with a LGBTQIA+ young adult love story. If I wasn't so caught up into reading a 36-chapter fanfic, I would have finished this for 2-3 days.
annieni's review against another edition
2.0
Oof. I don't know what to say. I feel soo bad for giving this book 2 stars, but I can't give it anything else. I was really excited about this book, and I was ready to love it. What I was not ready for was 437 pages of frustration, losing my brain cells, and constant rants to my friends.
PART ONE: WHAT IF.
I was originally excited to read this because this book had some pretty rad representation and dealt with racism and homophobia. (also panic attacks!) Arthur is from Georgia and he's only here for the summer. He's gay, Jewish, and has ADHD. He's BIG on musicals, especially Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen. Ben is a New Yorker, gay, and Puerto Rican. He loves Harry Potter and writing. If you're in any of these fandoms, you'll definitely enjoy the jokes and mentions! I could definitely tell these two apart; they had their own unique voices. The book doesn't feel choppy and flowed pretty well. I think they're both cute people, and they're noticeably flawed, which I liked. I mean, they drove me crazy a couple (read: a lot) of times, but there were some really cute moments between them.
Buuuut.
The beginning was so hard for me to get through. I felt like the conversations with Ben and his best friend Dylan were kinda stilted and awkward because it's basically an info dump. I also couldn't stand Arthur's whole Universe spiel. Just a heads up, if you don't believe in the Universe having complete control over every aspect of your life, you should just skip this book. It would have saved me 2 days of headaches.
PART TWO: IT'S US.
Basically, Ben and Arthur have a meet-cute and then get separated and go on this big journey to find each other. Except, I was so over the hunt for each other. I liked the idea at first, but it got tiring quickly with all the missed connections. When they finally reunite and go on their date, their chemistry was.....off? Nonexistent? All Ben could think about was Hudson, his ex, which was really annoying. I honestly felt so bad for Arthur. Fast forward a couple dates, Ben is suddenly so enamored with Arthur that I got whiplash reading it. Like, this guy couldn't stop comparing Arthur to Hudson on literally every date they went on, and suddenly he's head over heels for him. I didn't really feel like they had anything.
This was kind of insta love. After knowing each other for 2-3 weeks, they're dropping the Big L Word and thinking abt sex after 5 dates. I'm 17, the same age as Ben (Arthur being 16) and it's just weird to think someone my age is already dropping L words after knowing a person for 2 weeks.
PART THREE: ONLY ME SCREAMING.
The thing is, it's like Ben and Arthur don't want their relationship to work out. They get into the stupidest miscommunication situations I've ever seen, and I've been on Wattpad circa 2013 and read "I was sold to 1D" fanfics. I KNOW unnecessary drama when I see it. It's like, do these authors even know what it's like to be teenagers? Is this what adults think teenagers are like?
I already said this, but they drove me nuts. It was like I was going through a mind field! At every turn, something went wrong. I know relationships take work and they don't just magically work out. But. Gotdamn. No one gets into THAT many miscommunications in one week. I was so close to not finishing this book. I stopped so many times to rant to my friends (bless them).
And the whole Universe thing drove me up the wall. Both Ben and Arthur believe in the Universe, but like. Fuck the Universe, man. Do what you want! Don't let some nonexistent entity control your life! You are in charge of your own fate! If you want something, someone, then GO FOR IT.
EPILOGUE: ER...WHAT?
The ending. Um. It left something to be desired, for sure. (lowkey annoyed and irritated I really went through 437 pages for that conclusion, but whatever.)
I'm really sad that I didn't end up enjoying this book. It had good representation and dealt with real-world problems. I just wish the boys' relationship problems were more realistic? less dramatic?
For what it's worth, the friendship in here is solid (er..ish). I liked Dylan's personality, and Samantha was pretty cool! There are some fall outs, but the characters try really hard to make their friendships work, and I really liked that aspect.
PART ONE: WHAT IF.
I was originally excited to read this because this book had some pretty rad representation and dealt with racism and homophobia. (also panic attacks!) Arthur is from Georgia and he's only here for the summer. He's gay, Jewish, and has ADHD. He's BIG on musicals, especially Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen. Ben is a New Yorker, gay, and Puerto Rican. He loves Harry Potter and writing. If you're in any of these fandoms, you'll definitely enjoy the jokes and mentions! I could definitely tell these two apart; they had their own unique voices. The book doesn't feel choppy and flowed pretty well. I think they're both cute people, and they're noticeably flawed, which I liked. I mean, they drove me crazy a couple (read: a lot) of times, but there were some really cute moments between them.
Buuuut.
The beginning was so hard for me to get through. I felt like the conversations with Ben and his best friend Dylan were kinda stilted and awkward because it's basically an info dump. I also couldn't stand Arthur's whole Universe spiel. Just a heads up, if you don't believe in the Universe having complete control over every aspect of your life, you should just skip this book. It would have saved me 2 days of headaches.
PART TWO: IT'S US.
Basically, Ben and Arthur have a meet-cute and then get separated and go on this big journey to find each other. Except, I was so over the hunt for each other. I liked the idea at first, but it got tiring quickly with all the missed connections. When they finally reunite and go on their date, their chemistry was.....off? Nonexistent? All Ben could think about was Hudson, his ex, which was really annoying. I honestly felt so bad for Arthur. Fast forward a couple dates, Ben is suddenly so enamored with Arthur that I got whiplash reading it. Like, this guy couldn't stop comparing Arthur to Hudson on literally every date they went on, and suddenly he's head over heels for him. I didn't really feel like they had anything.
This was kind of insta love. After knowing each other for 2-3 weeks, they're dropping the Big L Word and thinking abt sex after 5 dates. I'm 17, the same age as Ben (Arthur being 16) and it's just weird to think someone my age is already dropping L words after knowing a person for 2 weeks.
PART THREE: ONLY ME SCREAMING.
The thing is, it's like Ben and Arthur don't want their relationship to work out. They get into the stupidest miscommunication situations I've ever seen, and I've been on Wattpad circa 2013 and read "I was sold to 1D" fanfics. I KNOW unnecessary drama when I see it. It's like, do these authors even know what it's like to be teenagers? Is this what adults think teenagers are like?
I already said this, but they drove me nuts. It was like I was going through a mind field! At every turn, something went wrong. I know relationships take work and they don't just magically work out. But. Gotdamn. No one gets into THAT many miscommunications in one week. I was so close to not finishing this book. I stopped so many times to rant to my friends (bless them).
And the whole Universe thing drove me up the wall. Both Ben and Arthur believe in the Universe, but like. Fuck the Universe, man. Do what you want! Don't let some nonexistent entity control your life! You are in charge of your own fate! If you want something, someone, then GO FOR IT.
EPILOGUE: ER...WHAT?
The ending. Um. It left something to be desired, for sure. (lowkey annoyed and irritated I really went through 437 pages for that conclusion, but whatever.)
I'm really sad that I didn't end up enjoying this book. It had good representation and dealt with real-world problems. I just wish the boys' relationship problems were more realistic? less dramatic?
For what it's worth, the friendship in here is solid (er..ish). I liked Dylan's personality, and Samantha was pretty cool! There are some fall outs, but the characters try really hard to make their friendships work, and I really liked that aspect.
christopher_d_ramshaw's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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? Yes
4.0
ciuli's review against another edition
4.0
4/5
Okay I definitely enjoyed this book (and if you get the chance you should definitely listen to the audiobook because the voice actors are SO GOOD) but I was kind of expecting more feelings from it and I felt like it was missing something.
My first reaction when I saw this team-up between Becky and Adam was "this is going to be so gay I'm so going to love it". But then I actually started thinking about it and I didn't let myself hype it too much because I knew this two authors' styles would clash. On the one hand we have Becky, who is all for love, and cuteness, and nice romances and happy endings. On the other hand we have Adam, who either has his characters die or suffer from critical head injuries, so you see what I'm saying?! I am a HUGE Silvera's fan and I knew that in order to be compatible with Becky's style, he'd have to tone it down a notch. Or ten. Right on cue, the very predictable plot-twist (is it really considered a plot-twist, though?), the lack of angst and the overabundance of cute scenes. It didn't feel like I was reading a book thought out by Adam. It felt like I was reading a book plotted by someone else, in which he just happened to be the one writing it.
Nonetheless, I really enjoyed reading it, it was a very nice meet-cute story and even though I open endings are not really my cup of tea, I think it fit the story well.
Okay I definitely enjoyed this book (and if you get the chance you should definitely listen to the audiobook because the voice actors are SO GOOD) but I was kind of expecting more feelings from it and I felt like it was missing something.
My first reaction when I saw this team-up between Becky and Adam was "this is going to be so gay I'm so going to love it". But then I actually started thinking about it and I didn't let myself hype it too much because I knew this two authors' styles would clash. On the one hand we have Becky, who is all for love, and cuteness, and nice romances and happy endings. On the other hand we have Adam, who either has his characters die or suffer from critical head injuries, so you see what I'm saying?! I am a HUGE Silvera's fan and I knew that in order to be compatible with Becky's style, he'd have to tone it down a notch. Or ten. Right on cue, the very predictable plot-twist (is it really considered a plot-twist, though?), the lack of angst and the overabundance of cute scenes. It didn't feel like I was reading a book thought out by Adam. It felt like I was reading a book plotted by someone else, in which he just happened to be the one writing it.
Nonetheless, I really enjoyed reading it, it was a very nice meet-cute story and even though I open endings are not really my cup of tea, I think it fit the story well.
sarahbass's review against another edition
2.0
way too many harry potter references. the end was underwhelming and it felt really slow. could not tell if it was ben or arthur speaking for half the book either
clairiewairie's review against another edition
hopeful
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
3.5
sarah2019's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-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
4.75
blurrypetals's review against another edition
5.0
January 11, 2022
I really wanted to reread this before starting Here's To Us and I'm glad I did, because I really didn't remember the whole book very well at all! I guess that'll happen when you read over 200 books in one year and then another 200 books before rereading one of those books.
This is still just as charming, nostalgic, and whimsical as it was when I first read it. It did leave me wanting for a little more of Silvera's classically painful stories this time, but I am excited to see what they do with this sequel so many years later!
It was also way fun to return to this now that I'm familiar with Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen in a way I wasn't when I first read it. It was fun to be able to get the references not but even nicer to realize this was written in a way where it didn't matter whether I'd seen those musicals or not!
October 10, 2018
Oh my goodness, Adam, Becky, can you guys just, like, keep writing books together? Because you knocked this out of the park and I am absolutely baffled by how masterfully it was done.
In the past, I've expressed issues with some of Becky Albertalli's writing choices, mainly that some of her characters lacked depth, but I've always still really enjoyed her writing because it was charming and fun.
On the other side of the coin, I haven't read an Adam Silvera book that I haven't loved, but his stories tend to be dour or at least a little melancholy which, for me, is a good thing, because I love dour and melancholy. Also, it says something when the guy's "happiest" ending to a book is the one where a guy's ex-boyfriend drowns to death and we're in his head as he grieves this loss.
So, even though both authors write LGBTQ+ books and this theoretically made sense for them to write a book together, it was logistically interesting to me to stick the lady who writes the cute, fluffy books that have all made me smile with the guy who writes the books about sad gay boys going through existential crises that have all made me cry. I don't know whose idea this all was, but whoever did decide to pair these two very different writers up was a genius or a group of geniuses, because this book is brilliant.
It might feel overdone to couple an idealist dreamer new to the city that never sleeps with someone who's been beaten down by the world and is reminded by this new person what it means to be alive, but it's so well done here that I have zero complaints. I can't imagine actually, genuinely calling this book or anything in it "clichéd" in any way. It's because Albertalli's and Silvera's styles are so different that this book and its own conflicting themes works as well as it does. In any other hands, it would be a much more contrived work, but it was put in safe, capable hands that molded it into something truly lovely and moving.
I was particularly fond of Ben's chapters (probably because I'm 99% sure they were Adam Silvera's chapters; if they aren't, Becky's going a really great Adam Silvera impression and vice versa) but Arthur was also really, really cute, too. Their whole story from start to finish, from post office to post office, from Chapter 1 to that metaphorical ellipsis, from cover to cover, this book was incredibly special and I would be hard pressed to name anything else quite like it.
Thanks for the early Christmas gift, Adam and Becky. I love it. I love it so, so much.
I really wanted to reread this before starting Here's To Us and I'm glad I did, because I really didn't remember the whole book very well at all! I guess that'll happen when you read over 200 books in one year and then another 200 books before rereading one of those books.
This is still just as charming, nostalgic, and whimsical as it was when I first read it. It did leave me wanting for a little more of Silvera's classically painful stories this time, but I am excited to see what they do with this sequel so many years later!
It was also way fun to return to this now that I'm familiar with Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen in a way I wasn't when I first read it. It was fun to be able to get the references not but even nicer to realize this was written in a way where it didn't matter whether I'd seen those musicals or not!
October 10, 2018
Oh my goodness, Adam, Becky, can you guys just, like, keep writing books together? Because you knocked this out of the park and I am absolutely baffled by how masterfully it was done.
In the past, I've expressed issues with some of Becky Albertalli's writing choices, mainly that some of her characters lacked depth, but I've always still really enjoyed her writing because it was charming and fun.
On the other side of the coin, I haven't read an Adam Silvera book that I haven't loved, but his stories tend to be dour or at least a little melancholy which, for me, is a good thing, because I love dour and melancholy. Also, it says something when the guy's "happiest" ending to a book is the one where a guy's ex-boyfriend drowns to death and we're in his head as he grieves this loss.
So, even though both authors write LGBTQ+ books and this theoretically made sense for them to write a book together, it was logistically interesting to me to stick the lady who writes the cute, fluffy books that have all made me smile with the guy who writes the books about sad gay boys going through existential crises that have all made me cry. I don't know whose idea this all was, but whoever did decide to pair these two very different writers up was a genius or a group of geniuses, because this book is brilliant.
It might feel overdone to couple an idealist dreamer new to the city that never sleeps with someone who's been beaten down by the world and is reminded by this new person what it means to be alive, but it's so well done here that I have zero complaints. I can't imagine actually, genuinely calling this book or anything in it "clichéd" in any way. It's because Albertalli's and Silvera's styles are so different that this book and its own conflicting themes works as well as it does. In any other hands, it would be a much more contrived work, but it was put in safe, capable hands that molded it into something truly lovely and moving.
I was particularly fond of Ben's chapters (probably because I'm 99% sure they were Adam Silvera's chapters; if they aren't, Becky's going a really great Adam Silvera impression and vice versa) but Arthur was also really, really cute, too. Their whole story from start to finish, from post office to post office, from Chapter 1 to that metaphorical ellipsis, from cover to cover, this book was incredibly special and I would be hard pressed to name anything else quite like it.
Thanks for the early Christmas gift, Adam and Becky. I love it. I love it so, so much.