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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
Super cute novel. Just…I don’t know man, I just really love the MC. I’ve heard a lot of debates about this novel being too cringy and the MC being too cringy, but I don’t get that. She is like SO relatable, and just SO awesome…I love her. The romance dynamics are actually so cute too. I need more of this story, give me a part TWO!!!
emotional
hopeful
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
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
tense
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
So far this is one of my favorite releases of 2018.
I read Simon vs The Homo sapiens earlier this year and enjoyed it but didn't love it. As someone pretty far out of high school that book just felt very VERY YA so I was worried this book would have read the same way for me.
Surprisingly this book really grabbed me by the heart and wouldn't let go. I think I loved it more than Simon because it was just so RELATABLE for me. Leah's situation is very similar to mine in a lot of ways, being raised by a single mom while your friends are way better off financially than you, being a closeted bi even though your best friend is out and gay, her lowkey standoffish character. I saw myself a lot in her.
Leah is who I wish I was in high school. The plot line of calling out her racist friend was done SO well and I was surprised that particular story was carried out throughout the book, a lot of YA books will have a chapter on racists issues between friends and then move on. I liked how we kept going back to that particular event because in real life shit like that doesnt just easily get swept under the rug.
All in all, I loved it. The characters were fleshed out and relatable as hell. The romance had such a good build and felt organic the entire time. I would absolutely devour another book with these characters and hope we can get more.
I read Simon vs The Homo sapiens earlier this year and enjoyed it but didn't love it. As someone pretty far out of high school that book just felt very VERY YA so I was worried this book would have read the same way for me.
Surprisingly this book really grabbed me by the heart and wouldn't let go. I think I loved it more than Simon because it was just so RELATABLE for me. Leah's situation is very similar to mine in a lot of ways, being raised by a single mom while your friends are way better off financially than you, being a closeted bi even though your best friend is out and gay, her lowkey standoffish character. I saw myself a lot in her.
Leah is who I wish I was in high school. The plot line of calling out her racist friend was done SO well and I was surprised that particular story was carried out throughout the book, a lot of YA books will have a chapter on racists issues between friends and then move on. I liked how we kept going back to that particular event because in real life shit like that doesnt just easily get swept under the rug.
All in all, I loved it. The characters were fleshed out and relatable as hell. The romance had such a good build and felt organic the entire time. I would absolutely devour another book with these characters and hope we can get more.
one of the most disappointing book I've ever read.
----------------------------
as you can see from the long time period that I read this book. I struggled reading this book tremendously. this book didn't grip me or even entertain me as much as Simon's did. there were a few quirky parts that I liked but overall I didn't enjoy this book as much as everyone else did. I found it rather dull and wasn't very enjoyable.
the good things
-there was this cool moment where Leah mentions how her friend, Anna, is obsessed with duke for the majority of high school and that reminded me of one of my friends, Vanessa who's the exact same way.
-there was cute literary references like drarry, Inez and Nina, percabeth, harry asking-Cho-to-the-Yule-Ball situations etc. that I appreciated.
-"Thomas Jefferson helped the marquis de layfayette draft a declaration," Simon blurts.
"Mr. Spier, memorizing the Hamilton soundtrack is not going to save you on the AP Euro exam."
-there was this part where abby talks about how she has to be ~~perfect~~ because black girls have to work twice as hard and she talks about she feels like she can't win sometimes and this was explained perfectly. being smart and black might be a good thing since you are going places but then everyone says you only got in because of your race, not bc of what you have accomplished.
-seeing more of Bram was nice. he's a Columbia boy and I like that! also the college talk was great as I am a graduated senior/college freshmen, so I love reading books about people making the same decisions as me.
things that annoyed me
- I think the race discussion with Morgan saying she didn't get into Georgia bc "she was white" was a viewpoint people express. what annoyed me was kind of the events that happened after that moment. I really would have liked Morgan and abby talking about it instead of it feeling like Leah was always the one defending or commenting on it. idk I just feel like race in college is one of those issues that needed a response and discussion with abby and morgan instead of this back and forth. there was the forced apologizes and meetings and it just annoyed me.
-so there was this scene on the soccer field where it felt like Leah was pressuring abby to figure out her sexual identity and I definitely didn't like that. Leah was frustrated that abby hasn't figured out what she identified as not considering how she was feeling. I was just annoyed.
-the idea of abby and Leah's relationship made no sense to me. like I didn't see the chemistry that others saw. I just didn't vibe with it. their relationship felt sudden, and I felt like it was built on fascination of one another not on deeper feelings. maybe it develops to be more, but I didn't see the chemistry.
-Leah was kind of an annoying POV. not that she was unlikable necessarily, but I never felt like I liked her in this book. like she complained a lot and that annoys me in people. reading a book about how insecure she was and how she was just plain negative was just a pain to read from. it made me not want to read the book and stop it multiple times. becky has an amazing writing style so that's probably the only reason, I didn't DNF this book.
anyway that's it. my next one is an iconic one, dangerous girls.
----------------------------
as you can see from the long time period that I read this book. I struggled reading this book tremendously. this book didn't grip me or even entertain me as much as Simon's did. there were a few quirky parts that I liked but overall I didn't enjoy this book as much as everyone else did. I found it rather dull and wasn't very enjoyable.
the good things
-there was this cool moment where Leah mentions how her friend, Anna, is obsessed with duke for the majority of high school and that reminded me of one of my friends, Vanessa who's the exact same way.
-there was cute literary references like drarry, Inez and Nina, percabeth, harry asking-Cho-to-the-Yule-Ball situations etc. that I appreciated.
-"Thomas Jefferson helped the marquis de layfayette draft a declaration," Simon blurts.
"Mr. Spier, memorizing the Hamilton soundtrack is not going to save you on the AP Euro exam."
-there was this part where abby talks about how she has to be ~~perfect~~ because black girls have to work twice as hard and she talks about she feels like she can't win sometimes and this was explained perfectly. being smart and black might be a good thing since you are going places but then everyone says you only got in because of your race, not bc of what you have accomplished.
-seeing more of Bram was nice. he's a Columbia boy and I like that! also the college talk was great as I am a graduated senior/college freshmen, so I love reading books about people making the same decisions as me.
things that annoyed me
- I think the race discussion with Morgan saying she didn't get into Georgia bc "she was white" was a viewpoint people express. what annoyed me was kind of the events that happened after that moment. I really would have liked Morgan and abby talking about it instead of it feeling like Leah was always the one defending or commenting on it. idk I just feel like race in college is one of those issues that needed a response and discussion with abby and morgan instead of this back and forth. there was the forced apologizes and meetings and it just annoyed me.
-so there was this scene on the soccer field where it felt like Leah was pressuring abby to figure out her sexual identity and I definitely didn't like that. Leah was frustrated that abby hasn't figured out what she identified as not considering how she was feeling. I was just annoyed.
-the idea of abby and Leah's relationship made no sense to me. like I didn't see the chemistry that others saw. I just didn't vibe with it. their relationship felt sudden, and I felt like it was built on fascination of one another not on deeper feelings. maybe it develops to be more, but I didn't see the chemistry.
-Leah was kind of an annoying POV. not that she was unlikable necessarily, but I never felt like I liked her in this book. like she complained a lot and that annoys me in people. reading a book about how insecure she was and how she was just plain negative was just a pain to read from. it made me not want to read the book and stop it multiple times. becky has an amazing writing style so that's probably the only reason, I didn't DNF this book.
anyway that's it. my next one is an iconic one, dangerous girls.
Great high school rom com. The dialogue and banter are amazing and Leah Burke is just hilarious and amazing. Great read
Harry Potter has done irreparable damage to youth culture because people think it's okay to be mean when they're a "Slytherin".
Also, Leah telling Abby that "low-key bi" wasn't a label broke my heart a little. What exactly is her problem with that?? If queerness is new to her, she can try out whatever label... Just let that poor girl live!!
Also, Leah telling Abby that "low-key bi" wasn't a label broke my heart a little. What exactly is her problem with that?? If queerness is new to her, she can try out whatever label... Just let that poor girl live!!
a little disappointed that i didn't enjoy this more - the representation just felt off in many ways, a lot of telling instead of showing, and the ending was so rushed that characterization really took a hit. simon and bram are a delight as always though.
i won't let the fluff distract me from the actual problematic content of this book