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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Epistolary YA novel set in coastal Virginia.
Sydney is a rising college freshman, set to attend a local university without her BFF. Takes place from the end of summer to February of the following year. I like that we didn’t finish the school year with Sydney. February was a nice place to end her story, leaving the rest of her year up to us to imagine.
A big theme in this book is movement. It’s explored in a layered way that’s fun to annotate. Movement is explored through imagery: the steady rhythm of waves at the local beach is an opening image that Sydney writes about. It’s explored through scenes (like her move-in day at the college dorms). Movement is also explored intellectually. Sydney’s internal life, for example, is filled with thoughts on how she wants to move through the world. Movement, as a theme, comes to a climax when she gets involved in a student movement on another campus.
Sydney faces tough choices at the end of the book. I love the decisions she comes to because she is so sure and thoughtful.
This book would be a GREAT GIFT for a graduating high school senior.
Sydney is a rising college freshman, set to attend a local university without her BFF. Takes place from the end of summer to February of the following year. I like that we didn’t finish the school year with Sydney. February was a nice place to end her story, leaving the rest of her year up to us to imagine.
A big theme in this book is movement. It’s explored in a layered way that’s fun to annotate. Movement is explored through imagery: the steady rhythm of waves at the local beach is an opening image that Sydney writes about. It’s explored through scenes (like her move-in day at the college dorms). Movement is also explored intellectually. Sydney’s internal life, for example, is filled with thoughts on how she wants to move through the world. Movement, as a theme, comes to a climax when she gets involved in a student movement on another campus.
Sydney faces tough choices at the end of the book. I love the decisions she comes to because she is so sure and thoughtful.
This book would be a GREAT GIFT for a graduating high school senior.
adventurous
reflective
tense
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:
Complicated
This was my second Ravynn K. Stringfield novel and this book really solidified her as an auto-read author for me.
Told through blog posts, tweets, and text messages from the main character, Love In 280 Characters Or Less is a coming-of-age story about a college freshman learning to find her voice. But don’t let the cute title fool you; this book covers some important, serious topics from racial profiling, to the question of what defines activism and how much of Black artists’ work has to revolve around this activism.
I really enjoyed the format of this book. I thought getting the story through posts and messages was pretty original and it was surprisingly easy to follow along. The story moved at a steady pace and I felt invested in all of the characters. I also really enjoyed the commentary on art as activism and the various viewpoints of how people react following a racial profiling situation. These are such important things to talk about, especially at a high school / college level and I think Stringfield tackles these issues beautifully,
I can’t think of much that I didn’t like in this book. I think there were times the main character frustrated me, but I think this was by design. She’s trying her best to navigate her life and the things happening around her in a way that feels genuine to her with a ton of outside input. Sometimes all we can do is our best.
I really enjoyed this book and I would gladly recommend it. I’m very excited to read more of this authors work. And if you haven’t yet, check out her other book, Love Requires Chocolate!
*Thank you to Ravynn K. Stringfield, Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, and NetGalley for providing me with and advanced e-book of this novel in exchange for honest review*
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism
Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
Told in a non-traditional format, Love in 280 Characters or Less is a coming-of-age story that explores big themes—racial injustice, self-discovery, and navigating friendship and freshman year—through blog posts, tweets, and text message transcripts.
While the story delivers on its premise, the title led me to expect something different: a more romance-forward, contemporary novel aimed at a new adult audience. Though we follow Sydney Cierra as she experiences her first love, the heart of the story is really about finding herself. Because of this, the book reads more like a younger YA novel, and I think it will resonate best with readers in late middle school to early high school.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
!!!!!
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It wasn't a bad book, just too slow for me.
First of all, thank you to Netgalley for the e-arc!
Love in 280 Characters or less is a book told through social media and blog posts about our main character's first year of college exploring romance and identity.
One of the main things I enjoyed from this was seeing the main character's personal thoughts told through her blogs. However, the texting style felt very unrealistic to actual texts due to the frequent use of ellipses which oftentimes pulled me out of the book. It also could be that I read this digitally, but it just wasn't enjoyable looking at the texts or the twitter accounts.
The romance was one of the things I was not a fan of. It was fairly predictable, and I felt like it had way too much of a focus in the story without adding anything meaningful.
Overall, it was a quick read, but unmemorable without many things that made the book worth it.
Love in 280 Characters or less is a book told through social media and blog posts about our main character's first year of college exploring romance and identity.
One of the main things I enjoyed from this was seeing the main character's personal thoughts told through her blogs. However, the texting style felt very unrealistic to actual texts due to the frequent use of ellipses which oftentimes pulled me out of the book. It also could be that I read this digitally, but it just wasn't enjoyable looking at the texts or the twitter accounts.
The romance was one of the things I was not a fan of. It was fairly predictable, and I felt like it had way too much of a focus in the story without adding anything meaningful.
Overall, it was a quick read, but unmemorable without many things that made the book worth it.
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-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:
N/A
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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:
Complicated
First off, I absolutely loved the layout of this book. The mix of blog entries, text messages, tweets, and emails kept me engaged from start to finish. It felt like scrolling through Facebook or texting with friends—completely relatable.
Syd’s journey of discovering herself in a new world felt incredibly real. Thinking back to my own college experience, I remember how scary it was. You’re suddenly a small fish in a big pond again, and social media becomes your lifeline. Like Syd, I also made college friends through Twitter.
Throughout one semester, Syd had to juggle her social life, academic goals, career dreams, and tough conversations with friends and family—that’s a lot for anyone. While she did get a bit dramatic at times, I appreciated her self-awareness. She owned her mistakes, offered genuine apologies, and communicated effectively. That’s impressive, especially at her age—many adults are still learning how to do that.
That said, I felt the story got a bit bogged down in the activism plotline and Malcolm’s involvement in it. While I understood how it tied into Syd’s passion for writing, it dragged a little for me. The topic is important, no doubt, but I wasn’t sure it needed quite so much focus in this story. However, I did enjoy making connections to another book I’d read that touched on the same historic writers Syd explored.
The ending truly surprised me—especially the developments with Malcolm and Xavier. The title Love in 280 Characters or Less perfectly captures the theme of how our online personas can begin to define us. In the end, the real journey is learning to love ourselves and stay grounded in the real world.
———
I may be a little late to the party, but I’m so grateful to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group | Feiwel & Friends for the ARC of this book!
Syd’s journey of discovering herself in a new world felt incredibly real. Thinking back to my own college experience, I remember how scary it was. You’re suddenly a small fish in a big pond again, and social media becomes your lifeline. Like Syd, I also made college friends through Twitter.
Throughout one semester, Syd had to juggle her social life, academic goals, career dreams, and tough conversations with friends and family—that’s a lot for anyone. While she did get a bit dramatic at times, I appreciated her self-awareness. She owned her mistakes, offered genuine apologies, and communicated effectively. That’s impressive, especially at her age—many adults are still learning how to do that.
That said, I felt the story got a bit bogged down in the activism plotline and Malcolm’s involvement in it. While I understood how it tied into Syd’s passion for writing, it dragged a little for me. The topic is important, no doubt, but I wasn’t sure it needed quite so much focus in this story. However, I did enjoy making connections to another book I’d read that touched on the same historic writers Syd explored.
The ending truly surprised me—especially the developments with Malcolm and Xavier. The title Love in 280 Characters or Less perfectly captures the theme of how our online personas can begin to define us. In the end, the real journey is learning to love ourselves and stay grounded in the real world.
———
I may be a little late to the party, but I’m so grateful to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group | Feiwel & Friends for the ARC of this book!
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
7th & up
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
hopeful
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:
Complicated
Great YA/Teen book focused on the college/university transition.