Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Blaine for the Win

If Legally Blonde was about gay high schoolers, it would be this book. Also there is a notable (and comforting) lack of homophobia and racism in this book. It's great to read a gay story without angst about being gay, and a story about several non-white characters without any overt racism.

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pagesofnay's review

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

4.25

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elliizzzabeth's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing 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? No

4.75

This was such a sweet little book! The premise is Legally Blonde but gay and in highschool but it wasn't just a re-telling it was completely its own thing. Blaine is such a sweetheart! He is so loving and kind he isn't afraid to step back and re-assess what he is doing and if it's the right thing. I was kinda pissed about what he does to Aunt Star but it was also something I could see myself doing so I can't complain. The politics didn't take over the book and you don't have to be into that stuff to understand what's going on. There was no talk of "projections" and "straw polls" and all that jargon that can sometimes bog down election storylines. It was just sweet and fun. Maybe a little predictable at times, but it didn't need to be shocking. It was just a fun and sweet :)

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sdupont's review

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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

4.0

Blaine for the Win is a queer teen Legally Blonde retelling. This book is adorably sweet. I enjoyed this book, Blaine and his friends (Trish, Camilla, and Danny) are a group you root for. I loved that Blaine’s passion was being a mural artist- so a fun and unique. I recommend this book to fans of Legally Blonde and cute YA novels .

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shybookstagramer's review

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funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted relaxing 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? It's complicated

5.0

Blaine's boyfriend breaks up with him on their 1 year anniversary because Blaine is not a "serious guy." After the breakup, Blaine decided to give up painting murals and run for senior class president to prove to his ex that he can be a serious guy and to try to win him back. Is Blaine really willing to sacrifice what he loves and who he is?

Yes Yes Yes! All around yes! I loved this book! It was very different from the sky blues but it was still so good! Such a feel-good story!! It was funny and super sweet and just all-around adorable. I liked that there was no homophobic parts within the storyline, it was just so pure. I also loved and appreciated that part of the storyline revolved around the importance of mental health for students. That is such an important thing that schools need to take seriously. Oh, and the side characters are amazing! Love them all. I thought it was a nice diverse group of characters.

If you loved Legally Blonde then you will love this book. There are so many little things that bring forth the Legally Blonde vibes, from the characters to the plot, all of it. Legally Blonde but make it gay! What's not to love about that?

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for Young Readers for sending me free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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jenny_librarian's review against another edition

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funny hopeful inspiring 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

4.5

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This is a simple but really cute contemporary novel about understanding yourself, learning from your mistakes and seeing beyond what other people expect of you.

Blaine is far from perfect. Despite being a funny and relatable character, he's deeply flawed and selfish. Some of the things he does are pretty inexcusable, and it's not until the last quarter of the book that he really tries to make up for his mistakes. I also wonder if he has ADHD (which would explain the procrastination and forgetfulness), despite it never being mentioned on-page.

Still, I really liked the story. There's no perfect character and no completely villainous one either (though Ashtyn gets pretty close). It's relatable while having a moral that all teens can learn from.

It was a quick read and I had plenty of fun -- even in the moments I suffered from secondhand embarrassment -- while reading.

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