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justforqueerbooks's review
4.0
This book was adorable!! I have to say that it was so nice to see moments from Legally Blonde in this book and they popped up at the perfect times!! The “What? Like it’s hard?” Scene was hands down, my favorite.
The characters in this book felt very true to their age and it just so nice to see kids mess up as kids do. (Also, comparing this to Sky, although they are two very different books, it is so clear that Robbie Couch has had so much growth as an author and I love seeing that from one book to another.) Blaine was a very relatable character: he messed up, he got hurt, he grieved (with Taylor Swift, as he should) and did his best. I loved all the different representation in this book and I really love the fact that everyone was already out and proud. As nice as it is to see books with coming out scenes, it’s also very nice to see books and characters that are already out and just living their lives.
Another thing I really appreciated was Blaine realizing that his job does not make him less of who he is. What he does for work does not mean that he is any better or any worse than anyone else. That sentiment echoes for many people in different situations and I just really appreciated it, personally.
Also the succulent that hung around from the beginning of the book to the end has my heart.
All in all, Blaine for the Win was a wonderful book about discovering yourself and learning to be okay with who you are while struggling with high school! I am so grateful that there are so many queer books, including this one, for kids who need them now!
The characters in this book felt very true to their age and it just so nice to see kids mess up as kids do. (Also, comparing this to Sky, although they are two very different books, it is so clear that Robbie Couch has had so much growth as an author and I love seeing that from one book to another.) Blaine was a very relatable character: he messed up, he got hurt, he grieved (with Taylor Swift, as he should) and did his best. I loved all the different representation in this book and I really love the fact that everyone was already out and proud. As nice as it is to see books with coming out scenes, it’s also very nice to see books and characters that are already out and just living their lives.
Another thing I really appreciated was Blaine realizing that his job does not make him less of who he is. What he does for work does not mean that he is any better or any worse than anyone else. That sentiment echoes for many people in different situations and I just really appreciated it, personally.
Also the succulent that hung around from the beginning of the book to the end has my heart.
All in all, Blaine for the Win was a wonderful book about discovering yourself and learning to be okay with who you are while struggling with high school! I am so grateful that there are so many queer books, including this one, for kids who need them now!
readwithatlas's review
4.0
Blaine for the Win is a super cute queer teen retelling of Legally Blonde. there was a few references in there that I enjoyed as well.
the cast is wonderful and they were enjoyable to read about. i enjoyed reading about all these characters, Blaine was particularly interesting to read about. The side characters were also engaging and well developed. the relationship was very slowburn and not my favorite but overall pretty cute!
the plot was kind of basic but still made for a nice read for a day. probably not something that will leave a huge impact on me but something I read in one sitting that i enjoyed. also it's perfect for spring!
thank you to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
the cast is wonderful and they were enjoyable to read about. i enjoyed reading about all these characters, Blaine was particularly interesting to read about. The side characters were also engaging and well developed. the relationship was very slowburn and not my favorite but overall pretty cute!
the plot was kind of basic but still made for a nice read for a day. probably not something that will leave a huge impact on me but something I read in one sitting that i enjoyed. also it's perfect for spring!
thank you to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
briannareadsbooks's review
3.0
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I loved The Sky Blues. It was one of my favourite books of 2021 and I was so excited to read more of Robbie Couch's work, but this just fell flat. I definitely will read more of Robbie's work in the future, and hopefully I love them as much as The Sky Blues.
The book follows Blaine, a teenage muralist whose boyfriend, Joey, breaks up with him because he's not "serious enough." His boyfriend is a part of the student council and has rich parents who expect him to go to university, while Blaine is a fly by the seat of his pants kind of guy. To win Joey back, Blaine decides to run for class president and quit painting to show Joey he can be a Serious Guy.
The characters were so one-dimensional and flat. Blaine has no passions or personality besides the fact that he's an artist and is constantly covered in paint. His best friend's girlfriend Camilla has seriously ZERO personality besides her love of dinosaurs (she wears dinosaur clothes and works at the dinosaur exhibit and makes dinosaur jokes). The only character I actually liked was Trish, who has some semblance of a personality as a Black lesbian with mental health issues and a headstrong, loyal, and fun personality.
The conflicts were some of the silliest and most easily-resolved conflicts I've ever seen in a YA book. The unnecessary third act conflict where everyone is mad at each other for no reason and then they all apologize and make up... And the final plot twist I could see coming from a mile away.
The romance was also completely under-developed. The love interest and the main character had one heart-to-heart and suddenly they were in love? It was really unbelievable.
I debated DNFing it because I truly didn't care where the story ended up going.
BUT it wasn't terrible. I know some people will like it. It's sweet, cute, fun, wholesome teenagers. I just wasn't that interested.
I loved The Sky Blues. It was one of my favourite books of 2021 and I was so excited to read more of Robbie Couch's work, but this just fell flat. I definitely will read more of Robbie's work in the future, and hopefully I love them as much as The Sky Blues.
The book follows Blaine, a teenage muralist whose boyfriend, Joey, breaks up with him because he's not "serious enough." His boyfriend is a part of the student council and has rich parents who expect him to go to university, while Blaine is a fly by the seat of his pants kind of guy. To win Joey back, Blaine decides to run for class president and quit painting to show Joey he can be a Serious Guy.
The characters were so one-dimensional and flat. Blaine has no passions or personality besides the fact that he's an artist and is constantly covered in paint. His best friend's girlfriend Camilla has seriously ZERO personality besides her love of dinosaurs (she wears dinosaur clothes and works at the dinosaur exhibit and makes dinosaur jokes). The only character I actually liked was Trish, who has some semblance of a personality as a Black lesbian with mental health issues and a headstrong, loyal, and fun personality.
The conflicts were some of the silliest and most easily-resolved conflicts I've ever seen in a YA book. The unnecessary third act conflict where everyone is mad at each other for no reason and then they all apologize and make up... And the final plot twist I could see coming from a mile away.
The romance was also completely under-developed. The love interest and the main character had one heart-to-heart and suddenly they were in love? It was really unbelievable.
I debated DNFing it because I truly didn't care where the story ended up going.
BUT it wasn't terrible. I know some people will like it. It's sweet, cute, fun, wholesome teenagers. I just wasn't that interested.
theresevsbooks's review
4.0
I cannot believe I read this in one sitting. Although actually I can, because it was a surprising addicting read.
Blaine for the Win is a YA contemporary romance that, honestly, focuses more on internal struggles and growth than romance. And I love that. While we all need a good romance every now and then, books that acknowledge romance as being nice, but not vital to our success as humans, are incredibly important.
Couch weaves a fun, cute story using the threads of friendship, self-worth, and identity (and yes, a bit of adorable romance). While I do believe that the story moved a bit fast— or is this just because I read it in one sitting?— it is the perfect light read for people who love YA novels with sweet friendships and LGBT representation.
Oh! This book comes out tomorrow/today since it is now past midnight!!! Perfect timing- go read it!
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an ARC via Netgalley.
Blaine for the Win is a YA contemporary romance that, honestly, focuses more on internal struggles and growth than romance. And I love that. While we all need a good romance every now and then, books that acknowledge romance as being nice, but not vital to our success as humans, are incredibly important.
Couch weaves a fun, cute story using the threads of friendship, self-worth, and identity (and yes, a bit of adorable romance). While I do believe that the story moved a bit fast— or is this just because I read it in one sitting?— it is the perfect light read for people who love YA novels with sweet friendships and LGBT representation.
Oh! This book comes out tomorrow/today since it is now past midnight!!! Perfect timing- go read it!
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an ARC via Netgalley.
sammi_shabambi's review
4.5
This book is ‘what if we made legally blonde gay and set in high school’ and honestly? 100% here for it. Give me more.
“Never give someone else the authority to dictate your self-worth.“
“Never give someone else the authority to dictate your self-worth.“
ryanf1996's review
5.0
This was so cute! I highly recommend it if you are looking for a feel good YA story. Representation across the board and great messages behind the writing!