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shavon713's review against another edition
3.0
Samaya, self proclaimed gamer and nerd, gets dumped by her high school sweetheart and not only does he dump her, he ruins her summer volunteering position she needs for college applications. With a Gossip Girl spin, their high school’s gossip page is broadcasting their whole breakup and life after. Samaya’s world is turned upside down when she meets Daniel at the shelter she volunteers at.
A YA novel with friendship, homelessness, gaming, and LGBT characters infused seamlessly, it wasn’t the most realistic plot but it was engaging and not your typical focus!
A YA novel with friendship, homelessness, gaming, and LGBT characters infused seamlessly, it wasn’t the most realistic plot but it was engaging and not your typical focus!
bookishkenyannerd's review against another edition
5.0
After her boyfriend broke up with her, sabotaged her upcoming summer job, and started dating her frenemy, Samaya wanted to appear the winner of their breakup. Of course, what better way than to start a fake relationship with Daniel, the handsome jock and baking whiz at the shelter where she started to volunteer at?
Daniel was so sweet, so cheerful, so supportive, and the cutest pastry-loving (and baking) jock ever
Daniel was so sweet, so cheerful, so supportive, and the cutest pastry-loving (and baking) jock ever
ceredonia's review against another edition
3.0
3.5*. Another cute read I got on a whim at the library. I loved the nerd stuff but it got a bit repetitive, and I really didn't like the cyber bullying subplot. I'm a sucker for fake-dating stories though!
josephinebean's review
4.0
rated: 4 stars
this was such a cheesy high school fake dating romance novel, and combined with the gaming and the rather compelling mystery catfish subplot, i found myself liking this book way more than i expected to. the diverse characters were well done, no one really felt left behind in terms of side characters and everyone got their moment in the sun, which is always nice.
the limited perspective worked well for the heavier discussions about homelessness and marginalised groups, and i felt towards the end our mc samaya had really started to go through some character growth and development that didn't feel rushed. the book was only a portion of her full story, so it felt good that the author didn't try to shoehorn in a complete character change and allowed the mc to just start on her deconstruction of her own prejudices. her inner monologue and the issues that she felt focused on also felt very realistic.
the only thing that i didn't love about this book was the writing style. at times the language used was very adult trying to write like a teenager, and there were also passages that were over explaining to me what the scene or what outfits looked like, instead of giving me a framework that allowed me to come up with an image myself. this wasn't a deal breaker for me though, because ultimately the other aspects of this book worked well enough that i was still compelled to keep reading.
I got an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley.
this was such a cheesy high school fake dating romance novel, and combined with the gaming and the rather compelling mystery catfish subplot, i found myself liking this book way more than i expected to. the diverse characters were well done, no one really felt left behind in terms of side characters and everyone got their moment in the sun, which is always nice.
the limited perspective worked well for the heavier discussions about homelessness and marginalised groups, and i felt towards the end our mc samaya had really started to go through some character growth and development that didn't feel rushed. the book was only a portion of her full story, so it felt good that the author didn't try to shoehorn in a complete character change and allowed the mc to just start on her deconstruction of her own prejudices. her inner monologue and the issues that she felt focused on also felt very realistic.
the only thing that i didn't love about this book was the writing style. at times the language used was very adult trying to write like a teenager, and there were also passages that were over explaining to me what the scene or what outfits looked like, instead of giving me a framework that allowed me to come up with an image myself. this wasn't a deal breaker for me though, because ultimately the other aspects of this book worked well enough that i was still compelled to keep reading.
I got an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley.
sudeepthi's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
3.75
dorothy0426's review against another edition
4.0
Super cute YA Fake dating troupe. Wasn’t sure if I was too old to read this book as the book was set in high school. But I ended up really enjoying this one and cheering for the FMC to get her happiness that she deserved. There was some hiccups through out the book but all it took was a bit of “growing up” and all was good in the end. This was my first read by this author and I do look forward to reading more from her. Recommend this book if YA is your thing!!
danadoesbooks's review
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you Skyscape and NetGalley for the eARC of How to Win a Breakup! All opinions in this review are my own.
How to Win a Breakup is easily my favorite Farah Heron book I've read so far! With a mix of Gossip Girl and the movie Can't Buy Me Love, Heron creates a situation that is both funny and heartwarming. Samaya learns a lot about herself over the course of the book and I like how much she is able to recognize her own expectations by the end. I hope Heron writes more YA novels because this one was an excellent start!
jmbq_reads's review
4.0
After her boyfriend Devin breaks up with her at the end of their next-to-last year of high school, Samaya spends her summer moving from heartbreak to getting her life back on track and enjoying her online gaming with her new gaming buddy, LostAxis, Once school starts, though, her parents want Sam to focus on studies, building her leadership resume for college applications, and catching up her volunteer hours. Unfortunately, the school's gossip mill/Whispers Instagram account brings her breakup back to the fore when Devin starts dating a mutual friend, implying he might "win" their breakup.
Sam makes the rash decision to let her friends doctor a photo from LostAxis to imply that Sam has moved on, but when her first day at her volunteer shift at the local family shelter introduces her to her new volunteer buddy Daniel, she realizes that Daniel matches the young man in the photo -- but Daniel doesn't play online games and can't be LostAxis himself. Angry at being catfished by someone she trusted, Sam persuades Daniel to pretend they're dating so she can win the breakup over social media.
I really wasn't sure if this book was for me because the idea of "winning" a breakup seems so petty to me. I get that it's probably a pervasive attitude toward high school relationships, but it still had an ick factor that I didn't think I would get past. However, Heron is skilled at taking situations like this and characters you might want to shake and turning them into well-crafted growth arcs and relatable people who learn from their mistakes. Sam makes a lot of dubious choices in this book, but she has excellent friends (Cass and, later, Daniel) willing to call her out in a loving way and to show her how to see her own worth. (Shoutout to Cass, a nonbinary character with depth and a good growth arc of their own.) Daniel is a delightful foil to Sam's serious, nerdy nature, and I really appreciated how his character had room to express different emotions, reveal difficult parts of his past, and find the strength to move forward.
High school friendships and relationships can be fraught with baggage at the best of times and backstabbing at the worst, and Heron brilliantly creates the tangle of drama here and unravels it slowly for a satisfying happy ending. 4 stars.
Read this if you love: gamer girls, women in STEM, social media drama, thriving after a breakup, fake dating, baking the blues away, pi pie, hockey heroes, being true to yourself
Thank you, Skyscape and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.
Sam makes the rash decision to let her friends doctor a photo from LostAxis to imply that Sam has moved on, but when her first day at her volunteer shift at the local family shelter introduces her to her new volunteer buddy Daniel, she realizes that Daniel matches the young man in the photo -- but Daniel doesn't play online games and can't be LostAxis himself. Angry at being catfished by someone she trusted, Sam persuades Daniel to pretend they're dating so she can win the breakup over social media.
I really wasn't sure if this book was for me because the idea of "winning" a breakup seems so petty to me. I get that it's probably a pervasive attitude toward high school relationships, but it still had an ick factor that I didn't think I would get past. However, Heron is skilled at taking situations like this and characters you might want to shake and turning them into well-crafted growth arcs and relatable people who learn from their mistakes. Sam makes a lot of dubious choices in this book, but she has excellent friends (Cass and, later, Daniel) willing to call her out in a loving way and to show her how to see her own worth. (Shoutout to Cass, a nonbinary character with depth and a good growth arc of their own.) Daniel is a delightful foil to Sam's serious, nerdy nature, and I really appreciated how his character had room to express different emotions, reveal difficult parts of his past, and find the strength to move forward.
High school friendships and relationships can be fraught with baggage at the best of times and backstabbing at the worst, and Heron brilliantly creates the tangle of drama here and unravels it slowly for a satisfying happy ending. 4 stars.
Read this if you love: gamer girls, women in STEM, social media drama, thriving after a breakup, fake dating, baking the blues away, pi pie, hockey heroes, being true to yourself
Thank you, Skyscape and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.
trisha_thomas's review
4.0
Absolutely adorable! Fake boyfriends aren't really my romance trope favorite but this one was just perfect! Our MC is Samaya and she's a hard working, driven teen in her last year to wow the universities. But unexpectedly being dumped by the highschool golden boy has derailed her summer volunteering and now she's starting the year behind in volunteer hours and heartbroken.
It was hard to like Samaya at first, as she tried to assert herself in to the breakup game and try to stay on top. She was hard on her friends and Daniel as she demaned nothing short of what she was giving to the game. I liked the additional wonder of who was the player over the summer and who was running the site. It was easy to point fingers at the rough 'friend group' Samaya surrounded herself with.
I loved the volunteer work. I think the shelter and residents were handled with respect and care and I liked how it was gently put in to the story and held as a main theme. I also loved that Cass's gender neutral pronouns were seemlessly put in the story and were not the main focus. Instead it felt natural and easy, exactly as it should be.
And I love that there was a little recipe in the back! How fun, I'll have to try it out! Sweet but with interesting themes, a story that sucked me in and held me to the end. I even loved the injected video game lingo (but it's staves! not staffs!) I'm so glad I gave this one a try, it was so much more than I thought it would be!
A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.
It was hard to like Samaya at first, as she tried to assert herself in to the breakup game and try to stay on top. She was hard on her friends and Daniel as she demaned nothing short of what she was giving to the game. I liked the additional wonder of who was the player over the summer and who was running the site. It was easy to point fingers at the rough 'friend group' Samaya surrounded herself with.
I loved the volunteer work. I think the shelter and residents were handled with respect and care and I liked how it was gently put in to the story and held as a main theme. I also loved that Cass's gender neutral pronouns were seemlessly put in the story and were not the main focus. Instead it felt natural and easy, exactly as it should be.
And I love that there was a little recipe in the back! How fun, I'll have to try it out! Sweet but with interesting themes, a story that sucked me in and held me to the end. I even loved the injected video game lingo (but it's staves! not staffs!) I'm so glad I gave this one a try, it was so much more than I thought it would be!
A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.