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zydecovivo's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Toxic friendship, Panic attacks/disorders, Outing, Transphobia, and Chronic illness
Moderate: Medical content, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Self harm, Cursing, Deadnaming, Suicidal thoughts, and Mental illness
mel_muses's review
4.5
When band nerd Harper learns about a gay dating profile made of her, she freaks out. Partly because her mom is the school dean, partly because she doesn't know her sexuality, partly because her parents are hardcore Republicans, and partly because her dad is running for the presidential election. It's really a huge mess.
And wow, did this book take turns I was not expecting!! I read it in the span of a few days, on audio (thank you, Jenn, for letting me use your library card LOL). It was addicting, and in such a good way. I loved the way the romance developed. It was so cute and while at times I wanted to scream at Harper, MARGOT FOR THE WIN! I also really loved the way Quinlan explored Harper's asexuality. It was beautifully done, and felt incredibly authentic. More aspec lesbians, PLEASE. My favorite part and characters of the book were actually people who were on page for like .5 seconds bUT I don't want to spoil who it was. SO: Skye Quinlan, please give me a whole spin-off of just THEM. My DMs are always open :)
Overall, a wild ride. A book that felt real and passionate, loving and authentic, scary and empowering. Also, please read my friend Jenn's review of this book. I encapsulated only a fraction of what they wrote about.
Content Warnings: anxiety, depression, homophobia, mentions of self harm, alcoholism, public outing
And wow, did this book take turns I was not expecting!! I read it in the span of a few days, on audio (thank you, Jenn, for letting me use your library card LOL). It was addicting, and in such a good way. I loved the way the romance developed. It was so cute and while at times I wanted to scream at Harper, MARGOT FOR THE WIN! I also really loved the way Quinlan explored Harper's asexuality. It was beautifully done, and felt incredibly authentic. More aspec lesbians, PLEASE. My favorite part and characters of the book were actually people who were on page for like .5 seconds bUT I don't want to spoil who it was. SO: Skye Quinlan, please give me a whole spin-off of just THEM. My DMs are always open :)
Overall, a wild ride. A book that felt real and passionate, loving and authentic, scary and empowering. Also, please read my friend Jenn's review of this book. I encapsulated only a fraction of what they wrote about.
Content Warnings: anxiety, depression, homophobia, mentions of self harm, alcoholism, public outing
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Mental illness, and Outing
Moderate: Alcoholism
fanboyriot's review
emotional
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
5.0
Sapphic
Asexual Rep
Boarding School
Friends to Lovers
Bandmates to Lovers
(First Person POV)
I absolutely loved this book. The characters, the romance, Margot's energy and comments, very much here for it.
Asexual Rep
Boarding School
Friends to Lovers
Bandmates to Lovers
(First Person POV)
I absolutely loved this book. The characters, the romance, Margot's energy and comments, very much here for it.
I went into it knowing nearly nothing about it other than it was a queer contemporary book, so the asexual rep was such a nice surprise.
Following Harper through the stress of always having to be what her parents wanted or never being able to do things because her mom was the dean of the school and her dad running for president.
I can say with confidence that I hated Harper's mom, so much. I also wasn't a fan of her dad but when Harper needed him he was there in the end, even if he did use her to better his family man image.
Love how conservative parents raise the gayest/queerest children ever. It was such a nice plot twist with Ben (or McDreamy, whichever works better).
The friendships were written SO well. There were ups and downs and lots of drama with some, they were complicated. And as much as I hate several of Harper's friends it was nice to see how she approached some of the issues they caused her. Lets just say Harper is a lot nicer than I would have been near the end of the book.
This book was so well written and I really enjoyed it. I also enjoyed the Grey's Anatomy reference when Harper's dad was like: "She's our child, and this is—it's don't be so goddamn thickheaded." (Chapter 27, Page 226) it made me think about that one episode of Grey's Anatomy (S12,E01) which was a favorite of mine.
So basically, 10/10 loved everything and I will most likely read this again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Homophobia, Outing, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Gaslighting, Mental illness, Bullying, Classism, Sexual harassment, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Alcoholism, Self harm, Transphobia, Alcohol, and Vomit
pey333's review
emotional
tense
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Outing
Minor: Homophobia, Vomit, and Alcohol
imstephtacular's review
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
Moderate: Alcohol, Grief, Lesbophobia, Classism, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Outing, Panic attacks/disorders, Cursing, and Mental illness
Minor: Sexual content, War, Alcoholism, Self harm, Toxic friendship, Medical content, Toxic relationship, and Suicidal thoughts
plumpaperbacks's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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? No
5.0
Although I didn’t expect much from it going in, I absolutely loved Forward March. Harper is an asexual lesbian, like me, and that means so much because I’ve never seen that specific representation in any other book. I loved her and Margot both separately and together, and I loved their chaotic queer friends, and I loved Christian and Ben. The banter is brilliant, and perfectly balanced with all of the heart and emotion in this book. There’s even a couple of unexpected twists; at least, *I* didn’t expect them. I don't have the right words for all of my feelings right now, or the spoons to write a longer review, but this book has a special place in my heart. A new favorite YA contemporary for sure, and a 2022 favorite. 💖
Representation
Representation
- asexual lesbian protagonist with asthma
- Black lesbian love interest
- queer Indonesian side character
- bisexual nonbinary side character (they/them)
- pansexual polyamorous side character with asthma
- autistic side character
- sapphic main couple
- achillean side couple
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Homophobia, Outing, and Medical content
Moderate: Self harm, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
Mental illness- anxiety and depression. Panic attacks- only one, but it’s severe and leads to the protagonist being hospitalized. Medical content- short hospital stay that lasts a couple of chapters. Everything tagged moderate is about side characters; one talks about how she previously self-harmed and another briefly mentions his issues with alcoholism and how he went to rehab. There’s also one (I believe) instance of underage drinking.betweentheshelves's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Excited for her senior marching band season, Harper's just hoping her dad's presidential campaign won't interfere too much. However, Harper's world is completely changed when she's approached by Margot about her profile on Tinder. A profile that Harper never set up. Now, Margot is determined to get to know the real Haper.
But there are obstacles in their way, mainly Harper's homophobic mother, the dean of their school. As Harper discovers more about herself and her sexuality, she has to figure out if she has the freedom to be herself.
Listened to the audiobook for this one, and there are so many great things this book has going for it. The main one is at the heart of the novel: Harper and Margot's relationship. I loved the way it evolved throughout the book, and Margot was kind and considerate about Harper's asexuality. They truly cared for one another, and the way their relationship unfolded worked on so many levels.
The marching band aspect of the book worked really well, too. Quinlan captured the feel of it, and through marching band, Harper is kind of able to figure out what she might want after high school. The whole atmosphere did wonders for the story itself.
There were some elements I wish would have been a bit more fleshed out, though. Mainly, Harper's dad's campaign and the political nature of him running for office. That aspect of the story felt a bit rushed, to be honest. Additionally, the plotline with Harper's original friend group, while authentic for teenage friendships I thought it could have been a bit more fleshed out, too.
Basically, I think everything surrounding Harper and Margot (and Harper's brother) was the best part of the book, and I'd definitely recommend reading it just for that!
But there are obstacles in their way, mainly Harper's homophobic mother, the dean of their school. As Harper discovers more about herself and her sexuality, she has to figure out if she has the freedom to be herself.
Listened to the audiobook for this one, and there are so many great things this book has going for it. The main one is at the heart of the novel: Harper and Margot's relationship. I loved the way it evolved throughout the book, and Margot was kind and considerate about Harper's asexuality. They truly cared for one another, and the way their relationship unfolded worked on so many levels.
The marching band aspect of the book worked really well, too. Quinlan captured the feel of it, and through marching band, Harper is kind of able to figure out what she might want after high school. The whole atmosphere did wonders for the story itself.
There were some elements I wish would have been a bit more fleshed out, though. Mainly, Harper's dad's campaign and the political nature of him running for office. That aspect of the story felt a bit rushed, to be honest. Additionally, the plotline with Harper's original friend group, while authentic for teenage friendships I thought it could have been a bit more fleshed out, too.
Basically, I think everything surrounding Harper and Margot (and Harper's brother) was the best part of the book, and I'd definitely recommend reading it just for that!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Outing
Minor: Vomit, Alcoholism, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
mxrumphius's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders and Medical content
Moderate: Outing, Mental illness, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Alcoholism, Alcohol, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Self harm, and Transphobia
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