Reviews

Forward March by Skye Quinlan

icarly's review

emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.25

wow… there was a lot going on. umm anyway i couldn’t stop reading bc the drama was IMMACULATE but the plot was a bit laughable

bloemr's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

sarahautry's review against another edition

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? N/A

3.5

solid story. good for anyone former band kid that also appreciates romance 

lkthomas07's review

4.0

This was probably a 3.5 for me, but I’m also not the main audience for this book, lol. HS drama is always a bit much for me. But I did cry, so the fact that it spoke to me so much gets an additional bump in rating

readwithatlas's review

3.0

i have very mixed feelings on this book. at first i assumed it would just be a cute romantic comedy but that wasn't the case. i loved the romance and thought the main couple was very sweet but i hadn't expected all that came with it.

positives!
- diverse cast, there are many queer characters as well as people of color. this doesn't feel forced or tokenized which is great to see.

- exploration of queer identities!! the lgbt+ representation in this novel was wonderful and definitely a highlight.

- the adorable romance. i already mentioned them but < harper & margot 3

negatives, (mostly just things i personally didn't love.)

- the political aspect of it all. there are some scenes where this is well done but it felt very unneeded. her mom being dean and the dad running for president just felt very over the top.

- the writing style was too simple? i don't really know how to explain it but it did

- the forgive and forget trope was very annoying and most of the people in this book are utter assholes for no reason.

overall, i mostly enjoyed this book so if you're looking for a quick and easy sapphic book (and don't mind some frustrating side characters) definitely pick this up!

thank you for page street ya for sending an arc for my honest review!

content warnings: anxiety, depression, mentions of self harm, alcoholism, being outed.

mnaza01's review

3.0

As someone with asthma, I kind of feel like I'm being gaslit by the media with what asthma is because they all portray it as being triggered always and only by anxiety. All I want to say when I finished the book is I'm getting tired of how people portray asthma as basically panic attacks. Asthma triggers are usually things like dust, animal dander, temperature changes, perfume, exercise, smoke, etc, not solely anxiety. It was a big part of the plot that everytime she was anxious she needed her inhaler and I just..I'm so tired of that idea. It would have made so much more sense for her to need her inhaler before rehearsal as preventative or after rehearsal. And the one time her lips go blue and she gets hospitalized they literally call it a panic attack. Her dad says her asthma trigger is stress, which would be okay if it wasn't the only portrayal anyone ever did ever in media, or if they showed her reacting to literally any other normal asthma trigger.

zbrarian's review

4.0

A book about marching band? Yes please. Being a certified Band Nerd, this book spoke to my heart. There were places I laughed out loud and places that made me sad and cringe. It was a interesting take on a young girl who’s father is in the running for the President of the United States. the pressure of being the daughter who cannot post on social media, needs to keep in line because of the brother who left long ago. The slow burn love story was sweet, Margot not pushing Harper into a relationship or outing herself until she is ready, only to have “friends” blow it all up. Learning from a teacher that she needs to forward march her own path truly brought the story home for me.

TW: bullying, asthmatic/panic attacks, dysfunctional family

misha_ali's review against another edition

4.0

Sapphic, ace AND band nerd representation? Sold!

I really enjoyed this. Really great representation of a sex-repulsed asexual coming-of-age story and bonus points for the

Spoiler

best friend who is secretly in love with her ace best friend

representation. It's something that is ignored a lot because for an ace person, it's hard to read the common indicators of affection and that can lead to frustration and not great actions. It's great to see that very relatable trope realised.

Around 40% of the way in there is an email that made me cry. If it is engaging and well done enough to make me cry, it gets five stars, that's the rule.

allisanto's review

5.0

oh my god it was so good. i read this in like 3 hours and didn’t put it down a single time. it made me wish i was in band even though i can’t play an instrument to save my life.

shewwimonster's review

4.0

This book has Ace rep!!!! Yay! The plot is maybe a little messy and I wish there was more marching band. Also SO many characters are the absolute worst. This wasn’t love for me but it was a fun little read.