Scan barcode
lastpaige111's review against another edition
4.0
Sweet characters and great setting. MC Gemma’s choices leave a lot to be desired. Romantic interest Griff’s a bit of a caricature. Loved it anyway.
kiana's review
4.0
Loved this. Was definitely feeling a lot of second hand embarrassment but also really loved the characters.
bookish_mrs_w's review against another edition
3.0
This was a cute YA (fairly clean) beach read. I liked it more than I thought I would!
christiana's review against another edition
3.0
We love to see a "While You Were Sleeping" retelling, especially with social anxiety representation, but this one was more circus-y than the source material. I'm not mad about it exactly, but there was enough humor in this one that if we were going to go full tilt, just go full tilt. This was like, trying to teeter on the side of "maybe this could happen" and that kind of took me out of the narrative, if that makes sense? Regardless, the booktalk is a super easy and straight forward one and there's enough fun that I would still recommend it. I am always on "this doesn't sound like a real teen alert" which I think about a teen saying "these stone walls are the building blocks of the happiest memories of my childhood". Building blocks? All minor quibbles, but things that could have taken it from good to great, I think.
katiehawkes's review against another edition
5.0
Delightful! And, as an anxious person, relatable. A fun quick read that was easy to get invested in as I raced to find out what was going to happen
allisonh59's review against another edition
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
b32712's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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? It's complicated
4.75
This book was really good. I felt like I could actually feel what some of the characters were feeling.
smalltownbookmom's review against another edition
4.0
A super sweet summer YA romance retelling of While you were sleeping featuring Gemma, a socially awkward teen with social anxiety disorder (SAD), who somehow finds herself fake dating the boy she saved who's now in a coma and falling for his older brother. I loved this one so much! The mental health rep is top notch and the romance between Gemma and Griff was totally swoony. It didn't hurt that While you were sleeping is one of my fav rom coms either. This YA summer retelling was chef's kiss!! Great on audio too narrated by Reba Buhr and perfect for fans of Counting down with you by Tashie Bhuiyan.
carpe_librarian's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
annaaugustineauthor's review against another edition
3.0
Oh this book. I have many feelings and not all of them are great. So to start off—the things I did like.
•
The story is based off While You Were Sleeping. This just so happens to be one of my favorite romcom movies of all time, so of course it caught my attention. It was fun to see the similarities between the two and I just thoroughly enjoyed that aspect.
•
I also very much enjoyed how the author handled a person with social anxiety. It’s a real thing that people struggle with, and I liked getting to see someone with social anxiety might handle different situations and what their thought pattern might be.
•
However...(slight spoilers ahead)
•
I really struggled to like Gemma completely. Like, I get her anxiety made it hard to tell the truth. It causes her to clam up and panic and run away. I get it. But toward the end after Beau (the guy she likes who’s been in a coma for weeks) wakes up, she had plenty of chances to tell the truth. I liked her up until that point, but by the end of the book I was thinking FINALLY.
•
And for my last comment, I have to talk about the language.
•
Okay. So. When I read a secular book, I expect that there probably will be content. In a YA book it could be an over descriptive kiss, innuendo, MILD language. But this book had SO MUCH LANGUAGE. There are an abundance of d**m, s**t, and a**. And it honestly shocked me. I get one or two (it is a secular book!) but the sheer amount had me rolling my eyes. In one paragraph where the two MCs are arguing, there’s at least five words. It just felt a little unnecessary, especially when a YA romcom is typically marketed for 12-18 year olds.
•
The story is based off While You Were Sleeping. This just so happens to be one of my favorite romcom movies of all time, so of course it caught my attention. It was fun to see the similarities between the two and I just thoroughly enjoyed that aspect.
•
I also very much enjoyed how the author handled a person with social anxiety. It’s a real thing that people struggle with, and I liked getting to see someone with social anxiety might handle different situations and what their thought pattern might be.
•
However...(slight spoilers ahead)
•
I really struggled to like Gemma completely. Like, I get her anxiety made it hard to tell the truth. It causes her to clam up and panic and run away. I get it. But toward the end after Beau (the guy she likes who’s been in a coma for weeks) wakes up, she had plenty of chances to tell the truth. I liked her up until that point, but by the end of the book I was thinking FINALLY.
•
And for my last comment, I have to talk about the language.
•
Okay. So. When I read a secular book, I expect that there probably will be content. In a YA book it could be an over descriptive kiss, innuendo, MILD language. But this book had SO MUCH LANGUAGE. There are an abundance of d**m, s**t, and a**. And it honestly shocked me. I get one or two (it is a secular book!) but the sheer amount had me rolling my eyes. In one paragraph where the two MCs are arguing, there’s at least five words. It just felt a little unnecessary, especially when a YA romcom is typically marketed for 12-18 year olds.