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3.31 AVERAGE
3.31 AVERAGE
Noah is in love with the idea of falling in love, aren't we all? Noah keeps a blog, known as the Meet Cute Diary, where he posts various scenarios of meet cutes under the guise of being submissions from anonymous trans/NB people who had their happily ever afters (can we blame Noah for trying to give trans and nonbinary people happy narratives to aspire to when the world is filled with such sad ones). Sadly, internet trolls start attacking and disputing Noah's blog posts and Noah figures he needs to add some credibility to the posts, but how? Well, while spending the summer with his brother, Brian, Noah happens to run into a cute guy named Drew at a book shop and he agrees to help by pretending to date him! Suddenly, the lines between the fake and the real are blurred and Noah realizes real relationships and romances are a lot more complicated than the movies make them out to be.
I liked this one. It was quick and cute (very cute in many ways), but I as I read I almost felt like it was all too good to be true and I wasn't really getting to know certain characters as well as I should have, but I believe that was the author's intent considering how things go at the end (which I won't spoil here). I appreciated the realness of the blog/social media discourse and frustration behind it. I love that trans and nonbinary kids will have book characters to relate to and feel validated by. But with all that said, it didn't quite "wow" me as much as I thought. Def recommend it tho. 3.5/5
I liked this one. It was quick and cute (very cute in many ways), but I as I read I almost felt like it was all too good to be true and I wasn't really getting to know certain characters as well as I should have, but I believe that was the author's intent considering how things go at the end (which I won't spoil here). I appreciated the realness of the blog/social media discourse and frustration behind it. I love that trans and nonbinary kids will have book characters to relate to and feel validated by. But with all that said, it didn't quite "wow" me as much as I thought. Def recommend it tho. 3.5/5
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Noah annoyed tf out of me, yikes. I was on Devin's side though, I wanted em to win and be happy.
I went into this book with super high expectations, but I am a little conflicted over how I feel about it. I buddy read this one with my friend Abbey, and we both pretty much had the same reaction to it.
Meet Cute Diary by Emery Lee is a fun and heartfelt rom-com that follows sixteen year old Noah Ramirez who runs Meet Cute Diary, a blog collecting stories of trans meet cutes and happily ever afters. Noah puts a lot of effort into the blog, but this is all suddenly at risk of falling apart when a troll reveals that all the stories are fake. In an attempt to save the blog, Noah meets Drew who is willing to fake date him to prove to everyone that the blog stories are real. Noah and Drew start to develop real feelings, but Noah soon discovers that his relationship does not quite match his romantic notions about love and romance.
Lee’s writing is very easy to get into and fast paced. He does a great job at hooking readers and getting them invested in the story itself. The author is very skilled at writing funny and witty scenes and characters as well. I really liked how this was balanced with other common themes like trans joy. Exploring gender and sexuality through writing is another one of Lee’s strengths. These conversations and topics were so relatable and hard hitting.
One thing I really hoped for more of was character development. Characters can be messy and flawed. Teenagers are messy and flawed. It is perfectly understandable that Noah is this way. He often comes across as very rude and entitled. I do not mind this as a whole. The thing I did not like about this was the lack of development. No one is suddenly going to become a better person overnight. Noah does not owe anyone anything and acts exactly like many teens do. As the story progressed, this did make it a little harder to root for him. I think maybe I just wished for a little more by the end of the story. I did really love how confident he was about being worthy of being loved. I absolutely loved Devin’s character though!
I would definitely still recommend Meet Cute Diary. I know so many people who have loved this book recently. I am glad I read it and cannot wait for Emery Lee’s next book.
*Content warnings from the author*
- Graphic: emotional abuse, panic attacks/disorders, toxic relationship
- Moderate: cursing, transphobia, vomit
- Minor: bullying (mentions of a pre-book occurrence), suicide attempt (mentions of a pre-book occurrence), alcohol, drug use, racism
Meet Cute Diary by Emery Lee is a fun and heartfelt rom-com that follows sixteen year old Noah Ramirez who runs Meet Cute Diary, a blog collecting stories of trans meet cutes and happily ever afters. Noah puts a lot of effort into the blog, but this is all suddenly at risk of falling apart when a troll reveals that all the stories are fake. In an attempt to save the blog, Noah meets Drew who is willing to fake date him to prove to everyone that the blog stories are real. Noah and Drew start to develop real feelings, but Noah soon discovers that his relationship does not quite match his romantic notions about love and romance.
Lee’s writing is very easy to get into and fast paced. He does a great job at hooking readers and getting them invested in the story itself. The author is very skilled at writing funny and witty scenes and characters as well. I really liked how this was balanced with other common themes like trans joy. Exploring gender and sexuality through writing is another one of Lee’s strengths. These conversations and topics were so relatable and hard hitting.
One thing I really hoped for more of was character development. Characters can be messy and flawed. Teenagers are messy and flawed. It is perfectly understandable that Noah is this way. He often comes across as very rude and entitled. I do not mind this as a whole. The thing I did not like about this was the lack of development. No one is suddenly going to become a better person overnight. Noah does not owe anyone anything and acts exactly like many teens do. As the story progressed, this did make it a little harder to root for him. I think maybe I just wished for a little more by the end of the story. I did really love how confident he was about being worthy of being loved. I absolutely loved Devin’s character though!
I would definitely still recommend Meet Cute Diary. I know so many people who have loved this book recently. I am glad I read it and cannot wait for Emery Lee’s next book.
*Content warnings from the author*
- Graphic: emotional abuse, panic attacks/disorders, toxic relationship
- Moderate: cursing, transphobia, vomit
- Minor: bullying (mentions of a pre-book occurrence), suicide attempt (mentions of a pre-book occurrence), alcohol, drug use, racism
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
relaxing
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:
Complicated
This book is difficult to rate. I have mixed feelings about this book. I know that not every main character is supposed to be likeable but Noah got on my nerves sometimes. I understand that it's a teenage perspective but it frustrated me at some points. I really liked Devin and wish there was more to eir in the story. I did think I would DNF this book and stepped away for a bit. I came back to it and enjoyed it a little more as it went on. I think the writing style personally didn't fit me. Again, a bit frustrating but I did like it.
This was okay, had some cute moments but was also kind of stressful mainly because of bad vibes and negative attitudes.
Things I liked:
•trans rep and discussion of difficulty passing
•nonbinary rep + complex feelings about pronouns
•asexual rep
•accepting family & friends! Especially Brian, honestly wish we got more of him
•summer camp vibes
•food mentions were great
•best friend turned end game
•forgiveness & improved communication by the end of the book
Things I didn’t like:
•53 occurrences of eye rolling in 391 pages… unfortunately this was pretty representative of the negativity, I feel like a lot of the characters just straight up had bad attitudes and often over super minor inconveniences. Like, take a breath!!!
•how long it took for Noah to be less crappy as a friend and how long he was taking his bad moods out on everyone else totally unnecessarily
•the way Drew had extreme red flags from the start!!!!!
•the framing around the blog felt a little weak to me, I didn’t hate it but the drama was kind of shallow
Things I liked:
•trans rep and discussion of difficulty passing
•nonbinary rep + complex feelings about pronouns
•asexual rep
•accepting family & friends! Especially Brian, honestly wish we got more of him
•summer camp vibes
•food mentions were great
•best friend turned end game
•forgiveness & improved communication by the end of the book
Things I didn’t like:
•53 occurrences of eye rolling in 391 pages… unfortunately this was pretty representative of the negativity, I feel like a lot of the characters just straight up had bad attitudes and often over super minor inconveniences. Like, take a breath!!!
•how long it took for Noah to be less crappy as a friend and how long he was taking his bad moods out on everyone else totally unnecessarily
•the way Drew had extreme red flags from the start!!!!!
•the framing around the blog felt a little weak to me, I didn’t hate it but the drama was kind of shallow
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really wanted to love this, but I found Noah so entitled, selfish, and immature that I really struggled. I know he is a teenager, and he does have a lot of growth through story, but every time he displayed entitlement, immaturity, or selfishness, I struggled to feel sympathy and got impatient a lot. This is more about me than the book, but I've read a ton of YA and usually don't struggle as much with a character's flaws.
That said, watching the friendship and romantic feelings blossom between Noah and Devin is sweet. The variety of trans representation just within one book is also remarkable.
Becca, Brian, and Devin are strong supporting characters. Definitely recommend - it just wasn't my cup of tea. Strength of writing makes this 3 stars despite my above comments.
That said, watching the friendship and romantic feelings blossom between Noah and Devin is sweet. The variety of trans representation just within one book is also remarkable.
Becca, Brian, and Devin are strong supporting characters. Definitely recommend - it just wasn't my cup of tea. Strength of writing makes this 3 stars despite my above comments.
Content Warnings
Minor: Transphobia
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
I have to admit that I felt annoyed with the MC Noah some of the time. Sticking to what they want or believe they should follow, their emotions. That though, I can't even be upset about because even my emotions jump. Anyway, Noah runs a blog that helps other trans kids believe they have their happy ending just waiting out there for them. Although the stories posted are part made up, Noah soon realizes that the real thing is worth it. The real thing cares. It's one of my favorite trans story lines. I hope that any trans or non binary person out there finds their own personal happy ending. They are important. Valid.