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A review by nicolemhewitt
Meet Cute by Meredith Russo, Dhonielle Clayton, Julie Murphy, Nicola Yoon, Ibi Zoboi, Katie Cotugno, Jocelyn Davies, Kass Morgan, Katharine McGee, Jennifer L. Armentrout, Nina LaCour, Emery Lord, Sara Shepard
5.0
I'm going to write a short review for each of these as I read, so I'll remember my thoughts:
"Siege Etiquette" by Katie Cotugno: 4 stars
This little story was a surprise, told in second-person POV. The story centers around two characters who've known each other their whole lives but find a connection while hiding out from the police at an underage party (in the bathroom). The story was a lot less "cute" than bittersweet, but I loved how much story Cotugno managed to stuff into such a small package!
"Print Shop" by Nina LaCour: 3 stars
This story again has a second-person element to it at the beginning and the end, since the main character is describing to her girlfriend the circumstances around how they met. The MC goes to work at a print shop because she loves the art behind it, but ends up in a job handling social media (not what she expected) and then gets embroiled in a customer service issue. This story was cute, but I didn't feel a terrible connection between the MC and the love interest since the MC basically fell for her Facebook profile. Still a fun read, though!
"Hourglass" by Ibi Zoboi: 2.5-3 stars
I really loved this story at first, but then it just didn't seem to really go anywhere. Plus, very little of the story was actually spent on the MC meeting the romantic interest---it kind of felt just added on at the end. But I liked the fact that the story dealt with a girl who feels like she doesn't fit the mold when it comes to body image and her quest to find a dress that fits her, not just physically, but also fits her true image of herself.
"Click" by Katharine McGee: 4.5 stars
This was my favorite up till this point. We got dual POV's from a couple on their first date after using a somewhat futuristic dating app to meet their ideal match. Things don't go as planned when Alexa loses her phone and they end up on a wild goose chase to find it. Alexa is also dealing with loss, and there are some other hints of future tech elements to the story (though, actually not that futuristic because the tech referenced already does exist in some forms).
"The Intern" by Sara Shepard: 3 stars
This was another bittersweet story. I liked it, but it didn't stand out in my mind all that much. Honestly, even though I didn't read this one all that long ago, I'm struggling to even remember it.
"Somewhere That’s Green" by Meredith Russo: 4 stars
This one had a transgender main character and a main character who was struggling with her sexuality due to her religious beliefs (or, perhaps more accurately, struggling with how she thought others would perceive her sexuality). I really enjoyed the story, though I thought the ending felt a little too easy and didn't give quite enough weight to Lexie's decision at the end. (But that's kind of what happens with short stories).
"The Way We Love Here" by Dhonielle Clayton: 4.5 stars
The first (only?) fantasy story of the bunch. I LOVED the unique world that Clayton created and I was amazed at how well she was able to flesh it out in just a short story. I would read a whole book about this world in a heartbeat.
"Oomph" by Emery Lord: 5 stars
This story was the height of adorableness, featuring two girls who meet in an airport. This one made my heart happy and felt like a true "meet cute."
"The Dictionary of You and Me" by Jennifer L. Armentrout: 4 stars
Again, a really cute story. This one felt a little more realistic than some of the others because the characters had a connection before they actually met (via months of phone calls). Plus, it involved libraries and cute words like "zazzy." How could you go wrong?
"The Unlikely Likelihood of Falling in Love" by Jocelyn Davies: 5 shining stars!
I don't know what it was about this story, but I ADORED it! The MC is a self-professed math geek and she is working out the statistical probability of meeting up with a boy she falls for literally at first sight (without ever having met him at all). This should have been a disaster of insta-love proportions, but Sam (the MC) is so highly engaging and likable that I loved every minute of her story. This one's all about fate vs. statistics, and you don't know where it's all going to lead. (Hint: It leads to a story that made me all sorts of happy.)
"259 Million Miles" by Kass Morgan: 3.5 stars
This story had an interesting premise---a guy trying to get into a program to head to Mars in order to escape from his public humiliation that was posted to YouTube. It was an interesting spin on the typical social media story---It almost felt like the Mars part was a backdrop to that. I liked it, but it wasn't as good as the ones preceding it, and it was hard not to compare.
"Something Real" by Julie Murphy: 3 stars
I might have liked this story more if I'd read it earlier in the book, but I sort of started to feel like the bittersweet story of a family member who had died was being overdone in this anthology, so I had a harder time connecting to it than I might have otherwise. I liked the fun spin on the non-ideal dating show situation (even though it was pretty obvious early on where the story was going). A cute story, but not my favorite.
"Say Everything" by Huntley Fitzpatrick: 2.5-3 stars
Surprisingly, another story told in second person POV. I usually love Fitzpatrick, but I just never quite connected with this story and I also never felt a true connection between the main characters. There was nothing wrong with the story in the least, but I wasn't terribly invested.
"The Department of Dead Love" by Nicola Yoon: 3.5 stars
The concept for this one was a complete win. It took place in a sort of fantasy (or sci-fi?) world where people's relationships are handled via bureaucracy. There are departments to handle all sorts of issues related to love, including people who want a do-over in their relationship. I thought this was a really fun idea, and I loved seeing it play out. The only thing that kept me from absolutely loving it was because I didn't really see the connection between the MC and the person he ends up with. Still, there was so much more going on with this story that it was great anyway.
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
"Siege Etiquette" by Katie Cotugno: 4 stars
This little story was a surprise, told in second-person POV. The story centers around two characters who've known each other their whole lives but find a connection while hiding out from the police at an underage party (in the bathroom). The story was a lot less "cute" than bittersweet, but I loved how much story Cotugno managed to stuff into such a small package!
"Print Shop" by Nina LaCour: 3 stars
This story again has a second-person element to it at the beginning and the end, since the main character is describing to her girlfriend the circumstances around how they met. The MC goes to work at a print shop because she loves the art behind it, but ends up in a job handling social media (not what she expected) and then gets embroiled in a customer service issue. This story was cute, but I didn't feel a terrible connection between the MC and the love interest since the MC basically fell for her Facebook profile. Still a fun read, though!
"Hourglass" by Ibi Zoboi: 2.5-3 stars
I really loved this story at first, but then it just didn't seem to really go anywhere. Plus, very little of the story was actually spent on the MC meeting the romantic interest---it kind of felt just added on at the end. But I liked the fact that the story dealt with a girl who feels like she doesn't fit the mold when it comes to body image and her quest to find a dress that fits her, not just physically, but also fits her true image of herself.
"Click" by Katharine McGee: 4.5 stars
This was my favorite up till this point. We got dual POV's from a couple on their first date after using a somewhat futuristic dating app to meet their ideal match. Things don't go as planned when Alexa loses her phone and they end up on a wild goose chase to find it. Alexa is also dealing with loss, and there are some other hints of future tech elements to the story (though, actually not that futuristic because the tech referenced already does exist in some forms).
"The Intern" by Sara Shepard: 3 stars
This was another bittersweet story. I liked it, but it didn't stand out in my mind all that much. Honestly, even though I didn't read this one all that long ago, I'm struggling to even remember it.
"Somewhere That’s Green" by Meredith Russo: 4 stars
This one had a transgender main character and a main character who was struggling with her sexuality due to her religious beliefs (or, perhaps more accurately, struggling with how she thought others would perceive her sexuality). I really enjoyed the story, though I thought the ending felt a little too easy and didn't give quite enough weight to Lexie's decision at the end. (But that's kind of what happens with short stories).
"The Way We Love Here" by Dhonielle Clayton: 4.5 stars
The first (only?) fantasy story of the bunch. I LOVED the unique world that Clayton created and I was amazed at how well she was able to flesh it out in just a short story. I would read a whole book about this world in a heartbeat.
"Oomph" by Emery Lord: 5 stars
This story was the height of adorableness, featuring two girls who meet in an airport. This one made my heart happy and felt like a true "meet cute."
"The Dictionary of You and Me" by Jennifer L. Armentrout: 4 stars
Again, a really cute story. This one felt a little more realistic than some of the others because the characters had a connection before they actually met (via months of phone calls). Plus, it involved libraries and cute words like "zazzy." How could you go wrong?
"The Unlikely Likelihood of Falling in Love" by Jocelyn Davies: 5 shining stars!
I don't know what it was about this story, but I ADORED it! The MC is a self-professed math geek and she is working out the statistical probability of meeting up with a boy she falls for literally at first sight (without ever having met him at all). This should have been a disaster of insta-love proportions, but Sam (the MC) is so highly engaging and likable that I loved every minute of her story. This one's all about fate vs. statistics, and you don't know where it's all going to lead. (Hint: It leads to a story that made me all sorts of happy.)
"259 Million Miles" by Kass Morgan: 3.5 stars
This story had an interesting premise---a guy trying to get into a program to head to Mars in order to escape from his public humiliation that was posted to YouTube. It was an interesting spin on the typical social media story---It almost felt like the Mars part was a backdrop to that. I liked it, but it wasn't as good as the ones preceding it, and it was hard not to compare.
"Something Real" by Julie Murphy: 3 stars
I might have liked this story more if I'd read it earlier in the book, but I sort of started to feel like the bittersweet story of a family member who had died was being overdone in this anthology, so I had a harder time connecting to it than I might have otherwise. I liked the fun spin on the non-ideal dating show situation (even though it was pretty obvious early on where the story was going). A cute story, but not my favorite.
"Say Everything" by Huntley Fitzpatrick: 2.5-3 stars
Surprisingly, another story told in second person POV. I usually love Fitzpatrick, but I just never quite connected with this story and I also never felt a true connection between the main characters. There was nothing wrong with the story in the least, but I wasn't terribly invested.
"The Department of Dead Love" by Nicola Yoon: 3.5 stars
The concept for this one was a complete win. It took place in a sort of fantasy (or sci-fi?) world where people's relationships are handled via bureaucracy. There are departments to handle all sorts of issues related to love, including people who want a do-over in their relationship. I thought this was a really fun idea, and I loved seeing it play out. The only thing that kept me from absolutely loving it was because I didn't really see the connection between the MC and the person he ends up with. Still, there was so much more going on with this story that it was great anyway.
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***