A review by novaturient_bibliophile
The Grimrose Girls by Laura Pohl

4.5

As much as I really enjoyed this book, the first 200 pages or so were a bit dull and unexciting. It was like nothing happened and then—boom! everything just happened all at once, which made it a bit of a discouraging read. And sometimes seemingly boring rising actions can secretly hold hints and foreshadowing, but this one didn’t really. The ending and overall vibe/energy of the book makes that a bit of a moot point, though. I really liked how each of the girls overcame their own issues/got their own spotlight. It made the book very well-rounded. Plus, the diversity and queer rep were incredible. This book did frustrate me at times, though, because I knew it could be better and it just wasn’t, which is proven by how great the ending was. I was also overwhelmed at times. That being said, I’m still very excited to read the sequel. 
This reminded me of the Once Upon a Con series by Ashley Poston, and sort of Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (because they both have gay people at boarding schools).