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A review by jediprincess
Wren Martin Ruins It All by Amanda DeWitt
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
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? Yes
4.75
Wren Martin Ruins It All is an adorable love story that pulled the heartstrings. Wren Martin is asexual and has given up on dating anytime soon. He becomes the president of student council due to a (high school level) scandal and vows to end the big Valentine’s Day dance (it’s not fair to students who can’t afford ticket price/formal clothes, a “social minefield” for poor, gay, & trans kids, and the money that goes towards it could help the whole school instead of being used for a single night). This falls through when a suggestion by the perfect Leo Reyes has an app that promotes platonic friendship, Buddy, sponsoring the big dance. Wren reluctantly agrees and on the sky downloads the app to do some “research.” I think we all know where this is going!
The story is fairly predictable, I think there was only one major thing that caught me off guard (in a good way!) but it was such a cute read that that fact didn’t ruin the book for me! It was refreshing to have a main character who knew he was asexual and had a positive relationship with that part of himself and not agonize over his sexuality. It is ultimately a story about queer joy! It felt like a queer-norm world in the way that high school feels so insular to the rest of the world sometimes.
The characters were all wonderful — I loved how grumpy Wren was and how Ryan was always bribing him to do things/go places. The character growth from Wren was spectacular, I felt like he really matured. Their friendships and interactions definitely felt real and as if I were back in high school, it is written really well!
Overall I truly enjoyed this novel and hope others love it! Thank you so much to NetGalley and Peachtree Teen for the ARC in exchange for a honest review!
The story is fairly predictable, I think there was only one major thing that caught me off guard (in a good way!) but it was such a cute read that that fact didn’t ruin the book for me! It was refreshing to have a main character who knew he was asexual and had a positive relationship with that part of himself and not agonize over his sexuality. It is ultimately a story about queer joy! It felt like a queer-norm world in the way that high school feels so insular to the rest of the world sometimes.
The characters were all wonderful — I loved how grumpy Wren was and how Ryan was always bribing him to do things/go places. The character growth from Wren was spectacular, I felt like he really matured. Their friendships and interactions definitely felt real and as if I were back in high school, it is written really well!
Overall I truly enjoyed this novel and hope others love it! Thank you so much to NetGalley and Peachtree Teen for the ARC in exchange for a honest review!