Scan barcode
A review by opalmars
Here Goes Nothing by Emma K. Ohland
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I ate this one upppppp!!!! I don’t know anything about the original Shakespeare play, so I can only speak of this as a story on its own. It was really intriguing and fast paced, and made me want to stay up all night to finish it!
The story starts off with our MC Beatrice being pulled into a new friend group because her sister (and only friend) is now hanging out with her new boyfriend and his besties. Beatrice isn’t happy with this arrangement because 1) she feels like a 5th wheel, and 2) a girl she doesn’t really like (Bennie) is part of that group.
She starts hanging out with these people more often and one day overhears them talking about the fact that Bennie has a crush on Beatrice. I wasn’t the biggest fan of this at first, because I personally prefer to see crushes develop instead of getting a pre-established crush. HOWEVER!!!!!!! The way this played out was soooo interesting! It was just really compelling to see Beatrice freaking out about this revelation and not knowing what to do in front of Bennie, and also starting to think about her own sexuality because of the prospect of being with a girl.
AND THEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There’s a SICKKKK revelation that truly shocked me!The fact that the group was just setting Beatrice and Bennie up by making them believe the other had a crush on them was SOOOOO SICK AND TWISTED!!!!!!!! 😱 I was SHOCKED!! And I felt soooo bad for Beatrice! She was finally understanding herself and her sexuality better, so finding out it was all based on a deception and her own sister was manipulating her HURT!
The rest of the story develops really naturally after this reveal, and I enjoyed where things went – with Beatrice and Hero’s sisterly bond, with Beatrice’s self-discovery journey, and with Beatrice and Bennie’s romance.
Now for the characters: Beatrice was a really relatable MC, to me. She was just so lost in life and didn’t know what she wanted to do in the future; she had no friends and always felt like a 5th wheel; and she was asexual!!!! aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I’m SO EXCITED to see more asexual representation, ESPECIALLY when there’s still romance in the story!!! 🥹🥹🥹 I think Beatrice’s struggle with her sexuality was really well portrayed! Some of my favourite lines that made me feel very #seen:
The story starts off with our MC Beatrice being pulled into a new friend group because her sister (and only friend) is now hanging out with her new boyfriend and his besties. Beatrice isn’t happy with this arrangement because 1) she feels like a 5th wheel, and 2) a girl she doesn’t really like (Bennie) is part of that group.
She starts hanging out with these people more often and one day overhears them talking about the fact that Bennie has a crush on Beatrice. I wasn’t the biggest fan of this at first, because I personally prefer to see crushes develop instead of getting a pre-established crush. HOWEVER!!!!!!! The way this played out was soooo interesting! It was just really compelling to see Beatrice freaking out about this revelation and not knowing what to do in front of Bennie, and also starting to think about her own sexuality because of the prospect of being with a girl.
AND THEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There’s a SICKKKK revelation that truly shocked me!
The rest of the story develops really naturally after this reveal, and I enjoyed where things went – with Beatrice and Hero’s sisterly bond, with Beatrice’s self-discovery journey, and with Beatrice and Bennie’s romance.
Now for the characters: Beatrice was a really relatable MC, to me. She was just so lost in life and didn’t know what she wanted to do in the future; she had no friends and always felt like a 5th wheel; and she was asexual!!!! aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I’m SO EXCITED to see more asexual representation, ESPECIALLY when there’s still romance in the story!!! 🥹🥹🥹 I think Beatrice’s struggle with her sexuality was really well portrayed! Some of my favourite lines that made me feel very #seen:
➤ “I couldn’t tell if my heart was trying to tell me that I liked Bennie. Or just that there was an excitement in being liked.”
➤ “I didn’t have a celebrity to claim as my queer awakening. I wasn’t even sure I was fully awake yet.”
➤ “Everyone around me was either already having sex or constantly talking about it, and I felt like that was ludicrous behavior. Like the whole universe was hypersexual and I was normal. I mean, I liked romance in movies and books, but I always saw it as separate from my reality—something that happened in those spaces, but not to me.”
I also really liked Beatrice and Hero’s sisterly relationship and how it developed throughout the book. It felt very realistic and while they both messed up, I understood where they both came from, with their flawed choices.
Beatrice and Bennie’s romance was really sweet! 🥹 I do wish it could’ve been developed a bit more – I would’ve liked to see more moments between them to fully establish their feelings for each other. But, other than that, I really liked them. Bennie was soooo cute! I love how she gave Beatrice the friendship bracelet she’d wanted to give her 8 years prior, and how she invited Beatrice over to build a Billy bookshelf because Bea’s favourite moment the whole year was their little Ikea date, and how she promposed while they were building the shelf because she knew Beatrice wouldn’t like a public promposal. 🥺🤧😭 And Bennie was sooo understanding and supportive of Beatrice when it came to her asexuality + her struggle with the future. They were just so cute, and I wish we could’ve seen more of them!
I do wish the book had been a bit longer (to better establish Beatrice and Hero’s sisterly bond at the very start of the book, to develop Bennie and Beatrice’s crushes a bit better, and to expand upon other things – like Beatrice’s relationship with her father). Bea’s story isn’t all wrapped up neatly