fanboyriot's review against another edition
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Read For:
Rivals to Lovers
Second Chances
Homecoming King
Cheerleader x Football Player
Friends to Lovers to Enemies to Lovers
The only thing that comes to mind when I think of this book is: “I love it and hate it at the same time” and really I kind of do.
The queer kids in this book were amazing, everyone else just kinda sucked. The trans rep in this was so painfully well written. The things Jeremy thought and the way he described how he felt was as heartbreaking as it was relatable.
But wow, were these characters so toxic.
Naomi was such a horrible friend it was laughable. She was jealous constantly and she just goes and asks out her best friend’s ex, who had made it clear he didn’t like her like that?? Like why?? All because of some banters that were messed up, I get being petty but bro have a good reason.
Lukas was so toxic. One minute he was fine, going through a lot at home and having to always be the best at everything. He had to get into an amazing college, he had to win homecoming king because if he did that then he would get into a good school, then his family would care about him like they did his dead brother… yeah, because that's how it’s going to work. So he took his anger out on Jermey.
Jeremy was also toxic, just not as bad in my opinion. He was selfish and breaking up with his boyfriend when and how he did it was so incredibly messed up but people acted like he was the worst person ever. He literally had no one. His mom was so desperate to have a daughter she failed her son in the process. Jeremy might have been a mess but wouldn’t you be when everyone failed you and had no problem telling you that they hated you, he was bullied, harassed, and misgendered constantly.
The last few chapters were the best. Everything coming together, the person who got the crown, the drama being resolved finally, and the relationships being settled.
(Switching, First Person POV)
Spice: Lightly Mentioned
Rep: trans (ftm) MC, Autistic MC, Non-Binary SC, Latinx SC
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Homophobia, Bullying, Ableism, Hate crime, Dysphoria, Transphobia, Violence, Deadnaming, Toxic friendship, Sexism, Cursing, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Sexual assault, Body shaming, Infidelity, Mental illness, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Medical content, Racism, Vomit, Lesbophobia, Biphobia, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Drug use, Blood, Child abuse, and Suicidal thoughts
bibliomania_express's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
May the Best Man Win by ZR Ellor is a YA contemporary romance between two exes competing to be homecoming king. Jeremy and Lukas are both dealing with a lot of emotions, both around identity and their families. So they both spend a lot of this book spiralling into chaos. The book does focus more on Jeremy trying to get everyone to accept he's a boy than it does on Lukas's struggles with autism, but they're both shaped by how they think people do/will perceive them.
This book is also about the shitty things people will do to each other, and the importance of learning and making amends. There's a wide span of friendship issues, family issues, and high school administration issues. I liked that the major subplot of fighting to amend the Code of Conduct to include verbal bullying and harrassment was given a lot of page time. I also love how the whole Homecoming Court vote shook out.
This book is also about the shitty things people will do to each other, and the importance of learning and making amends. There's a wide span of friendship issues, family issues, and high school administration issues. I liked that the major subplot of fighting to amend the Code of Conduct to include verbal bullying and harrassment was given a lot of page time. I also love how the whole Homecoming Court vote shook out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Bullying, and Homophobia
Moderate: Racism, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Dysphoria, Violence, Deadnaming, and Grief
Minor: Sexual harassment, Infidelity, Death, and Car accident
bashsbooks's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
WOW.
A gripe I usually have with queer fiction - especially queer YA fiction - is that the queer characters are not allowed to be messy disasters. There is a very limited amount of disaster allowed for queer characters before they have to be consumed by guilt and apologies.
That is not a problem here! These guys - the two main characters, Jeremy and Lukas - are selfish and angry and hurting and think that ruling a high school via Homecoming Court can fix that. I don't think it's much of a spoiler to say that it obviously can't. There are some truly painful moments in here, but I loved that. I loved that they did awful things that I totally would've also done if I'd been in their scared and miserable positions when I was seventeen. This is not making excuses for them, though - they are completely in the wrong most of the time- just, it makes their character growth wayyy more satisfying than usual.
This author clearly has a very nuanced understanding of queerness, and he approached how transitioning goes from a number of angles, including an important one that I don't usually see - that trans people themselves need to grow into their genders and resist toxic behaviors for the sake of validity.
I was also pleasantly surprised by the autistic representation in Lukas, which I wasn't aware of before I started reading this. I appreciate that a trans gay guy and an autistic got to be assholes and not use their identities as an excuse, but that those identities were integral to how they process the world. That's a fine line to balance, and I think Ellor did a great job.
A gripe I usually have with queer fiction - especially queer YA fiction - is that the queer characters are not allowed to be messy disasters. There is a very limited amount of disaster allowed for queer characters before they have to be consumed by guilt and apologies.
That is not a problem here! These guys - the two main characters, Jeremy and Lukas - are selfish and angry and hurting and think that ruling a high school via Homecoming Court can fix that. I don't think it's much of a spoiler to say that it obviously can't. There are some truly painful moments in here, but I loved that. I loved that they did awful things that I totally would've also done if I'd been in their scared and miserable positions when I was seventeen. This is not making excuses for them, though - they are completely in the wrong most of the time- just, it makes their character growth wayyy more satisfying than usual.
This author clearly has a very nuanced understanding of queerness, and he approached how transitioning goes from a number of angles, including an important one that I don't usually see - that trans people themselves need to grow into their genders and resist toxic behaviors for the sake of validity.
I was also pleasantly surprised by the autistic representation in Lukas, which I wasn't aware of before I started reading this. I appreciate that a trans gay guy and an autistic got to be assholes and not use their identities as an excuse, but that those identities were integral to how they process the world. That's a fine line to balance, and I think Ellor did a great job.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Deadnaming, Ableism, Alcohol, Bullying, Cursing, Toxic friendship, Homophobia, Death, Transphobia, Hate crime, Violence, Dysphoria, Toxic relationship, and Sexism
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Drug use, Sexual violence, Infidelity, Car accident, and Misogyny
Minor: Classism and Racism
-F-slur used a few timeslonglost's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This. This sure was a book.
I really wanted to like this book. Autistic rep AND queer rep ?? All I want in life. Unfortunately I just could not vibe with the book or its characters.
Lukas and Jeremy's relationship was not enjoyable to read about during most points of the book. It came off as TOO mean-spirited so so often and I genuinely don't see whythey ended up getting back together. Jeremy treated Lukas like shit, and while I understand that Jeremy was hurt by Lukas's comment on the day they broke up he also uses it as an excuse to vilify Lukas when like. There is no reasonable way he could have known how to respond to Jeremy at that point. Also he KNOWS Lukas is autistic and therefore has trouble w/ social shit, and yet it never occurs to him to say "hey, I broke up with you because of that comment you made, not because you somehow did a bunch of things wrong in our three years of dating" which we see Lukas is worried about from the chapters in his POV. Naomi and Sol were fun however. I liked them.
I DID enjoy the queer power message in this book, and while I didn't enjoy the shitty school system it also reflects reality unfortunately so. I wish I could have liked this book more because I'm 100% behind Jeremy's fight to change the Code so that the harassment he's facing is Actually Acknowledged but I couldn't stand the main plot of fighting over the Homecoming crown even if I could sympathize with both character's motivations. The actions they took against each other just felt too mean-spirited.
I really wanted to like this book. Autistic rep AND queer rep ?? All I want in life. Unfortunately I just could not vibe with the book or its characters.
Lukas and Jeremy's relationship was not enjoyable to read about during most points of the book. It came off as TOO mean-spirited so so often and I genuinely don't see why
I DID enjoy the queer power message in this book, and while I didn't enjoy the shitty school system it also reflects reality unfortunately so. I wish I could have liked this book more because I'm 100% behind Jeremy's fight to change the Code so that the harassment he's facing is Actually Acknowledged but I couldn't stand the main plot of fighting over the Homecoming crown even if I could sympathize with both character's motivations. The actions they took against each other just felt too mean-spirited.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Homophobia, Bullying, Ableism, Deadnaming, Hate crime, Violence, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Sexism, Grief, Dysphoria, Cursing, Misogyny, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, and Child abuse
Moderate: Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Self harm, Blood, Death, Racism, and Alcohol
Minor: Car accident, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
alyxinthestars's review against another edition
emotional
medium-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Transphobia, Violence, Ableism, Bullying, Dysphoria, Grief, Hate crime, and Sexual assault
Minor: Biphobia, Alcohol, Car accident, Deadnaming, Death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, and Sexism
curiositys's review against another edition
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Homophobia, and Violence
Moderate: Ableism and Infidelity
sunsetcity's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Body shaming, Bullying, Car accident, Deadnaming, Cursing, Death, Grief, Infidelity, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia
yvonne_cl's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Transphobia, and Car accident
Moderate: Deadnaming and Infidelity
Minor: Child abuse
maisierosereads's review against another edition
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I was provided with an eARC of this book so that I could write an honest review as part of the Turn the Pages blog tour! Click here to read this review (and enter a giveaway for a physical copy) on my blog.
Content Warnings: transphobia, misgendering, bullying, homophobia, anti-autistic ableism, violence, hate crime, sexism, threats of sexual assault, underage drinking, past domestic abuse/physical abuse of child, toxic relationship, infidelity, grief (past death of loved one/car accident), drug use, threats of knife crime
I loved the premise of this book when I first heard about it – a YA lovers-to-rivals-to-lovers romance between a 17 year old trans boy (Jeremy) and an 18 year old autistic boy (Lukas) is right up my street! I was also drawn to the gorgeous cover art by J. Yang, “a transmasc illustrator in a penguin onesie”. The audiobook is narrated by Avi Roque, who did a great job narrating both of Aiden Thomas’ audiobooks – it’s great to see that books like this one are creating work for other trans artists in addition to the authors!
To start by clearing up a little misinterpretation I had: I was under the impression before starting this book that it was a romcom, but I would say it’s more of a drama than a comedy.
The main characters are both morally-grey disasters who make more than their fair share of bad decisions. They’re not exactly loveable at the start of the book – Jeremy in particular comes across as very self-centred. The success of series like The Foxhole Court (with its infamously messy main characters) implies this won’t be an issue for many readers, but it might be a turn-off for others. The characters did undergo a degree of development by the end of the book and recognise that they should have acted differently in the past, and seem to want to do better moving forward.
I could empathise with Lukas feeling that he had to mask his autistic traits, and struggling to ask for the accomodations he needed from teachers with inaccessible teaching styles. However, I would have loved to have seen a little more positivity around him being autistic, perhaps as part of his character development or through more neurodivergent side characters.
Speaking of side characters – my favourite character of the whole book was probably Sol, a nonbinary Latine computer nerd in the school year below Jeremy and Lukas. While they also made some poor decisions, as teenagers are likely to, I found them much more loveable than the main characters and would love to know more about them and their story.
The rest of the cast of characters includes some definite antagonists, and others whose motivations are more complex. I don’t know how realistic the school’s policies on e.g. bullying and harrassment are, since I went to and work in English secondary schools where the antagonist’s actions would easily be grounds for exclusion, but I’m glad that this “outdated administration” was challenged by many of the characters.
One issue which went unchallenged and which I would like to highlight is the arguably lesbophobic description of TERFs (Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminists) given by one of the side characters, who says that a lot of TERFs are lesbians who “hate trans people because they like to claim they’re the most oppressed queers in existence”. I really hope this was edited for the final copy. While I don’t disagree that the queer community needs to reflect on its own transphobia, I think this line is a dangerous oversimplification when many young adults who will read this book may not have encountered this term before; after all, people of all sexualities are TERFs, and their transphobia is not because of any discrimination they may receive for other marginalised identities. Reinforcing the association between lesbians and transphobia will not help anyone.
Some scenes and details which I did enjoy included Jeremy’s fabulous outfit for the last day of homecoming week, a review of scented candles, the use of the song “Holding Out For a Hero” (yes, the one from Shrek; and yes, it was stuck in my head for days afterwards), and the people elected as homecoming king and queen.
Overall, if you like a dramatic contemporary romance with imperfect characters? Definitely give this one a try!
Content Warnings: transphobia, misgendering, bullying, homophobia, anti-autistic ableism, violence, hate crime, sexism, threats of sexual assault, underage drinking, past domestic abuse/physical abuse of child, toxic relationship, infidelity, grief (past death of loved one/car accident), drug use, threats of knife crime
I loved the premise of this book when I first heard about it – a YA lovers-to-rivals-to-lovers romance between a 17 year old trans boy (Jeremy) and an 18 year old autistic boy (Lukas) is right up my street! I was also drawn to the gorgeous cover art by J. Yang, “a transmasc illustrator in a penguin onesie”. The audiobook is narrated by Avi Roque, who did a great job narrating both of Aiden Thomas’ audiobooks – it’s great to see that books like this one are creating work for other trans artists in addition to the authors!
To start by clearing up a little misinterpretation I had: I was under the impression before starting this book that it was a romcom, but I would say it’s more of a drama than a comedy.
The main characters are both morally-grey disasters who make more than their fair share of bad decisions. They’re not exactly loveable at the start of the book – Jeremy in particular comes across as very self-centred. The success of series like The Foxhole Court (with its infamously messy main characters) implies this won’t be an issue for many readers, but it might be a turn-off for others. The characters did undergo a degree of development by the end of the book and recognise that they should have acted differently in the past, and seem to want to do better moving forward.
I could empathise with Lukas feeling that he had to mask his autistic traits, and struggling to ask for the accomodations he needed from teachers with inaccessible teaching styles. However, I would have loved to have seen a little more positivity around him being autistic, perhaps as part of his character development or through more neurodivergent side characters.
Speaking of side characters – my favourite character of the whole book was probably Sol, a nonbinary Latine computer nerd in the school year below Jeremy and Lukas. While they also made some poor decisions, as teenagers are likely to, I found them much more loveable than the main characters and would love to know more about them and their story.
The rest of the cast of characters includes some definite antagonists, and others whose motivations are more complex. I don’t know how realistic the school’s policies on e.g. bullying and harrassment are, since I went to and work in English secondary schools where the antagonist’s actions would easily be grounds for exclusion, but I’m glad that this “outdated administration” was challenged by many of the characters.
One issue which went unchallenged and which I would like to highlight is the arguably lesbophobic description of TERFs (Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminists) given by one of the side characters, who says that a lot of TERFs are lesbians who “hate trans people because they like to claim they’re the most oppressed queers in existence”. I really hope this was edited for the final copy. While I don’t disagree that the queer community needs to reflect on its own transphobia, I think this line is a dangerous oversimplification when many young adults who will read this book may not have encountered this term before; after all, people of all sexualities are TERFs, and their transphobia is not because of any discrimination they may receive for other marginalised identities. Reinforcing the association between lesbians and transphobia will not help anyone.
Some scenes and details which I did enjoy included Jeremy’s fabulous outfit for the last day of homecoming week, a review of scented candles, the use of the song “Holding Out For a Hero” (yes, the one from Shrek; and yes, it was stuck in my head for days afterwards), and the people elected as homecoming king and queen.
Overall, if you like a dramatic contemporary romance with imperfect characters? Definitely give this one a try!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Homophobia, Hate crime, Violence, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Self harm, Grief, Drug use, Bullying, Body shaming, and Ableism
Moderate: Child abuse, Infidelity, and Physical abuse
Minor: Car accident, Self harm, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Stalking
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thanks to Macmillan and NetGalley for sending me an advanced copy of this to review! It definitely wasn’t what I was expecting, but not in a bad way! Just much heavier than I was expected. But there are a lot of great issues discussed in here, and it has a lot of other great things going for it!
Let’s start with the good things! This book has a great cast of diverse characters (even if the main characters aren’t the most likeable, more on that below). I especially liked Sol; they were a great foil to Jeremy and Lukas and often a voice of reason. Ellor also captured the elite high school feel, down to the homecoming competition and the feel of the book. It felt authentic and gave the characters a great backdrop.
Ellor also focused a lot on character growth, and man, did these characters have so much room to grow. Jeremy was very angry for most of the book, internalizing a lot of toxic masculinity traits that are sometimes hard to read. I do think he changed by the end of the book, even if he still has a long way to go. He’s still just a teenager! Lukas is also angry, though not as fiery as Jeremy. They both have hurt feelings that could definitely use therapy, and maybe they’ll get it in the future!
Now, the negatives. One of my main complaints is the pacing. A lot of parts felt dragged out, while the ending felt a bit rushed to me. Especially the reconciliation between Jeremy and Lukas. I specifically wanted that aspect of the plot to be…slower? It’s scrunched into the last quarter of the book and I wanted more of them working out their problems. With each other and their friends.
Also, I absolutely loathed the AP Bio teacher. She deliberately makes tests that students can’t pass and I hate teachers like that. Like, how is any student learning anything? And she was so unwilling to work with Lukas when he said he needed his laptop to take notes. Lukas is autistic, and even though he hadn’t really informed the school, she still should have been willing to work with him. That’s what teachers do.
I’m not sure that I can comment on the authenticity of the representation of Lukas’s autism, so I would seek out own voices reviews for that. But al in all, even if this wasn’t the rom-com I was expecting, this is a strong debut and I can’t wait to read more from ZR Ellor in the future.
------
That 100% wasn't what I was expecting based on the cover and the description. There is A LOT to unpack here, so stay tuned for a full review to come next week!
That 100% wasn't what I was expecting based on the cover and the description. There is A LOT to unpack here, so stay tuned for a full review to come next week!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Cursing, Deadnaming, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Transphobia, and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Death, Infidelity, and Misogyny
Minor: Domestic abuse and Sexual assault