laura_liisa's review
2.0
2.5
Idk if giving this 2 stars is extra mean, but I had high hopes for this book and it was such a letdown, so 2 stars feels kinda fair, I guess.
I liked the chemistry the MC and the love interest had. Also that the story pushed back on the father's 'request' for the MC to 'go back in the closet' and that the MC called her father out on it. But the unnecessary and drawn out drama around the MC starting a relationship off with lies and also lying to her new friends about things she could have talked to them about etc + some of the questionable decisions about the character with an assumed intellectual disability just frustrated me so much. Plus the homophobia and some bs ~acceptance~. Reading the author's note I understand the idea behind the story was very lovely, but even if perhaps I wasn't the right audience for this book, I feel like the execution was lacking.
Idk if giving this 2 stars is extra mean, but I had high hopes for this book and it was such a letdown, so 2 stars feels kinda fair, I guess.
I liked the chemistry the MC and the love interest had. Also that the story pushed back on the father's 'request' for the MC to 'go back in the closet' and that the MC called her father out on it. But the unnecessary and drawn out drama around the MC starting a relationship off with lies and also lying to her new friends about things she could have talked to them about etc + some of the questionable decisions about the character with an assumed intellectual disability just frustrated me so much. Plus the homophobia and some bs ~acceptance~. Reading the author's note I understand the idea behind the story was very lovely, but even if perhaps I wasn't the right audience for this book, I feel like the execution was lacking.
kirstyreadsblog's review
1.0
DNF I was so excited about this book but the ableism is so gross I couldn't keep reading it. If you're going to include someone on the spectrum as a side character don't treat them like a 5 year old.
ana_chelidze's review
4.0
Super cute :)
I’m not generally here for religion-centered stories but this was too wholesome not to love
I’m not generally here for religion-centered stories but this was too wholesome not to love
breadedbookpages's review
3.0
I remember I was a bit uncomfortable at the portrayal of the brother but i was so deprived of f/f romance that I just wanted to like the book so bad. I've read several reviews that point out aspects I kind of didn't look into when reading this book so I'm gonna clear my rating. I just remember liking it personally.
krissyronan's review
4.0
Swoony and lovely romance. Faith and LGBTQ prominently featured but not preachy.
h0llyrose's review
2.0
while i really enjoy this book discussing religion and the LGBTQ+ community, there were a few issues with this book that i just couldn’t get over, such as the father asking his already out lesbian daughter to pretend to be straight and then that lesbian character encouraging another lesbian character to stay in the closet once the other character has decided they are comfortable with coming out. something mentioned in other reviews (that i am not informed about enough to comment on) is the rep of a character with autism, the writing of this character made me uncomfortable but because i don’t have like i said enough knowledge about that topic i cannot comment more about that. otherwise there were some parts of this story i liked but more negatives than positives for me, even though i did appreciate the wlw/lesbian rep
allredsav's review
5.0
this is my favorite wlw book of all time so i highly highly recommend it!! it made me cry, laugh, smile way too much, and at one point i had to stop reading because i was so happy for the characters :)
sonni89's review
5.0
I mean, honestly this is maybe just over four stars overall, but I'm giving it five stars anyway because of the way it resonated with me emotionally, and because it means so much to me that this book exists.
Jo(anna) promises her radio preacher dad when they move from Atlanta to rural Georgia that she would stay in the closet her senior year. Well, whoops, because she falls in love with a girl who's just realizing she's gay. And oh my god, Joanna and Mary Carlson are PHENOMENAL. I love them so much. They're by far my favorite F/F relationship I've seen in YA literature so far. I adore them. Mary Carlson is AMAZING!!!!! She's honestly my everything. Joanna is a really wonderful character, too.
Here's where a couple of complaints come in: A lot of the drama in the book could have been fixed if Joanna had just TALKED TO PEOPLE (her dad and Mary Carlson, most of all) instead of, well, not doing that. But she's also a 17-year old girl, so I guess it makes sense that she wouldn't necessarily. The other one is that a lot of issues (homophobia, and also racism to an extent) were definitely handwaved or glossed over a little bit.
However, I feel like with 2016 having been as shitty of a year as it has been, it was great to just suspend disbelief for a few hours while reading this book and enjoying reading a book where even the most conservative of churches can (for the most part) accept their queer members and where (most) people just accept each other.
Here's everything that I loved, though!!
Other than Jo's step-grandmother, all the adults in this book were ACES. Her dad was pretty great for the most part, her stepmom was AMAZING. Mary Carlson's parents were really great parents. Althea was fantastic, as was Jo's step-grandfather Tater, who was just lovely.
But most importantly: MARY CARLSON!!! Fearless, wonderful, pretty, lovely Mary Carlson!! What a great lady, honestly. I LOVE how secure she was in herself and her sexuality and how she was basically like, well once I meet a person worth coming out for, I will, and then she met Joanna. She didn't take anyone's shit and she was just like, hey I'll tell you all something and then I'll leave, and she came out to them. I could have definitely done without Deirdre, the manipulative and evil lesbian and their not-relationship, but okay. All's well that ends well.
Jo and Mary Carlson though!!!! I LOVED all their little touches and lingering looks between them when it wasn't clear to either of them whether the other was into them or not. I LOVED their first kiss at Paradise, it was everything to me. I LOVED that Jo got her an elephant bracelet when she apologized to her, and I'm glad Mary Carlson forgave her, but man, I WANT SO MUCH MORE FOR THEM.
I thought we didn't get nearly enough of their story of how they made up, though. Not in a way where I thought some of the book was missing or it was imcomplete, more in a way of, here's what I want everyone to write me fic for, haha. I want more of them making up, of their first days in a real relationship. I want more of their summer trip with Dana. I want more of their established relationship because when do we ever get a great F/F relationship in YA? Rarely, unfortunately.
Asking for this for Yuletide next year, probably. Please prepare accordingly. ;)
Jo(anna) promises her radio preacher dad when they move from Atlanta to rural Georgia that she would stay in the closet her senior year. Well, whoops, because she falls in love with a girl who's just realizing she's gay. And oh my god, Joanna and Mary Carlson are PHENOMENAL. I love them so much. They're by far my favorite F/F relationship I've seen in YA literature so far. I adore them. Mary Carlson is AMAZING!!!!! She's honestly my everything. Joanna is a really wonderful character, too.
Here's where a couple of complaints come in: A lot of the drama in the book could have been fixed if Joanna had just TALKED TO PEOPLE (her dad and Mary Carlson, most of all) instead of, well, not doing that. But she's also a 17-year old girl, so I guess it makes sense that she wouldn't necessarily. The other one is that a lot of issues (homophobia, and also racism to an extent) were definitely handwaved or glossed over a little bit.
However, I feel like with 2016 having been as shitty of a year as it has been, it was great to just suspend disbelief for a few hours while reading this book and enjoying reading a book where even the most conservative of churches can (for the most part) accept their queer members and where (most) people just accept each other.
Here's everything that I loved, though!!
Spoiler
I loved Joanna's new group of friends and how they grew and changed because of Mary Carlson and because of Joanna, too, to a certain extent. George was the rare truly great dude in a book that was (rightfully) all about the ladies. He and Gemma were adorable, too. I wasn't super fond of Dana at the start, but I grew to really love her progression and how she grew up and changed in the course of the novel, too. And I love that she and Jo are best friends who made out with each other and hated it, I thought that was a great tidbit, haha. B.T.B. was great and so earnest and lovely and I can't speak to the way his autism was portrayed in the book because I don't know enough about it, but it seemed realistic and very respectfully done.Other than Jo's step-grandmother, all the adults in this book were ACES. Her dad was pretty great for the most part, her stepmom was AMAZING. Mary Carlson's parents were really great parents. Althea was fantastic, as was Jo's step-grandfather Tater, who was just lovely.
But most importantly: MARY CARLSON!!! Fearless, wonderful, pretty, lovely Mary Carlson!! What a great lady, honestly. I LOVE how secure she was in herself and her sexuality and how she was basically like, well once I meet a person worth coming out for, I will, and then she met Joanna. She didn't take anyone's shit and she was just like, hey I'll tell you all something and then I'll leave, and she came out to them. I could have definitely done without Deirdre, the manipulative and evil lesbian and their not-relationship, but okay. All's well that ends well.
Jo and Mary Carlson though!!!! I LOVED all their little touches and lingering looks between them when it wasn't clear to either of them whether the other was into them or not. I LOVED their first kiss at Paradise, it was everything to me. I LOVED that Jo got her an elephant bracelet when she apologized to her, and I'm glad Mary Carlson forgave her, but man, I WANT SO MUCH MORE FOR THEM.
I thought we didn't get nearly enough of their story of how they made up, though. Not in a way where I thought some of the book was missing or it was imcomplete, more in a way of, here's what I want everyone to write me fic for, haha. I want more of them making up, of their first days in a real relationship. I want more of their summer trip with Dana. I want more of their established relationship because when do we ever get a great F/F relationship in YA? Rarely, unfortunately.
Asking for this for Yuletide next year, probably. Please prepare accordingly. ;)