Reviews with content warning for Toxic relationship - Perfect on Paper

This book was so charming. A perfect high school romance, its characters shone. Distinct, complicated, and likeable, all of the main characters were a joy to get to know. I thoroughly enjoyed the relationship advice and I liked that the author wasn’t scared to raise the stakes. Characters messing up really messed up, and the pay off was so cathartic. Sadly, I feel like a conversation between Darcy and Brooke was missing at the end to truly tie everything together. It would have been useful if the final chapter was labelled as an epilogue. Overall, however, this book exceeded my expectations. It was an enjoyable read and I’ll keep an eye out for Gonzales’ other works.

(I also really liked the discussions of bisexuality! They were sensitive and powerful)

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torikate7's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful 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

4.5

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tinysierra's review

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funny lighthearted fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The premise was fun! It was a cute queer (bisexual centered) story. I love the discussions about attachment styles, setting boundaries and communicating needs.

I loved that there was brief but casual asexual rep in the side characters. Darcy gets a letter from an asexual student asking for advice about their relationship. Darcy’s response is spot on. It was really nice to see. There were other queer characters as well.

Along the way we get to see problems/tensions with the main character’s parents relationships and how it affects the children/main characters as well.

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dwoht's review against another edition

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funny informative inspiring lighthearted reflective 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

4.5

good bisexual representation!

i started reading this thinking it's the typical best friends to lovers story, turns out i was wrong but it's a good kind of wrong because i like the two main characters. they're cute and they complement each other well.

i know darcy will be revealed as the locker 89 but i still dreaded it and when it finally happened i felt so uncomfortable and embarrassed! i closed the book for a few minutes to recover.

darcy was held accountable for her actions of course and she's also self aware and tried to correct her mistakes as best as she can. darcy is relatable as all of the characters combined, but darcy is something. she's endearing. (maybe because i see a bit of myself in her lol)

it also reminds me of sex education's first season where they also do the relationship advice thingy which is cool.

i enjoyed this book despite the second hand embarassments that i felt. it's a great read, can't complain much.

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tuliptohru's review

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funny hopeful lighthearted fast-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

5.0

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dlrosebyh's review

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lighthearted 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

3.75

For a charge, Darcy Phillips may provide you with the answer to any of your relationship problems. She uses her influence wisely (most of the time), passionately detests Alexander Brougham. Whenever it comes to her best friend Brooke, who is in love with someone else, may not have the finest judgment. And lastly, she does not appreciate being blackmailed.

But that's precisely what happens when Brougham discovers her in the act of retrieving letters from locker 89, where she's been operating her dubious legal, anonymous relationship advising service. At least at a generous hourly rate, Darcy reluctantly agrees to serve as his personal dating coach in exchange for keeping her identity a secret. Exactly what was the intention? assist him in getting his ex-girlfriend back.

Darcy has a valid reason for hiding her identity. Some things she's ashamed of will come to light if word gets out that she's hiding behind the locker, and there's a high chance Brooke won't ever talk to her again. So all she needs to do is assist a bratty, entitled, annoyingly, and attractive guy in winning over a woman who has already fallen for him? What might possibly fail?

To sum up this book in one word? Heartwarming. I believe this is one of the first novels I've read with a bisexual female character ending up with a man— and I guess that's due of the biphobia. it's so lovely to read about a bisexual female heroine adoring a man. When bisexuals like someone who is the opposite gender from them, society will accuse them of not being "bisexual enough," and this book extensively addresses that issue.

I suppose there was a period where I was annoyed with Darcy because, God, she can be toxic at times. I do, however, understand her viewpoint. Despite being predictable and cliche (it reads like a Netflix movie), this book is nevertheless beautiful if you can get beyond those.

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deadgirlwalking23's review against another edition

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Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

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imstephtacular's review

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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