geno's review against another edition
funny
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming
Moderate: Biphobia and Racism
aldoniathreads's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Biphobia, Fatphobia, Toxic friendship, and Racism
del_moon's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
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
5.0
I loved this so much but I didn’t like how Leah kind of romanticized mlm.
Content Warnings
Minor: Biphobia, Homophobia, Outing, Fatphobia, and Toxic friendship
nytephoenyx's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Leah’s anger really resonates with me. She’s absolutely determined to be less than and blames herself for everything. It is painfully relatable.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Biphobia
The author of this book is bisexual. The main character is bisexual and plus-sized. This book includes supporting characters who identify as gay, who are questioning, and a Black supporting character.fireandstars's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Biphobia
emmaward55's review against another edition
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I love Becky Albertalli's writing and I don't think she could write a book that I didn't at least like. This book didn't quite give me everything that I wanted, but I still enjoyed it and I think it's an important view point both in YA romance and queer romance genres. Rarely do I see books about fat sapphics with happily ever afters, much less ones who are poor or who have divorced families.
In some ways this book felt like a hug from a friend. It was familiar and comforting and I can see myself returning to it in the future. That being said, there were things that I thought it lacked. Mainly a satisfactory ending. I wish we'd gotten to hear Nick's reaction to his ex girlfriend dating one of his best friends. So much of the final arc of the book was about Leah worrying how Nick would feel, but we never get that pay off! I wanted resolution. At the least, I wanted the wrap up chapter to say something vague like "Nick isn't as fast to reply to my texts now, but we still hang out and he seems happy in his new relationship".
Speaking of relationships, the pairing up of every single remaining character at the end felt so weird. Hetero characters who had barely interacted with each other were suddenly an item and it felt like something you'd expect from a straight romance writer. IDK, I can see that it's meant to be part of the "and they all lived happily every after and no one was sad or lonely" vibe, but it's important that teens reading YA romance know that they're not unlovable / broken / wrong for graduating high school without a partner.
Despite all of that, I do really recommend this book. These are minor quibbles over a story that still had a lot of heart and soul in it. It deserves to be given a chance and I'm sure there are going to be readers who don't see an issue with anything written above.
I wouldn't say that this is the female version of Simon Vs., but if you're looking for a comforting wlw story about two girls figuring out who they are to themselves and each other, this is the book for you.
In some ways this book felt like a hug from a friend. It was familiar and comforting and I can see myself returning to it in the future. That being said, there were things that I thought it lacked. Mainly a satisfactory ending. I wish we'd gotten to hear Nick's reaction to his ex girlfriend dating one of his best friends. So much of the final arc of the book was about Leah worrying how Nick would feel, but we never get that pay off! I wanted resolution. At the least, I wanted the wrap up chapter to say something vague like "Nick isn't as fast to reply to my texts now, but we still hang out and he seems happy in his new relationship".
Speaking of relationships, the pairing up of every single remaining character at the end felt so weird. Hetero characters who had barely interacted with each other were suddenly an item and it felt like something you'd expect from a straight romance writer. IDK, I can see that it's meant to be part of the "and they all lived happily every after and no one was sad or lonely" vibe, but it's important that teens reading YA romance know that they're not unlovable / broken / wrong for graduating high school without a partner.
Despite all of that, I do really recommend this book. These are minor quibbles over a story that still had a lot of heart and soul in it. It deserves to be given a chance and I'm sure there are going to be readers who don't see an issue with anything written above.
I wouldn't say that this is the female version of Simon Vs., but if you're looking for a comforting wlw story about two girls figuring out who they are to themselves and each other, this is the book for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia
Moderate: Body shaming, Cursing, Alcohol, and Racism
lisa_m's review against another edition
3.0
The book definitely made me laugh so that's a plus. Apart from that, it's not really for me. If you've read 'Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda' and want to know more about the characters you can read it, but it's not a must. It feels very much like fan fiction to me.
I didn't really like Leah and found her very tiring at times. Abby on the other hand is portrayed as absolutely perfect (even though she claims she isn't). Simon and Bram are cute (but don't feature enough :(). And there are a bit too many pop culture references for my taste.
I didn't really like Leah and found her very tiring at times. Abby on the other hand is portrayed as absolutely perfect (even though she claims she isn't). Simon and Bram are cute (but don't feature enough :(). And there are a bit too many pop culture references for my taste.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Biphobia
anntea's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I am happy to say I loved this!!! Went in a bit worried I wouldn't, but thank god I was wrong. Not a perfect 5 stars simply because I rolled my eyes at a lot of parts. But overall extremely cute!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia and Body shaming
Moderate: Racism
rayne_1906's review against another edition
funny
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
3.0
Audiobook - 4 hours 42 minutes - This book was *okay*. That's all I can really say about it. I liked how the author chose to focus on a different character in an existing book, but the plot just felt a bit lacking. Nothing really happened. The titular character just raised the same issues about bisexuality, race, and college over and over again, which was fine at first but became boring. It was interesting enough to read about these characters, but it definitely wasn't anything special.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia and Body shaming
Moderate: Homophobia and Fatphobia
Minor: Alcohol
readitandweep's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia and Body shaming
Moderate: Fatphobia
Minor: Lesbophobia