Reviews

The Boy You Always Wanted by Michelle Quach

lyssaczernek's review

4.0

SO CUTE!! Francine and Ollie were literally the cutest ever together and I’m so glad they worked everything out in the end. I think both characters were well developed and felt like complicated individuals.

We saw a lot about Francine’s family life/dynamics and it added a lot of layers to the story. I kind of wish we had the same for Ollie. There were brief mentions of the distance between his family and them kind of trying to forget the past. I wanted to explore that more! It felt like there was so much to the story that I missed out on.

The conflict in this story was well written and felt true to the characters, not ridiculous at all.

I would definitely recommend to anyone wanting a little family drama, secret plans, and high school relationship angst!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

moonsi73's review

emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

lailag45's review

5.0

The she fell first but he fell harder trope !!

i thought this was gonna be another one of my “picking an audiobook for the sake of picking an audiobook” sorta listens/reads

i was going to give it a 4, but no it’s so a 5 in my heart. ♥️

It was so so so cute, like ugh Ollie was adorable and him and Francine were adorable together it makes me wanna sob

puajiwehe's review

slow-paced

3.0

ligayahan's review

hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

4.75

leahreadz's review against another edition

challenging emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

bryw4nk's review

hopeful slow-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? It's complicated

2.5

alexandriapaige's review

funny fast-paced

4.25

jasminesworld's review

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

i did like michelle quach’s debut novel a lot more tho this is definitely a cute romance: girl falls first boy falls harder, childhood “friends” to lovers kinda, first loves. as much as i like francine and ollie i did not feel the third act concluded in a way i would’ve hoped for and *small spoiler*

this is despite the third act breakup which i always loathe.

i feel like the other reviews comment on how ollie is a red flag in the beginning by how he treats francine, which is kinda true but context does matter. given what we learn about his character i do believe he has always liked francine, but his personality/worldview of masculinity and “coolness” overshadow that. when he lets those ideas go all he wants to do is consume and embrace francine for everything she is – not everything she tries to be for others.

hannaww's review against another edition

funny lighthearted reflective 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

4.25

This book delved into some really interesting themes and I really liked how they came together. I loved the writing and the characters. The only downside in my opinion was that by the end of the book, the author tried to do a bit too many things at once and didn't have time to wrap all of the themes up, which was a bummer since they were so interesting to begin with.

I would eg. have loved to see more of the relation between Ollie and his dad, as well as some more of Francine grappling with her new situation and learning to let herself breathe a little.