Reviews with content warning for Death - Woke Up Like This

Reviews tagging 'Death'

Woke Up Like This by Amy Lea

4 reviews

bookishmillennial's review against another edition

emotional funny 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

disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial

Thank you to my friend @pawneepubliclibrary_ for recommending this book for my 2024 #12Friends12Books challenge.

This is definitely comparable to 13 Going on 30, but the 30-year-old portion was so short! I wanted more! We follow the story of Charlotte Wu and JT Renner, enemies ever since he blew off their date in freshman year of high school. Now it's senior year, JT stole the senior class presidency from her, and is steamrolling all of her ideas for their upcoming prom. He is basically the bane of her existence (oh la la sounds fun hehe), and for no reason! It's driving Charlotte up the dang wall... or to a nasty fall. I did not mean for that to rhyme, I'm just a menace right now. Anyway, with this fall, she wakes up 13 years into the future, as 30-year-old Charlotte, who is about to marry JT?!?!?! WILD. They have to figure out how to get back to their 17-year-old selves, and along the way, figure out a bit about themselves and their relationship that they were not expecting.

Though the enemies-to-lovers buildup was really sweet and swoon-worthy, what stood out more to me was the dynamic between Charlotte and her dad, who is semi-estranged from her. He left her and her mom, found a new girlfriend, and that girlfriend is

pregnant,

which Charlotte has complicated feeling about, understandably. I found Charlotte's behavior and thoughts to speak authentically to how a teenager would act in her situation. I really sympathized, and could only imagine the emotional gymnastics of feeling as if you were not enough for your dad to stay, and then you watch him get a "do over" essentially. However, I appreciated the reckoning she had with what happens to them in the future, as it shifted her perspective and I think we all sometimes need that.

Overall, I found the banter between Charlotte and JT to be a delight, the parental/familial dynamics to be fraught and authentic, and the arc of Charlotte's coming-of-age to be so angsty and bittersweet. I love Amy Lea and think she should write more YA characters!

Content Warnings

dianaschmidty's review

Go to review page

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

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

5.0

This book was so adorable!

If you love 2000s/2010s teen romcoms, you need to pick up this book, because it felt designed for those of us who grew up loving those movies! It also gave me the same vibes as many of my favorite books, especially 𝘉𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘔𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘴 and 𝘚𝘦𝘦 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘠𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘢𝘺!

Charlotte is probably one of my favorite main characters of a contemporary YA book I’ve ever read! She felt like a real teenager while also not having the negative stereotypes usually given to YA heroines. She also felt complex, being Type A while also acknowledging where being Type A has failed her in her life and in her relationships. I also thought that her having complicated relationships with both of her parents felt very realistic.

The way friendships were portrayed in this book was very refreshing! I think anyone who was at any point a teenage girl can think of at least one friendship that they could relate to Charlotte and Kassie’s. I know that I had a best friend in high school that I haven’t talked to since we graduated. It’s such a realistic portrayal of how some friendships aren’t meant to last, but that doesn’t mean that you hold any ill will towards those people. Also, I love Char and Renner’s friend group in the future. I hope I have a group of friends like that when I’m 30!

I absolutely loved Charlotte and Renner together! Their scenes together were both funny and adorable! The only thing I would say may be missing from this book is a few more CharRenner chapters, but beyond wishing there was more of them, I loved them!

Thank you to NetGalley, Mindy’s Book Studio, and Amy Lea for providing me access to this book.

Content Warnings

yvo_about_books's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.25

Finished reading: October 10th 2023

"You can’t be the sun to all people without eventually burning out."

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Mindy's Book Studio in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

I know that I don't read a lot of YA anymore, but I couldn't resist making an exception for Woke Up Like This after reading Deanna’s review. I do always tend to enjoy a time travel angle in my stories, and I loved the 13 Going On 30 vibe the blurb seemed to have. Now that I've had the chance to read this story, I'm happy to announce that I ended up having such a great time reading it! This YA time travel romance is perfect if you are looking for a quick, entertaining and sweet romance read.

The premise itself can't be called all that original, but I personally didn't mind. There are multiple references and similarities to other time travel stories/movies, and I enjoyed how they were incorporated into the plot. The time travel element and the two main characters ending up in 2037 was without doubt my favorite part of the story, and the chapters set in the future were the strongest for me. This mostly has to do with the fact that I'm not a big fan of high school drama, but then again I'm aware that Woke Up Like This has a YA target audience that probably wouldn't mind.

I do have to say that Charlotte could get really annoying and she is quite immature at times. It was frustrating to see both how she treated others and how she let others treat her, and I sometimes wondered how the rest of the group put up with her. That said, I can't deny that the character growth itself is well done and there are several deeper messages incorporated. The romance itself was on the sweet side, although I could have done without the love triangle vibe. I did enjoy the enemy-to-lovers trope even though it was based on miscommunication and things basically could have been solved with a simple conversation between the main characters.

This was my first experience with Amy Lea's writing, and I will definitely be back for more after reading Woke Up Like This. There is just something about her writing style that makes it so easy to fly through the pages, and I particularly loved the banter. And even though the amount of high school drama was a bit too much for me, I did enjoy how everything was wrapped up in the end. I can definitely recommend Woke Up Like This if you enjoy a well written and sweet YA time travel romance and don't mind a bit of drama.

Content Warnings

jillwedemeier's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny 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

Planning a magical prom is one last item to be completed on senior Charlotte Wu's high school bucket list. When a prom decorating accident sends Charlotte crash-landing off a ladder and straight into her archnemesis, J.T. Renner, Charlotte wakes up as a 30-year-old. Charlotte finds herself in an unfamiliar bed with none other than Renner himself, who just happens to be her fiancé. Charlotte and Renner have no memory of the past 13 years. They have either lost their minds or they are trapped in the 30-year-old bodies of their future selves. Now in the year 2037, Charlotte and Renner discover all that has changed in the time they've missed. Charlotte also learns that there is more to Renner than just a charming jock. Navigating their new normal and a series of adventures, Charlotte and Renner will do whatever it takes to find a way back to 17. But when and if they do, what then?

Woke Up Like This is a magical rom-com for young adults and for the young at heart. This book is full of high school nostalgia, and it was a lighthearted, feel-good story. While this book is similar to the movie 13 Going on 30, the biggest change is that two characters went forward in time, which I absolutely loved. Charlotte and Renner were the perfect main characters—so lovable and relatable. Charlotte's ambition and determination reminded me a lot of myself in high school. This book is a fun and fast-paced rom-com with many laugh-out-loud moments, but there are also many heartfelt moments with important life lessons. This was my first Amy Lea novel, and I am officially obsessed!

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing/Mindy’s Book Studio for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Read if you like:

🎉"13 Going on 30"
💜High school nostalgia
🎉Romantic comedies
💜Magical realism
🎉Rivals to lovers
💜Opposites attract

Content Warnings

More...