A review by sapphicreaderlucy
This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story by Kacen Callender

adventurous emotional funny hopeful tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I am a big Kacen Callendar fan and have read lots of their books already because of how much I love their writing style. That definitely shined through for me in this book. I love how Callendar writes plot and moves across time, it's just really pleasant to read and follow. The Seattle/Capitol Hill setting was so fun to read and done really well. However, I can tell this is their first YA novel. I love that Callendar writes flawed characters, but there wasn't enough development here to make the character likeable even when they make questionable decisions. My favorite character was Florence and I found myself wishing the story was from her point of view. I did really appreciate the deaf representation in the book. I have limited knowledge on the deaf community and really appreciate the insight that Ollie's communicating/experience brought to my knowledge. Something else I have come to realize that I like about the book is that it feels pretty accurate to high school as far as the social dynamics go. For example, there was rapid constant change in Nate's friend group which I feel is very characteristic of high school, big growing pains and growth, and friends taking turns dating (or attempting to date) each other over the years. It was funny and reminded me of what it is like to be a teenager. The reasons I disliked Nathan was because it seemed that he was often mean to his loved ones out of a defense, but it was hard to root for him when he created so much hurt with his words to the people trying to help him. I understand he has abandonment issues and that is why he was doing that, but I just wasn't attached to him enough to still be rooting for him. He took Ollie on such an emotional rollercoaster from beginning to end, and I felt bad for Ollie. This story was good and I liked the writing style but the character development just wasn't there enough to keep the reader rooting for the character despite their flaws. 


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