The Review
4.9 🌟
First off, I would like to say I loved the way this book was a coming of age story focused on loving yourself, facing your fears, not being oppressed by the media or others opinions of you. Then, It was simultaneously able to tackle the much heaver topic of grief, and trauma of seeing your best friend die in front of you.
The characters were well rounded and complex. I really got invested in their lives, pasts, and the drama of friendship. Sophie Gonzales did a fantastic job of making the characters feel like teenagers going through a hard time and doing their best not to show it. In particular the way Rose went about hiding her emotions felt very real, as well as the way Dani described bullying from her past school which lead to her developing a fear of being misperceived. These things made it very easy for me to connect with the characters on an emotional level. I also appreciated how the author was able to make this a two perspective story while staying in the first person the entire time, it definitely made it more easy to invest myself in the story.
The plot was a little slow to start off with but by the time I made it about 30% through the speed had picked up significantly. (It’s important that you push through the first bit, I promise it will be worth it.) I can’t say too much without giving away the entire plot, but once the end rolled around I was so relieved that Dani and Rose got the closest thing to a ‘happily ever after’ one can hope for in their day and age. They absolutely deserve it and I just wanted to give them a big hug for being so brave.
Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for giving me the opportunity to read this heart warming romance ahead of publication.
This book was just an absolute blast to read, It hits shelves on the 3rd of June in the US and the 5th of June in the UK this year so make sure to pre order your copy through the links below! Hope you enjoy reading!
-Sam
The Preorder/Buy links:
