Tag Archives: Romance

Review: Wish You Were Her by Elle McNicoll

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Wish You Were Her by Elle McNicholl

Wish You Were Her
Elle McNicoll
Wednesday Books
Published August 26, 2025

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About Wish You Were Her

Book Lovers meets Notting Hill with a slice of You’ve Got Mail in Wish You Were Her, the brand new rivals-to-lovers romance from bestselling, award-winning Elle McNicoll.

18-year-old Allegra Brooks has skyrocketed to fame after starring in a hit television show, and she’s the overnight success that everyone’s talking about. They just don’t know she’s autistic. Now, all she wants is a normal teenage summer.

Her destination for escape is the remote Lake Pristine and its annual Book Festival, organized by the dedicated but unfriendly senior bookseller, Jonah Thorne.

In small towns like Lake Pristine, misunderstandings abound, and before long the two are drawn into high-profile hostility that’s a far cry from the drama-free holiday Allegra was craving. Thank goodness for her saving the increasingly personal emails she’s been sharing with a charming and anonymous bookseller who is definitely not Jonah Thorne . . .

An unforgettable romcom about finding the one person who makes you feel yourself when the whole world is watching.

My Review

I thought the You’ve Got Mail vibes were very strong with this story– and I love that! There’s a scene in which one character waits for another at a coffee shop with a book and a rose, which will leave You’ve Got Mail fans immediately thinking of a similar scene from the movie.

Both the main characters in Wish You Were Her are autistic (they discuss this as their preferred way to be labeled in the book). I can’t think of another romance novel I’ve read where that’s true, so I was really excited to see it here. They share some similar experiences and differences, which helps remind readers that this diagnosis doesn’t appear the same way in every person.

Ally’s questions about whether or not to announce her diagnosis publicly made a lot of sense, too. I like that the story made space for her to think about that question in multiple different ways.

The bulk of the story takes place in a small town preparing for a book festival, which was lots of fun. Ally meets some new friends, and she uses her fame to disrupt some of the toxic social hierarchy among the teens she spends time with. It was another nice note in the story.

Ally and Jonah’s relationship is a bit rocky. I didn’t always expect some of their reactions to one another, but it still felt authentic. Ultimately, I had a great time reading this sweet story and loved the references to You’ve Got Mail. I love that one of the characters mentions the Jimmy Stewart original, The Shop Around the Corner.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for a bookish romance with characters who start out on the wrong foot, definitely grab this one. Bonus if you’re looking for a book with neurodivergent main characters and/or autistic representation.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used fairly infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing. Making out. A couple kiss while in their underwear. Brief references to sex. In one scene, a character kisses someone without consent. References to people making inappropriate sexual comments to someone.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
One character.

Drug Content
One teen drinks alcohol trying to forget worries.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: Thirsty: A Novel by Jas Hammonds

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Thirsty: A Novel
Jas Hammonds
Roaring Brook Press
Published May 14, 2024

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About Thirsty: A Novel

It’s the summer before college and eighteen-year-old Blake Brenner and her girlfriend, Ella, have one goal: join the mysterious and exclusive Serena Society. The sorority promises status and lifelong connections to a network of powerful, trailblazing women of color. Ella’s acceptance is a sure thing—she’s the daughter of a Serena alum. Blake, however, has a lot more to prove.

As a former loner from a working-class background, Blake lacks Ella’s pedigree and confidence. Luckily, she finds courage at the bottom of a liquor bottle. When she drinks, she’s bold, funny, and unstoppable—and the Serenas love it. But as pledging intensifies, so does Blake’s drinking, until it’s seeping into every corner of her life. Ella assures Blake that she’s fine; partying hard is what it takes to make the cut.

But success has never felt so much like drowning. With her future hanging in the balance and her past dragging her down, Blake must decide how far she’s willing to go to achieve her glittering dreams of success—and how much of herself she’s willing to lose in the process.

My Review

What an incredible book. I felt as though I was right there with Blake, riding the high of being deeply in love and long summer days. But even from the early pages, you get this sense that something is off. Blake doesn’t see it yet, and at first I thought maybe it was just me not buying into the narrative.

(Can we pause for a sec and just appreciate the kind of writing that can do that? Draw you into a story so completely that you both root for the main character and suspect she’s lying to herself? Amazing.)

As the story progresses, it becomes crystal clear that Blake’s relationship with Ella comes at a high personal cost. Even though Blake loves her. Even though Ella loves Blake.

I don’t want to give away what happens, but I do want to say that I appreciate that Hammonds doesn’t end the story where I expected. We follow Blake into the first chapters a life she couldn’t have imagined at the start of the story. We get to see the working out of some of her choices. I love that, and I think that kind of representation is incredibly important in young adult literature.

Thirsty is the second book by Jas Hammonds that I’ve read. Their debut, We Deserve Monuments was fantastic, and yet, somehow, I think Thirsty might be even better. I’m pretty sure Hammonds is now a must-read author for me.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used fairly frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing, references to sex and showering/undressing together.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Non-consensual outing. Transphobic rhetoric. Toxic relationship elements. Racial microaggressions. Suicidal ideation and self-hate.

Drug Content
Blake and other teens drink alcohol and smoke using a vape pen. While a lot of scenes show drinking, they also show the consequences and regrets that Blake has later. The scenes explore the harm that drinking causes. The character who smokes decides to quit during the book.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: The Survivor Wants to Die at the End by Adam Silvera

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The Survivor Wants to Die at the End (They Both Die at the End #3)
Adam Silvera
Quill Tree Books
Published May 6, 2025

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About The Survivor Wants to Die at the End

In this third book of the USA Today and #1 New York Times mega-bestselling They Both Die at the End series, two strangers—each with their own complicated relationship to Death-Cast—help each other learn to live.

Paz Dario stays up every night, waiting for the Death-Cast call that would mean he doesn’t have to keep faking his way through this lonely life. After a devastating day, Paz decides he’s done waiting around for Death-Cast. If they say he’s not dying, he’ll just have to prove them wrong. But right before Paz can die, a boy saves his life.

Alano Rosa is heir to the Death-Cast empire that encourages everyone to live their best lives, but he doesn’t feel in control of his own existence thanks to his father. And with a violent organization called the Death Guard threatening Alano, his End Day might be closer than he thinks. It’s time to live.

Fate brings Paz and Alano together, but it’s now up to the boys to survive the tragic trials ahead so no one dies at the end.

This book contains themes that some readers may find difficult.

This Isn’t an Easy Book (My Review Part 1)

This is a very long book. I can’t remember the last time I read a contemporary novel that was over 700 pages. I think the fanbase for the series will probably read this book anyway. (They have probably already read it by now, actually.) I went into this book kind of surprised that I wasn’t hearing more buzz about it from the reviewers I follow. It’s possible I’ve just missed the reviews. After reading the book, I can definitely say it’s a hard one to talk about, partly because it’s a long book, but also because of the representation of mental illness that’s often stigmatized.

I don’t have Borderline Personality Disorder myself, but someone in my life does, so it was almost eerie at times the way that the book echoed some of the things I’ve witnessed. I don’t feel qualified to judge whether it’s great representation, but Paz’s experiences definitely resonated with me.

That said, Paz spends the majority of the book in a really difficult place emotionally. He’s not so much struggling to stay alive as struggling to come up with a foolproof plan to exit life. It can be really hard to follow a character as intense as Paz, perhaps especially if you’ve been through similar experiences or have been a support person for someone who has.

I was also leery of the idea that Alano could keep Paz safe. It can be a huge adrenaline spike to be the person someone turns to for stability. In my experience, that’s a recipe for frustration and burnout, though. So while I spent every chapter rooting for Paz’s survival, I also held my breath hoping that the narrative would call out the parts of the relationship that weren’t healthy.

Things That Will Stick with Me (My Review Part 2)

Ultimately the story does show some give and take in Paz and Alano’s relationship. That back and forth leaning on one another also gives each of them opportunity for growth and to demonstrate the kind of support they’ve wanted in their own lives. I like that the book was careful to show that.

I loved the scenes that showed Paz’s gift for acting and his knowledge of the craft. There are a couple scenes where he’s practicing getting into character or talking about his process, and I loved seeing that. It also highlights that there’s so much more to him than mental illness and the sensationalized moments in his life.

Alano is a really interesting character as well. We learn some things about him late in the book that caused me to think back and reevaluate some of the things I’d thought earlier on in the story. The last scene ends with a new piece of information that, honestly, opens a whole new can of worms to be explored (I hope) in the fourth book in the series, No One Knows Who Dies at the End, which should come out in 2026.

Conclusion

This book is definitely not for everyone, and I think the author takes great care to let readers know what to expect in his author’s note at the front of the book. Be sure to read that before diving into this one.

I’m glad I read this book, though it was a hard read for me. I’m in awe of Silvera for his ability to sustain a story about someone who wants to die– that’s no easy feat. I love how Alano and Paz reframe their day together as a “Begin Day” rather than an “End Day.”

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used fairly frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing. References to sex.

Spiritual Content
Spoilers (Select the following text to reveal):

One character sees the ghosts of the dead, and they talk to him.

Violent Content
Suicidal ideation. Vivid descriptions of self-harm and a desire to self-harm. Someone hears a gunshot that indicates a person has ended their life. Multiple descriptions of suicide attempts. Someone stabs another person. A gunman bursts into a store, threatening the shoppers and shouting a political message. There’s another spoiler in the paragraph below. (Select the text to reveal.)

Neither of the main characters die by suicide in the book.

Drug Content
One character is an alcoholic. In more than one scene, he feels tempted to drink alcohol. In one scene, a character notes the smell of alcohol on his breath. One suicide attempt involves drinking alcohol.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I borrowed a copy of this book from the public library. All opinions are my own.

Review: I Wish I Didn’t Have to Tell You This by Eugene Yelchin

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I Wish I Didn’t Have to Tell You This
Eugene Yelchin
Candlewick Press
Published September 16, 2025

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About I Wish I Didn’t Have to Tell You This

In a stunning sequel to The Genius Under the Table, Eugene Yelchin’s graphic memoir depicts his harrowing journey from Leningrad’s underground art scene to a state-run Siberian asylum—and to eventual safety in the US.

No longer the creative little boy under his grandmother’s table, Yevgeny is now a young adult, pursuing his artistic dreams under the constant threat of the KGB’s stranglehold on Russia’s creative scene. When a chance encounter with an American woman opens him up to a world of romance and possibility, Yevgeny believes he has found his path to the future—and freedom overseas.

But the threat of being drafted into the military and sent to fight in Afghanistan changes everything in a terrible instant, and he takes drastic measures to decide his fate, leading to unthinkable consequences in a mental hospital.

With bold art bringing a vivid reality to life, National Book Award Finalist and Newbery Honoree Eugene Yelchin’s sequel to the acclaimed memoir The Genius Under the Table returns to Yevgeny’s saga, balancing the terror and oppression of Soviet Russia with the author’s signature charm and dark wit. I Wish I Didn’t Have to Tell You This shines a stark spotlight on history while offering a poignant, nuanced, and powerfully resonant look at growing up in—and ultimately leaving—Cold War Russia in the early 1980s.

My Review

I have not read The Genius Under the Table, so if there are references to that book in I Wish I Didn’t Have to Tell You This, then I missed them. Despite that, I followed the story just fine as I read this memoir. I don’t know that I realized it was a sequel as I was reading it.

The story can be grim, which won’t surprise anyone familiar with Russian history in the early 1980s. Yelchin does a wonderful job incorporating art, joy, and humor into the story, though. Yevgeny’s relationship with Libby is halting and sweet. I loved watching them figure out how to communicate with each other and the jokes they developed. For instance, they would ask each other if the other was “mixed up” about them, meaning did they have romantic feelings for one another.

It was easy to feel the tension Yevgeny felt as an artist. He knew he could be imprisoned, or worse, for making art. Late in the book, he is confined to a mental institution. At one point, a scene sort of fades to black, with Yevgeny in pretty dire straits. When the narrative resumes, we learn that he still carries the trauma of his experience, but has been freed.

Throughout the story, the narrative stays appropriate to the audience. The illustrations don’t show gratuitous violence, though the characters reference a murder that happens off-scene. The story also notes Russia’s invasion of Afganistan, and the high cost to human life the war creates.

At 432 pages, this graphic memoir is a little longer than other similar books, but it’s so worth reading. I loved the expressions on the characters’ faces. The illustrations are brilliant. Readers interested in European or Russian history will not want to miss this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing. Yevgeny’s grandmother inquires that he and his wife will not have privacy while they sleep if she moves in with the family.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
References to political assassination and bullying. References to antisemitism. At one point, Yevgeny is in a medical facility, and the scene sort of fades to black with a vague reference to torture and mistreatment.

Drug Content
Yevgeny goes to a party and possibly gets drunk? He falls down dancing and then walks home alone. It’s hard to tell if there was alcohol involved. If so, it’s not pictured. Characters smoke cigarettes in some scenes. Someone injects medication into a person’s arm without their consent.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: Guardians of Dawn: Yuli by S. Jae-Jones

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Guardians of Dawn: Yuli (Guardians of Dawn #3)
S. Jae-Jones
Wednesday Books
Published August 19, 2026

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Guardians of Dawn: Yuli

Princess Yulana has a few problems. Her late grandfather has died without naming an heir, civil war threatens to tear the Morning Realms apart, a strange waking dreamer sickness is sweeping through the land, and a plague of hungry ghosts roam the steppes. On top of all of that, Kho, her former best friend turned rival, is getting under her skin. A struggle for power divides the north, and the outcome rests on the winner of the Grand Game―a competition that will determine not just the future of her people, but the course of the entire empire.

When the world is out of balance, the Guardians of Dawn are reborn.

As the Guardian of Wind, it is Yuli’s responsibility to bring order to chaos, along with the Guardian of Fire and the Guardian of Wood. But can she restore balance to the Morning Realms when she can’t even win the political games being played at home? The fate of the Morning Realms depends on the Guardians of Dawn, and whether Yuli can manage both the demonic and political chaos at once.

My Review

I had a feeling that this would not be the last book in the series, since each book follows a different Guardian of Dawn, and there are four of them. Sure enough, though this book contains its own satisfying plot, it sets up the fourth story and the stakes for the guardians and their allies.

Like the others in the series, this one has a large cast and the narrative follows more than one point of view. This book stuck more closely with the three guardians and a love interest, so it felt more compact to me than the first two books. I enjoyed each viewpoint. Zhara, Ami, Yuli, and Kho are all so different from one another. It was always pretty easy to remember who was telling the story at any given moment.

The plot moved at a nice pace. Of all the books so far, I think I read this one the fastest. I really enjoyed the fairy tale story elements. There’s a great balance between the original story and the fairy tale-inspired themes.

I’d still recommend this series to readers transitioning to young adult from middle grade fiction. The action can be a little intense, but the writing and other components keep this feeling like a perfect read for a younger YA audience.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
A few instances of profanity.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing.

Spiritual Content
Some characters have the ability to perform magic. A few characters are Guardians of Dawn, specific magic-wielders tasked with protecting the world. One character has the ability to compel others to do things. The narrative includes references to reincarnation. The characters pay close attention to the ki of others and the world around them. An evil force which some refer to as anti-ki, or demonic energy, causes harm. Demons emerge from a tear between worlds and can possess people and objects.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Brief battle violence.

Drug Content
Yuli assumes people acting strange are drunk until she realizes something more nefarious is going on.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: The Legendary Frybread Drive-In edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith

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The Legendary Frybread Drive-In
Edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Heartdrum
Published August 26, 2025

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Legendary Frybread Drive-In

Featuring the voices of both new and acclaimed Indigenous writers and edited by bestselling Muscogee author Cynthia Leitich Smith, this collection of interconnected stories serves up laughter, love, Native pride, and the world’s best frybread.

The road to Sandy June’s Legendary Frybread Drive-In slips through every rez and alongside every urban Native hangout. The menu offers a rotating feast, including traditional eats and tasty snacks. But Sandy June’s serves up more than it hosts live music, movie nights, unexpected family reunions, love long lost, and love found again.

That big green-and-gold neon sign beckons to teens of every tribal Nation, often when they need it most.

Featuring stories and poems Kaua Mahoe Adams, Marcella Bell, Angeline Boulley, K. A. Cobell, A. J. Eversole, Jen Ferguson, Eric Gansworth, Byron Graves, Kate Hart, Christine Hartman Derr, Karina Iceberg, Cheryl Isaacs, Darcie Little Badger, David A. Robertson, Andrea L. Rogers, Cynthia Leitich Smith, and Brian Young.

In partnership with We Need Diverse Books.

My Review

This collection was so much fun to read. My favorite was the short story by Jen Ferguson. As soon as I saw that the main character’s name was Berlin, I got so excited. It’s a continuation of the story and characters from Those Pink Mountain Nights, which is my favorite of her books that I’ve read so far. I also loved Angeline Boulley’s short story– if I’d missed her name, I would have spotted her writing immediately.

I’m less familiar with the other authors in the collection, but I enjoyed getting to read their work. A couple of the stories are told in verse, and both were wonderful. I also loved that Darcy Little Badger used direct messages and a tabletop game to tell her story.

Gathering at Sandy June’s Legendary Frybread Drive-In unites all the stories together. Sometimes characters from one story encounter characters from another story while they’re there. Sometimes they speak with an elder or grandparent who imparts wisdom.

The collection celebrates food, intergenerational relationships, and having a safe space to be oneself. It also highlights the unique experiences of different tribes while honoring the commonalities. This would be a great collection for a classroom or home library. Readers looking to find new Indigenous authors to read will easily find new favorites here, too.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing.

Spiritual Content
References to Creator and Indigenous traditions.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
One character’s brother used drugs (not shown in-scene).

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.