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norabeideineroma's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Transphobia, Misogyny, Fire/Fire injury, Dysphoria, Deadnaming, Homophobia, and Alcoholism
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Pedophilia
elskabee's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
This book was a hot mess in a bad way. I wanted to like it so badly because it features a main character who is a trans guy and the other main character has autism. The rep side of things was generally handled well, and the internal conflicts about neurodivergency, gender, and sexuality were the best parts. *Contrapoints voice* aS a tRaNs pErSOn I felt that the internal conflicts and struggles Jeremy experienced were highly relatable, especially in relation to passing vs ideal presentation.
BUT unfortunately the good parts were few and far between. The plot was stupid and barely existent (so... I'm not American but I'm pretty sure winning homecoming king ain't that important, they act like everything will suddenly be perfect if they just win). I hated that most of the homophobia/transphobia was concentrated in one over the top neo-nazi privileged rich white boy that everyone can hate. There were other more minor and realistic instances of transphobia and the book would have worked better if they'd cut the bully character out entirely.
Which brings me to my next and most important point: this book is dark. If you want a cute and comforting queer read, this ain't it. All the characters, especially Jeremy, are f***ed up assholes and not in a lovable way. They make ridiculously dumb decisions that no person would make and consistently ruin their own lives and the lives of everyone around them. I could forgive it if that was the point, but it was just way too far off the rails to have a clear message. In the end there's some stuff about how it's okay to ask your friends for help, that community is important, and that you shouldn't push everyone away. But it feels a bit disingenuous considering how little the characters actually suffer any real consequences.
Heck, it wasn't even good from a romance perspective because the relationship development isn't on the page.
TL:DR you probably shouldn't bother reading this book.
BUT unfortunately the good parts were few and far between. The plot was stupid and barely existent (so... I'm not American but I'm pretty sure winning homecoming king ain't that important, they act like everything will suddenly be perfect if they just win). I hated that most of the homophobia/transphobia was concentrated in one over the top neo-nazi privileged rich white boy that everyone can hate. There were other more minor and realistic instances of transphobia and the book would have worked better if they'd cut the bully character out entirely.
Which brings me to my next and most important point: this book is dark. If you want a cute and comforting queer read, this ain't it. All the characters, especially Jeremy, are f***ed up assholes and not in a lovable way. They make ridiculously dumb decisions that no person would make and consistently ruin their own lives and the lives of everyone around them. I could forgive it if that was the point, but it was just way too far off the rails to have a clear message. In the end there's some stuff about how it's okay to ask your friends for help, that community is important, and that you shouldn't push everyone away. But it feels a bit disingenuous considering how little the characters actually suffer any real consequences.
Heck, it wasn't even good from a romance perspective because the relationship development isn't on the page.
TL:DR you probably shouldn't bother reading this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Toxic friendship, Dysphoria, and Bullying
Moderate: Homophobia, Ableism, and Deadnaming
Minor: Violence, Car accident, Drug use, and Fire/Fire injury
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