Scan barcode
longlost's review
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
fun book. appreciated the subversion of romance tropes. emery lee's writing style was also very engaging and bouncy and id def be interested to read more of eir books. on that note i very much appreciated that a major character uses neopronouns.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Vomit, Transphobia, Cursing, and Mental illness
Minor: Racism, Drug use, Alcohol, Suicide attempt, and Bullying
plumpaperbacks's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I’ve been hearing good things about this book for months now, and I’m so glad I finally read it. I sped through this book because, even in its more emotional moments, it was a joy to read. Lee’s debut was the perfect blend of fluff and heavier stuff, and eir definitely an author to watch.
I loved Noah from the very beginning. Although he’s sometimes romantically misguided, he’s a total sweetheart. Becca and Devin ended up seriously growing on me. The friendships here are top tier. I also really liked Noah’s relationship with his older brother Brian, and how determined Brian was to be supportive. It was heartwarming.
I didn’t expect Drew to be such an asshole, and honestly, it was kind of sad to see that side of him come to light. I’d been shipping him and Noah since, like, their second meeting. But Drew is a manipulative bumwaffle that can choke on a cactus, and Devin is so much better. It’s not even a contest, really. E’s such a sweet person, and e and Noah together are basically a recipe for cavities, but whatever. They’re adorable together and I’m happy for them. The scavenger hunt was super cute. ❤️
This is the first book I’ve read that features a character experimenting with gender and pronouns, and also the first I’ve read where a character uses neopronouns. Figuring out those parts of yourself isn’t always easy, and that should be represented in YA. Props to Lee for doing so.
Lastly, I just want to say that I loved the Meet Cute Diary. It’s such a cute idea for a blog, and the message alongside it—that trans kids are just as deserving of love stories—is important and lovely.
I definitely want to buy a copy of this book, and I could see myself rereading it both as a pick-me-up and because I miss my cinnamon rolls.
Representation
I loved Noah from the very beginning. Although he’s sometimes romantically misguided, he’s a total sweetheart. Becca and Devin ended up seriously growing on me. The friendships here are top tier. I also really liked Noah’s relationship with his older brother Brian, and how determined Brian was to be supportive. It was heartwarming.
This is the first book I’ve read that features a character experimenting with gender and pronouns, and also the first I’ve read where a character uses neopronouns. Figuring out those parts of yourself isn’t always easy, and that should be represented in YA. Props to Lee for doing so.
Lastly, I just want to say that I loved the Meet Cute Diary. It’s such a cute idea for a blog, and the message alongside it—that trans kids are just as deserving of love stories—is important and lovely.
I definitely want to buy a copy of this book, and I could see myself rereading it both as a pick-me-up and because I miss my cinnamon rolls.
Representation
- triracial bisexual trans boy protagonist (Afro-Caribbean-Japanese)
- lesbian side character
- Cuban genderqueer asexual side character that uses neopronouns (xe/xim at first, then e/em)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Transphobia and Vomit
Minor: Alcohol, Bullying, Drug use, Racism, and Suicide attempt
Both “bullying” and “suicide attempt” refer to events that occurred prior to the story, in regards to a side character.vike's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Transphobia
melaniereadsbooks's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This is such a heartwarming and adorable story!!! I just!! The discussions of neo-pronouns and all that Drew went through. The way Noah learned who he was through the Meet Cute Diary and through Drew and his brother and his friends and just!!! This was so heartwarming. Honestly I am so glad I read it.
The character development is excellent!
The character development is excellent!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Transphobia, Vomit, and Cursing
Minor: Bullying, Suicide attempt, Alcohol, Drug use, and Racism
emmaward55's review
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was, as the name says, cute! Noah did annoy me for a good chunk of the book and whilst he felt like an authentic 16 y/o in that regard, it was a little grating at times. I also felt like his character development hadn't really.. sunk in? in the final chapter or so. He was still making day one mistakes, but at least he handled it better than before.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Transphobia, Vomit, and Cursing
Minor: Bullying and Suicide attempt
nitya's review
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I WANTED to like this more than I actually did. The fake dating subplot pulled me in but after some events... It kind of lost its appeal. And I realize Noah is 16 and being dramatic, immature and a bit self-centered comes with the territory. But there were times when he was annoying, extremely judgmental and showed a lack of empathy (which didn't really change at the end of the book). I am still WTFing at the hatred of handouts/charity. Okay, so Maggie turned out to be garbage, but why are you looking down at bookselling??? It may not be the most thrilling job to you but it still pays the bills. And you WERE asked by your parents to get a job ($400 in one week spent on Ubers when Denver is bike/walk friendly... My parents would have taken my card too), so elitism isn't really helpful. I was hoping there would be some character growth, but it didn't happen.
I am glad Drew was left behind, but I also wish there was more page time spent on Devin. I dunno, it felt unbalanced. As the actual love interest and a wonderful character in eir own right, e deserves way better than being treated like an afterthought. E was so sweet and actually gave Noah perspective and STILL was taken for granted.
And Becca and Brian called Noah out but forgave him waaaaay too easily, imo. I also don't understand why Noah put his brother down, especially on pronouns?? No one is born woke, dude. Brian is listening and doing his best, and being condescending isn't helpful either. Social justice awareness is not a GD competition.
While this didn't work for me personally, I am happy trans kids are getting books written by trans and nonbinary authors and more stories that don't end tragically.
I am glad Drew was left behind, but I also wish there was more page time spent on Devin. I dunno, it felt unbalanced. As the actual love interest and a wonderful character in eir own right, e deserves way better than being treated like an afterthought. E was so sweet and actually gave Noah perspective and STILL was taken for granted.
And Becca and Brian called Noah out but forgave him waaaaay too easily, imo. I also don't understand why Noah put his brother down, especially on pronouns?? No one is born woke, dude. Brian is listening and doing his best, and being condescending isn't helpful either. Social justice awareness is not a GD competition.
While this didn't work for me personally, I am happy trans kids are getting books written by trans and nonbinary authors and more stories that don't end tragically.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia
marisacarpico's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Frankly devastated that I didn't like this. The concept sounded fun and the trans representation is really exciting for this genre, but the execution didn't work for me on almost any level.
Going to join the chorus of voices saying that Noah is a tough character. I half jokingly called Alex from Red, White and Royal Blue a sociopath, but this character has no empathy and is self-centered in a way that's truly astounding. I guess a lot of teenagers are self-centered and judgmental (I certainly was the latter at least), but Noah's lack of empathy is astounding. Granted, Noah's evolution and deepening is part of the narrative, but it's odd to have a person so desperate for empathy from other people to have zero empathy for others—both those they claim to love and not.
On some level, I find it compellingly risky for Lee to center a romance around a person who is so flawed, but there's an assumption of reader affection or sympathy here that the the book doesn't earn. We are never given a reason to like or root for Noah and he ends up coming off as a bit of a toxic user as a result. His friends and family do absolutely everything to make him happy and he consistently treats them like dog shit based on his whims. There is an attempt near the end to make them a better friend, romantic partner and sibling as time goes on, but because Lee doesn't actually fill us in about Becca's struggles or Brian's desires or even terribly much about who Devin outside of eir relationship to Noah, the attempt feels shallow. Like why have Noah acknowledge he needs to be better and then take no steps to improve his relationships and stop de-centering himself? Just so many missed opportunities here, particularly one that feels tossed off regarding Brian's girlfriend.
This is slightly more minor, but the blog aspect also doesn't feel terribly credible. The dynamics feel like Tumblr 10 years ago and the Diary as motivator and compelling plot thread is so forgotten/left in stasis for so much of the film's middle that the sudden refocusing at the end feels out of place and unearned. The understanding and engagement with online culture feels very surface.
This is a lot of negativity so I do want to end this by saying that the general representation aspects of this book really worked for me. Not making Noah's story specifically about his trans awakening feels necessary even if it's bungled. The discussions of pronouns and confusion about gender expression on Devin's part felt quietly revolutionary and will probably speak to a lot of kids just coming to know themselves. It's great that this exists and I'm sure it will speak to someone, that someone is just not me.
Going to join the chorus of voices saying that Noah is a tough character. I half jokingly called Alex from Red, White and Royal Blue a sociopath, but this character has no empathy and is self-centered in a way that's truly astounding. I guess a lot of teenagers are self-centered and judgmental (I certainly was the latter at least), but Noah's lack of empathy is astounding. Granted, Noah's evolution and deepening is part of the narrative, but it's odd to have a person so desperate for empathy from other people to have zero empathy for others—both those they claim to love and not.
On some level, I find it compellingly risky for Lee to center a romance around a person who is so flawed, but there's an assumption of reader affection or sympathy here that the the book doesn't earn. We are never given a reason to like or root for Noah and he ends up coming off as a bit of a toxic user as a result. His friends and family do absolutely everything to make him happy and he consistently treats them like dog shit based on his whims. There is an attempt near the end to make them a better friend, romantic partner and sibling as time goes on, but because Lee doesn't actually fill us in about Becca's struggles or Brian's desires or even terribly much about who Devin outside of eir relationship to Noah, the attempt feels shallow. Like why have Noah acknowledge he needs to be better and then take no steps to improve his relationships and stop de-centering himself? Just so many missed opportunities here, particularly one that feels tossed off regarding Brian's girlfriend.
This is slightly more minor, but the blog aspect also doesn't feel terribly credible. The dynamics feel like Tumblr 10 years ago and the Diary as motivator and compelling plot thread is so forgotten/left in stasis for so much of the film's middle that the sudden refocusing at the end feels out of place and unearned. The understanding and engagement with online culture feels very surface.
This is a lot of negativity so I do want to end this by saying that the general representation aspects of this book really worked for me. Not making Noah's story specifically about his trans awakening feels necessary even if it's bungled. The discussions of pronouns and confusion about gender expression on Devin's part felt quietly revolutionary and will probably speak to a lot of kids just coming to know themselves. It's great that this exists and I'm sure it will speak to someone, that someone is just not me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse
kapbanana's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I'm so sad that I didn't enjoy this book :( I was really looking forward to a cute trans romance. While the queer rep was lovely, the main character and overall story were not. I did not like Noah. He came across as immature and selfish. Too often he was so self-centered and rude, I couldn't understand his actions. Because of this, his characterization felt unbalanced. For example, early in the book he gets upset when his parents freeze his credit card (or rather, a credit card they lent him) after he spends over $400 in one week. For me, this event set the tone for his character throughout the entire book; he's just super entitled and unreflective. Further grating, he continuously makes harsh assumptions/judgements about others. I don't mind unlikeable characters, but in this case, I didn't enjoy how Noah was written. Idk. Perhaps this a "me thing" rather than the Meet Cute Diary's problem.
The other issue I had with the book was the plot. This might be a problem of expectations, but I was expecting a cute contemporary romance, not a mostly toxic relationship with a little bit of romance sprinkled on at the end. From the beginning, it was pretty apparent that Drew is a douchebag. So spending some 300+ pages watching Noah and Drew date was frustrating.
In terms of plot, I also didn't understand the whole controversy around the Meet Cute Diary tumblr blog. I liked the idea of it (making a story around an online trans positive blog), and the interspersing of blog posts and comments was fun, but the actual controversy felt unrealistic and underdeveloped. Why can't Noah just say that the posts are made-up stories? How does dating Drew actually help his blog? Who was behind the initial call-out blog and later published accusations? I honestly thought this whole controversy would play a more central role in the story, but it ended up never really being addressed and eventually just fizzling out. In the end, the plot just wasn't engaging enough for me to overcome my annoyance with Noah. Plus, the pacing felt disjointed.
I will say, Lee is a great writer. While I didn't like Noah and the plot wasn't what I hoped for, eir writing was easy and enjoyable to read. I think I'll give eir work another try on the next book.
The other issue I had with the book was the plot. This might be a problem of expectations, but I was expecting a cute contemporary romance, not a mostly toxic relationship with a little bit of romance sprinkled on at the end. From the beginning, it was pretty apparent that Drew is a douchebag. So spending some 300+ pages watching Noah and Drew date was frustrating.
In terms of plot, I also didn't understand the whole controversy around the Meet Cute Diary tumblr blog. I liked the idea of it (making a story around an online trans positive blog), and the interspersing of blog posts and comments was fun, but the actual controversy felt unrealistic and underdeveloped. Why can't Noah just say that the posts are made-up stories? How does dating Drew actually help his blog? Who was behind the initial call-out blog and later published accusations? I honestly thought this whole controversy would play a more central role in the story, but it ended up never really being addressed and eventually just fizzling out. In the end, the plot just wasn't engaging enough for me to overcome my annoyance with Noah. Plus, the pacing felt disjointed.
I will say, Lee is a great writer. While I didn't like Noah and the plot wasn't what I hoped for, eir writing was easy and enjoyable to read. I think I'll give eir work another try on the next book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying and Emotional abuse
Minor: Suicide attempt and Transphobia
There is no on-page suicide attempt; rather, the character's discuss it in the past tense.hannahmayhere's review
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I really enjoyed this book! It has incredible representation. Loved another story with a trans MC. Loved a secondary character who is non-binary and trying to figure out the best pronouns and loved seeing ey/em/eir pronouns being used and normalized! Asexual representation! And lots of great anxiety representation. I also really appreciated the other character’s responses to changing of pronouns, asexuality, and anxiety. A great model of how others should react in those situations. :)
The MC is 16 and is a little immature at times, but he has these lots of shining moments and does a lot of growing throughout the book.
Even though I knew exactly where this plot was going, I still absolutely adored this book. I loved the representation and the arc and it was a great read of trans joy!! Looking forward to more books to come from the author!
The MC is 16 and is a little immature at times, but he has these lots of shining moments and does a lot of growing throughout the book.
Even though I knew exactly where this plot was going, I still absolutely adored this book. I loved the representation and the arc and it was a great read of trans joy!! Looking forward to more books to come from the author!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Transphobia, and Vomit
Minor: Bullying and Suicide attempt
Context for minor bullying and minor Suicide attempt content warnings: a character mentions a history of bullying and suicide attempt, but nothing happens on the pagewordwilderness's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I picked this book up hoping for a cute romance and got exactly what I wanted. The tone of Meet Cute Diary was light and comical, but there was an underlying vulnerability woven into the narrative. Lee writes with such love for the trans community and touches on how transphobia impacts trans people’s ability to see themselves as worthy of love.
Noah was a delightful protagonist to follow. He could be selfish and a bit snarky, but it was obvious he felt deeply. I had so much fun fantasizing with Noah about the perfect meet-cute. It reminded me of how I thought about dating and relationships when I was 16. Romantic comedies are as much about individual growth as they are about romance, so I loved getting to see Noah grow as a character.
I also loved how Noah’s blog was integrated into the story. Lee effortlessly shows the pressure to have the perfect life that comes from social media while also showing how it can be used as a tool for good. As a trans boy, Noah didn’t see himself portrayed as desirable in love stories. He uses his blog, the Meet Cute Diary, both as a way to create a better reality for himself and to give hope to other trans people. When the troll exposed the blog as fiction, I felt torn about what I wanted for Noah. I could see how much the Meet Cute Diary meant to him, but I also wanted him to focus more on his reality. I loved how Lee showed the conflict between needing some form of escapism and the damage we can inflict when we become too absorbed in our own worlds.
The romance in Meet Cute Diary was definitely as cute as you’d expect. The connection between the characters was subtle at first, and their growth as a couple felt very natural. I loved how [redacted] brought out the best in Noah. The unquestionably kind love interest was a refreshing change from the typical dark and mysterious YA love interests. This was one of those love stories that left me feeling all the warm and fuzzy feelings.
The only issue I had with this book was that the ending was too long. I got bored during the last couple of chapters and think the ending could have wrapped up quicker. But, overall this was a cute, fun read that I’d recommend to any fan of romcoms.
Thank you to the author, Emery Lee, for my gifted copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide attempt, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Transphobia