ARC Book Review: Long Story Short by Serena Kaylor

July 21, 2022April 15, 2022 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: Serena Kaylor
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Release Date: July 26th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Growing up homeschooled in Berkeley, California, Beatrice Quinn is a statistical genius who has dreamed her whole life of discovering new mathematical challenges at a school like Oxford University. She always thought the hardest part would be getting in, not convincing her parents to let her go. But while math has always made sense to Beatrice, making friends is a problem she hasn’t been able to solve, so her parents are worried about sending her halfway across the world. The compromise: the Connecticut Shakespearean Summer Academy and a detailed list of teenage milestones to check off. She has six weeks to show her parents she can pull off the role of “normal” teenager and won’t spend the rest of her life hiding in a library.

Unfortunately, hearts and hormones don’t follow any rules, and there is no equation for teenage interactions. When she’s adopted by a group of eclectic theater kids, and immediately makes an enemy of the popular—and, annoyingly gorgeous—British son of the camp founders, she realizes that relationships are trickier than calculus. With her future on the line, this girl genius stumbles through illicit parties, double dog dares, and more than your fair share of Shakespeare. But before the final curtain falls, will Beatrice realize that there’s more to life than she can find in the pages of a book?

In this sparkling debut from Serena Kaylor, Long Story Short is a YA rom-com about a homeschooled math genius who finds herself out of her element at a theater summer camp and learns that life—and love—can’t be lived by the (text)book.

Thank you to the publisher for an eARC.

ABSOLUTELY LOVED.

I had a few friends rave about this book so I was sufficiently hyped by the time I picked it up, and it did not disappoint. LST was incredible and I’m in awe at this debut.

I resonated with Beatrice so much. I love that she was a socially awkward heroine, who knew what she wanted, but needed a few more steps to get there. I appreciated that true support from her parents and how walking into the summer camp beautiful friendships grew. I LOVED the friendships and how supportive they were. And also how they showed making mistakes and apologizing. There’s room for growth in a safe space. Beatrice changed leaps and bounds, and yet still remained at her core, herself. The anxiety rep was one of my favorites too. I liked the approach to it and the openness of speaking to a therapist as well. The combination made for the best kind of read.

The romance (because we know I’m a sucker for romance) was perrrrrfect. The angsty hate to love vibes were off the charts. The banter and swoony moments, and gosh dang THE HANDS TOUCHING. A small hand touch moment IS THE BEST DANG THING. I don’t know how many times I started chanting, kiss kiss kiss. I was on the edge of my seat with Beatrice and Nik and it was everything I love in a YA romance.

This setting took me by surprise too. I’m hit/miss on summer camp books. Clearly this was a HIT. I was even enjoying all of the Shakespeare stuff too! And that Shakespeare line battle? GOLD. I think I could probably go on forever about my new found love for this book (and author). Read it. Read it. Read it.

Overall audience notes:

YA Contemporary romance
Language: a little
Romance: kisses
Trigger/Content Warnings: underage alcohol consumption, panic attack (on page), depictions of anxiety

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Book Review: XOXO by Axie Oh

July 20, 2022August 23, 2021 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ☆☆☆☆ 1/2
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Axie Oh
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: July 13th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Cello prodigy Jenny has one goal: to get into a prestigious music conservatory. When she meets mysterious, handsome Jaewoo in her uncle’s Los Angeles karaoke bar, it’s clear he’s the kind of boy who would uproot her careful plans. But in a moment of spontaneity, she allows him to pull her out of her comfort zone for one unforgettable night of adventure…before he disappears without a word.

Three months later, when Jenny and her mother arrive in South Korea to take care of her ailing grandmother, she’s shocked to discover that Jaewoo is a student at the same elite arts academy where she’s enrolled for the semester. And he’s not just any student. He’s a member of one of the biggest K-pop bands in the world—and he’s strictly forbidden from dating.

When a relationship means throwing Jenny’s life off the path she’s spent years mapping out, she’ll have to decide once and for all just how much she’s willing to risk for love.

ABSOLUTELY ADORED.

This book was so dang cute!! I loved it. It also made me very hungry and all of the Korean dishes sounded delicious. I loved the cultural aspects too and being in Seoul and getting an idea for what being a K-pop star entails. Learning about training, the schools, how groups are formed. It was great getting a better understanding of a world I didn’t know much about.

The romance was precious. I thought Jenny and Jaewoo had a fun and interesting meet-cute. There were many unique aspects to a young adult contemporary romance and it was a breath of fresh air. A quick meeting led to a bit of slow burn as they tackled feelings for one another. I love the Jenny was a cellist and both had their complete own lives and passions they enjoyed. Choosing to be together was something they both wanted and I love a good, mushy ending scene. If you’re looking for a celebrity / forbidden romance in YA form, this is one to read!!

Full of tight friendships, those mean girls you expect, and running away from paparazzi, I definitely felt like I was watching a drama. Though it never went over board. I love how natural the movement of the story went and how easy it was to read. I was enamored from chapter one and I can’t wait to read more from this author.

Overall audience notes:

YA Contemporary Romance
Language: very little
Romance: kisses / make-outs

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Book Review: A Taste for Love by Jennifer Yen

July 11, 2022August 16, 2021 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ☆☆☆
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 304 pages
Author: Jennifer Yen
Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: February 2nd, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

For fans of Jenny Han, Jane Austen, and The Great British Baking Show, A Taste for Love, is a delicious rom com about first love, familial expectations, and making the perfect bao.

To her friends, high school senior Liza Yang is nearly perfect. Smart, kind, and pretty, she dreams big and never shies away from a challenge. But to her mom, Liza is anything but. Compared to her older sister Jeannie, Liza is stubborn, rebellious, and worst of all, determined to push back against all of Mrs. Yang’s traditional values, especially when it comes to dating.

The one thing mother and daughter do agree on is their love of baking. Mrs. Yang is the owner of Houston’s popular Yin & Yang Bakery. With college just around the corner, Liza agrees to help out at the bakery’s annual junior competition to prove to her mom that she’s more than her rebellious tendencies once and for all. But when Liza arrives on the first day of the bake-off, she realizes there’s a catch: all of the contestants are young Asian American men her mother has handpicked for Liza to date.

The bachelorette situation Liza has found herself in is made even worse when she happens to be grudgingly attracted to one of the contestants; the stoic, impenetrable, annoyingly hot James Wong. As she battles against her feelings for James, and for her mother’s approval, Liza begins to realize there’s no tried and true recipe for love.

MOSTLY CUTE.

I read this in about a day (via audio book). I loved the fast pace and all of the baking. It made me want to whip out my mixer and try out new recipes. The GBBO allusions were clear, but the addition of the “dating pool” idea was humorous.

The other side plots were a biiiiit much. I felt like they added extreme levels of drama and took away from the romance. I didn’t know where I was supposed to see the focus. There were many side stories that didn’t truly affect the main character or even necessarily the love interest. All of this took me out of the novel multiple times.

What I got of the romance was pretty cute. It was a very little enemies to lovers, but once misunderstandings were put aside I thought Liza and James were adorable. I would have really loved to see even more of them and have the story feel like it was directed at them.

Overall audience notes:

YA Contemporary Romance
Language: a little
Romance: kisses
Trigger/Content Warnings: body shaming, racism, sexual assault mentioned, cheating

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ARC Book Review: Love from Scratch by Kaitlyn Hill

April 1, 2022January 10, 2022 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★☆ (3.5)
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 368 pages
Author: Kaitlyn Hill
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: April 5th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

This summer, Reese Camden is trading sweet tea and Southern hospitality for cold brew and crisp coastal air. She’s landed her dream marketing internship at Friends of Flavor, a wildly popular cooking channel in Seattle. The only problem? Benny Beneventi, the relentlessly charming, backwards-baseball-cap-wearing culinary intern–and her main competition for the fall job.

Reese’s plan to keep work a No Feelings Zone crumbles like a day-old muffin when she and Benny are thrown together for a video shoot that goes viral, making them the internet’s newest ship. Audiences are hungry for more, and their bosses at Friends of Flavor are happy to deliver. Soon Reese and Benny are in an all-out food war, churning homemade ice cream, twisting soft pretzels, breaking eggs in an omelet showdown–while hundreds of thousands of viewers watch.

Reese can’t deny the chemistry between her and Benny. But the more their rivalry heats up, the harder it is to keep love on the back burner.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC.

WELL, I ADORED BENNY.

I really wanted to love this more than my review shows and while I did like a lot of it, there were some aspects that held me back. Something I did love was the setting!! I loved the concept of a company with online cooking videos and the like.

Benny. He was top notch one of the better YA love interests I’ve read in awhile. He was incredibly supportive, realistic, and charming. I love that he was the sunshine between the two and had a positive attitude. Benny was all things sweet and the grand gesture at the end was completely over the top and I loved it.

Reese. I was much slower to warm up to her. I didn’t mind that she was the grump in the relationship and I liked that they got together halfway through! She showed some growth and, but towards the end it got a bit stagnant. I didn’t love the way the conflict was handled and I felt my care for her decisions wane as she became increasingly whiny. It was okay.

I realize this is a contemporary romance and I love that. That’s why I picked it up. That’s what drew me in. Unfortunately the larger agenda of the book felt forced and pushy. Even for things I am all for and in support of, I felt suffocated by that storyline over what I thought was the main aspect of the plot (the romance).

Overall audience notes: