Title: What’s Not To Love
Author: Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka
Published: 2021
Genre: Young Adult/Contemporary
Since high school began, Alison Sanger and Ethan Molloy have competed on almost everything. AP classes, the school paper, community service, it never ends. If Alison could avoid Ethan until graduation, she would. Except, naturally, for two over-achieving seniors with their sights on valedictorian and Harvard, they share all the same classes and extracurriculars. So when their school’s principal assigns them the task of co-planning a previous class’s ten-year reunion, with the promise of a recommendation for Harvard if they do, Ethan and Alison are willing to endure one more activity together if it means beating the other out of the lead.
Source: GoodReads
I love a good enemies-to-lovers story, if it’s done right. Unfortunately, this one fell short for me. The lead characters argued all the time, and had no chemistry. For the first half of the book, they bickered the whole time, which annoyed everyone around them. Honestly, there wasn’t a point where I, as the reader, could see them becoming more than rivals. It was irritating that these two had absolutely no reason to dislike each other, except for the fact that they wanted to out-do the other. The whole meaning behind their rivalry was very juvenile.
The lead male, Ethan, isn’t a horrible character, but he was trying to find himself in this feud he has going on. As for the female lead, Alison, she was one of the major downfalls of this book. I understand not wanting to be treated like a child, but she was immature, snobbish, and self-centered. The way she treated her friends was one thing, but how she acted towards her family was unbelievable. She was downright rude and offensive to her older sister because her life wasn’t they way Alison thought it should be. She had no right to judge her or talk the way she did to her family. Honestly, for someone that wanted to be seen as a grown-up, her attitude was very immature.
The plot seemed random, since I don’t believe a high-school principal would care about two students’ petty feud. If it was such a big problem, you’d think it would have been dealt with sooner than their senior year. They could have put them in different classes, or set up a meeting with their parents. The whole main plot was just off. There was a nice throwback to “Time Of Our Lives” which is another novel by this duo. Two of the characters from the book did show up in this one, but since I wasn’t a fan of “Time Of Our Lives” it didn’t mean much to me.
I want to like this author duo, but I am starting to think that “If I’m Being Honest” was a fluke. I might pick up their next release, but go into it with low expectations. Please give this post a like and share, and follow my little book blog.
Until The Next Chapter,
Bunny
But the audiobook won’t be available at my library until four weeks. Instead, I found a graphic novel that easily fulfills all the promotes. Something is Killing the Children, Vol. 1 by James Tynion IV, Werther Dell’Edera, and Miquel Muerto is a horror and paranormal story about missing children, monsters and a monster hunter. I heard that it is compared to Netflix’s Stranger Things, which I haven’t seen, but I know it is popular. I don’t know if the this book has enough Halloween colors on the cover, but the authors names are in orange, so I’m counting it.
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn
The Afterlife of Holly Chase by Cynthia Hand
Best Book You’ve Read So Far This Year?
Best Sequel You’ve Read So Far This Year?
But Want To?
Most Anticipated Release For The Second Half Of The Year?
Biggest Disappointment?
Biggest Surprise?
Book That Made You Cry?
Book That Made You Happy?
The Most Beautiful Book You’ve Bought So Far This Year (Or Received)?
What Books Do You Need To Read By The End Of The Year?
The book is about an aspiring teen journalist that gets the story of a lifetime. It is targeted as Almost Famous meets the “Me Too” movement. I have never seen Almost Famous, but it is one of my husbands favorite films. I am looking to forward to seeing how this book unfolds.
The plot sounds amazing and something I haven’t ever read about. It is historical fiction and YA contemporary combines, which is intriguing. The story takes place in 1992 during the Rodney King riots. It is a coming-of-age novel, and 1992 just so happens to be my birth year.
Snow Like Ashes (Snow Like Ashes #1) by Sara Raasch: I heard about this series from one of my favorite booktubers. It was released in 2014 and is a young adult fantasy novel. I can hear the gasps from here. I normally don’t go for fantasies, but something about this story sounded appealing. Also, I heard the world building in this series was amazing.
Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone: I am a big fan of books that deal with mental health, but I don’t feel that I have read enough in my life. This one deals with the popular girl in school. She seems to have it all together, yet she is hiding her struggles with severe OCD. She gets introduce to a group of mists that all have their own issues and with them she is able to be her true self. This book was published in 2015 and deals with an illness that is talked about much.
Dorothy Must Die (Dorothy Must Die #1) by Danielle Paige: This is another series that was published in 2014 that I have yet to start. Honestly, I haven’t heard that many good things about these books, but the idea behind them is intriguing. Tell me that a YA retilling of the Wizard of Oz where Dorothy has become mad with power doesn’t sound awesome.
Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella: This is another 2015 releases that just so happens to have mental health representation. This book seemed to have fallen under the radar for a lot of book lovers, still it has been on my tbr for years. This novel tells the story of a teenage girl who’s controlled by her social anxiety. The book has polarized opinions I’m interested to see where I fall on the scale.
Heartless by Marissa Meyer: Don’t hate me but I haven’t read anything from Marissa Meyer. I know that many people love her Lunar Chronicles series, yet I’ve been fascinated by this book since its 2016 release. This is an Alice and Wonderland retelling about the Queen of Hearts, and her life before becoming queen. I don’t know why villain origin stories interest me, but the only reason I can come up with is that I was Team Regina during the series Once Upon A Time.
Frostblood (Frostblood Saga #1) by Elly Blake: I am going to admit that I barely no anything about this 2017 release. The two things I do know are that it sounded awesome back in the day, and the author is possible Canadian. Heard about this book from one of my Booktube favorites, Hailey LeBlanc (
To Kill A Kingdom by Alexandra Christo: Yes, I technically dnf this book, but I didn’t put it down forever. At the time of it’s releases, in 2018, I was in a huge reading slump and pretty much 
Slayer (Slayer #1) by Kiersten White: This was a 2019 release that I was very excited about! It is a Buffy the Vampire Slayer story where new slayer, Nina, is chosen. I have watched all seven seasons of Buffy, and though I wasn’t a die heart fan I am curious to see a new take on the story. Also, I am a bookworm, so I am happy we get a book version of the show.
The Everything I Have Lost by Sylvia Zeleny (May 11th): This is a coming-of-age young adult story about 12-year-old Julia who is struggling to deal with life in Juarez, Mexico and her fathers sudden disappearance. Zeleny is a bilingual author from Mexico, and I love it when others can write from personal experience. Also, I thought that this story was different from traditional YA novels, since the lead is younger and just beginning her teen years. This is sure to be a very emotional story.
A Chorus Rises: A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow (June 01st): The story follows a teen influencer that has the perfect life. She posses fame, beauty and is a Eloko. This means that she has a melody that nobody can resit. However, her life takes a turn for the worse when she gets canceled for exposing a Siren to the world. I love the mix of contemporary and fantasy in a very unique way. I haven’t read a lot of magical realism, so I am looking forward to try a new genre.
The Stars of Whistling Ridge by Cindy Baldwin (June 15th): A middle grade novel about magic, a curse town and finding a place to call home. I have never been drawn to middle grade stories, but this one sounded adorable. Honestly, I feel like this could be the plot of a Disney movie. I just know that it is going to take me on a magical journey, and tug at my heartstrings.
They are best known for their Lady Janies series that contained of three book each a retelling of a fame Jane (Lady Jane Grey, Jane Eyre and Calamity Jane). In this new series of books we will be following Marys starting with Mary is the queen of Scots. I have only read the first book in the Janies series, My Lady Jane. However, I absolutely loved it. I was very happy to get this ARCs since this story takes place in the same world as My Lady Jane.
Cheer Up: Love and Pompoms by Crystal Frasier (Aug 10th): This is a graphic novel that deals with social pressure, friendship and cheerleading with trans and queer representation. I am not a huge graphic novel fan, but I think that this will be a new favorite of mine. Truth be told, I am a total fangirl for cheerleading stories. I have seen all the Bring It On films and was obsessed with the short-lived Hellcats series. Also, you know I love me some diverse characters.
The Endless Skies by Shannon Price (Aug 17): An epic fantasy about a hidden city home of the Leonodai warriors. Seventeen-year-old Rowan is ready to become a Leonodai until a deadly disease plagues the city’s children. Soon Rowan discovers secrets that could change her future and everything she once dreamed. I have made it no secret that I don’t read a lot of fantasy. Although, I was very intrigued by not only the plot, but that this was a standalone. This book gives me classic YA fantasy book feels, which I am loving. As well, as the fact that I don’t have to worry about adding another series to my tbr.
Twilight by Stephenie Meyers: Me and my husband started the audiobook about a month back, and I ready to dive into this once popular series. I have seen all the movies, but my husband isn’t a Twiheart. Most of you are probably aware of the plot, still I will give you the shortened version. This is the story of what happens when a human girl falls in love with a vampire boy, and all the must overcome to be together.
The Project by Courtney Summers: I decided to pick this up on a whim since I have heard nothing but good things about Summers books. She writes YA/new adult mystery thrillers with her most notable being Sadie. The Project follows a nineteen-year-old girl as she tries to uncover the truth about “The Unity Project” a religious group that many see as a cult. She knows that the project isn’t as holism as they seem, and believe they are the reason behind her strained relationship with her older sister.
Conceal, Don’t Feel by Jen Calonta: I have wanted to read this for a while not, and I was finally able to get my hands on a copy from the library. This is part of The Twisted Tales book series, which are middle-grade Disney retellings. This is Frozen retelling we see what would happen if Anna and Elsa never knew each other. I am not a huge Frozen fan, but I do think that this could be a fun read.
10 Truths And A Dare by Ashley Elston: I read “10 Blind Dates” from this author, and loved it! I knew that I had to pick up her next YA contemporary as soon as it came out. The plot follows Olivia, a character from “10 Blind Dates,” as she finds out she might not get to graduate with her senior class after all. These books are usually light, fluffy reads that I cannot get enough of.
You’re Not Special by Meghan Rienks: I started this book a while ago, and ready to finish it. It is a collection of memoir type stories by YouTuber Meghan Rienks. I was never an avid watcher of Meghan’s channel, but I thought it would be an interesting read.
Snow In Love by Various Authors: I am a big fan of YA story collections, so I was happy to pick this up back in January. However, I have yet to make a dent in it, and it is already May. I am enjoying the first story thus far, and would love to have it read by the end of the month. Also, I don’t mind a little holiday spirit anytime of year.