e-Audio, 08:40:37
Narrated by: Zach Barack
Release Date: August 16, 2022
Published by: Scholastic, Inc.
Read from: August 27-29, 2022
Stand-alone
Source: Library’s Libby
TW: Underage Drinking, Mentions of Neglectful Parenting, Light Mentions of Surgery, Transphobia, Homophobia, Scene depicting Neil being patted down and experiencing transphobia by a tsa agent (beginning on page 54 and concluding on page 56), Indirect Dead Naming (Neil is dead named but the dead name is never mentioned on page and simply alluded to), Mentions of Past Sexual Relationship, Fade to Black Sex Scene, Light Mentions of the Passing of a Father, Light Mentions of the Passing of a Grandfather (List provided by the author on Goodreads)
For Readers Interested In: Contemporary Romance, Realistic Fiction, Weddings, Grumpy/Sunshine, LGBTQ+ (Trans with top surgery rep!), YAFrom the bestselling author of I Wish You All the Best, comes a new kind of love story, about the bad decisions we sometimes make… and the people who help get us back on the right path.
Perfect for fans of Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston and What If It’s Us by Adam Silvera and Becky Albertalli.
Just days before spring break, Neil Kearney is set to fly across the country with his childhood friend (and current friend-with-benefits) Josh, to attend his brother’s wedding—until Josh tells Neil that he’s in love with him and Neil doesn’t return the sentiment.
With Josh still attending the wedding, Neil needs to find a new date to bring along. And, almost against his will, roommate Wyatt is drafted.
At first, Wyatt (correctly) thinks Neil is acting like a jerk. But when they get to LA, Wyatt sees a little more of where it’s coming from. Slowly, Neil and Wyatt begin to understand one another… and maybe, just maybe, fall in love for the first time…
*MY THOUGHTS*
Mason Deaver’s first book broke me. I remember crying throughout various parts of it, so I was expecting the same to happen with this book. Imagine my surprise when I was grinning really hard and even laughing at some parts. But then again, this book had everything I loved, so I knew I was going to like it, I just didn’t know how much.
First things first, I wanted to talk about the narrator. I went to look and see what else they had narrated because I really enjoyed listening to them. The voices were easily distinguishable (with accents and all), the expression of feelings in their words, just everything. I was shocked to see that this was their first! (Or at least their first that my library has lol) I really liked them and will be looking for them later on in the future!
The romance of this one was so cute!!!! Normally I don’t get this excited about grumpy/sunshine, but because it actually said in the synopsis that we would learn why Neil acted the way he did, I didn’t mind. Because I knew there was a reason that we just hadn’t known yet. A lot of times, in grumpy/sunshine its just something that happened to them that had nothing to do with the sunshine person. And that always annoys me. Like just TALK and tell them what’s bothering you. And this time, it wasn’t actually the love interest that they blamed it on. They actively admitted that it was them and it was something that they needed to work on. And that really helped me like it. When they finally got together, it was even cuter. I LOVED Wyatt and the way he was so level headed and sweet. I loved the way he wasn’t afraid of Neil and his moods and the way he acted to everyone else. I also loved the way he was so down to earth. I just loved him.
The plot itself was really cute. Y’all know I love me some fake dating when they’re on their way to a wedding. And to put the icing on the cake, this one also has a (future) billionaire because Neil is actually an heir of something that’s revealed in the story. No it’s not something that Neil or Wyatt cares about for that matter, but it’s still a part of the story. Since there’s this new marketing trend of talking about tropes, I thought it would be worth it to mention what’s in this and what it’s all about.
Now don’t read this and think there’s nothing emotional in here. I don’t want to put you through trauma by thinking this might be just a sweet grumpy/sunshine story of them finding love together. It’s not an easy go for the two of them. Neil has so many things he has to work out. His immediate family and him are estranged, the rest of his family is transphobic, and there’s of course all the things he needed to work on with himself. No I wasn’t crying with this book like I did Deaver’s previous works, but I DID clutch my heart and feel for him. Neil didn’t deserve any of the things that happened. I was pissed that he didn’t have someone there to help take care of him. He didn’t deserve that. I’m very happy with the way things turned out in the end.
Overall, this book had the tropes I liked, an author whose works I adore, and a new narrator I liked as well. Definitely not a surprise that I liked this so much. This is one time that the marketing tool of “trope listing” worked for me…. But also it could be because I already trust the author? Whatever the case may be, don’t miss out on this book!
Overall, I give this
