A headline-worthy romance that addresses topical subjects with gravity and gaiety.
A collegiate newsroom rivalry leads to romance.
Headstrong Éowyn “Wyn” Evans is set on landing a staff position on her college newspaper, a step toward one day winning a Pulitzer Prize. Her nemesis and fellow freshman intern, the handsome, privileged, frat pledge Nathaniel “Three” Wellborn III, is equally determined to get the reporter role. (Readers met Three in Markum’s 2022 novel, This May End Badly, but this work stands alone.) The race is on—and Wyn won’t let classes or a miserable campus job stand in the way. When a drug scandal rocks Wyn’s dorm, she pivots from breaking news to human interest with help from her supportive suitemates, Dara and Madison, and the anonymous guy she chats with on a campus dating app. Even as they acquire more bylines, the fiery chemistry between the two intrepid journalists grows. Wyn’s first-person narration refreshingly navigates body positivity and the mental health challenges many young people experience. Other topical subjects, such as dating, drugs, race, and class, are thoughtfully navigated if not wholly explored. The zippy momentum of the narrative occasionally renders callbacks to subplots and minor characters difficult to follow, although some supporting characters, such as Wyn’s lovably cringe parents, are well developed. Comedic hijinks and campus encounters keep the romantic tension simmering throughout, and message exchanges via the dating app provide nuanced character development that makes the ultimate reveal doubly rewarding. Main characters are cued white.
A headline-worthy romance that addresses topical subjects with gravity and gaiety. (author’s note) (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: June 11, 2024
ISBN: 9781665955720
Page Count: 416
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2024
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A worthy second-chance romance.
In this follow-up to 2021’s Better Than the Movies, a 20-year-old college freshman gets a second chance at his dreams.
After the death of his father and his mother’s subsequent physical and emotional disappearance, Wes Bennett left behind all of his plans and the girl he made them with to go home and take care of Sarah, his younger sister. But now, Sarah has graduated, his mom is back on her feet, and by some miracle, Wes has an offer to pitch for UCLA’s baseball team. Liz Buxbaum, the girl he’s always loved, works for the university’s athletic department, taking photos and video of the team for social media, which means that maybe he can have a second chance at love, too. But since Wes left, Liz has made every effort to protect herself from ever feeling that broken again; there’s no room for love, because she doesn’t believe in it anymore. Or she doesn’t want to. This second-chance sports romance includes fake dates, quippy and quirky best friends, real heartache, and the sweet ache of first love. The clever dialogue keeps readers from drowning in the main characters’ emotional push-and-pull. Reading the first novel isn’t necessary for appreciating this one, although knowing the full history between Wes and Liz will only add to the ache and longing readers feel from and for them. Main characters are cued white.
A worthy second-chance romance. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781665947138
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2024
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