My Thoughts:
This is a YA Bridgette Jones except if Bridgette were a black 17-year old who wants to go to the uni and make a mark in corporate law just to crush her deadbeat father at his own game. The voice of Celine Bangura is very sharp, witty and self-absorbed like Bridgette and I could see a younger, more modern Bridgette also having a Tik Tok channel focused on aliens and conspiracy theories.
Celine is the slightly chunky, "I don't need anyone or anything to succeed [especially my former best friend and arch nemesis Bradley Graaeme who is annoyingly beautiful]" social media star who is bullied by the cool kids for her theories on aliens. She doesn't care, except for the fact that Bradley was her person until he abandoned her for the popular jerks/jocks that he hangs out with. That is her side of the story.
What readers will automatically know even before they start is that of course Celine and Bradley will be friends again and even find out that they are still each other's person. That is super obvious by the genre and the title.
What readers will be surprised by is that Bradley will get equal voice in this novel. Not only that, but Bradley has not only (mostly) found ways to deal with the spiraling thoughts from his OCD that Celine would help him through when they were younger, but also that he really is the moral center and the emotional rock of this story. He is definitely a keeper.
This book will give you all the feels you expect from a YA rom com with just enough coaching, controversy and mental health strategies to be helpful without being preachy. The characters do a lot of soul searching and maturing, even if as readers we know how it will end. The joy, after all, is in the journey, even if we know where the journey ends.
From the Publisher:
Bradley Graeme is pretty much perfect. He’s a star football player, manages his OCD well (enough), and comes out on top in all his classes . . . except the ones he shares with his ex-best friend, Celine.
Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed. Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption—yet, she’s still not cool enough for the popular kids’ table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that’s how Celine sees it.)
These days, there’s nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry. So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she’s surprised to find Brad right beside her.
Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past. And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?
Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed. Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption—yet, she’s still not cool enough for the popular kids’ table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that’s how Celine sees it.)
These days, there’s nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry. So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she’s surprised to find Brad right beside her.
Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past. And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?
Publication information:
Author: Talia Hibbert
Publisher: Joy Revolution (Jan 3, 2023)
Age range: Gr 9 and up
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