Something of a hidden gem, when it comes to contemporary young adult I haven’t heard this one talked about nearly as much as it deserves.

Analee’s body image issues, her social anxieties and introversion, her anger and her heart, just really everything about this heroine felt real and relatable, there were plenty of times where it very much echoed how I felt in school (and sometimes now, too).

Analee has two romantic possibilities, I guess it technically qualifies as a triangle though to be clear one emerges far more as a romance than the other and I really enjoyed that romance, the sparks, the sweetness, and the way things were pretty open and honest between them.

Most of all, I loved the family aspect of this one, Analee still working through the grief of losing her mother, the distance she feels with her dad, the arc of her relationship with her potential step-mom and step-sister, all of it really delivered emotionally.

Something occurred towards the end that I didn’t love, it’s not like it felt like a false note, it just wasn’t how I wanted things to go, so I was a tiny bit disappointed in that but overall extremely satisfied with how everything else concluded. ( )

Analee has lost a lot recently - her mom, her best friend and even her dad in a sense as he gets ready to marry a life-style guru. She just doesn't seem to fit. She is most comfortable online playing a game and chatting with Harris.
When Seb, the school heartthrob, becomes her biology partner the two concoct a plan to get back the things each of them want most. A friendship develops.
Analee has a strong inner life. She can wallow in self-pity at times.
The book doesn't settle for the predictable, happy ending. Analee is challenged, grows, discovers herself. ( )