Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute (Joy Revolution)

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Overall, I already can’t wait to reread this. The audiobook is going to be perfection and I can’t wait to see how the narrator(s) interpret the humor. If you want a major serotonin boost and/or the feeling of eating a maple blondie brownie with butterscotch icing and vanilla ice cream from Apple Bees, read Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute. It’s delicious. K. Imani: I’m looking forward to WHILE YOU WERE DREAMING by Alisha Rai who is another Adult Romance author whose writing I love. I’m also looking forward to Rhythm and Muse by India Hill Brown as it seems like a swoon worthy story. I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. ❃ Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute came out of nowhere, wrapped me in a warm hug, and didn’t let go until I melted from all of the cuteness. I was obviously very excited about this, and it absolutely delivered. Here’s what we get from Talia Hibbert’s fantastic YA debut: A pure delight. This book is confirmation: no one does love stories like Talia Hibbert.”—LEAH JOHNSON, bestselling author of You Should See Me in a Crown and Rise to the Sun

Hibbert always writes with elegance and eloquence, and this is another aspect that shines much more towards the second half of the book. At the begining, (I suppose in an attempt to appeal to YA audiences) there was a headache-inducing amount of pop culture references. Everywhere I looked there was "JuiceWRLD", "TikTok" etc. and it was just not my cup of tea. Along those lines, at the beginning, both characters were painfully juvenile. I understand, again, that she is writing about teenagers, but I can assure you that the most teenagers still have substance. At first, they just felt like quite shallow characters, reading from an annoying script - like you'd imagine a stereotypical teenage argument/conversation would go. Later on, of course, there was much more nuance and depth but I was definitely taken by surprise (and worry) at first.

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From the New York Times bestselling author of the Brown Sisters trilogy, comes a laugh-out-loud story about a quirky content creator and a clean-cut athlete testing their abilities to survive the great outdoors—and each other. With dialogue that juggles both laugh-out-loud humor and pull-at-the-heartstrings vulnerability amid an outdoorsy premise, Hibbert attentively captures Celine’s feelings of abandonment and resentment, and Brad’s mental health struggles while striking a quintessential balance of romance and comedy in this lively romp.”— Publishers Weekly LIMBONG: And so the other main character in the book is a guy named Brad. He is, you know, he's like that guy, right? He's popular. He's charming. He's handsome. And we learn early on that he and Celine used to be really good friends. But then, you know, high school drama gets in the way. Tell us a little bit more about Brad. A razor-sharp, witty enemies-to-lovers rom-com. Readers will laugh out loud and swoon at the same time. Simply unputdownable.”—EMIKO JEAN, New York Times bestselling author of Tokyo Ever After 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.

Audrey: I think CHLOE AND THE KAISHAO BOYS by Mae Coyiuto sounds like fun! It came out just yesterday. K. Imani: I have no comment on the audiobook because I’m strictly a physical book kind of gal, but yes there was a glossary at the beginning and I enjoyed reading it before I started the book. I’ve read a lot of British lit so some of the words I knew, but much of the current slang I didn’t, so it was fun to learn new words. I have the urge to say that both Brad and Celine changed a lot from start to finish, but it was more like they found themselves again. The ending was perfect and shaped up exactly how I’d been imagining. (It was fun betting with myself on which three would win the scholarship.)Brad and Celine used to be best friends. As Celine sees it, Brad abandoned her for a cooler crowd, and they’ve been enemies ever since. So when Celine signs up for a woodland survival course in the hopes it will give her a head start on her future law career, Brad being in the forest with her is her worst nightmare. 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.)

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Brown Sisters trilogy, comes a laugh-out-loud story about a quirky content creator and a clean-cut athlete testing their abilities to survive the great outdoors--and each other. Publisher’s summary: 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.

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Best friends to enemies to lovers. I spent most of this book smiling and screaming and wanting them to confess their love already!