I don't know how a YA romance made me want to learn how to play chess but here we are.

Ali Hazelwood can do no wrong in my eyes. She draws you in to a world where women are kicking ass in typically male dominated fields and I'm always here for it. 

Mallory starts off with the whole world on her shoulders (supporting her mum and sisters), and I loved watching her figure out that she's allowed to want things for herself and that it doesn't mean she's letting other people down. Nolan was an instant hit. I love dry, sarcastic and witty, and he was just genuinely lovely. Absolutely adored him, and he and Mallory were just so cute together. 

I found myself captivated by all the chess talk, which I wasn't expecting as I know absolutely zero about chess. I've always loved hearing people nerd out about whatever brings them joy and there was so much love and passion for the game in this book. Honestly, at the end, I'd have been perfectly happy with a few more chapters just of them playing chess. 

Ali has proven yet again why she is, and always will be, an auto buy author.