I actually went into this book being super skeptical because I think books that feature people with disabilities, mental illness, developmental disorders, etc. can easily misrepresent those communities if they aren't well researched. I ended up looking up the author and found out that she actually has autism just like the main character, which made me feel way better about picking this up. I don't usually go for contemporaries, but the premise for this was so interesting I couldn't resist and I'm happy to say I wasn't been disappointed.

Stella is a very intelligent young woman and at first I found her parents to be pretty obnoxious and pushy. They really want her to date more and get into a relationship. They do seem to really care for their daughter and want the best for her, but the way they go about it isn't the best, I think. So far in her life Stella has had really bad dating and sex experiences. She freezes up during sex and hasn't been able to sustain a long term relationship with men. Her solution to this is to start practising, so she hires an escort, Michael. 

I have to say my favorite parts of this book all involved Michael. He's half Vietnamese and is very in touch with his culture and has a really cool relationship with his family. His interactions with his sisters are probably my favorite. It's so refreshing to see an Asian male lead being depicted in a positive light, because boy, is Asian representation in most forms of media really hard to find. Something I love that Michael recognized, as the decent human being he is, is that a lot of Stella's bad experiences with sex had nothing to do with her doing anything wrong, but with her sexual partners being inconsiderate jerks. He really is a sweet person that cares a lot about his family. He does the escort job to help out his family and hides that he works in that industry because he's so concerned about hurting them. I could tell he was a very sweet person even at the beginning of the story just based on the fact that he was willing to do repeat sessions with Stella. This is despite their first session being awkward and him usually refusing to do any kind of repeat sessions. 

Michael tries his best to make Stella feel comfortable and when she wants help with the dating aspects of a relationship rather than the sex, he is willing to help. He starts to fall in love with certain aspects of her personality, such as the fact that she is kind and humble, despite her socioeconomic status. Stella is also a relatable character. Her autism often makes her feel like she is broken, which makes her very adamant to share with Michael that she has autism. I think that feeling like something is wrong with you is something almost everyone can relate to at least at some point in time. She's also accidentally rude, and blurts out the wrong thing at the wrong time. I'm socially awkward at times too and lack a filter. Even though I'm not autistic I could relate really well with Stella when she would have interactions where she accidentally said the wrong thing. I think what truly shows her character though is that when she makes mistakes, she own up to them and apologizes. 

This book had characters that felt very real and human. They were flawed and both Michael and Stella had personal problems that they had to deal with separately. They were able to overcome, though. Stories like these where characters are forced to grow as the plot progresses are my favorite and are why this book was so enjoyable for me. Even if you're not into romance this is a book I would still recommend just because the characters are so worth knowing. Can't wait to read more books from this author.