3.5 stars

CW: Huntington’s, anxiety, bimisia, homomisia, ableist slur, drunk driving, sex/sexual content

I’ve heard good things about this novel and while I did enjoy it, unfortunately it wasn’t everything I’d hoped for. It’s a gritty coming of age story about family, identity, and love, featuring flawed, relatable characters. I liked the protagonist Vanni and her relationship with Leigh, and the family dynamics. The supporting characters were strong as well. But overall, if I’m being honest, this was a mostly average story with good queer content and not much else for me to talk about. Additionally, though this is likely my own fault due to misinterpretation, I thought there would be more mermaids, and real ones at that, not just a summer water park job. More mermaids in YA 2018.

Not a favorite, but still recommended to those that enjoy character-driven queer novels and/or contemporary that isn’t quite so fluffy.