3.5/5

I'm generally not a fan of YA contemporary romances but this was cute

I was quite excited to pick this up and I did enjoy it but this isn't a book for everyone. I wasn't sure where we were actually going at several points in the book though which can be frustrating and daunting for a longer book.

Several trigger warnings including racism and sexual assault

I...liked this and I'm confused at the rating

I don't know that I've ever read a book that puts so much care and love into the discussion of gender vs sex. The setting and time period added an additional element of "needing" to be a boy for succession. Really adore this book. I cannot speak as a cis person to the authenticity of the main character's inner struggle, but it felt like it was handled with care and love (which made sense after finishing it when I found out the author is transgender).

Rep: transgender own voice

WTF...why was this so good and no one is talking about this book?

Everything in this was awesome! I loved the characters and the highkey feminism and the messing with tropes and just...everything!

Rtc