This just sounds like the cutest blurb ever. What's not to like?

Unfortunately for all the build-up, Romeo & What's Her Name never came together for me. Emily is spoiled, extremely privileged, doesn't know the meaning of responsibility if it were to kick her in the butt, and immature. She's supposed to be around 17, but acted like she was thirteen (or younger).
From the blurb, you know that she's supposed to understudy as Juliet. She did this so that she could be around Wes. She's supposed to get a credit in English for this. She couldn't be bothered to learn her lines (but she has a lot of excuses as to why she couldn't, boo, hiss!), so when she actually has to perform, she's got nothing. It's funny. Granted. But on the flipside, it shows her lazy, self-absorbed character.

Her mother says that Emily is so giving, but it's actually Emily's friends who are giving. Jill is the director of the sequence that Emily screws up, yet Jill forgives her. Kayla, her other best friend, goes out of her way time and time again for Emily. Emily offers nothing. Even at the moment when she could do something really nice, dance with Wes' younger brother, she first has to wade through the pros and cons. Sorry, but a genuinely nice person doesn't worry about what other people think, they just do it.

Also, unlike most other YA novels I read about high school juniors, Emily's only focus is on Wes. We have no idea if Emily pictures a life beyond high school, a career, a job, no clue. She's 24/7 obsessed with Wes so that even her mental health is questionable. (For my friends who ask me why I read YA novels, because this is just the type of novel you think constitute YA, erm, most are not like this! Seriously!)

Okay. Am I ranting yet? I want to say sorry, but, no.

You know, it's when you really want to love a story and look forward to it that you feel most let down. Amanda, the Juliet, is supposed to be some awful character. Unfortunately she's also the only minority character, black and Asian. When she gets mad at Emily because Emily in all of her self-absorption decides that the best way to get Wes is to derail Amanda, we're supposed to applaud. Nope. I felt bad for Amanda. I get it. It's supposed to be a screwball scene, but take a step back. Amanda wants to be an actress, ends up in the hospital and forfeits her scene, but has a chance to do it again and Emily locks her up in a room? We're supposed to not like Amanda because Amanda is a stereotypic mean girl, but because it's a first person narrator and an unreliable one at that, I'm not buying it.

So, you may be asking what are we left with?

The story has several funny, if cringe-worthy moments. The writing is really good; it flows. Ultimately, though, this just comes out to be a terrifically average novel because the first person narrator is totally unlikable. What would have improved it? Make Kayla, the real sweetheart, the center and have her always trying to save her lazy, privileged best friend from herself, even if it seems totally unlikely.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"For never was a story of more woe, than crushing on a boy who doesn't know...."

I went into this one expecting just a cute read about crushes and all the swoon-worthy moments that come from pining over someone in high school. But this one was about so much more and I appreciated the nuanced relationship between Emily and her friends.

Emily has it bad for Wes. From the first chapter, we know that she's probably felt like this for a long time since her and Wes have known each other practically their entire lives since they are neighbors. When Em finds out that he is going to be Romeo in a production involving multiple Shakespearean scenes, she decides to try out as his Juliet. But things don't go as expected when Amanda, her nemesis, gives the final audition and absolutely kills it.

So Em devises a plan to be Amanda's understudy. Just from the synopsis, we gather what eventually does happen - that Emily actually has to perform as Juliet when Amanda winds up in the hospital the day before the big performance. And what happens made me feel so embarrassed for her. Because Emily, bless her, is a klutz who is as mathematically inclined as she is literary challenged. Learning Shakespearean text is hard for her so you can imagine how successful that scene goes! But this is only half of the book.

The other half really takes off when Emily is dealing with the repercussions of such a mortifying performance in front of the entire school. Actually, there's a real funny moment at the cast party that makes you feel so bad for her yet makes her so endearing. Of course, this is also when we start to see several things: (1) the amazing support friends can give during difficult times; (2) chances lost and won when it comes to miscommunication; and (3) finally realizing that only you can dictate how someone makes you feel or doesn't.

There were so many moments that could have been preachy but weren't and I think the author did an amazing job handling lessons to be learned by young adolescent readers. Honestly, Emily's relationship with Jill and Kayla reminded me of my own strong friendships back in high school. They were the ones who stuck with you through the good times and the bad and who had your back even if you were in the middle of some fight with them (generally, over petty matters).

I also enjoyed the relationship between Emily and Wes. This was a slow-burning romance with events playing out in between which eventually helped bring them closer. And they are perfect for each other, even though they are both too scared or insecure to pledge it to each other right away. I liked that the romance took time to play out.

This is a perfect read for anyone who enjoys contemporary romances with friendships at its core. It also reminded me of well-written books I used to read during my teenage years so I appreciated the nostalgic feeling I had while reading it. Swoon Reads is really stepping it up and I hope you get the chance to check this one out when it comes out next week!

This book was a rollercoaster of fluff.
What do I mean.
That some things in the book would be super cliche in its fluff and I wouldnt hate it but it would also overwhelm me. Like ... Im having issues explaining. This is the type of book that was so loaded in its lovely dovely world that it got to be too much. Almost like trying to eat a whole chocolate cake in one sitting. With only one glass of milk. Its not bad and we all say we can do it and surely we have tried or will try in our lifetime.. But it just cant be done.

I wasn't very impressed with this book, especially considering how short it is. It just seemed juvenile for a character that's supposed to be a junior in high school.

This book was absolutely adorable. Think of like the crazy things that happen when you are in high school add in a bit of Shakespeare and of course a really big gesture and you have a wonderfully perfect contemporary story. Shani Petroff did a really great job bringing you to this high school and making you love the characters in this story. You couldn’t help but root for them from the very beginning!
We meet Emily who is head over heels crushing on her neighbor Wes. They’ve been friends forever but she’s too scared to admit to him just how much she likes him. She has this really great plan to do a Shakespeare sketch of Romeo and Juliet just so she can get closer to him. Only problem is she is horrible at English and even worse when it comes to Shakespeare, let’s not forget that she’s only the understudy, the person she dislikes the most is the real Juliet and has lately been all over Wes.
Wes just happens to be completely adorable in every way possible, quite the gentleman and really delightful. If Emily doesn’t snag him quick I might have to keep him in my pocket because he's just that picture-perfect. Talk about really great book boyfriend material!
I love how Emily's friend always have her back no matter what crazy things she wants to do. But let's not cut Emily too short, she was too funny in this book. Emily is the kind of girl you can't help but notice and not always for good things but because she puts herself out there for the world to see. Sure sometimes things don't come out the way she expects them but she's fun and she isn't afraid of embarrassing herself at all. She was a very likable character and I would completely be her friend. But again her friends definitely are there for her one hundred percent.
There were so many great scenes in this book and when they butchered Shakespeare it was amazingly and funny-eth. If you are looking for the next great contemporary Yong adult book this is definitely something you have to pick up. Loved every second of it. It was a quick and fun read with characters you can't help but smile at. I literally laughed out loud. Oh the shenanigans that went on in this book were both classic and original. You really never know what crazy thing Emily was going to do next or what was going to happen to her.
I love the cover it really drew me to the book. It's cute, eye catching and charming. The setting and story plot was very addicting, realistic and enjoyable. The writing was splendid, flowed quite nicely and really kept you going. I will definitely be checking more out from this author. Make sure to pick this book up because I promise you will not be disappointed in the least.

4.5 stars

Romeo and What's Her Name is the story of how Emily just needed some extra English credit, and what resulted. Does that sound boring? How couldst thou say-eth that?
I do believe I have never had such fun reading a contemporary novel. This had so much heart, truth, humor, and "you go girl" moments it's a wonder I didn't burst from happiness.
Finally, a story where the girl is popular, the guy isn't "bad" and snarky, and the friends don't flake.
Sure, it's pretty predictable and lacked character definition, but it didn't need those to create a fun story that stands out among the other muck of the genre.
All I need is a sequel full of Wes and Emily facing life together and having long conversations. Highly enjoyable.

After attempting (and failing) to finish The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett, I was a little hesitant in picking this book up just because it was another contemporary. However, I was pleasantly surprised as I made my way through the book and felt all warm and fuzzy inside when I finished it. At first, I wasn’t sure how I felt about Emily and her inner dialogue; I was worried that it was going to read too immature for me, but I quickly found myself relating to her and the way her over-analytic thought process worked. She was hilarious and I found myself crying because I was laughing so hard during her Romeo & Juliet scene.

“‘...how did-est thou find-est moi?’ Great….now I was speaking French.”

That quote had me in tears (you’d probably have to read everything leading up to that point to find it as hilarious as I did though). I found her connection with Wes endearing from the start, and I loved that they already had a pre-existing relationship prior to the book. That made the connection I felt between them more genuine and less out-of-the-blue. Wes was a good character and I loved his moments with Emily because you feel how much he liked being around her. I just wish that we would’ve gotten a little more information about him and his family; we do get to meet his younger brother Neal briefly, but that’s it for Wes’s home life. Emily sees him as a pure paragon, so that’s all we get to see of Wes; this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as I still really enjoyed his character, I just would’ve liked to get to know him beyond being ‘hot.’

I also really enjoyed the friendship that she had with her two best friends. It was reminiscent of my friendships, so I found it easy to relate to them.The support they showed Emily throughout the novel was nice to see and I thought that they complimented her quite well. It made the book more realistic for me.

The reason why this book isn’t a 4-teacup read is because of the pacing. Everything happened so quick at the start of the book, that the middle of it felt out of place and sluggish. A lot of the conflict could’ve been avoided or resolved if Emily would have just talked to him, but then I don’t think there would’ve been much of a story. I also got the impression that the end-all would be the big scene with Emily and Wes that was mentioned in the synopsis, but that wasn’t what happened.

Overall, I really enjoyed this read and I’d recommend it if you’re looking for a light rom-com-style read just before Valentine’s Day. Coming in at 224 pages, you’ll be laughing and full of the warm fuzzies in no time.

Emily Stein has had a crush on Wes Rosenthal for as long as she can remember, but somehow or another she always ends up acting like an idiot in front of him. When she learns that he and his girlfriend have broken up and that Wes is planning to audition for the part of Romeo for their English class project of Romeo & Juliet, Emily decides to audition for the part of Juliet. But mean girl Amanda, who also has her sights set on Wes, also auditions and gets the part. Luckily Emily's friend Jill is directing the Romeo & Juliet scene and Emily convinces her to let her be an understudy so she can still hang out with Wes.

Emily thinks she can relax, I mean understudies never really have to go on stage, right? And with Amanda treating her like a gopher during rehearsals on top of her homework and after school job, Emily doesn't really have time to memorize the lines. But she doesn't really need to learn the lines, right?

Then an unforeseen case of appendicitis forces Amanda out of the role and into the hospital and Emily onto the stage in her place. Emily makes a fool of herself but Wes doesn't seem to mind.

Could it be possible that Wes likes her the way Emily likes him? Or is he just being nice? Does Emily really have a chance with the guy of her dreams or will the mean girl get the guy?

I really enjoyed reading Romeo & What's Her Name. It is light, fluffy, and funny - a feel good read. Reading it made me so thankful that I'm no longer an awkward teen crushing on a cute guy.

Parts of this book were really funny (in a good way) while others left me cringing and wanting to crawl under a table, but it is realistic to real teen life. After all, most teens aren't like the girls on Pretty Little Liars with their designer label clothes, perfect hair, and endless confidence; real teens have bed head and wear ratty sweats they hope their crushes will never see them in and I loved that this book showed that. I also loved the relationship between Wes and his brother Neal, it was really sweet.

Overall, I thought Romeo & What's Her Name was a cute Contemporary YA Romance. It is a great book to read when you want something that will leave you with a smile on your face.

ROMEO AND WHAT'S HER NAME is a modern comedic tale of a teenager drunk on love who is thrust onto a stage to profess her undying feelings only to find herself falling down a traitorous hole of mixed-signals, klutz-induced embarrassments, and a mouth that isn’t quite fully connected to her brain. Entertaining from start to finish this book will lighten the mood of any grey day.
-pooled ink Reviews

Loved this! It was super fun, and it is hard to make me laugh, but this book did it!

This just wasn't great. It was okay, but the characters felt a little flat and the plot forced.