Miranda Kenneally has been an auto-reply author for me since I read Catching Jordan. This might be my favorite title yet. The romance is so cute and well done and wasn't an instant love, which I loved. The feelings and romance between the two main characters built slowly and realistically.

Cute YA story. Wish i.would have read the rest of the series first. Really enjoyed the fact that a big part of the story dealt with swimming as a sport.

I am a sucker for cheesy YA romance novels! Coming Up for Air by Miranda Kenneally tells the of Maggie and Levi. Maggie ask Levi for help with making out. Because that is such a great idea. Making out with your best friend and thinking nothing could go wrong. Well that is how this story begins. The story goes more into detail with swimming, relationships, college and more. If you are looking for a cute cheesy romance that is surrounded by swimming, then this is your perfect read.

This was a cute summer read that also satisfied my need for deep characters. I didn't realize it was part of a series until after I read it, but I liked it enough to want to read the other books. I love that it features a strong female character who pushes to succeed in every aspect of life. I'm also a sucker for boy-next-door romance, and Levi is the perfect friend that both pushes and cheers for Maggie. The tension around swimming and Olympic tryouts felt real and was utilized well as a plot point. I like that Maggie had to balance swimming, relationships, school, etc. I could see many students picking this book up and enjoying it.

Coming up for air was the most refreshing young adult contemporary I’ve read in a while (Pun totally interned).

It made me so happy to read about a guy who truly cares. Who wouldn’t purposely do anything to mess up a good thing. There are indeed good guys among “the dogs” out there and I am so beyond happy Miranda showed that.

Perfect addition to this series and I hope Miranda continues to make more!

I liked how this focused a lot more on swimming than most books that focus on sports do. Usually, they are only used as a second thought and I liked that after about the third of the book, then it started focusing on the swimming aspect. That for me is what made this a winner.

Miranda Kennelly is back and I am already begging for more! She never seems to fail me and I absolutely love it!


Welcome back to Hundred Oaks Height. Meet our newest protagonist Maggie; Maggie is pretty content with her life. She has great friends and has always dreamed of making the cut to compete for a spot on the USA Olympic swim team. After making a visit to her future college, she realizes that she has missed so much of high school because she lives and breathes for swimming. Stuck in a slump longing for the “typical,” high school experience, Maggie enlists her best friend, Levi to help her learn how to hook up. But what happens when things aren’t so simple anymore? When the lines between friendship and more become blurred? Will it ruin their friendship or become something more?

AHHHHH



Okay now that that is out of the way. Every time a book in this series comes out, I request or pick it up without even reading the summary because I Just know it will be great. With this being said, I have come to have very high expectations of Mrs. Kenneally’s books. Did she disappoint me this time around? HECK NO! This is by far my favorite book of this series. Don’t get me wrong, the original is still amazing, but there is something so refreshing and different about this book that I cannot quite pin point yet!


I have no idea where to even begin…this book had me cringing and laughing from the very beginning. I read parts of this book during my lunch break at work and I am so glad I was the only one in the break room because I was cracking up and had a goofy grin the entire time. The worst part was the really cringe worthy moments that occurred. I am that person who changes the channel at really awkward parts of a movie or tv show and flips back every few seconds to see when it’s over so I can keep watching. This book really tested my ability to read through these awkward moments I normally skip! In the end, it was so worth it! All the awkward moments are so cute and come together to tell a coming to age story about exploring the awkward things in life.

So let’s get into further details – Characters. Maggie is such a relatable character. I don’t know about everyone else, but I felt Maggie’s struggle. In school I did everything imaginable for my school and Maggie’s struggles are very understandable! Moving on to Levi J Levi was such a nice guy and throughout this entire novel, I do not think I was ever mad at him. He is such a sweetheart! What I really loved about his character was that he owned up to his mistakes. It is 100% to make mistakes as long as you own up to it. Which leads me to the character development in this book. It was very noticeable throughout the book and you see Maggie and Levi grow up in this novel.


As far as the other aspects in this book, the plot is very well written – it has a perfect pace. It’s never too fast to where you feel like there is insta love occurring in this book. I was so into this book it flew by incredibly fast! P.S.There is an epilogue in the back that you will not want to miss <3

If you are looking for a light hearted, fast paced contemporary than this book is for you!

Miranda Kenneally does not disappoint!
Coming Up For Air will leave you breathless, grinning from ear to ear and I cannot wait for more!

Miranda Kenneally has been a consistent author of ChristinaBooks™, even if I do bemoan the lack of any kind of diversity. The last couple books, however, fell a bit flat for me. They weren’t bad, but they also just weren’t memorable and they didn’t bring the intense shippy feels I come to Kenneally’s books for. I’d been starting to wonder if maybe Kenneally wasn’t so much for me anymore, after she went down from a 4.5-5 star author to a 3-3.5, but with Coming Up for Air she is back. (And when I say she’s back, just imagine the ‘for me’ on there. You may have loved Jesse’s Girl and Defending Taylor with all your heart and think I am cray, and that’s totally fine.)


Coming Up for Air feels so much like classic Kenneally. It reminded me heavily of Chasing Jordan, aka the OG, though don’t worry that it’s that book merely re-written with swimming. Obvs there are similarities. Maggie and Levi are best friends, and they’re going to fall in love, but it’s a very different sort of friends to lovers scenario. I do think friends to lovers is what Kenneally truly excels at, and though it’s not my specific ship-trash, I looooove when she does it. What is my specific ship-trash, though, is the fact that Maggie asks her experienced best friend to teach her about kissing and more, and then they start having FeElInGs, and it’s a hot mess of sexual tension. Basically anytime people are knocked over by waves of romantic feelings they were totally blindsided by, I am there getting my ship on.

Also, swimming is one of the few sports I’m even marginally interested in, so the swimming part was more exciting than the sports stuff generally is for me. Plus, I read this right around winter Olympics time, so the fact that they were both working to qualify for the Olympic trials made Coming Up for Air that much more exciting. Not saying I’ll be reading books about swimming without a bunch of kissing, but you know. I also really liked that Maggie ate like someone exercising ridiculous amounts and that the book was very much about HOW MUCH WORK is involved in making the Olympics. Like, this is super serious sports and not yay fun extracurriculars!

Reading has been a struggle for me this year, but this book I binged straight through, barely putting it down. That says something. It’s easily the book I connected emotionally with the most so far this year, discounting rereads. Though Coming Up for Air doesn’t quite reach top fave status for Kenneally books, I absolutely recommend it, even if you were a little iffy on her last couple books.

WHY DID I LISTEN TO COMING UP FOR AIR BY MIRANDA KENNEALLY?
Coming Up For Air by Miranda Kenneally is a book that I listened to because I wanted something light and easy to follow. Also I wanted to listen to a book via an app that I could speed up (hey there Hoopla, I think I love you). Let’s just say that the CD audiobook I am listening to in my car is excruciating. So, I needed a book that was going to make me ultimately happy and that wouldn’t bore me and that I could listen to at a normal NYer speed. Bless this book and bless Kenneally’s Hundred Oaks series for delivering exactly what I needed and wanted to listen to.

WHAT’S THE STORY HERE?
Miranda Kenneally’s Coming Up For Air is about swimming. Like the other books in her Hundred Oaks series, it features student athletes. I will say up front that I have basically read this series out of order and skipped some books, but it’s fine. This story is so easy to follow along with. Plus, there’s a few references to Catching Jordan but otherwise, it takes place years past that book. Okay so this book follows Maggie who is this elite swimmer who is trying to qualify for the Olympics team, basically. She practices before school with her best friend Levi as part of the practically professional level team that they are on. She also is a member of the school team and trains after school as well.

Maggie’s life is devoted to her sport and to getting better and being the best. Unfortunately, this means she has missed out on some life experiences. Maggie goes away for the weekend to her college orientation in California. After a really awful, hilarious hook up experience, she decides she needs more high school experiences. Maggie turns to her friend Levi for help at getting better at the art of hooking up. OF COURSE SHE CATCHES FEELINGS. Guys I am so here for this. Oh and also, Maggie has a rival named Roxie who is the absolute worst. This is important to the plot is what I am saying.

HOW DID I LIKE COMING UP FOR AIR?
I really loved Coming Up For Air. It is exactly what I wanted in a book at the time I was listening. It is light, it’s not that hard to figure out what’s going on. There are some really funny moments. I do not feel overwhelmed while listening to it. Plus there’s a specific scene with Maggie at the store that is hilarious — even better via audio — really conveys the awkwardness. Also, Maggie and Levi as a couple is complicated but sweet. This book was a balm for my brain and I kind of want to ditch all my other books and just read the Kenneally books I have not gotten to yet.

HOW’S THE NARRATION?
This audiobook is narrated by Carly Robins. I literally have nothing to complain about. The narration was genuine and well paced. The voicing didn’t feel off or wrong for the characters or the writing. I could speed it up (glory glory hallelujah). AND IT IS SHORT. Like the audiobook is about 7 hours-ish minus like ten minutes. THEN YOU SPEED IT UP 2X and it is only 3.5ish hours. I am so so so on board for this. Like, I was looking forward to listening to this versus my car audiobook. I got a lot of cleaning done around the house but barely any driving done.

I keep a look out for YA with female protagonists with a sport component - Miranda Kenneally is a go to. I like the focus and determination of the heroine, and her doubts about what she's missing out on and not experiencing. It ticked the boxes but didn't blow me away.

Whew! Coming Up for Air = Forever by Judy Blume + the Summer Olympics.

I enjoyed reading it and the love story was cute, but the romantic parts were pretty descriptive. Also, I liked the ending and was definitely rooting for Maggie in both her swim and love life. I do wish that I had reread the other Hundred Oaks books first, so I could enjoy the cameo appearances more. Someday, I’ll sit down and reread them all!

My review:

I’ve read other novels by Kenneally and enjoy her great character development. Her writing style was also easy to read.

However, I felt that the first half of the novel had too much sexual coherent for me as a reader. I loved the sections on believing in yourself as one of the main messages of the novel. Plus i enjoyed reading about the swim team and Olympics but the added in sexual aspect took away from my reading experience.

Despite that I’m still a fan of the authors characters, her writing ability, and the focus on friendship within the novel,


My rating: 3.5 Stars

This is also my first time to read a Miranda Kenneally. I got this from Netgalley. This is a sweet story of best friends who love the same sport--swimming and have fallen in love.

I think I signed up for this book because of the title. Very interesting. I, then read the blurb and it's even more interesting. So, the ending, I signed up for this one.

Maggie and Levi are best friends who are both swimmers and dreamed of playing in the Olympics someday. Their day is spent mostly in the pool practicing, school and then home. They are so focused on their goal and their training is rigorous. Discipline is strictly part of their daily life. There is no time for a relationship or any other normal things teenagers do. Until Maggie realized that she wanted to try some things before going to college--like making out. But how to go about it?

I admire Maggie for having the confidence and the trust in her relationship with Levi to even broach the bordering-on-ridiculous idea of recruiting Levi to take part in her quest to explore the unexplored territories of being a teenager. It was very gutsy and I think her belief that Levi would be honest with her was her assurance that she will not end up looking deranged or crazy or embarrassed. Though, the idea is a bit crazy but then curiosity won out. Maggie is lucky that she has a best friend like Levi who is just, maybe, as crazy as her.

Ah, Levi. I think he's my new book boyfriend. He's a great combination of a jock and geek in one. An amazing swimmer and a guy who likes to read Harry Potter on swimming practice breaks, is just so adorable. It's so rare to find guys like him who never fails to have a book in his back. Honest and a gentleman. He also loves his grandma. What more could a girl ask for?

I just love best friends falling in love. Especially, childhood best friends. It's just so romantic and just natural. And Maggie and Levi are just two people who are obviously going to fall in love with each other. Even their friends have just been waiting for it to happen.

This is a very sweet and inspiring story of friendship, trust, loyalty and love. It also talks of dedication, discipline and passion to one's craft. Like Maggie and Levi, in spite of pressures surrounding them, they kept their eyes on their goal of someday going to the Olympics. It also helped that they have a great group of supported friends and mentors who helped them stay on their pursuit.

One other important nugget that the story emphasizes is to always best yourself. Your rival is only yourself. Just focus on what you can do. Strive to be better than your last. Improve, even just a little everyday.

I give this book 4/5 swimming googles. A very light and enjoyable read bound to get you giggling and sighing. A story surely to make you want to take up swimming as another sport, either as a next hobby, a workout routine or a competitive endeavor. Definitely, this story will make you come up for air for the kind of friendship and relationship Maggie and Levi have. Truly one of a kind. Their friendship stood a test that have surely made other relationships irreconcilable.

Thank you Miss Kennealy for this inspirational romance story. I am looking forward to reading the rest of your books.


Most people are so busy thinking about themselves they aren't worried about other people. It's human to think everyone is always watching everything we do, but they aren't.
- Miranda Kennealy, Coming Up for Air -

Thank you Netgalley for the copy.

I inhaled this book as fast as lightning! It was just the light, refreshing, romantic read I needed in between some very heavy dark fantasy. I went into reading this book just wanting all the stomach flips and gushing to your hearts content, and I got that in spades. But besides all that, what I also got was an emotionally intelligent read. This took me by surprise! It was more than I expected. It had guts, it had emotion, growth, pain, willpower and ambition. So, what was a fun romantic read, was also a thought provoking, slightly deeper-than-your-average swoony romantic book.

The plot was a bit predictable, but it was an enjoyable read. Very well done contemporary YA novel.

This was the conclusion fans of the Hundred Oaks series were waiting for. It tied up loose ends and gave you an update about where your favorite characters are now. The friendship between Maggie and Luke was the best part, but also the most frustrating. I loved that they knew each other before jumping into a relationship, but watching them take each other for granted was painful. As always, the sport scenes were amazing. This is definitely a book for high school athletes who feel like they are struggling or maybe want some inspiration. Of course, anyone would be able to enjoy it and I recommend it to everyone.

A great conclusion to a great series. I devoured all of the Hundred Oaks books this year, and loved them all. Maggie and Levi were some of my favorite characters from the series. Their friendship, and then more, was a joy to read about. I found myself smiling and laughing quite a bit as I read. I can't recommend these books enough. I might try the audiobooks when it's time for a re-read. 5 stars. Oh and the epilogue was super cute!

This was such a delightful YA book and I enjoyed it from start to finish. I generally like most sport romances but haven't found any Olympic-related ones that I've enjoyed and none in the swimming category. But this one definitely fits fits both of those sections. The heroine was believable to me in why she was so...sheltered seems to be the word I would choose. But I also really enjoyed the interaction of the friend group and found the cast of characters interesting and engaging which is super important to me in any book. I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes YA or sports romances for that matter.