I didn't know what to expect from Full Disclosure, but it was pretty good! The book reads like any other enjoyable teen romance, but with a focus on deeper issues than what's usually in a contemporary YA novel. The main character being HIV positive comes with a lot more struggles than I thought it would, and while I know nothing about having any physical illness, I thought that what the protagonist goes through was realistic enough, though with possibly exaggerated reactions from the people around her - this isn't the 1980's anymore and I assume that society is more accepting of people living with HIV than they were forty years ago... but maybe not.

Anyways, I liked Full Disclosure a lot because despite the tough issues the story tackled, it was fun to read. The main characters' relationship was cute - and there wasn't any unnecessary angst with them, either! There was some drama between the protagonist and her two best friends, though, which was realistic given the circumstances and therefore okay. The love interest wasn't annoying; he was actually pretty likable, a trait that young-adult love interests don't always seem to have.

I would recommend Full Disclosure to YA readers who want a cute story that is important to read about and that has pretty good LGBT representation.

High school is hard enough, but HIV positive Simone has to deal with the ever-present fear that her new friends and classmates are going to find out. She already had to leave one school because of the fallout of someone "outing" her. To make things more complicated, there's a guy in her drama class (Miles) that has caught her eye. He seems pretty perfect, but she's afraid of getting too close to him, and then figuring out how to break her HIV status to him.

I really enjoyed this book. Despite a lot of heartbreaking events in her past, Simone is determined to move forward, be successful, and have a good life. Some of this is due to her awesome adoptive parents, who have her back, but some of this is just because Simone is a survivor. I also really liked Miles. He was so sweet, really the best fictional boyfriend I've read in a while.

It's rare to read about HIV positive teens, and I'd like to applaud Garrett for this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

“But I’m here to tell you that I’m not going anywhere, because I deserve to be here.”

Yes, you do, Simone. Yes, you do.

Simone Garcia-Hampton is a normal teen. She has finally started to feel like she belongs at her new school. She’s the student director of her high school’s production of RENT, a member of GSA, musical-obsessed, and interested in lacrosse player and backstage crew member, Miles Austin. And she’s HIV-positive, a secret she holds close to her heart. But when her and Miles become closer, she has to navigate the awkward landscape of dating and living with HIV. Things get even more complicated when she finds a note in her locker telling her to leave Miles alone unless she wants everyone at school to know she is HIV-positive.

The first thing you should know is Camryn Garrett was only 17 when she sold this book. And you can tell. It’s a book about teens written by a teen. The voice of Simone and the conversations between her friends, Lydia and Claudia, are so authentic and fully realized. Their curiosity about sex and identity is natural and something to be appreciated instead of shooed away as many adults think it should be. Teens talk about sex, and it is time we realize that.

This novel taught me a lot about HIV and the negative reactions people have towards it, especially the wrong opinions. I feel like I never learned much about HIV and the AIDS crisis, which is mainly my fault. There is always more to learn. Garrett wrote about Simone’s experience so openly, and I just wanted to hold this girl to my chest and protect her (though I think Simone is fully adept at protecting herself). I’m always grateful for novels that teach me something, and this one definitely did.

One thing I’ve always loved about teens is the nuanced way they talk, especially in today’s social media era. Garrett does a wonderful job writing conversations and the accompanying emotions. The way Simone sends a meme to her dad without any context, just because she knows he will like it. The nerves Lydia feels about picking up birth control for the first time with her friends there to support her. The sex-positive discussions between friends. It all just felt so genuine. I also appreciated the relationship Simone had with her dads. As someone who is close to their parents, it’s nice to see that sort of relationship depicted in a YA novel, especially when parents seem to be absent a lot of the times.

Also, I may want to blame Garrett a little for that “Cats” movie comment… I think jinxed us. Just a little.

Overall, I enjoyed this debut novel immensely. The character growth showed by Simone felt natural. The friendships and relationship were hopeful and uplifting. The jokes were funny, and the tension was perfectly timed and executed. Camryn Garrett is an author I will be watching.

5/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review this title ahead of its release date.

I was initially drawn to this book because the premise is not one I have read before. Therefore, I was intrigued. I was surprised to read it through and discover that it wasn't your typical "dying teen girl" novel. Not at all.

This book centers around Simone, who is an HIV positive teenager, who navigates high school, her sexuality, and dating while trying to keep her condition a secret. She's a first-time theater director for her school's performance of RENT and a musical buff. When she meets Miles, she enters the world of dating, all while dodging a mysterious person who threatens to out her condition if she doesn't stop seeing Miles. With gay dads, a broken-ish family life, that with being adopted and a person of color, she still powers through life. Her secret could be exposed, but is that something good or something bad?

I loved Simone's voice. As someone with limited education about HIV, and musicals, I have to say I learned a few things from reading this. Simone takes her health seriously, and she protects herself at all costs, and I think that is something admirable. She is a good example for teens reading this story. The plot moved smoothly, and all the characters, side, and main were distinct.

Some of the things that irked me, such as the eye-rolling, went away quickly when I reminded myself that I am reading about teenagers. What do you expect? Also, some plot points needed expanding on. The book could have had a higher word count, and I would have been OK with it if it solved these minor things.

I didn't know until I started to write this review and I researched the author, that Camryn is only a teen, which hypes me up so much about this book. One, because she is young, but she is so talented, and two, that I know she is going to be around for a long time and I am excited to read everything she has to offer the world.

This is a really important book, and I think Camryn Garrett is an author to watch out for. She's extremely talented and I can't wait to see what she writes next.

So, what makes this book so excellent? Both the topic and the characters. Simone is a bisexual Black teenage girl who is HIV positive. She had to switch schools after awful bullying at the last one because of her HIV, and now she has a crush on this guy Miles at her new school. But somebody is sending her notes saying that she has to stop hanging out with him, or the whole school will know she has HIV. Add some overbearing parents (who mean well but are super protective), turmoil with friends, and a whole lot of curiosity about sex, and you have a LOT going on in a single book. My copy was only 220 pages (which will probably be different in the finished copy).

I don't think any plot was left unsolved, though, and they all have good amounts of time devoted to them. I learned a lot about HIV and AIDS while reading this book. I was so frustrated seeing how ignorant people were to Simone, but in reality, I would be one of those ignorant people. That's why this book is so important, because it's going to help inform a lot of people. But the other, and most important reason of course, is that readers like Simone deserve to see themselves in this character. If people are going through hard times because of how people treat them, whether that's because of racism, homophobia, or fear of HIV/AIDS, they deserve to see that they aren't alone and they deserve to be treated with respect.

And sometimes it's well-meaning people who ask dumb questions, too. Like Simone's friends. They don't know what to say, so they ask some silly questions that rub Simone the wrong way. Of course she's frustrated. But her friends don't mean badly, they just don't know what to say. Hopefully this book will help readers know how to better navigate a conversation where somebody tells them something personal like this. Like I said, I learned a lot from it.

Speaking of learning a lot, I would definitely categorize this as a New Adult book because, well, there's a lot of sex talk. Simone and her friends visit a sex shop, for starters. And the main turmoil for Simone is figuring out how to tell Miles she has HIV, because she wants to have sex with him. That's a totally normal thing for teenagers to want to do, and she's really mature about it. She has to be, because she doesn't want to spread the virus, and obviously sexual contact is one of the ways to transmit it. But sex is complicated enough even when you don't have HIV. Poor Simone has a whole different side to figure out. Because of this, there's a lot of talk about sex and safe sex practices. Excellent thing to discuss, but I would recommend it for 15-16 and older. But I stuck it on my YA shelf too because teens do need to know about stuff like this. It should just probably be for the older end.

My one hangup is the first chapter, actually. Simone's fathers (she has gay dads) accompany her INTO the gynecologist's office. That doesn't happen, or if it does, it shouldn't! Unless the patient wants company, of course...but Simone doesn't. She can't ask questions about sex comfortably with her dads sitting right there. I mean, can you imagine? What's worse, and what makes my blood really start boiling, is that one of her dads cuts her off and scolds that abstinence is the only safe bet. Yikes! I get that he's trying to protect her, but that's not how you should handle the situation. Simone should be able to ask questions and feel safe and comfortable. I worry that readers will think this is a typical gynecologist visit. Please rest assured that your parent does NOT have to be in the room, and will be asked to leave.

I received a complimentary ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Disclaimer: I received an eARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Simone has always been HIV positive. Now seventeen, she’s starting over at a new school after her ex-girlfriend blasted that info to everyone at the boarding school. Now, she’s more determined to keep her status quiet, but there’s a problem: she cannot stop thinking about someday having sex with someone.

She begins crushing on Miles, and much to her surprise and delight, Miles is interested in her too. But then a note shows up in her locker: break things off with Miles or everyone will know she’s HIV positive.

Full Disclosure is a timely look at both how much progress has been made in the treatment of HIV while also looking at how much prejudice still remains against those who are positive.

chilling, magical, good time, i'm quite please this was published 3.5 stars what a beautiful cover also

An utterly fantastic contemporary tackling sexuality, complicated friendships, and living with AIDS in the modern era. Readers will be especially delighted by Simone's casual prose and her love for musicals, as well as the relationship she has with her parents. While light-hearted at times, Garrett isn't afraid to get serious about topics like sexuality and being positive. It's rare to see characters with any disability/status get to enjoy sex.

This deserves all the love.

Will be posted on Goodreads with a link included in about a month.

***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of FULL DISCLOSURE by Camryn Garrett in exchange for my honest review.***

5 BLOWN AWAY STARS

Born HIV positive, Simone lives in fear her classmates will discover her condition, like in her old school and she’ll be forced to start over again. Her overprotective fathers can’t protect her from school bullies. Simone has best friends, is directing the school musical and maybe a boy interested in her. Then a letter threatening to expose her HIV status appears in her locker and all Simone’s new relationships seem in jeopardy.

I love reading what I think will be a good book and discovering a groundbreaking masterpiece. I was shocked to discover Camryn Garrett was only seventeen years old when she sold FULL DISCLOSURE because this novel reads like she remembers the era when HIV and AIDS came into fruition, which I do.

Simone is such a complex character, brave yet flawed. She has every reason to distrustful based on her previous experiences, yet Garrett shows that Simone’s history doesn’t mitigate the pain her friends feel when she hurts their feelings.

My only issue was I doubt any doctor, let alone a gynecologist would want to give a teenager a pelvic examination with her fathers in the room. Most doctors would suspect abuse when parents insisted on staying, even if they knew the fathers. I get that the scenes were supposed to show how close to Simone the dads were and how blurry the boundaries, I just can imagine a doctor not at least suggesting the teen might want privacy.

FULL DISCLOSURE is a phenomenal, important book that would make a great classroom read. I cannot wait to see what Garrett writes next.

I was initially drawn to Camryn Garrett's debut YA novel Full Disclosure because its premise was one I hadn't personally seen explored before in a book - what it is like to be a teenager living with HIV. While this is not a topic that is relevant in the lives of most readers, it is an interesting and important one nonetheless. Author Garrett was inspired to write this novel after reading up on international adoption and discovering that one of Angelina Jolie's adopted children was the only child in that particular orphanage who did NOT have HIV. Garrett decided to explore the life of a "positive" adopted girl in her first novel, and Full Disclosure was born.

Full Disclosure follows seventeen-year old Simone Garcia-Hampton, the adopted daughter of two gay dads, on her journey at a new school where she is hoping no one finds out about her HIV-positive status. She is fresh out of her former school where her best friend betrayed her by revealing her status, and the results were disastrous. Simone, who loves musicals and has Broadway aspirations some day, is directing her school's production of the controversial show Rent, which focuses on a topic that hits close to home for her. While the musical has been getting most of her attention lately, one of the school's lacrosse players has caught her eye - Miles. As things begin to heat up with Miles, Simone's positive status becomes an issue like it never has before - how does she tell a guy she is interested in that she has HIV? To make matters worse, Simone has an anonymous stalker who is trying to bully her into telling Miles her secret or else her secret goes public.

It feels wrong to take pleasure in reading a book that explores such deep and often devastating topics such as HIV, racism, and sexual orientation, but I can't deny that Full Disclosure was an entertaining, albeit informative, read. Garrett has created a strong African American lead in her character Simone, and has written a compelling, touching story about what it is like to be treated like a pariah by a society who will never understand what it is like to be you.

On the other hand, while Garrett explores many topics that teens may be able to relate to such as sex, sexuality, and race, it often feels like she is attempting to tick off boxes to make Full Disclosure as diverse as possible. Simone's parents are gay AND a mixed race couple, her best friends are a mix of asexuality and bisexuality, and Simone herself is possibly bisexual too. I would have preferred to have seen diversity worked into the story more seamlessly as opposed to the entire cast of main characters having something about them that makes the stand out from the "norm."

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Books for Young Readers for a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I found the first chapter of this book to be problematic regarding the visit to the GYN Dr. for first time. Dad went with her, even though teen expressed her discomfort. Nurse said "We aren't going to do a vaginal exam today.." but then told teen to take off her underwear and put on gown. Dad was still in room, she changed behind curtain. Dr. comes in asks questions that are very awkward for teen re: sex with dad there, and then says we'll do the breast exam now with DAD STILL IN THE ROOM. A) if no vaginal exam, no need for underwear off B) teen expressed discomfort and dr didn't ask dad to leave C) teen should not be changing or have breast exam with dad in the room. The rest of the book has a lot of potential and addresses a very important topic. I urge the publishers to edit the first chapter to repair the issues. I would have rated this higher without those. My concern is that a teen reading this may think this is typical of a gyno appt, and it is NOT. This could result in teen allowing inappropriate actions at dr visit after reading this.