I really enjoyed this book! I found it easy to read, but not too easy that it was boring. It had just the right amount of excitement and jazz for me to keep my interest.

I though the characters were very well developed, and quite likable. Because of this, I thought it held the book together and made it very interesting.

Would definitely recommend!

This was a slightly different take on YA romance than I expected -- and I really enjoyed the angle that Fujimura took. Instead of a lot of will-they/won't-they get together, this story focuses on all the stuff that protagonists Jonah and Olivia are dealing with -- and how they balance all that with their relationship, as it develops. In a lot of ways, the romance almost takes a back seat to what it's like to be teens who are also committed athletes, and facing all the challenges therein while also trying to be "normal" teenagers with school, and social lives with other teens who don't have the constraints of competitions, practice schedules, dietary restrictions, etc. Some of the greatest tension in the plot comes from family-oriented worries, rather than romance. I'd almost say that the romance was too easy -- and yet, I think that the emotional tension and circumstances that Fujimura captures are under-represented in the YA genre. I hope that more writers follow her lead.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Every Reason We Shouldn't by Sara Fijmura follows Olivia Kennedy. Once a pairs figure-skating Olympic hopeful, she's now started trying for a normal teenage experience. Her parents still own Ice Dreams, an ice rink that is losing business, and she runs into Jonah, a speed skater who catches her eye. This leads to a romance, a new attempt at figure skating, and finding what she's meant to be.

I was drawn to this because I love figure skating in just about anything, but I have to say that I struggled with it. The book was quite juvenile, and with Olivia being 15 years old, perhaps that's fine. But the prose was juvenile, the word "extra" was used about a million times, and the dialogue was hard to get through at points. It felt at times too tidy and some of Olivia's eating habits and talk of her weight made me uncomfortable.

Rating: 3.5/5

For years I've been obsessed with Figure Skating. It's such an incredible sport that shows the balance between athleticism and artistry. I used to watch Disney's 'Ice Princess' over and over again and when the Winter Olympics aired on TV, I'd be there for each discipline. When I first read the description of this book, I knew I HAD to pick it up!

I found this book to be a very enjoyable and cute read and I loved that the author included very underrated sports such as speed skating and roller derby. The descriptions of each sport were vivid and detailed. I found Fujimura's portrayal of Olivia and Jonah's relationship with their respective sports to be balanced and I appreciated that. Yes, the characters do realise that having a sport take over their lives can be detrimental but at the same time, they love expressing their passion for their sport and their determination to do whatever it takes to succeed.

Read my full review HERE: mousethatreads.com/every-reason-we-shouldnt-a-review/

Received an Advanced Reader’s Copy from the publisher, Tor Teen, via Edelweiss+ and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! 

Every Reason We Shouldn't is a very special book, because it addresses a variety of issues and all of them manage to stir emotions in you and have you connect to the protagonists. I loved seeing Japanese and Korean culture and I was squealing at all the parts that I recognised (*looking at you KDrama*) and just joyous to see asian rep.

Olivia is a very very lovely protagonist and I think for a fifteen year old, she handled situations much better at her age than I would in some of those same situations at my age. She was ... alone in many ways and a lot of her very genuine problems she had to come to terms with on her own (due to circumstance) and my heart truly broke for her during those moments. I felt for her, I really did. I also love that she cut her hair, fierce pixie style. Jonah was a real darling. I honestly expected to see a mildly conceited hero, because of all that he'd achieved and at such a young age. But he wasn't. He was just a normal boy, who put it a lot of effort into what he loved and was finally living--even if only a little--the life of a teenage boy. I did love seeing the relationship he had with his parents and how it wasn't messed up like I'd expected it to be, given that his father was a large part of his athletic career. Added to this, I loved how Jonah and Olivia had their own balance, how understanding they were of one another's situations and had their own little world--all of which doesn't take away from the small hiccups in their relationship. 

Mack. My heart really went out to Mack, no doubt. Of all the characters, I think perhaps she was my utter and absolute favourite. Not only does she already have a lot of responsibility on her shoulders, she's also always always there for Olivia. So much so, that Olivia looks to Mack in times of trouble. But at the same time, Mack's shown as being very human, with her own moments of short-temperedness, loss and weakness. I really do hope we see her story next. Stuart, fondly referred to as Egg (I have to say that nickname was ingenious) was a very interesting character and ... I can't place it exactly, but I'm not sure if I like him or not, I just know I had lots to take away from him. 

My only issue with the book was pertaining to the first thing I said. The fact that it handles so very many things renders it incapable of handling everything well. Sometimes, some of the things have to be smoothed over a little too easily or handled very very swiftly to fit everything in. Because of the importance of each topic, I felt like I wanted to see the issues being solved; no, I needed to see it being solved because so much of Olivia's pain, I have felt too and so there was that little bit of unfulfillment that I experienced. But did that take away from how much I sniffled through the book? Nope-sie-daisey. 

Four stars! I would definitely definitely definitely recommend ERWS with all my heart. Sara *finger hearts all the way to you*. Though I will warn you, yes, there's humour, but there's a lot of emotion in this book. <3 Happy reading!

I received an early copy of this book from Tor Teen and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

Gonna start with this...

Dear Sara Fujimura & Tor Teen,

I am not a teen but if & when there is a sequel to Every Reason We Shouldn't, I would be more than happy to read it, host a part of a blog tour, write a review... all the things. This book was so freakin' cute and I love it!

Now back to the regularly scheduled review...

I used to be the biggest figure skating fan. I slept, breathed, and ate figure skating, figuratively speaking. I annoyed family and friends by talking about incessantly. But it's been awhile since I was deep in the throes of my passion (I took six weeks of lessons too! And flunked my CLOWN level test, i.e. I was 12 and the other kids were 5! So a couch-based fan, I was.)

So I requested an ARC of this book because it sounded cute and there were skates on the cover and I hadn't tried a book like this yet (with the drawn cover and clear young adult romantic intentions).

It was an excellent decision.

Olivia is the daughter of an Olympic champion pairs team. Jonah is a rising star in the short track speedskating world. They will, not a spoiler since it's on the cover, be involved in romantic shenanigans.

But there is so much more to this story!

Olivia's parents own a rink that is failing and Olivia is fighting to save it, and she rediscovers her passion for skating along the way. Her best friend is a college age, teen mom who works at the rink and is both an excellent surrogate mom, big sister, and best friend. And Olivia and Jonah end up with a firm circle of friends as they try to be 'normal' in high school.

I always worry these sorts of books won't have more than the romance, but this one has so much more.

It's funny, it's sweet, it's heartbreaking, it's deep, it's fluffy, it's sad, it's hopeful...

I'm probably not going to be a figure skating mega fan again, but I am 10/10 a fan of this book!

This is a really great behind the scenes look at professional skating that really gets into the grit and athleticism required from a young age (even younger than the two leads). It’s a fun rom com with a varied cast and some interesting secondary characters like Mack who is into roller derby and had a daughter either in high school or right after. Overall it’s light and cute. But I also wish this had been an #ownvoices story. (Fujimura is a white woman married to a Japanese man and wrote this story in part to offer some of the positive rep for biracial kids that she wishes had been available to her own children.) The story is fine and I can’t speak to authenticity on that front but I feel like at least it would have been something I’d have liked to know about in promotional materials. That said, this remains a fun hate-to-love romantic comedy set in a family ice rink. If you’ve been looking for something to fill that void for you, look no further.

First off, I want to start by saying that I really adored this book. It was such a fun light and fluffy contemporary (which are my favourite kind of books)

This story follows Olivia who has kind of become a washed up has been ice skater at the age of fifteen. Then she meets Jonah Choi who has started skating at her family’s ice rink. The two get to know each other and not only fall in love, but inspire one another to go after their dreams.

This story had so many strong loveable moments.

I really enjoyed the romance between Olivia and Jonah. They had such a sweet relationship really about supporting one another that I found so sweet and heartwarming. They just make one another happy and I really like it. I thought it was well developed and cute.

The friendships were also so fun and cute, especially Olivia’s friendship with Mack. Olivia and Mack have got to be some of my favourite female best friends I’ve ever read about. I loved how they had such a strong relationship where they always supported and were there for one another no matter what. It was really heartwarming.

The skating was such a fun aspect to the book. I loved all the skating moments and I thought it did a good job at showing that sometimes it’s really difficult to achieve your dreams but it’s still possible.

I wish this book was a bit longer as I found the ending kind of rushed. I would have liked to see more of the action that was taken for them to succeed. I also would have liked more of a resolve or a clear idea on how Olivia’s relationship is with her parents because I felt a bit unclear with how their relationship was at the end.

Overall, if you’re looking for a light hearted feel good contemporary about skating, I definitely recommend this. It’s a super fun story and I really liked this book!

3,5*
Pros: In-depth portrayal of what's the life in a young legacy teen in the world of competitive ice skating. Relevant insight on juggling passions, defining priorities and live up to expectations. PoC biracial leads. Interesting and well-rounded secondary characters. Funny dialogue.
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Cons: Bratty and selfish lead. Many loose ends. Romantic interest continuously downgrades female lead. For such a supposedly poor family, it was a huge turn off how perfectly fine food was constantly thrown into the trash.

Every Reason We Shouldn’t is a fantastic contemporary novel, perfect for fans of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before or Fangirl. Full of heart and determination, Olivia and Jonah shine with love for their respective ice sports, their families, and eventually each other. This book was such a fun, fast-paced read that had me smiling from page one.

Olivia Kennedy is already an accomplished figure skater by the age of fifteen. But an unfortunate incident at a past competition has put her Olympic dreams on hold. Jonah Choi is an incredibly devoted speed skater, also looking for a path to the Olympics. When Jonah starts training at the ice rink Olivia’s family owns, the two spark something within each other and help each other fulfill their goals and dreams.

This book checked a lot of boxes for me, especially in the romance category, and was such an enjoyable read. I loved Olivia and Jonah and how dedicated they were to their sports and how understanding they were of each other. There was a larger friend group involved throughout the book, but these two just really got each other and it was so nice to read about. The development of their relationship was also really great, from the friendly teasing in the beginning, to realizing how well they fit together romantically. I loved the exploration of all aspects of their relationship because it started early enough in the novel that it didn’t feel like instalove but they were also together for so much of the book that as the reader we actually got to see the relationship develop deeper and see both Olivia and Jonah grow as humans.

The skating aspect was great too. As a fan of the winter Olympics, I really liked the competitiveness of the characters and their strength and determination to train and meet their goals. If you love a great romance with POC representation in both characters and a fun sports/training story, then definitely pick this one up! It has a lot of heart and lot of laughter to offer.

*Thank you to TorTeen and Netgalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review. *

Olivia Kennedy entrenó patinaje artístico desde pequeña, prácticamente nació en el hielo. Sus padres eran patinadores profesionales que ganaron medalla de oro en las olimpiadas así que el deporte siempre ha sido parte de la vida de Olivia. Ella y su compañero cambiaron de categoría y no les fue muy bien, además su mamá sufrió un golpe muy fuerte que casi la tiene incapacitada. Al principio de la historia Olivia tiene 6 meses tratando de vivir como una adolescente normal pero cuando llega Jonah, un patinador de velocidad que está entrenando para ganar todas las medallas posibles, la llama en Olivia se aviva de nuevo.

Al principio no estaba tan invertida en la historia. Me tomó 3 días leer la mitad del libro pero la segunda parte la leí sin detenerme y al final terminó gustándome. Olivia es bastante joven y a consecuencia es algo inmadura pero poco a poco fue creciendo mi aprecio por ella. No tiene la mejor vida familiar, tienen problemas económicos y eso de ser una adolescente normal como que no se le da todavía pero la vemos crecer y darse cuenta de lo quiere para su futuro.

La relación entre Olivia y Jonah fue muy linda de ver. Fue cambiando poco a poco y de manera natural. Ambos son muchachillos de 15 años y actuaron de acorde a su edad y madurez. Otro personaje que me gustó mucho fue Mack, una veinteañera que trabaja en la pista de hielo que tiene una bebé de 6 meses y quiere entrar a un grupo de derby. Fue el personaje perfecto para ayudar a Olivia en su trayecto, siempre estuvo ahí para ella, la animaba y le daba buenos consejos.

El libro me hizo reír y sufrir con los personajes, me mantuvo enganchada con la historia y fue interesante meterme un poco en la difícil vida de un patinador artístico que quiere ser profesional. Estoy contenta de haber leído la historia y con gusto leeré la secuela.

Every Reason We Shouldn’t is a fantastic exploration of the impacts of young kids striving to become professional athletes. Olivia and Jonah must balance their desire to be number one in pairs skating and speed skating alongside being a “normal teenager”.

As a former figure skater and figure skating coach, this book just warmed my heart. Even if you don’t have a figure skating background though, I still think this is a good book that people can relate too. There is a good balance of plot on and off the ice and figure skating terminology is not overused and is explained when included. I also think anyone involved in a competitive sport can relate to the main characters. I truly appreciated that the author discussed the impact parents have in a sports setting in both a positive and negative light as this is such a big problem with sports today.

The only thing holding me back from a five star is a few points where I felt like there were big plot points left out that lead to a little confusion in the text and a few points where I thought nasty comments were made with very little repercussions. Overall, I loved the balance of the relationship with a few other deeper topics that made this both a fun and important read!

As a teenager who never really "fit in" but who got along just fine with my peers because I was happy with myself and didn't really care about what other people thought, my number one favorite kind of novel was about protagonists who didn't fit in and didn't really care either. You know how rare that was in YA fiction when I was growing up? Most heroines, especially if they had some God-given talent, just wanted to be "normal," which is about the most soul-crushing thing I could ever think of.

Fast forward several decades, and you have books like Every Reason We Shouldn't, with main characters who know they're talented and are happy to spend their lives focusing on pursuing their ambitions instead of mooning over how they don't "fit in" at the local high school. Don't get me wrong, Olivia and Jonas aren't assholes who think they're better than their school friends. They just have different goals and I 100% love how Sara Fujimura shows that that's okay. It's especially refreshing because their goals aren't academic either but sporting, which in a book about mostly Asian kids and parents is unusual but not at all unrealistic.

Anyway, Olivia Kennedy is the biracial daughter of Michael and Midori, an Olympic gold medalist pairs skating team who now own Ice Dreams, a rink in Phoenix, Arizona. An awful accident when Olivia was a toddler left Midori in crippling pain, tho she still puts on her game face in order to coach students now that she's retired from pro skating. Meanwhile, Michael tours with Olympians On Ice in order to help pay for Midori's mounting medical bills. Olivia and her own skating partner, Stuart Trout, showed a lot of potential at the juniors level but have struggled since graduating to the adult category. Stuart took off for college while 15 year-old Olivia quietly seethes at Ice Dreams, helping her mom and spending time with Mack, their jill-of-all-trades employee, who dropped out of college herself after having a baby less than a year before the book opens.

When Jonas Choi shows up, wanting to rent out Ice Dreams for his speed skating training, Olivia finds herself quickly attracted to this handsome, athletic guy who understands her in a way that the rest of her Phoenix friends don't. As they try to balance high school with training on the ice, their relationship strengthens... but more importantly, so does Olivia's faith in her own skating abilities.

ERWS eschews all the standard YA tropes to produce a delightfully lived in novel about a teenage girl determined to prove that she isn't a has-been at fifteen. Olivia isn't perfect -- she's mean to her mom over perceived slights because she's sensitive to her mom's true feelings about her talents, never mind the fact that her mother is practically an invalid -- but I found her exceedingly easy to relate to, especially since her pride is mortified realistically and often. Ms Fujimura is writing for her own biracial kids, so that they'll see people like themselves as the leads in contemporary literature, and I think she's done a wonderful job of creating complex, lifelike characters who represent their Asian-American heritages without being caricatures.

My only thing is that I don't really understand why this is the first in a series. The ending takes place a year after the bulk of the story, so unless the sequel chooses to focus on people who aren't Olivia and Jonas, I kinda don't get the point of the jump. I do hope the next book continues to focus on skating tho, as I haven't read a fun series on the subject since the YA Silver Skates novels way back when. ERWS is way better tho. It could be a little more tightly written in places, but overall, it's a really solid YA novel with excellent Asian-American representation.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free ARC version of this book in exchange for an honest review. I must admit, that I expected something different from this novel. I went into it thinking this would be a hate to love, enemies to lovers type story line based on the synopsis, but that's not what this was. That's not a bad thing, just not what I was expecting. Olivia was once an Olympic hopeful, but after a disastrous competition she's all but retired and is now working at a skating rink and training center run by her famous skater parents. Her dad is never around because he's making money on the road on tour and her mother is physically present, but mentally checked out thanks to a career ending injury. Their rink seems to be going downhill and the only person that Olivia can rely on is her best friend and single mom, Mack, who also works at the rink. That's when Jonah shows up. He's a speedskater and with the money his father is willing to pay in order to get him private rink time, there may be hope for family rink after all.

This is where I feel like there was a bit of misinformation. In the description it says that Olivia is annoyed with him and there's a rivalry, but really that didn't exist. From the moment he arrived, yes Jonah was a little much with his strict diet and training schedule, but the two don't bicker, fight, or even act mildly annoyed with one another. In fact, they seem to bond and get along from the very beginning because they both understand what the other is going through. Like I said, that's not a bad thing, just not what I was expecting.

Overall, it was a cute little story, but not necessarily all that memorable. There were a lot of things explored here: cultural and parental expectations, work ethic, single motherhood, horrible relationships, absent parents, peers who don't understand what you're going through, dealing with the possibility of losing out on your dreams. All of the characters seem to be going through something and I think that it's great the author chose to tackle so many different things that teens and their families deal with on a regular basis. Trying to find the balance between a normal life and chasing your dreams can be a difficult thing to do and I think that's what the author was attempting to convey. For the most part, I think that was accomplished, but some of this story just fell flat with me.

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<p>When I first found <em>Every Reason We Shouldn't</em>, I thought <em>Yes! A good ol' Asian Ice Princess</em>. And in some ways, this was exactly that. Olivia is "washed up" at 15, wants to feel the passion for skating the way she used to, you know, the works. Then, Jonah comes around with his gold medals and strict hard-boiled-egg-eating training regimen, and in short it lights a fire under her ass. Although there were some good pockets of comedy and the pressure to be #1 (especially as an Asian American), I was overall kinda disappointed. </p>
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<p>I loved Mack as a side character, and Olivia and Jonah definitely had some real blush-worthy moments, but I found myself bored in the moments in between. The major themes that I could personally latch onto were Olivia's internalized pressure of proving her worth (to herself, her parents, and everyone who knows her story), the added disappointment of parents who just don't pay attention, and what we have to be willing to sacrifice to look out for #1. The bones were there, but there were a lot of parts that seemed thrown together. </p>
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<p>At one point, the school goes into a lockdown and everyone is freaking out, but 1. it's not clear just <em>what is happening</em>, 2. Jonah uses that to say "I love you" for the first time (through text - very normal) and 3. the situation as a whole is used to show that Olivia's parents are just sorta absent. I see <em>how</em> this is meant to be a vessel for continuing development of relationships and such, but it felt <em>so random</em>, and unfortunately, not believable. </p>
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<p>One of the other things that I felt kind of iffy about was the representation. Yes, almost (if not all) of Olivia's friends at school are Asian. Yes, they are "those kids" who do homework at lunch and stress themselves out about extracurricular activities for the sake of college applications. There were a few mentions of Korean and Japanese food, and I appreciated the discussion about the Asian-American familial expectations and stereotypes, but that's exactly what it felt like, and I can't say I loved it? Don't get me wrong, it was funny as hell when both Olivia and Jonah wore make up and had to take it off before they went home, and the microaggression of having your last name mispronounced and having all the White kids make fun. I just think there were a few missed opportunities, especially with Olivia being half White herself. </p>
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<p>I definitely didn't hate it; there were some things that made me smile and kept me reading. <em>And</em> I felt sort of indifferent while reading, and I was reading just to read (and I'm stubborn and feel the need to finish everything I start), which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it's not the reaction I wanted to have. I'm currently reading an <em>amazing</em> nonfiction book about an Asian-American identity (which may be featured on the blog, so keep an eye out!) and I think that may fill some of what I was missing from <em>Every Reason We Shouldn't</em>. </p>
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I really enjoyed this quick-paced and heartwarming YA romance about two skaters. Olivia is a 15-year old figure skater whose attempts to venture into adult competitions has not gone well. She is now attempting to be a normal teenager by attending the local high school for the first time and working part-time at an ice-rink that her parents own. Her life gets more interesting (and complicated) when Jonah comes to train at the rink. He is a competitive speed skater and is all about winning. He also starts attending the same high school and naturally gravitates to the lunch table where all the Asian/bi-racial kids sit at.
I zoomed through this book. I liked all the little cultural tidbits that the author included about Japanese and Korean families, in particular comforting foods and desserts. I also liked that this book is so much more than a romance. It is about finding your purpose, your goal in life, but it is also about family, friendships and all of those seemingly insignificant moments that make our life worth living.
I do hope the author will return to Olivia and Jonah’s story. I could definitely read more about them!
5 out of 5 stars.
An e-ARC was provided by NetGalley.com

Every Reason We Shouldn't is a romance novel for the younger YA audience. It's a sweet story that tackles not only first love, but the pressure child athletes endure, as well as the struggle to find yourself after a professional failure.
There were moments in the writing that I found awkward - particularly some of the attempts to capture teen slang. But the only glaring issue was the lockdown scene. Avoiding spoilers, the scene just seemed to be poorly handled and arguably shouldn't have been included.
Overall, I did enjoy this book, as will any YA reader whose favorite Olympic sport is ice skating.

I love sweet YA full of romance, hearts, bonds and lots of love. Every Reason We Shouldn’t bring that and a dose of drama, but unlike most, it’s not just youthful or loving dramas.

Olivia and Jonah are just perfect together, they help each other to find their balance point and are not afraid to demonstrate what they feel for each other, in addition they bring the anxieties of competitions and demands from parents and in Olivia's case the lack their support.

I loved every romantic moment, I loved their friends mainly Mack. She brings a lot of humor and dynamics to the plot and I swear I want a book for her.

The only detail that made me a little sad was that I expected a better resolution for the story of Olivia and Egg because for me what happened between them was very serious.

I loved the Asian representation in this book. Very nicely woven themes and developed characters and a very clean teen romance that I enjoyed very much! I love the dialogue and banter and the situations are very relatable. Fujimura wrote a beautiful story about these two teens and their struggles in figure skating world. It seems that research was done very well as the author was not a skater in the past. I had some issues as a person in the medical field about the issues there. However, they are minor and did not distract from the overall story line which i enjoyed very much! I would recommend this book to my young readers.

You know I like books about hockey, but I also have a slight interested in ice skating, so this one appealed to me right from the summary. I haven't read a YA book in a little bit, but I thought it did the teenager stuff pretty well. Another blogger asked me what I was thinking about this and they couldn't stand the slang in it. I hadn't really noticed it before they asked me that, but it did seem to use "extra" a little too much. I don't think that was a deal breaker for me.

There is a part of the book where something happens at school that I felt was used as a plot device to move the love story along. I wasn't really a fan of that. Also, don't care if this is a spoiler, but TW/CW for people who have dealt with a school intruder before. I know it happens so much more now, but it felt like so odd to be added in this book.

I think part of why I didn't rate this one higher is towards the end it felt like it couldn't decided what conflict to work on. Olivia's mom not thinking she was good enough to skate or them losing the ice rink. It seemed to hang onto both of them towards the end and I felt like it was wrapped up a little too nicely.

I thought this was a pretty decent book. I had a few minor issues with it, but in general, I still enjoyed it.

*I received a review copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.