This is the friends-to-lovers f/f YA of my dreams. Iliana and Rhodes hate each other in real life, and for very good reason, but love each other online. The use of Alice in Wonderland as a theme throughout is sweet and it ties so much together. Everyone in the book is more than she or he seems. It has depth and heart and you will root for both characters at different times.

Excellent. Highly recommend.

I Kissed Alice has such an intriguing premise, and I had been looking forward to reading this for months. While it was an enjoyable read, parts of the story fell flat for me. I would have liked to see more of Alice and Cheshire developing their relationship rather than start the story with them already in love, and I would have liked to see the minor characters explored a little more because as a reader, I was not invested in how they contributed to the plot.

This was a cute enemies to friends story of Rhodes and Iliana. The girls both attend the same art school and they share a friend and a dramatic connection. What they don't know is that they are online collaborators for a fan fiction site for Alice in Wonderland under the alias Alice and Cheshire. Alice and Cheshire have fallen in love but have never met in person and don't realize that IRL they hate each other. This was a cute story but I felt like the first part of story had more depth to it. Overall it was a good read, I just was looking for a bit more from the IRL relationship development. Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

3.5 stars

I found the description of this novel captivating and could not wait to read about the crossover art school to IRL relationship between two frenemies turned romantic interests. The fact that the two halves of this relationship are queer, in the South, and making art together sounded extra intriguing.

While the Alice/Cheshire online relationship is pretty charming, I wish that had been bit more developed and expanded with some additional history. Instead, the first half of the novel centers on the extreme dislike between the characters IRL. For me, this back and forth went on for too long. I do enjoy Griffin and the way the Capstone story line evolve, but I found myself getting more engaged in the second half than in the first.

I have really mixed feelings about the ending, which I'll keep spoiler-free. The main twist felt a bit obvious, and I wish there had been an opportunity to work through and resolve that strange turn of events before closing. I'd have rather seen a message about the importance of friendship - not just romance - especially for a teen audience.

Overall, I did enjoy this, but I'd have liked more development of issues in the second half versus the first, a stronger emphasis on the friendships, and even a more solid infusion of the Alice components thematically (since they are so prominent in both main characters' art).