4.5 Stars.

I couldn’t put this one down for more than 10 minutes, I loved it!

The story didn’t go how I expected it to but that made me end up loving it even more.

Great representation, funny and such an adorable romance! Enjoyed this one so much.

I absolutely loved this book. As a bisexual female, who was in love with my female best friend, and now dating a straight cismale, I have never related so much to a character.

Darcy Phillips runs an advice service out of one of her school's empty lockers. No one knows it's her, which is naturally how she would prefer it. And then, one day, she's caught by Alexander Brougham. He needs advice on how to get back together with his now ex-girlfriend, and, well Darcy really can't say no, can she?

Honestly, I tend to stay away from straight up romances. The genre itself is a mix bag for me, but I am so, so, so glad I read this. There are so many great topics in this book: biphobia, setting boundaries, questioning asexuality and the pressure of having sex. Darcy's advice is something I wish I had when I was in high school (hell, I wish I had it now).

The hardest hitting elements of this book was the discussions of biphobia and the internalized biphobia. Despite having been known I was bisexual since a young age, I have mostly dated straight cismales. Fitting into queer spaces had always felt awkward for me. After all, here I am, saying I love women, and yet I'm dating a man. I haven't had the discrimination against me for "taking the easy way" or for "passing" or for "not being queer enough." but I have heard the stories from friends over the years, and shied away. This topic is so important to discuss and the way this book discussed it had me in actual tears.

Darcy and Alexander are cute together. It's not necessarily an enemies to lovers trope, more of a "severe annoyance/moderate dislike to lovers", but I loved it. I loved the mutual pining and, as I call it, "idiots in love" syndrome where they both are ultimately oblivious to the other's feelings.. The representation in this book is really outstanding,

4 stars of adorable ness for this late YA rom com with a panoply of sexualities and lots of heart. The basic premise of a girl who takes on the role of relationship expert for her school allows the author to throw in some great basic advice on boundaries and respect, but it felt organic to the story. I adored the hero, and enjoyed the friendships as well. A little twee and young for me, but if I were under 25 it might hit five stars for me. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for this unbiased review.

oh my god i’m shaking!! this was incredible!! the bi representation? the relationship advice? the straight boy that i somehow managed to care about? perfection. cannot wait for the day this book comes out and more people can experience this adorable wonderful story.

one tiny caveat: some random australian terms here and there? did not hinder my reading experience but it was a bit jarring the first couple times

Bi-rep! Disneyland! Hate to love troupe! my god, this book is pure chaos and drama. I loved this ya rom-com. Darcy has a secret! She controls the letters in locker 89! No one knows it's her answering love questions until she gets caught by Brougham! In order to keep her secret, Darcy agrees to help Brougham win his girlfriend back. The tension and banter between these two is hilarious. I was laughing throughout this whole book! I can not wait to get my hands on physical copy of this one! A total gem!

Overview:
This story follows Darcy (I love this name), a bisexual girl who may go unnoticed in the halls of her school, but who hides a big secret. So Darcy goes to this school, but not just to study, because she also runs a "small" business where the students leave letters attached to $10 dollars in an abandoned locker just to get her personal advice. No one knows she is that person, only her older sister. Until now, because Alexander Brougham just discovered her by removing the letters from the locker. So he proposes a deal. He won't say anything about her identity, in exchange for her being his personal dating coach so he can get his ex-girlfriend back. And she accepts it, bc no one can know it's her, especially her best friend, Brooke.

As a YA novel, it highlights the normality with which the characters accept their homosexuality or bisexuality. It has both LGBTQ+ and heterosexual characters. And it deals with issues such as adolescent relationships, gender roles, LGBTQ+ visibility and phobias.

The love component is very important, with an undecided Darcy who is involved in a very particular kind of love triangle, with a girl and a boy. But not just any girl, she's in love with her best friend Brooke. Soooooo exciting.
And about the boy, well... I think I don't have to tell you, it's very obvious who he is. But you are going to love him, he is an idiot, but a very cuuuute idiot.

I loved reading this book, and if you give him a chance, it will be hard for you not to fall in love with some of the characters, the main characters like Darcy, Alexander and Brooke, or his sister Ainsley or his friends like Finn and all the Q&QC.

There are only a few novels where bisexuality is the main character. And Perfect on Paper is one of them.

I loved this book! It has all the fun interactions of a typical high school, but with a fun twist. Lot's of coming of age and relationship fun to appeal to many readers. A little mature for my middle school readers, so not recommending it for below 9th grade. Title is perfect as the main character can give out advise freely, but can't follow her own advise when it comes to her own life and realationships.

ReviewI really enjoyed this YA story of romance, friendship and family. Fun characters and an inclusive storyline that was thoughtfully done.

*ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My heart has bursted several times and I am in love with this book! Wow! It's exactly what I needed to read.

I don't know how to review this - and tbh I feel like this every time - but when a book has a special place in your heart because of how much you connected to it, it makes it that much more difficult.

I loved Darcy and Alexander on so many levels individually and as couple! The development of the relationship between them feels very natural and real. Definitely one my favorite YA couples.
This books covers internalized biphobia so thoroughly it was great to see in contemporary young adult.
Perfect on Paper is wonderfully queer, all of the characters were distinct and well-rounded.

Gosh, I wish there were many more pages! I cannot wait to reread this again!

I received a copy of this book from Wednesday Books and Netgalley.

This book is such a fun, comforting read. I wasn't expecting it to cover internalized biphobia so thoroughly but it was such a pleasant surprise. That's really the only spoiler I'm going to give for this delightful book, but I loved every page!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this novel early.

Warning light spoilers


This book is completely 100% a LGBTQ+ book.
But most of all this was a book for bisexuals with internalized biphobia.

And Oh my goodness I loved it for that.

To get a little personal, I'm a bisexual female in a relationship with a man. The internal struggle that Darcy feels in this novel hit me in a very strong way. I cried during a scene near the end. I have never felt so valided by something I was reading before.
Anyways...
As I said at the beginning this book is VERY Queer. It has a large assortment of characters across the LGBTQ+ board. And the best part. NONE of them felt forced or unnatural. Queer stories are filled with coming outs and transitions (And these are very important stories to tell!) But in this story, being Queer is already a big part of the characters identity. It was completely natural and just another part of who they are (like their hobbies or their hair color) and that was so refreshing.

I was so worried this book would be cliche. The premise of a person who has this big secret and then gets discovered by someone they don't like, and then gets blackmailed so their secret can be kept; it can feel over done. And sometimes the liar revealed section (and there always is one) of the story can feel very forced. But this book executed it perfectly.


All and all. This book was the perfect comfort read. And I would 100% read another book by this author (I didn't even mention that their prose was wonderful). And I will be reccomending this book to some friends when its released next year.

This is one of the best #LGBTQIA books I’ve read and an excellent YA novel. You know a book’s got you hooked when you actually care about the characters, when you’re rooting for them even when they do something stupid and when you stay up late reading because you just have to know what happens. This book was all of those things and more. Highly recommended. I received an #ARC in exchange for an honest review. #NetGalley

This book is for the bisexuals. It really has the kind of bisexual representation we need more of.

Darcy anonymously gives relationship advice to students who drop letters into Locker 89, and her business is successful, perhaps just a bit too successful. When she is caught one day opening the locker by Alexander Brougham, he asks her for help with winning his girlfriend back, only this proves to be a bit more complicated than the relationship advice Darcy normally gives…

As I said, this book truly is for the bisexuals. For the bisexuals who struggle with internalized biphobia, who get told they need to choose a gender or get weird looks when they tell someone they’re into someone of another gender when they’ve mostly been having feelings for people of the same gender. It even addresses how people from within the community can unknowingly perpetuate biphobic ideas, which is so important to talk about. But it also celebrates bisexuality, with a main character who is proud of her bisexuality and who finds solidarity within the Queer and Questioning Club at her school.

The development of the relationship between Darcy and Brougham feels very natural. Darcy misjudges him initially but eventually finds that she was wrong about him, although she still isn’t afraid to call him out when he says something she doesn’t like. Seeing them grow both as individuals and together was so incredibly lovely; it’s been quite a while since I read a book, especially in the contemporary genre, in which I enjoyed the romance so much.

Let’s not forget about all the other important relationships in this book though. Darcy’s relationships with the women in her life are very important to her, and it’s always nice to see a book where the main character has important relationships beyond their romantic one. Her sister Ainsley is transgender, but that just happens to be part of her just like her being a YouTuber and fashion lover is. Her relationship with her best friend Brooke is arguably the most important one, even though it is complicated by several things, but I really liked the way this was all handled.

If you’re looking for a lovely YA contemporary with amazing bisexual representation, a well-written romance, complex female friendship, and fun high school drama in the vein of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, I would highly recommend picking up this book in 2020!

Whenever someone needs relationship advice, they know where to get it. They slip a note along with an email address into locker 89 where they then receive an email giving them a more detailed explanation for their problem. If it doesn't go well, they get a refund but that doesn't happen much. Darcy's advice has a success rate of 95%!

The person behind locker 89 at school has always been a mystery until Alexander Brougham sees Darcy Phillips opening the locker and taking its contents out. To risk her secret being exposed, she reluctantly agrees to be Brougham's relationship coach to help him get his ex-girlfriend back.

The diversity of the characters was done very well. Darcy herself was bisexual and is in love with her best friend Brooke Nguyen, who is lesbian. Problem is, Brooke doesn't know that Darcy has a crush on her. The inclusion of the Queer and Questioning Club provided a safe place at school for students to share whatever they felt comfortable without being judged and I loved that about this book.

This book is close to being one of my top books. I love how the author started some chapters with a letter addressed to Darcy for Locker 89 and a response following it. I thought that letting the reader see how Darcy responded to the letters added to the character itself.

I've been waiting to read this book since I came across it and I'm so glad I got the chance to read it! The pages flew by and I finished the book in no time. I can't wait to read what else the author has written!

I'm in love with this author's writing style and will gladly read anything and everything she ever writes. Following Darcy was a blast from start to finish and I wish we could keep following these witty, funny, and relatable characters. Looking forward to re-reading it soon.

Highly recommended LGBTQIA YA Contemporary read. When this reaches retailers - run, don't walk!

Perfect on Paper is a wonderful, funny, and cute rom com! It's very engaging and well-paced, and I flew through it. It has an entertaining but also interesting premise, with a likable lead character who felt a bit different - Darcy is relatable and more emotionally intelligent than you often see in contemporary YA, but she was still flawed, had relationship issues of her own, and made mistakes. I really enjoyed her dynamic with Brougham and watching their relationship grow, though both he and their relationship could have used just a bit more development and depth. Similarly, the subplot with Brooke was a little flat, but I'm relieved it didn't become a love triangle. However, the representation in this book is amazing and refreshing - both casual and serious, plus very inclusive, and the discussion of biphobia was so important.

This was my first Gonzales novel and I'm so excited to have found such an amazing author to follow! The story follows Locker 89 and it's 95% success rate when it comes to love and dating advice! The magic behind Locker 89 is Darcy Phillips, a researcher of love, dating, relationship styles, and personalities. You would think with all of the head knowledge she's acquired, Darcy would be a pro with her own dating life and falling in love, but she's actually never dated anyone. Alexander Brougham is a brooding, quiet guy with a cute accent and a challenge for Locker 89. Things go way off plan for Darcy when Brougham finds out who is behind Locker 89 and it stirs up old hurts, new feelings, and a huge lesson that sometimes love isn't black and white and the researchers don't know it all. Gonzales has a super relatable writing style that helps you step into the pages and walk down the halls with Darcy. Her characters are very well developed and her flow and pace are brilliant! I loved the fact that her high schoolers were more mature than some YA characters, but they maintained that fresh feeling of first love. I requested and received an advanced reader copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Pippa, My Secret Book Spot

All right, let us all take a moment of silence to thank the gods for giving us the most talented author, Sophie Gonzales. I LOVED reading this book. Perfect on Paper has a wonderful BI rep, tackling issues that BI people constantly struggle with, and it has also helped me so much to be educated on these said things. I found the type of attachments presented in this book highly informative to me in the way that I was also able to identify myself in the things that were presented. Yes, It was an informative and an educational book but it has also done its job on the romance comedy department as it didn’t forget to flutter my heart. Darcy and Brougham’s dynamics was so good, I loved seeing these two together, they made me smile so much.

*spoilers*
Aside from the different reps we got from this book, issues revolving family, school, and friendships were also present which makes this so much more a perfect book for teenagers to be able to relate to. The part where Darcy was being manipulative towards Brooke’s life was handled well, that kind of behavior was problematic so I was glad that after everything, Darcy apologized and has seen it by herself how the actions that she has done was wrong and how the people were affected by it. This is why I would honest-to-god promote this book to every one of my friends because this book dealt with so many issues and helped me become more knowledgeable in a lot of aspects that I haven’t known before. After this book, I would gladly read anything Sophie Gonzales writes.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for providing me an ARC of this wonderful book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I didn't think I would like the romance in this book because Brougham was kind of irritating in the beginning, but in the end it was pretty cute. The climax of the book definitely made me really emotional and the characters were all pretty lovable, especially Ainsley and Finn. The pacing was good, the plot was creative, and all the character relationships and developments were well thought out and executed. Overall, it's a cute queer teen romcom.

I can't decide if this should be 3.5 or 4 stars so I'm going to give Perfect on Paper 4 stars.

Darcy Phillips has a secret. She runs the advice locker at her school. The idea is simple; anyone who wants relationship advice slips a letter and $10 into locker 89 and they'll get an email giving them solutions to their problem. Things get a bit more complicated when Alexander Brougham catches her retrieving letters one day he convinces her to help him win back his ex. Desperate to keep her secret Darcy agrees and the plot kicks off. There's plenty of shenanigans that ensue and while Darcy tries to use her powers of advice for good you'll see that's not always the case. When Darcy hurts her best friend she needs to figure out how to fix it, all while making sure her secret isn't exposed to the school.

I liked Darcy as a main character, she was witty and entertaining. The queer representation in this novel is great and Darcy herself is bisexual and trying to navigate that while running her advice locker. One thing I didn't like about the book was that the plot was really predictable. It seemed obvious how everything would play out and I could see everything that happened from a mile away. While this isn't the worst thing I do like to be surprised and a plot twist or two is always nice. The ending was happy and I thought it was wrapped up nicely. The plot was a fun high school romance story and I laughed along with the characters. I had a good time reading this and it was a quick read.

Overall, I enjoyed this and think others would too. It's a cute high school story with queer representation throughout in several characters that feel real and relatable. The storyline of Darcy giving anonymous advice was great and I would recommend this!

Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. As always, all opinions are my own.