—Book Feature—

Together, Apart
A Collection of Short Stories
Various Authors
Random House Childrens
Delacorte Press
@randomhousekids
@delacortepress

Together, Apart is a YA collection of short stories about finding love during Covid-19. This reads like a time capsule of quarantine! The little details it drops such as: grocery pickup, 6 feet apart, dog walks, sidewalk chalk messages, gardening, anxiety, mask wearing, local takeout support, tiktok videos, murder hornets, and more; We’ve all been there!

The stories included are:

▪️Love Delivered By: Erin Craig
▪️The Socially Distanced Dog Walking Brigade By: Bill Konigsberg
▪️One Day By: Sajni Patel
▪️The Rules of Comedy By: Aurian Desombre
▪️The New Boy Next Door By: Natasha Preston
▪️Love With A Side Of Fortune By: Jennifer Yen
▪️The Green Thumb Wars By: Brittney Morris
▪️Stuck With Her By: Rachael Lippincott
▪️Masked By: Erin Hahn

My favorites were Love Delivered, The New Boy Next Door, The Green Thumb War, and Stuck with Her. ❤️❤️❤️❤️ Thank you to @Netgalley and Random House Childrens/Delacorte Press for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion. This one comes out tomorrow 10/20! Don’t miss this one where you get several amazing best selling authors all in one book!

First off, a huge thanks to Random House Children’s and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Is it possible to fall in love during a pandemic? Is it possible to fall in love with the boy next door, the cute dog walker, or even your roommate, especially when you can’t see their whole face or be close to them? “Together, Apart,” a collection of short stories about people falling for each other during the COVID-19 pandemic proves that love will always find a way.

“Together, Apart” is a collection of nine short stories, each written by a different author, that dives into nine different couples and how they manage to fall for each other despite the pandemic. These stories hit on different topics like moving during the outbreak, how restaurants have changed, wearing masks, and the worry of how to protect loved ones who may be at high risk.

Each story I had different opinions on, so I’ll list them all, a brief description, and my star rating for them.

“Love Delivered” by Erin A. Craig. This was all about falling in love with the pizza delivery guy. It was so cute and I loved them both. 5/5 stars.

“The Socially Distant Dog-Walking Brigade” by Bill Konigsberg. This story was about social distance dog walking and was sweet. ⅘ stars.

“One Day” by Sajni Patel. He plays the guitar, she wants some peace and quiet. Then she throws her shoe at him. 5/5 stars, I liked this one a lot.

“The Rules of Comedy” by Auriane Desombre. A girl finds out her crush is indeed gay, but how will she talk to her? ⅘ stars.

“The New Boy Next Door” by Natasha Preston. The boy next door is kind of quiet and a little stand-offish but he might warm up to her? ⅘ stars.

“Love with a Side of Fortune” by Jennifer Yen. She’s always liked him from afar but what happens when he starts ordering from her family’s restaurant more often? 5/5 stars.

“The Green Thumb War” by Brittney Morris. Who can grow the best plants and make the best stuff with them? ⅗ stars.

“Stuck With Her” by Rachel L. Lippincott. Falling in love with your annoying roommate? What...never. ⅘ stars.

“Masked” by Erin Hahn. He might be famous, and she’s giving up her prom dress to make masks. ⅘ stars.

Overall, this is an extremely cute and fun book to read, especially during the pandemic. Each one is unique in its own way and the book leaves readers with a sense of hope during these hard times. It’s a collection of refreshing stories where the characters learn about each other through simply talking because that’s all they can rely on. During some of the stories, they don’t even know what the other’s face looks like, which makes the connections they create that much stronger.

The stories are also a diverse collection, ranging from same-sex couples to couples of different races and ethnicities. In addition, the characters are all in different positions with some still working during the pandemic, some switching gears to make masks or doing other community work to help. They also tackle very real and challenging problems faced such as online school and feeling trapped with your family.

The Verdict

“Together, Apart” is an adorable and very refreshing approach to the pandemic and provides a hopeful feeling to readers. These meet-cute, short stories provide insight to how different people in different situations are handling the pandemic and how they are still managing to find love and see the best in people. It’s an adorable escape that’s filled with relatability that readers won’t regret reading.

Together, Apart is a YA compilation of romantic short stories that all take place during quarantine/COVID-19 pandemic. If anything, these stories include the details of day to day life that teens and families are currently experiencing. There are some meet-cutes but with COVID concerns and anxiety as a part of the stories. The stories include lots of masks, social distancing, following ordinances such as no dine-in at a restaurant, Zoom classes, getting groceries and meals delivered, concerns about parents who are at risk due to their work, all the things that are genuine concerns in 2020. These stories bring to light that many young people are experiencing anxiety, loneliness from not being able to see their friends, and stress from online school. Of course, they’re all (clean) romance stories so there is always hope at the end of each story, which is something we all need right now.

💕 My favorite stories were The Green Thumb War, One Day, and Love, Delivered.

This was a cute collection of YA stories about connecting and finding love in quarantine. I definitely found myself getting invested just as each story was ending, and wanting more. I know that the global pandemic doesn't lend itself to physical affection with people outside your household, but I found myself getting frustrated that these teens were all declaring their feelings and then unable to kiss or hug or even hold hands. The endings sort of left something to be desired...I'm glad they're taking the pandemic seriously, but I hope if these are ever extended, these couples find a way to be closer than 6 feet apart.

I loved the short stories in the book. Each story took on the idea of finding love during these hard times of COVID. I didn’t expect to like them so much especially since COVID took over these past few months. I especially appreciated how uplifting the stories were that I felt hope. Hope that those can find love during these hard times and to not give up on the universal gift of love. I didn’t want some of the stories/ novellas to end, they were that amazing. So I plan to read more from those authors. I highly recommend reading this book, if you’re looking for a short, sweet, and adorable stories of love. You won’t regret it.

I received this ARC from the publisher and Netgalley for my honest review. Thank you for my copy.

I don't know that I was necessarily ready to read anything set in the age of COVID-19 yet, but these meet cute novellas were more fun than I was expecting. They were short but sweet stories of high schoolers meeting during this strange time. Like I said, they're meet cutes, so not really an entire romance. I liked them all, but Erin Hahn's Masked was my favorite. I've become a fan of Erin Hahn's writing this year and I adored this meet cute. I would have loved to read an entire book about Gray and Jude.

I've been obsessed with Short Story collections since I became a librarian. I love how they can be a bridge between worlds. I love selling them to kids, because they are like little tv episodes that introduce you to characters and authors that you will love.

This definitely goes for this new book #togetherapart love stories during quarantine. These are the type of stories I wanted to have during quarantine and these authors definitely delivered!! @erinhahn_author and all the others! Masked was one of my favorites!

What a lovely bundle of delicious short quarantine romcom stories to get lost in! Heartwarming, sweet, funny, entertaining!

Some of them are hmmm okay (Delivered by Erin A. Craig, so sorry I hated the guts of heroine! Bill Konigsberg ‘s “ Socially Distance Dog and Walking Brigade” and “ Rules of Comedy “ centered on five minutes Tik Tok challenger heroine from Auriane Desombre were Switzerland read- neither I enjoyed nor I hated it!)

My less favorite one was unfortunately Natasha Preston’s New Boy Next Door( Normally I love her books but this story rubbed me a little! Not my cup of Irish Whiskey)

My favorites: Love with a side of fortune / Jennifer Yen, Sajni Patel’s One Day , Masked/ Erin Hahn

And my winners: Rachel Lippincott’s charming roommates’ romance story “ Stuck with her” and Brittney Morris’ Green Thump War ( I think this was the most adorable one with lovely characters. I actually enjoyed soooo much and reread it)

Overall: I’m rounding up my 3.5 stars to 4 as an average! This was so much fun to read those brilliant authors’ feel good, humorous stories with mostly charming and lovely characters!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Children’s/ Delacorte Press for sharing this reviewer digital copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.

This was everything I've needed to stay sane and happy during lockdown. Nine acclaimed, witty, and popular YA authors did what they do best and wrote short stories starring diverse and complex teens facing the pandemic, lockdown, and adorable first love stories. Each story was equally compelling and told a complete story with an interesting protagonist who learns that love always finds its way. The characters and storylines are all relatable, endearing, and engaging which make the story so much fun, authentic, and beyond precious that I just want more content and updates to each one! There's something for every romance fan, and it's just absolutely adorable and heart-melting. They are all so freaking cute in their own way between the love stories and the HEAs, and I'm obsessed and just want more of each story. Also, a lot of these characters' parents are essential workers, so this short story collection is a nice shoutout to the true heroes of the pandemic. Woohoo, three cheers!! Such a fun read, I very much enjoyed every single page and pouring over these precious first loves.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

Together, Apart was the cutest compilation book I’ve ever read. I love a good romance and this has a bunch of short romance stories all packed into one. The representation was on point. The pacing of each short story was great. Some of them, I couldn’t get enough of! They were heartfelt, well thought out, and so sweet.
Just the idea of putting together stories of what it’d be like to meet someone during the pandemic was such a fun each idea! Each author blew me away in different ways, but I loved each story. If you’re looking for a quick, heart warming read- this is for you!

I really enjoyed this book! Some stories fell a little short, but overall it was a great collection. It’s interesting and different to read romance stories set in quarantine, and I found it very uplifting!

This was just such a cute, easy read, and made my heart beam. Every short story flowed so nicely, and it made me see some kind of good in the current situation of the world. I think it was definitely light-hearted, and very Rom-Com like. I'd highly recommend this!

Together Apart is a compilation of short stories, and love during quarantine and Covid-19. All of us have been in quarantine for so many months, so it was so nice to read a book about people meeting and developing relationships. I haven’t had my meet-cute yet, but I still have my hopes!

Love Delivered by Erin A. Craig 5/5 stars

Super cute! Sure it was kind of insta love, but that is what I’m expecting due to this being a collection of short stories. I loved all the little nods to the Corona virus, and it was all so relatable. In between the social distancing parties, the awkwardness when talking to people (trying to yell across six feet apart), delivery, school being canceled, and not being able to meet people, most of us have experienced something. As a student who had school canceled, Millie was super relatable, and her meetings with Luca were adorable.

The Socially Distant Dog Walking Brigade by Bill Konigsberg ⅗ stars

First off, I absolutely love the title, but that’s about all I can say about this one. While I enjoyed the insta love in the first one, it was a bit too much in this one. We got way too many descriptions of Daxton’s hotness, way too early in the story. The way Kaz talked also irritated me, because while I understand that he was anxious, there were way too many mid sentence periods that just threw off the flow of the story. I loved the idea, and while I found it relatable, the execution just didn’t work with me.

One Day by Sajni Patel 5/5 stars

This might’ve been my favorite story so far. It was just so darned cute!! I mean, I’ve gotten the urge to throw my shoe at people, but Bobby actually went the extra mile and did! And of course, Neal kept it hostage, which led to the cutest exchanges. (you’ll see that this book and review has a recurring theme of cuteness) I could totally emphasize with Bobby, hoping that one day she’d be able to get out again, because I’m sure that everyone is feeling that way during this pandemic!

The Rules of Comedy by Auriane Desombre ⅘ stars

Like all of the rest of these little stories, this one was cute. I really loved getting to see a bit more of a sibling relationship, and seeing how short everyone’s temper has gotten during corona. I definitely know how easy it is to get irritated with family when you’re stuck inside all day with them! I guess my main problem with this story was that it was too short for any of the characters to get much development. I didn’t immediately attach to Harp, so while I liked the story, I just wasn’t dazzled by it,

The New Boy Next Door by Natasha Preston ⅗ stars

The second half of this - great. The first half - not so much. I’ve never been great at dealing with characters who are obsessed with their love interests, so clearly, this story wasn’t for me. Instead of being cute and relatable, Quinn’s obsession with Archer was just kind of creepy. And when they started having confession time, I had to put the book down. It just felt like too much, way too soon.

Love With A Side Of Fortune by Jennifer Yen ⅘ stars

Once again, this one was a bit too obsession like for me. That being said, I loved how different it was from the others. Having a fortune teller, and the fortune looming over Michelle’s head was an interesting conflict, and I loved her mom’s overreactions. So,while I enjoyed this story, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the romance.

The Green Thumb War by Brittney Morris 5/5 stars

I really loved this little story. First of all, a gardening war. How much cuter can things get?? I know that a lot of people have gotten into gardening over quarantine, and to be honest, this story made me want to go plant my own mini herb garden. Both Sebastian and Billie were absolutely adorable, and I loved the dog vs. cat thing that went on. (in my mind, Ruby came out on top every time) I loved how neither character was immediately in love with the other, it started off as a flirtatious friendship, and developed from there.

Stuck With Her by Rachael Lippincott ⅗ stars

Don’t get me wrong, I love a good enemies to lovers relationship. Problem is, those require page time, chemistry, and the loveable feuds. This story tried to do enemies to lovers, but instead it came off as insta love. Our characters got together way too fast, and we didn’t get to know either of them very well. Although I didn’t like the romance, I loved the story being told from two feuding roommates, it’s definitely something I can see happening during this mess,

Masked by Erin Hahn 5/5 stars

This was literally the cutest!! (There’s that word again) I loved the (kind of) slow burn romance, and the way they met was just so darn adorable! I’m not even going to pretend that I wasn’t smiling like a maniac the entire time, because saying I wasn’t would be a lie. You have no idea how hard I was rooting for these two to get together, and the way everything worked out was just perfect.


I get that these are short stories, and short stories aren’t everybody’s thing. To be honest, I didn’t think they were my thing either. This book definitely taught me that if they’re done right, I’ll love them! This was just what I needed during the endless days of online school and quarantine. I’d definitely recommend this!

Thanks to all of the authors featured, and Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review

When COVID-19 first hit, I remember thinking, "there are going to be so many books about this." And I didn't mean anything professional, I meant fictional accounts. I figured that this book would be even better to read once I no longer had to worry about the virus, and I'm sure it will.

In "Love, Delivered" by Erin A. Craig, Millie has just moved into a remote new house with no cable or Wi-Fi. Her parents, who work in a hospital, are always home late, so her sort-of escape is the cute pizza delivery boy, Luka.

In "The Socially Distant Dog-Walking Brigade" by Bill Konigsberg, Kaz bonds with the new boy in town, Daxton, over walking their dogs, and soon realizes that their connection is more than friendly.

In "One Day" by Sajni Patel, Bobby communicates through dry-erase board messages with the guitar player, Neal, on the balcony across from hers, much to the entertainment of their neighbors.

In "The Rules of Comedy" by Auriane Desombre, Harper watches her crush, Alyssa, come out as gay on TikTok and go viral, so she enlists her older sister, Eve, to help get closer to her.

In "The New Boy Next Door" by Natasha Preston, Quinn hopes to get closer to her new neighbor, Archer, at her neighborhood's street party.

In "Love with a Side of Fortune" by Jennifer Yen, Michelle connects with her classmate, Evan, at her family's Chinese restaurant, defying her mother's superstition.

In "The Green Thumb War" by Brittney Morris, an incident with their pets brings Billie and Sebastian together, as well as their interests in gardening.

In "Stuck with Her" by Rachael Lippincott, Allie is coming to terms with her new feelings for her previously hated roommate, Mia.

In "Masked" by Erin Hahn, aspiring costume designer Gray starts making masks to sell, all while discovering that her new online friend Jude is actually a super-famous reality TV show contestant.

I would read all of these stories as full books, especially the last two. Maybe I'll have my own story about it once it's over.

I liked that these were relevant to the times that we are in right now. Some were really great and others not so much. I understand that everyone has different opinions about what is going on during this pandemic, but I think these stories are ones that can help take your mind off your own situation for a short while.
I didn't agree with how everyone handled the pandemic throughout these stories, but it's a very true view because everyone is handling it differently.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!

Love, Delivered by Erin A. Craig
- 2 stars
- I lowkey hated the mc and this just felt super shallow.

The Socially Distant Dog-Walking Brigade by Bill Konigsberg
- 3 stars
- IDK this was just kind of weird. I also have zero patience for hearing about how characters want to take their masks off. Additionally I think the mc repeated something his mom said misgendering his ex and I think that was super unnecessary.

One Day by Sajni Patel
- 4 stars
- this story was super into following quarantine precautions and I so appreciated it. Also they were just pretty cute.

The Rules of Comedy by Auriane Desombre
- 3 stars
- She goes viral on TikTok within 5 minutes, which was just way too farfetched. There was no good narrative reason for that, so why? That's now how it works.

The New Boy Next Door by Natasha Preston
- 2 stars
- The mc was born in 2003, but is apparently a Twihard. There were just way too many twilight references in this story, and then they watch it together unironically?? yikes.

Love with a Side of Fortune by Jennifer Yen
- 3 stars
- This was cute, but the mc hugged one person outside her social distancing bubble and touched hands with a different one :/

The Green Thumb War by Brittney Morris
- 5 stars
Yessss. This was just all around great. Their romance was super cute. The writing was great. And they followed safety precautions.

Stuck with Her by Rachael Lippincott
- 4 stars
And they were roommates!!! But minus points for mentioning murder hornets when this doesn't appear to be set in Western Washington.

Masked by Erin Hahn
- 4 stars
This was pretty cute if a little farfetched.

So I didn't realize it was supposed to be a meet-cute quarantine collection of stories because I got a little annoyed about halfway through that it was just romantic meet-cutes with the backdrop of this historical (yet for us contemporary) event that is rocking the entire world. But once I realized it, I got over that it was just romantic short stories and rolled with it.

Of course some were stronger than others and I was particularly in love with the ending of the pizza delivery short story.

However fleeting some of the stories will be, it is a moment in time, a slice of life. The inclusion of social media like TikTok will absolutely date it, but so will COVID 19 of 2020 so it's a wash. Whether it's food or dogs or a missing shoe, taken at face value it's a good collection, but when I started I was also thinking: are we ready for this just yet? I resolved to be but for some who are experiencing more of the traumatic elements of mental health and isolation, it might not be the time.

A great collection of short stories with a wide-array of quarantine experiences and different YA voices. I have a difficult time with short stories, in general, because I don't always have enough time to get invested in the character and story before it is over. That being said, I have a couple highlights. The interplay between Guitar Boy and Shoe Thrower in "One Day" by Sajni Patel was hysterical. The romance in "The New Boy Next Door" by Natasha Preston was sweet but, also, disappointing since Preston appears to write psychological thrillers so I can't read anything else by her. I laughed so hard when reading "The Green Thumb War" by Brittney Morris over the cat incident. And, the fan-girl moment in "Masked" by Erin Hahn was super swoony.

Nope. DNFing after one story. I can see where this might be comforting or cathartic for some, but I can't read COVID-themed meet-cutes. People are dying, and it's likely to get worse before it gets better. I think we're better off letting the dust settle on a pandemic that kills over a million people before turning it into fodder for romance stories.

Usually with a book of short stories, some fall flat. Not in Together, Apart. All of the stories were cute and fun. They portrayed the early days of the quarantine realistically.