Rainbows and Sunshine
April 23, 2021

I really enjoyed this exes-to-lovers novel. But first, I've got to say that this is not a rom-com. The cover and blurb made me think that but it's a lot more intense.

✔Second chance romance
✔lovers-to-rivals-lovers
✔Childhood friends
✔Autistic MC
✔Trans MC
✔Dual POV

Reading this was book was like going through every emotion twice. I was angry, happy and sad. Jeremy got on my nerves for the majority of the book. Both Lukas and Jeremy are wonderfully messy and angsty and most of the time I wanted to scream at them to think. They make it so hard to like them but the character growth and development was really meaningful and by the end I could see how they are perfect for each other.

I loved the side characters, especially Sol. The friendships were great but I wish Naomi and Ben had a little more development than the Asian bestfriends. I also wanted a chapter with Lukas and Jeremy being a couple and just, I don't know, dating. The ending just feels a bit rushed.

But overall it was really good and I definitely recommend it but don't expect a rom-com, because I did, and it really surprised me.

TR: transphobia, deadnaming (not mentioned), homophobia, ableism, death of a family member, sexual harassment

*ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review

I've been waiting for this book for months and I was very excited to get confirmed for the arc. I loved our main characters, I got a bit confused in the second chapter because I didn't realize it was a dual perspective but both voices were very distinctive and I could always tell who was who. I think a lot of what I loved was how messy the characters were, which made them super realistic. Both Jeremy and Lukas were messy and angry and made mistakes, but that didn't make them terrible people, we saw where they came from and why they did what they did. I especially loved Sol winning Homecoming Monarch, honestly, no one deserved the crowns more than Sol and Naomi. I absolutely adored this book and how it gave us trans and autistic main characters, and Jewish, Asian, poly, lesbian, and other side characters.

This is a harder review to write as I have a lot of thoughts about this book.

This book is about two senior boys, Jeremy Harkiss, and Lukas Rivers who had been in a relationship for years, and friends before that. But they recently broke up when Jeremy announced his transition at the same time as Lukas is dealing with the death of his brother. Now in their senior year, they are competing for homecoming king against each other and have a lot of unresolved feelings for each other.

I want to preface this review saying, this is not a lighthearted, moderately messy romcom about a trans boy and a cis boy who used to date falling back in love after teenage drama. That was the impression I had of the book based upon the cover and blurb. But This is a serious, heavy book that covers deep issues, trauma, homophobia, transphobia, and ableism to name a few things. If nothing else, know that before going it. It might have changed my impression of the book knowing what to expect.

There is nothing inherently wrong with writing flawed, messy characters. Often they add a lot to books. But in order for those characters to shine, they need just as many reasons for us to fall in love with them as characters. And Honestly, I didn't get that with Jeremy. Or Lukas really, but particularly Jeremy.

Jeremy is a very selfish person. And part of that selfishness comes from being early in your transition- and to be seen you often act over the top and come off as obnoxious. At least I felt like I did in highsight. So I can understand it. But so often in the book people still flocked to Jeremy despite his selfishness and drama that seemed to follow every one of his actions. And I just didn't understand that. I had a lot of trouble seeing the appeal to his character in this book.

This is a spoilery section of the review but I had some serious issues with a couple plot lines as well- though in different ways.

<spoiler> I might be misinterpreting actions wrong but I think some of the things Jeremy and Lukas did to each other were pretty unforgivable. Especially Lukas showing the video of himself with Jeremy pre-transition to the whole school and displaying it like Lukas was some kind of legendary figure. I honestly found that so terrible. And in the end it seemed to just be forgiven and swept under the rug with the explanation of "A cis guy wouldn't understand why that was bad." It might be true but it's not an excuse. Honestly I can't imagine anyone doing something like that with my pre transition pictures and being able to forgive them.

Also I had issues with how a big conflict happened towards the end of the book when $8000 of school funds is stolen right before the dance I couldn't figure out how that was going to be resolved. But the book had it that they sold $8000 worth of Candles in a single day? Like honestly? That's a stretch even for fictional books. I didn't like that plotline at all. But maybe I just didn't go to a rich high school so idk.

I actually didn't hate the character of Philip existing. (Don't get me wrong I hated him!) But people like him made this story actually more real for me anyway. </spoiler>

There were several things I loved in this book and loved a lot! The character of Sol is wonderful, and they were great. I really liked the role they played in both Jeremy and Lukas' lives. The other side characters seemed interesting too- I really liked Ben and Naomi. I also really, really loved how this book showed what it is like to be early in your transition. I'm not a transman like Jeremy, but a transwoman- but a lot of similar dysphoric feelings can be understood similarly. And I thought it was portrayed so well.

I also loved the GSA crowd and their community they carved out. It made me happy to see everyone standing for each other there. With one exception, but that seemed very intentionally placed. I liked how that all was handled.

This book has a lot of really great things to say about queerness, sexuality, and showing what it is like to be a baby trans- and how truly difficult that is. But unfortunately I couldn't get in to all the major characters as much or the story so this was tough for me. 2.5/5.

<i> Thank you to Netgally and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for an ARC of this book </i>

This was one of my most anticipated books of 2021; it lives up to the hype. From the cover, I thought this was a romcom, but it's so intense and dramatic, much more like a teen soap opera than a traditional romance. The emotions are raw and all-encompassing, just like how I remember the stress of identity in high school to be. Conversations about homophobia, transphobia, TERFs, losing community, and building support are all woven into the plot, as well as the difference between people making ignorant mistakes and having malicious intent. The side characters are fleshed out and more likeable than the main characters (Sol is my favorite). So, so well done.

I really enjoyed this YA enemies to lovers and second chance romance story. I felt the two main characters were complex with motivations that were understandable. Because of the multilayered approach to both main characters, I found myself fascinated with the story and where their overall journey would lead. The author meticulously wove together a complex story that appeared effortless in the topics and personal stories involved. I enjoyed this novel and cannot wait for more from this author.

A brutally realistic take about queer love and the trans, high school experience, May the Best Man Win is a book that manages to make you care about and root for both boys despite the hurt they have caused not just to themselves, but also people they care about, in their determination to win the crown, proving just how messy and wonderful in their imperfection humans can be.

Such a good one. MAY THE BEST MAN WIN is not a quirky cute romcom. But not every trans or LGBTQ story needs to be cute or inspirational.

I really liked that we got flawed characters who felt so real and authentic, who made mistakes, who kept fighting tooth and nail against people who don’t want them to be happy or even exist.

This is an intense YA read, and it’s definitely an anthem for the trans, queer, and nonbinary people who don’t quite fit (or don’t feel accepted by) with the rest of the community. I can’t wait for readers to get their hands on this book soon.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC.

Jeremy just came out as trans just a couple months ago. It’s his senior year and he’s desperate for everyone to see him as the boy he is, not the girl that never really existed. He needs to be Homecoming king, to be seen as a boy in the eyes of his classmates, and to confirm to himself that he really is boy enough. He’s dealing with his own internalized issues as well as having a mother who is kind of accepting of who he is but is still struggling herself. As a feminist, she feels like Jeremy turned his back on her when he came out, no longer one of the girls. Jeremy just wants to be a guy, not a trans guy, just a guy. He doesn’t want to be singled out like that. Since he’s in the early stages of his transition, only three months into HRT, he doesn’t quite have the physical characteristics that identify him as a boy at first glance. Plus, he’s still in the same school, the same neighborhood, where people recognize him as what he used to look like.

Lukas is Jeremy’s ex-boyfriend. Jeremy broke up with him right when he was coming out and Lukas doesn’t know why. But he also wants to be Homecoming king. Maybe if he gets crowned, he’ll get into a good college. Maybe he’ll finally be good enough for his family, finally enough for them to stop comparing him to Jason, his brother who died just a few months ago. He’s spreading himself thin, between Homecoming committee, three AP classes, football, and trying to hold his family together, while also dealing (or not dealing) with his brother’s death and a breakup. He’s also struggling because he’s autistic, and almost no one knows. He’s failing AP Biology because his teacher won’t let him use a computer to take notes, instead making him use her own method. But he doesn’t want to tell the school he’s autistic and get an education plan and accommodations because he’s ashamed and doesn’t want to be singled out.

The story is told in alternating chapters, switching between Lukas’s and Jeremy’s point of view. I really enjoyed seeing the same events from both perspectives, as it puts their reactions into sharp relief.

Both Lukas and Jeremy hurt their friends immensely, using them and taking them for granted to get what they want. Jeremy is especially bad at this, acknowledging that what he is doing is wrong but putting off apologizing or justifying his decisions in such a way that makes them seem like the only choice. He’s so desperate to win the title of Homecoming king and he dosen’t care who he takes out while he does it, including his best friend, Naomi. Despite their terrible decisions, Lukas and Jeremy are likable, in the end. I definitely feel like I understand their motives, even if their actions were somewhat reprehensible.

There were so many things happening! The run for homecoming king, yes. But also Jeremy’s attempts to find new friends and cope with being a trans man. Lukas dealing with the death of his brother and his fracturing family. Naomi and her issues with Jeremy, how he makes everything about himself when she’s struggling, too. Applying for colleges: Jeremy wants to become a lawyer like his mom, attending Harvard and studying law. Lukas wants to go to Stanford, some big college that’ll make his family proud. Also, facing the transphobia at school. One of Jeremy’s old friends is super conservative, sure to join the army after he graduates, with a war profiteering father. Philip has it out for Jeremy, spouting transphobic nonsense, misgendering and deadnaming Jeremy on more than one occasion. Even physically attacking Jeremy. Philip inspires Jeremy, who is also student body president, by the way, to propose the revision of the code of conduct. The code of conduct as it stands doesn’t protect against verbal harassment, or sexual harassment. It barely protects against physical assault. It’s maddening!

Sometimes, tensions were dissolved too quickly. When I feel like characters would have been upset longer, the anger just disappears from one paragraph to the next, with no obvious cause. Also, there are a lot of conversations that are interrupted by internal thoughts, dragging what would have been a short conversation out into several pages full of internal reactions and flashbacks. The story focuses heavily on Lukas and Jeremy but their interactions are few and far between. It’s mostly arguments, sadly, not getting into the meat of their relationship until later, when everything was resolved so quickly.

I wish there was more focus on Sol, the trans non-binary person both Lukas and Jeremy are friends with. And Naomi, Jeremy’s best friend, who is Asian, as his her brother, Ben, Lukas’s best friend. Both of them deserved more than to be Jeremy’s and Lukas’s sounding board as regarded their fight for Homecoming king. Naomi, especially, did not deserve to get pushed aside as harshly as she was, not by Jeremy and definitely not by Lukas. Ben, at one point, is accused of cheating, and both Lukas and Jeremy let it happen, even though they are the direct causes of this misplaced blame.

Jeremy has some dangerous ideas as to what it means to be a boy, and I get that. You have to conform to societal gender ideals, to what society thinks a boy should look like. Like, boys don’t wear pink so Jeremy can’t wear pink or people will see him as a girl. He can’t claim to know how to sew because girls do that. He’s giving into toxic masculinity because he doesn’t want to be perceived as a girl. He also elevates himself above the other queer people at the school, particularly those in the GSA. He remarks that “they don’t even dress well,” showing how shallow he can be. He’s not shallow, not all the time. But he’s single minded and determined to be seen as a boy, no matter what.

I liked the two main characters, the inclusion of so many different queer identities, the variety of different relationships, and all the things that were happening. There was also an insane amount of resect shown towards Jeremy’s pronouns. Even when Lukas was speaking of Jeremy, something he did before he transitioned, he keeps to the same pronouns, with some minor stumbling in the beginning. The only time Jeremy is misgendered is when it’s by someone who doesn’t know he transitioned or when someone is being deliberately transphobic. Some parts of the story were a little unbelievable and tensions were resolved too quickly and easily at times but I was happy to suspend my disbelief to enjoy the story more.

My review will be posted on Goodreads and StoryGraph, with a blurb on my Instagram @bookish_bibliophage, posted closer to the date of publication.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for an e-galley of May the Best Man Win!

I loved this book so much. It's the only book that I want to talk about this summer! May the Best Man Win is unapologetically queer -- and unapologetically messy. I'm so glad that I was able to read this ahead of time so that I can shout about it from the rooftops!

A twisted YA contemporary about a rivalry to be crowned homecoming king that doesn’t shy away from letting its queer and disabled protagonists be messy.

Content warnings include: transphobia (misgendering, deadnaming though deadname is not revealed on-page, TERF rhetoric), ableism specifically directed against austisic people, threat of blackmail/outing, bullying, violence, teenagers getting drunk, theft, dysphoria, sexism, homophobia, harmful gender roles, autistic student being denied accomodations (though teacher doesn’t know he’s autistic).
Mentions of: sexual harassment and assault, racism, death of family member, child abuse.

First up, I want to mention that the book goes a lot deeper and darker and more twisted than the fun, upbeat impression the cover and description lead you to believe. Not only are transphobia and ableism ever-present topics, but both protagonists do some seriously wrong things as they become hyperfocussed on their goal of winning the homecoming king title.

That said, I loved that both Jeremy and Lukas were allowed to be this messy, make mistakes, be angry and toxic and mess up. Jeremy is a white, out gay trans boy who just started HRT, and he’s cheer captain as well as student body president, and Lukas is white, autistic, cis, head of homecoming comittee, and also Jeremy’s ex-boyfriend. For both queer and disabled rep in media, especially within the YA range, there is still a certain pressure for said rep to be perfect and wholesome, so I loved to see these boys go through all sorts of bad emotions, lack impulse control, do the wrong thing and hurt each other – even if it was sometimes hard to read and I found some of their actions appalling.

I particularly enjoyed Jeremy’s portrayal as unafraid to take up space, being loud and angry and speaking up for himself, all while we still get to see how vulnerable he is on the insight, and how the constant microaggressions both beat him down, fuel his anger, make him act out and push his friends away. It was infuriating and heart-breaking, but also uplifting and ultimately hopeful within the confines of the plot.

I also liked how Lukas’s autism was depicted, though being undiagnosed myself I don’t feel like I can speak about its authenticity. Much like Jeremy’s experiences with transphobia, Lukas experiences a lot of casual ableism, in the form of how he is treated by his family, interpersonal interactions, and being denied the accomodations he needs to be able to study properly. He, too, uses this as fuel for his ambition, though he acts out in a very different way to Jeremy.

There was an underlying second chance romantic subplot, but to be honest I wouldn’t categorize the book as a romance. The hurt the two protagonist cause each other and outsiders and their ambitions and anger plays a much bigger roles than their romantic feelings. There is a happy ending, though, for almost everything, even if some subplots didn’t get a conclusion. This didn’t feel unfinished, but fit the tone of the book very well.

Also great were the side characters, many of whom were queer or POC or both. I especially adored Sol, a nonbinary Latinx computer genius who gets more or less involuntarily drawn into Lukas’s and Jeremy’s drama, but ends up being very crucial to the plot. They as well as other side characters were dynamic, complex people with their own goals and issues, and definitely not just there as plot devices or to get hurt by the protagonists (though the latter happens a lot).

Aside from the mildly stiff first chapters, the book was well written. I read it in a single day, staying up late to finish it. It was engaging from beginning to end, handling many more topics aside from transphobia and ableism, like broken families, toxic masculinity, breakups and romance, harassment and bullying, messy friendships, old traditions and money and bureaucracy, and how they all intersect, especially with sexism.

I do think this is a great YA debut, and I do recommend the book to anyone who can handle the content warnings.

I really enjoyed this book, and had a difficult time putting it down once I started reading. The characters jumped off the page and I felt very connected to them from the very start. I did expect this to be more of a rom-com, but be warned that it's definitely a heavy-hitting, painful, gut-wrenching book. And while there is a lot of sweetness, this is most certainly not a rom-com.

3.5

May the Best Man Win was a great read! I was really excited to read this, and it didn't quite match my expectations, but I still liked it.

The two main characters, Jeremy and Lukas, are a former couple who had a bad breakup. When the time comes for Homecoming, they find themselves competeting against each other for the title of Homecoming King. All the while, they are both struggling with their own identities and problems.

May the Best Man Win deals with a lot of difficult and serious topics. For the most part, I would say that the author does a decent job (though I can't speak for some of the communities). There was good representation of trans, gay, autistic, non-binary, and POC characters. I did feel like some of the characters and stories were glossed over a bit. I wanted to learn more about Sol, in particular, and who they were as a person. I felt like the book dragged on a bit in the middle. Jeremy and Lukas grew on me, but I have to admit, they weren't my favorites in the beginning. This book was definitely a little cliche and predictable, but that didn't take away from the story for me. I was still wanting to read more of what was going to happen.

Overall, this was a good read that I would recommend.

Disclaimer: eARC provided by NetGalley in an exchange for an honest review.

I'm gonna preface this by saying I really wanted to like this book. The cover, the synopsis, everything about it screamed it would be something I loved so much so that it was one of my most anticipated books of the year. I was thrilled that I got approved for the arc and I'm sad to say it was less than satisfactory. Up until the end I was seriously considering one staring this book, but the way it wrapped up gave it some points.

I am a really character driven person and the fact that I could not stand one of the two main characters really brought this down considerably for me. I want to say that, as a trans person, I have dealt with internalized transphobia and I know what that's like, that is not my issue with Jeremy, however. With the way that Jeremy's character arc was set up, I expected there to be a big change from him at the beginning of the book to the end and, while there is some development, it isn't enough to make him likeable. He made some bad choices that weren't really addressed later on and that really bugged me. It seemed almost like there were no permanent consequences to his actions.

Next, the neurodivergent rep was something that bugged me. As someone who is neurodivergent, I felt that Lukas being autistic was always something that was spoken of in a very taboo way. When we first find out he had a disability, we are never told what it is. It is simply referred to as his disability. His internalized ableism isn't treated with the same respect as Jeremy's internalized homophobia which doesn't strike me very well. I really wish that was addressed more because internalized ableism isn't talked about super often. It would've been a refreshing change of pace.

Again, I really did want to like this book. Credit where credit is due, I couldn't stop reading it. It's like a car crash, you can't look away. You want to know what happens next if only to get some resolution. All in all, if you want to read a book about queer high schoolers competing for the homecoming crown, You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson is amazing and sapphic and actually gives their POC characters the spotlight they deserve instead of only being there to further the white main characters' plot.

Thanks Netgalley and Publishers for an arc of this book.

I went into this book fairly blind but was hooked from the start.

TW: Homophobia, Transphobia, Sexual Assault, Death of a sibling,

This book was a lot heavier in content than I expected it to be but I loved the growth of the individual characters along with the growth of the relationship between Jeremy & Lukas. There's so many things that go wrong in their duel for the homecoming king crown but the ending isn't rushed when wrapping things up. Part of me wishes the epilogue was a little more into the future to see where their relationship was at post graduation and that some scenes didn't drag out too long so we would've gotten more of them. Also, there was a lot of LGBTQ+ rep in this book but the prominent rep was more specifically gay rep & trans rep.

Overall, Jeremy & Lukas had a great storyline and I'm so glad I was able to read an arc of this novel.

Oh, man. I did not expect this book to put me through the wringer the way it did!

The two heroes, a trans guy and an autistic guy, both gunning for the Homecoming King crown, are both complicated people with a lot of darkness under the surface. You can tell they don't just *want* to win, they *need* to, because that crown symbolizes everything that can heal what's broken in their lives.

Of course it's easy for us to say you can't fix your problems that way. They don't care what we think. They're getting that crown, and if they have to do stupid and dangerous and cruel things to do it . . . well, they might just.

Jeremy has this to say about himself:

<blockquote>Most of the older trans guys I’ve met, both online and in real life, are boring, responsible father figures with lots of cats. All of them have insightful transition advice that involves managing your anger, putting extra care into your close friendships, and a lot of bullshit things mentally healthy people do. None of them understand I’m seeking advice on how to be the obnoxious little shit I am at heart. </blockquote>

And yes, he is an obnoxious little shit. I loved him for it. If you like perfect heroes, you won't. If you're always secretly rooting for chaotic bad boys, you'll be on his side.

He does conceal some inner fragility, which of course is the nougaty center I love bad boys for:
<blockquote>Asking for love as a trans person, with the blunt hammer weight that word carries, feels like walking on fragile, cracking ice. Asking for love as the angry mess I am feels like inviting dark water to swallow me whole. Of course, I didn’t want to test his love for me. I knew it would have a breaking point. I just didn’t want to learn where that was.</blockquote>

For all that, though, I related to Lukas more. He thinks he can fix all his problems by making charts and then working himself to death. He's the Good Boy of the story, but he also does some stupid and hurtful things.

I read a lot of action novels where whole planets are going to be blown up in thirty seconds, but I never break out in sweats the way I did at some of the tense moments in this book. You know how in high school, everything seems so *big,* like if you get in trouble or if someone spreads a rumor about you, it is the literal END OF THE ENTIRE WORLD? This book made me feel that.

I think, on a deep level, the real theme of this book is that we all think we're the only one hurting, messed up, broken, insecure. We imagine everyone else is doing just fine. And that can make us cruel, because we see our own fragility and everyone else's brave front and think nobody else can be hurt but us.

Definitely recommend. Thanks to NetGalley for providing the eARC. All opinions are my own.

May the Best Man Win features dual perspective reading style between our two main characters, Jeremy and Lukas. The author uses this style of storytelling well balancing the two perspectives so that the reader understands what is going on. The writing style was one I truly loved.
One of the main characters of May the Best Man Win, Jeremy is trans. He wished to be crowned homecoming king. He learns that his ex-boyfriend who he dumped before coming out is also going for the crown. Through the book you witness their rivalry for the crown. The relationships throughout the book are well fleshed out. The author gives a great look into what it’s like being someone who is trans. There are a few downsides to this book though. I felt while the plot was very fast paced which I loved there were times where things happened that felt unnecessary. It made the plot feel like it dragged despite things continuously happening keeping the plot packed.
Overall I have this book a 5 out of 5 stars because this book features a lot of good representation and the plot was really interesting and for the most part well executed.

I wanted SO badly to like this story. Based on the gorgeous cover and intriguing synopsis alone, this was one of my most anticipated books of 2021. I'm very sad to say that I did not enjoy this book whatsoever.

May the Best Man Win follows two characters as their lives intertwine during a race for prom king. Jeremy Harkniss is a trans boy, who is eager to prove his manhood by winning prom king. Lukas is the quarterback of the football team, the most popular guy in the grade, and is a shoe in for prom king. The plot twist? Pre coming out and transitioning, Jeremy, the cheerleading "It Girl" was dating Lukas.

One of the main struggles Lukas faces throughout the book is his struggle with autism. Though my mom has autism, I do not and thus I can't speak on the representation of Lukas's autism as I'm not qualified. I will say, however, that Lukas's autism is rarely mentioned except when it's necessary to explain his actions, which happens rarely. The symptoms of his autism are only discussed when he has trouble learning in his AP Bio class, and when he has an occasional hard time reading tone. What I didn't like about this representation was how little resolution there was to it: Lukas had a hard time learning in class, and nothing was ever done about the *systemic* inequality that he faced in the classroom. He sometimes had a hard time reading or inflecting tone in conversation, but he never indicated this to the characters he was talking to that knew he had autism, thus communication errors were never solved.

Jeremy struggles with his manly identity throughout the book, which is pretty common for trans characters. Jeremy quite literally always takes his issues out on his friends. The whole book is him basically setting his relationships on fire. The book often shows his anger issues, although they're never developed past acknowledgement. To say that Jeremy is one of the most unlikable characters I've ever read would be an understatement: his constant unwillingness to think of anybody but himself is rarely understandable, and always annoying as hell.

I found myself dragging through the first half of the book, just wishing and hoping that it would get better. The plot picked up speed during the second half, although it was very sporadic and at times hard to follow. The book unfortunately never got better, but I persisted through the second half so that I could write this review.

The one redeeming quality I found in this story was the diverse cast, although I found a lot of the characters were sidelined and not done justice. One of the main side characters, Sol, is a nonbinary Latine kid; another side character, Naomi is an Asian girl. Ultimately, both of these characters were only used to advance the plot and character development of Jeremy and Lukas forward. We never got to explore who Naomi and Sol were beyond their relationships to Jeremy and Lukas, which I think is a shame, because I would've loved hearing more from them about how the careless actions of Jeremy and Lukas affected them than just a couple lines.

All in all, I wouldn't say this book is worth the read. As somebody with sensory processing disorder, something I like to say about books like this is: "if you want to know what it's like to have sensory processing disorder, just read this book in a brightly lit room." This book is at times very messy, which some people may find beauty in, but I just found a headache.

MAY THE BEST MAN WIN has amazing autistic, trans, nonbinary AND poly representation - it has amazing representation overall, but those are the ones that I can personally attest to. We love a good lover-to-enemies-to-lovers plot as well as beating up transphobes through the law!

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for an arc of this book.

After dumping his long term boyfriend before transitioning, Jeremy Harkiss decides to throw everything he has into campaigning for Homecoming King his senior year. His confused ex-boyfriend, Lukas has his own reasons for running against Jeremy as he tries to navigate his crumbling family and confusion over the break up. The two boys go head to head as they tear their worlds apart to get what they think they want.

I loved this book with my whole heart. I was caught up instantly in the story, and so curious to find out why Lukas and Jeremy had broken up and what their lives would look like. Everything escalates so far, and there is so much drama. There were times when I wasn't sure how any of the characters in this book would be able to forgive each other, but it also read very true to the way teenagers can get over things that are important to them.

Jeremy and Lukas are definitely an opposites-attract couple, and there was so much fire and chemistry between them. I also loved the diverse cast of characters included in this book and their friends (and frenemies) and their families.

This book deals with heartbreak, gender and sexual identity, bullying and harassment, cheerleading and football, college applications and failed Biology Tests. The writing and details were so rich and everything came together in terrible and beautiful ways that absolutely broke me and then put me back together.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

Pub date: May 18, 2021

Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Deadnaming, Grief, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Transphobia
Moderate: Death, Cursing, Misogyny , Racism, Sexual assault, Sexism, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Blood, Violence, and Vomit

This is a book I really enjoyed, and would highly recommend to friends. Although Theo basic plot was what I expected, it went about things in a way that I did not expect, but in a good way. It’s nice seeing representation in books when you don’t expect them, and they are done in a good way. I loved how when one of the characters realized they were gay, there was no over the top reaction from them and they took it in stride. I look forward to being able to read more of Z. R. Ellor’s work.