What a great time!!! So many important conversations were introduced, but they were each done with such a cute rom-com vibe that even reading the hard lessons was a fun time!!
The friend and family dynamics were intricate and important, the coming of age / self discovery was beautifully done, and all the queer AF representation made my heart so warm! Overall, a quick, cute, entertaining book that I would definitely recommend for any YA contemporary fans!
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** very slightly spoilery tid-bit **
I also really loved seeing a YA book touch on what unhealthy relationships / toxic partners can look like!! It’s not something I see addressed very often, but it seems important that teens learn how to recognize those behaviours.

GENDER! ROMANCE! HAPPINESS! This is gonna be a fairly short review because this book is just an absolute joy to read, and in times like this, I'd argue it's almost necessary for trans youth to have a book like this. Transphobia exists, but it remains and the backdrop while our cast deals with... well, life, relationships (both platonic and romantic), and gender. There's just some fantastic queer rep here. If you love the fake dating trope as much as I do, you'll love this one.

That said, I know some people have had a few problems with the main character since he teeters on unlikeable, and I kind of... agree, actually, but it's not a drawback? Teens can be awful and he certainly gets better, and I feel like those moments, especially near the beginning, where you're just going "that's kind of hypocritical?" are intentional for the sake of his character arc.

Thank you to Harper Collins and Netgalley for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

The premise:
Noah is a 16-year-old mixed-race trans guy who writes the Meet Cute Diary, a popular happily ever after blog showcasing anonymous stories of trans joy. Unfortunately, an online troll exposes the truth—all of these stories are fictions that Noah made up. Just as his online world is starting to unravel Noah meets Drew, a fan of the Diary. In an attempt to make people believe the Diary stories are true, Noah and Drew decide to fake date and document their perfect relationship on the blog. But what happens when Noah finds that real life isn’t like the perfectly scripted fictions that he’s been creating all this time?

My Review: *** (2.5 stars – I’m rounding up for representation)
I feel terrible about this because I really support queer literature and encourage the publishing industry to put out more books that showcase the BROAD HUMAN EXPERIENCE which too often leaves behind marginalized communities. Unfortunately for me after over 3 months of trying to get through this book, I ultimately had to DNF at 33%.

There are multiple things I liked about this book (from what I read). I loved the representation. (PUBLISHERS, PLEASE DO MORE OF THIS!) I loved that not only was it a kid of color, but also that it was a trans protagonist. (Identities intersect, you can be more than just one thing!) I especially loved that it was from the perspective of a trans guy which I have encountered very few of in literature. In my experience, most books I’ve come across with trans rep tend to be girls so it was nice to see this different perspective. I think it is super important for ALL youth to have access to stories where they can see themselves reflected in the character. For too long this has been a rarity for folks who aren’t part of the dominant majority. I also think it is important for youth who are part of that dominant majority to see other identities that are different from their own reflected in stories because it helps to normalize things, builds empathy, and acceptance. It humanizes the “other”.

I liked the premise of the book. I thought it was an interesting idea. A teenage Japanese/Afro-Cuban trans guy feels suffocated in his Florida hometown so he creates a blog to inspire not only himself but also others with stories of what happiness could look like. We know the rates of self-harm and suicide for trans youth are alarmingly high. We know that greater levels of support and acceptance can drastically reduce those rates. I really appreciate both what the character and the author were trying to do here in providing hope for these folks.

In the story, Noah is finally out of his hometown and staying with his brother in Colorado for the summer. A troll uncovers that these happily ever afters are all made up and reveals that to the rest of the blog’s readers. Noah starts to spiral because this blog is pretty much at the center of his world. His solution? Fake a relationship with Drew, this person he keeps running into in his new town, and put it on the blog as “proof” that the stories are real.

Ultimately there were just a couple of issues that made me have to give up on this one. The first is the pacing felt really slow (to me). I would sit down excited to read this book that I’d been looking forward to, but after a few pages I’d get bored or distracted and end up walking away to do something else. The second is that the main character is terribly unlikeable (again, to me). He seemed super whiny, inconsiderate, rude, and self-centered. When I’m reading, I need to be able to empathize with the character. I am standing in their shoes and trying to see the world from their perspective. Even if I don’t always agree with their choices, I can usually at least understand their logic. I just didn’t feel that with Noah. I understand coming from a really stifling home town and how that can be soul-crushing. I understand that at the first opportunity to get out you want to spread your wings, try new things, and express yourself more authentically once you have escaped that environment. But I think you still need to treat others with a certain level of respect as fellow human beings. Especially if those are the people who have been there for you providing you with support when you were stuck in that situation. The way Noah treated members of his family who tried to help him after he came out and especially his supposed best friend just really confused me. The way he talked to her and expected her world to revolve around him and his expectations just felt really unreasonable to me. (I realize he’s a teenager and their hormones are going crazy and whatever, but still.)

For me, it was like there were lots of little things about Noah’s behavior that ultimately kept snowballing until I hit that point where I couldn’t put up with it anymore. I felt like I was slogging through this trying to finish just for the sake of finishing so that I could move on to reading something I’d actually enjoy and that started making me feel more resentful towards the book.

I thought Drew’s character was really interesting and had a lot of potential. I don’t know if it ultimately ended up going anywhere because I didn’t finish the book, but I kinda wish the book had been written from that character’s perspective. I think if that were the case, I might have been able to stick with it longer. Having to give up on this book just makes me sad because it felt like there was so much potential here. I hope there are other readers who really enjoy this book and can get the positive experience that I think the author was trying for.

Meet Cute Diary, is a quick but entertaining and such a good read. The book is super cute. Absolutely love it.

Thank you to Quill Tree Books (via NetGalley) for the ARC!

3.75 stars

Sigh. I had very high hopes for this book, and I was a bit disappointed. I'm going to start off by talking about the things I didn't like as much, and then the things I loved so I can end on a good note.

The not-so-good:
1. Noah, the protagonist, is just on the edge of unlikable. I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt because he's sixteen years old, and teenagers are, for the most part, very self-absorbed and mostly concerned with their own problems. It's not unusual to be more aware of your own problems than anything else going on in the world. But there were too many moments for me where Noah lashed out to his friends and family in sometimes cruel ways, and it didn't sit right with me. Or reacted to something in a manner that was far too harsh for what the situation warranted. And sometimes he was called out for it. But I still found it to be too much. It just made him a little unsympathetic in my eyes. I was still rooting for him throughout the book, but I also wanted him to treat his family and friends a little nicer!
2. The coincidences. Some elements of the plot were a little too convenient. Things happened that were huge coincidences and it got to the point where it took me out of the story a little bit.

And now, the awesome stuff!
1. The rep: We get trans and non binary rep as well as characters who are bisexual, asexual, lesbian, and an androphile (which is a word I just learned! It's a way to describe your attraction exclusively to men without bringing your own gender into it).
2. Neo pronouns: One of the characters uses neo pronouns, which a lot of people are unfamiliar with, and it's the first time I've seen this done in a YA book. (mild spoiler ahead?) Devin, who is non binary, settles on the pronouns e/em/eir, which are completely gender neutral, after e decides that none of the "standard pronouns" (he/him, she/her, they/them) feel comfortable. It's done really well in the book, and Noah, the main character, never questions Devin's choice of pronouns even while e emself isn't quite sure which ones feel most comfortable.
3. Transphobia is NOT a main part of the plot! So many times, trans writers are expected write about their pain and how hard it is to come out and the reactions of cis people to the fact that someone they love is trans. That doesn't happen in this book. When we start the story, Noah is already out to his family. They have accepted him for who he is, and while there are minor moments where Noah questions whether they are 100% accepting of his identity, there is no outright hostility from anyone. There are a few minor moments of transphobia, but for the most part this is a story of a trans teenager finding love and joy. And I love that it exists.

I want to emphasize that I am really really glad that this book exists! Trans kids deserve love stories just as much as cis kids, and probably need them even more. We need more books like this where a trans teenager can find love and have a happy ending without going through a bunch of suffering first. I am so happy that this will be around for a long time to come and I hope that it finds the kids who need it the most.

Also, I look forward to whatever Emery Lee writes next, because while I did have some minor issues with this book, I think it was a promising debut and a good indicator of what's to come.

*I received this book in exchange of an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley.

Meet Cute Diary follows Noah who runs a blog about meet cutes for trans stories. However, the stories are completely fictional. Noah, who is trans, is also trying to find his own summer romance in Denver. Through many blog issues, we find that Noah is struggling under accusations that his blog posts are fake or stolen from other people. Under this stress, he meets Drew who offers to fake date Noah in order to prove the blog to be true. But through it all, Noah just wants to see what being in love is actually like instead of playing a role.

This book was so charming and wonderful to read. I went through it so quickly just to find out what would happen next. However, there were a few things that kept me from completely enjoying it. I found Noah to be very selfish and unmovable when it came to some parts of his life. The first being his brother. I liked that Brian was such a huge advocate for Noah when he came out as trans. It's so important to have that ally. However, Noah was constantly focused on Brian's relationship with a woman and how annoying it was. I understand the idea, but Noah was always so focused on his own relationships that it felt forced.

The true carriers of the book were the side characters. The people that Noah meets and interacts with along the way. I don't really want to give a lot of it away because it's important to discover on your own, but they truly kept the story alive. One of my personal favorite parts was the discussion of pronouns in the book. Finding a way to truly be honest with yourself and who you are is so important in books for teens. Being able to casually or even seriously consider what you want to be called and what makes you a person is not talked about enough. There are so many teens who struggle and having that representation in a book is important to them and to help them have that discussion with friends and family.

Meet Cute Diary is definitely a book for everyone.

Rating: 3/5

I don't really know what to say about this one. I thought about DNFing this book at 50% but I decided to keep reading, which worked out great because I loved the last half of the book, but that first half was kinda hard to push myself through.

So I guess I start with the first half.

Right off the bat, I was thrown off by the youngness of the protagonist Noah. He's sixteen but he reads a lot younger and has many, many flaws. Which was kind of annoying at first but as he grew throughout the story and learned, I came to really enjoy his character. But wow is he super naive, selfish, and self-centered! It definitely felt overdone to me, but again this was a big focal point of his character arc. Now, Noah is a trans teen who writes a blog all about these fake meet-cutes, and we love the representation (which I personally can't speak on but, correct me if I'm wrong, I do believe the author is trans, and ownvoices reviewers seem to be saying that the trans rep is well-written). But, Noah ends up meeting a guy who he fake dates in order to save his blog, which I enjoy a good fake-dating trope, but I absolutely hated this dude and you could see all of the red flags from miles away, so yeah, this definitely hindered my enjoyment for the first half of this book. Luckily, this relationship isn't the "real" one.

Anyway, besides not enjoying either of the two main characters for the first half of the book, I am glad to not have DNF'd this book and kept trudging through because I loved all of the themes throughout this book. I loved the trans joy, the supportive families, the wonderful ace and nonbinary love interest who was exploring pronouns, and I was actually surprised to find that I loved the little camp scenes with the kids!

All in all, if you are interested at all in this book, read it! It's a very important book for teens exploring their identities and we need more books like it! So while this wasn't wholly my cup of tea, I am still glad to have read it and I am happy for all the other reviewers out there who are loving it and talking about how much it means to them!

This book was everything. It was so cute and Noah was just so likeable. As a cis-gendered person, this book seemed so eye-opening to me and I enjoyed getting Noah's perspective. His reality is going to hit home with many in the LGBTQIA+ community.

I thought this book was good. I loved seeing a trans main character, and I loved that every time Devin changed pronouns, they would change on-page. Devin and I have had similar experiences with constantly changing pronouns and I loved seeing em change their pronouns and Noah excepting em every time. I loved Noah's brother being accepting. What I didn't like was the actions of the characters sometimes. I think it would've been pretty easy for Noah to say on his blog that the stories were fictional. He didn't really need to fake date, Drew. I also got kinda annoyed with him a lot, he seemed very immature all the time.

Thanks to NetGalley & HarperCollins Children's Books for the early copy in exchange for an honest review. Actual rating is 1.5/5 stars.

This story follows Noah, who runs a popular blog on Tumblr entitled "Meet Cute Diary", full of stories about trans people finding love. Problem is, it's all fake. Noah's blog attracts the attention of several trolls who point out how wrong the stories must be (despite them being right) and Noah struggles to keep up the illusion until he meets Drew, who is willing to fake-date for the sake of his blog.

I wanted to like this story since it's got great LGBT+ & BIPOC representation, but...there were parts of the story and its characters that I didn't personally care for. The romance didn't feel....that real, if that makes any sense.

The narrator was really hard to like, he was pretty self-centered and obsessed with his blog, his immature behavior was called out several times but no changes were made. I felt like he was unnecessarily harsh toward his brother though. His interview with the bookstore owner was so ridiculous, I know he hadn't done job interviews before but dang, he was terrible at it! Though, his parents seem pretty nasty so it's no surprise Noah ended up as self-centered as them, ha.

Very minor and stupid nitpick but I didn't like that two characters were named Devin and Drew. I kept mixing them up...lol..

Every time I’ve seen Emery Lee or another author talk about this book, I’ve gotten that swooping feeling in my stomach of anticipation. Excitement. It’s Step 1: The Meet Cute. “The moment Fate brings you together and you connect with this person - even if just for a moment - in a way that you never connected with anyone before.” That was how I felt every single time I saw this book cover.

Meet Cute Diary tells the story of Noah, a trans boy who runs a popular blog with fictional meet cutes of other trans people. He has romance and relationships down to a science. In theory. In actuality, Noah is a hot mess whose ideas of love don’t always coincide with what he actually needs and wants.

What was refreshing that most about this book is what was initially giving me pause while reading it. Noah isn’t always the most likable character as far as conventional tropes go. He’s messy, anxious, and makes super questionable decisions. But then I realized that this is reflective of almost every teenager, especially those who are queer and/or trans and trying to find their footing. There are times when Noah lashes out at his friends when he’s feeling stressed about other things. Who amongst as a teenager didn’t take out our frustrations on those friends who were just there to help us? What Noah is going through in this book doesn’t necessarily excuse all of his behavior, but it definitely contextualizes it.

What I loved the most about Meet Cute Diary and what I keep coming back to is that it just allows teens to be teens, especially those who are trying to figure out themselves and their genders. The discussion of pronouns is so important as is the fluidity of someone wanting to change their pronouns and test the waters to see what’s the best fit. I rarely see that done in books, let alone done in a way that is effortless and shows how easy using someone’s correct pronouns is.

Emery Lee has been an absolute force in talking about this book online while also being very open about the representation in this book. It adds a rich layer and complexity and all of it shines through the storytelling and enriches the world e has created.

The further I get from this book, the more it has settled deep within my bones. I made it to Step 12: The Happily-Ever-After.

5 stars.

This was a cute YA read.
I like seeing a growing number of books being published with gender and sexual diversity. This was a sweet romcom about love, a supportive family and finding yourself .

Meet Cute Diary is a fun summer read! Emery Lee created a great cast of diverse characters that I quickly grew to love. The main character, Noah, definitely has his flaws but they ring true to teen logic and made me chuckle. Lee thoughtfully explores gender and the many ways one can be trans, all without transphobia taking center stage which was refreshing. Noah's conversations about gender with his coworker Devin were a highlight and I'm sure will help both trans and cis kids better navigate these topics in their own lives. A charming and impactful read!

I loved this. I devoured it in a day. This is a book I wanted growing up. I looked for myself in queer but cisgendered characters growing up and I loved seeing two trans characters as main characters in this book.

The characters feel authentic and they talk like actual teenagers. They’re immature and selfish and that’s pretty normal.

I also love that this is just a fluffy rom com that happens to have gender diversity and sexuality diversity. Supportive families, no major violence against characters, no dead naming, no forced outings. I’m not going to say those stories aren’t important too because they are. The queer experience is multi-faceted and doesn’t look the same for everyone.

It makes me happy to know there are queer YA readers out there who will pick up this book and possibly relate and find a part of themselves in it.

Such a sweet and beautiful read.

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

What a sweet read! Noah is a bratty teenager, but like so many bratty teenagers, he is focused on finding True Love. Hence, his Meet Cute Diary blog where he wants to show that trans people can have cute meet ups and happily ever afters. When he runs into Drew, Noah is convinced that Fate is pushing them together in the ultimate Meet Cute. But, then there's internet drama, parental drama, sibling drama, work drama all apparently conspiring together to make Noah's summer miserable.

Strangely enough, what I truly enjoyed about this book is how Noah is written as a teenager--self-absorbed, bratty and selfish. Instead of being the pinnacle of REPRESENTATION, he's just a kid trying to figure out himself and his life. It feels so much more honest than the YA stories where the protagonist is loved by all and blessed for every step of their life. There's nothing inherently wrong with reading wish fulfillment characters, but it's also nice to read honest representations of people as they actually are.

Meet Cute Diary takes rom-coms to another level. Dealing with the ups and downs of platonic and romantic relationships on top of exploring gender and defending against transphobia and internet trolls? Yes, all of that please!! Stubborn and fierce Noah was a joy to read the POV was, and it was heartbreaking watching him push Becca away and lose his boundaries all for a rose-tinted idea of what romance is. Unfortunately I can't gush too much without getting into spoiler territory, but I was on the edge of my seat rooting for Noah's happiness.

I'm so happy that this message of not only acceptance or meet cutes, but of love and hope, is going out into the world. It is books like this that I wish had been available to me while growing up.

Meet Cute Diary is a book full of trans joy and for the right reader it’ll be a revelation. Unfortunately, neither of us could count ourselves in that number. It’s one of those books that, because it was written by a member of the LGBT community, it’ll feel like coming home. It wraps you up in a hug and welcomes you. It’s a book that everyone needs right now and, hopefully, that everyone will love.

First of all, thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing me with an ARC.

This book was so cute and everything I look for when reading a YA contemporary.

We are introduced to 16-year-old Noah Ramirez, who runs a popular blog called the Meet Cute DIary. In this blog he shares stories about trans couples finding love. However, the blog soon receives accusations of stealing stories; the only problem is that all of the posts are completely made up by Noah. This soon leads to Noah and his friends working towards clearing the blog of these accusations.

Things I loved about this book were that it had the fake dating and friends to lovers tropes which are two of my favorites. I also really liked the relationship Noah had with his best friend Becca and his brother. I was happy to see how positive and supportive they were of him. This book also had a lot of representation starting with a BIPOC and trans main character.

I really don't have anything negative to say. It was the perfect fluffy YA contemporary.

I would recommend this book to people who enjoyed Felix Ever After or are fans of Adam Silvera.

Trigger Warnings: transphobia, panic attacks, mentions of suicide

3 stars

WHAT I LIKED

I loved the diversity in Meet Cute Diary! According to the author's Twitter thread, Noah (the main character) is triracial (Black, white, & Asian), trans, and bisexual. Devin is Cuban, non-binary, asexual, and uses neo-pronouns. Becca is Cuban and lesbian. It's extremely important to have voices from underrepresented groups in the publishing industry, and I'm ecstatic by the increase in diversity over the past few years!

Brian and Devin are definitely my favorite characters in the book! They're both extremely supportive and, to be honest, deserve better romantic partners. I'm not going to spoil anything, so I'll leave it at that.

Another aspect that I liked was the concept of an online Meet Cute Diary. I loved how it's "a beacon of hope for trans readers" (quote taken from Goodreads synopsis)!

I also really appreciated Noah's character development and growth.

In the beginning one-third of Meet Cute Diary, I thought that the fake-dating relationship between Noah and Drew was really cute.


WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE

The romance between Noah and Drew felt extremely insta-lovey. And this reader *points to myself* despises insta-love. It also felt slightly unrealistic...? Noah and Drew met twice before Drew randomly proposed the fake-dating idea. Okay then.

I didn't like Noah's character. As I mentioned before in this review, I appreciated his character development, but even then, it still wasn't enough to make up for my initial dislike for him. Why don't I like Noah, you ask? Well, he's self-absorbed. I, as a reader, got the impression that he believed his problems weighed more than anybody else's. He also spent a lot of his parents' money on coffee and then got annoyed when his parents told him to find a job and make his own money. He also has a tendency to lash out at people for no reason. (Keep in mind that, as of right now, I'm also a teenager.)

I'm also scratching my head at the fact that Noah got a paid job without letters of recommendation, interviews, application, etc. He had his older brother's referral, but I think that's it...?

FINAL THOUGHTS

I had an overall positive reading experience! However, it's not something that I would reread or recommend to everybody.

A cute romantic comedy with a trans main character! I hope trans teens and teens who don’t feel comfortable on a binary gender system will read this and feel seen and celebrated. Will definitely recommend for fans of Jenny Han and Adam Silvera.