"The Brittanys" just wasn't for me. I felt like this book was trying too hard to be nostalgic. Too many references to early 2000's pop culture (music, fashion, movies, trendy language). Also, this book came across shallow. Very vapid storytelling, but I also think the author was being ironic, but it just didn't work. Not enough emotional substance and depth. I wanted heart-wrenching story about the toxic nature of female friendships, and I didn't get that. Such a shame.

I loved The Brittanys! It's that rare adult novel that's not afraid of actually depicting teenagers relastically and I can definitely see crossover appeal with YA readers as well.

I felt like I was too old for this book, but think it would be fitting for the younger high school aged readers. I thought the writing was good.

This is a fun read with a strong voice and a delightful nostalgia trip if you came of age in the early aughts.

Five friends all named Brittany experience all the joy and terror of starting high school in an affluent community in South Florida.

Unlike in most coming of age books, the Brittanys (our focus is primarily on two of them, best friends since fourth grade) lives are, well, pretty normal. There are no great tragedies, horrific events, or other such catastrophes to endure.

Instead the Brittanys must navigate all the real-life events that occur at this age that *feel* momentous and often catastrophic to us all as we experience them.

I really like books about teens that focus on “regular” kids like these, as they’re a bit difficult to find. They’re far more relatable and less filled with the kind of drama that I don’t care for in novels centered around this age group.

I also liked that while the book encompasses all of the things that matter when you’re starting high school (boys, friends, status, parents, schoolwork, sports, clothes), it’s primarily a story about friendship, which is a refreshing change from most novels focused on this age group that generally go primarily for romance and horrific life events.

This is a fun, light read that also has some emotional heft, and Ackerman has absolutely nailed the voice of our 14-year-old protagonist.

“They're not the most popular freshmen at their Florida prep school, but at least everyone knows their name(s). The Brittanys. “ A novel that captures what it is to be a teenage girl and all the life changing events that shape you.

Thoughts: Do you remember 9th grade? I do, like it was yesterday. Ackerman captures the incandescent and hilarity of growing up a teenager in 2004. With impassive and uncompromising prose, she puts her heart on her sleeve with discipline and honesty.

I really enjoyed the “future” passages where she provides future insight to minor/major characters adding a personal touch which my curious brain appreciated. I just really felt all of her emotions as I too, went through all of the things she did. It felt like listening to my childhood self and friends talk (minus the Uber rich factor as well as everything being done for me) about the experiences and situations they faced. Being young is tough. This shows you all the growing pains teenage girls have.

Thank you Netgalley for my copy in exchange for my review!

Thanks to NetGalley for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In this coming-of-age novel, we follow the lives of 5 friends (all named Brittany) as they enter puberty. Their thoughts are filled with boys, first kisses, menstrual cycles, sex and drugs.

As I read this book I couldn’t help but think of my own daughter, currently 8. To be honest, I was horrified to think that at the age of 15 she will have to deal with what these girls struggled with. Maybe I led a sheltered life or maybe my high school days are just that far in the past, but my teenage years were not like this. Sure we talked about boys and periods and bras, but sex, drinking and drugs were not included. Not at 14 and 15 anyway. Lol

With all that being said, it held my interest. In a lot of ways it reminded me of the movie The Sandlot, only with girls. The narration the author uses to update the reader of where these characters are today is spoken in such a way that I could hear “At some point in your childhood, you and your friends went outside to play together for the last time and nobody knew it”

Angst, heartbreak, friendship, sex, and drugs--The Brittanys puts the reader into the mindset of a teenage girl living a privileged life in Florida with her best friends, all named Brittany.

We follow these characters and their interactions as they experience their antics and drama, going to parties, meeting boys, dying their hair, and dealing with siblings. It’s a wild ride told by one of the Brittany’s as she relives being fifteen.

Not just a YA novel, the reader becomes fifteen again, laughing, crying, and cringing with the protagonist as she experiences friendship, dating, parties, and tight relationships among girlfriends. The reader is immersed in these teenagers’ lives and how they change throughout the book with their experiences. I especially liked the main character’s reflections and future revelations of characters and how they turned out as adults. It’s a great summer read, and I thank NetGalley for allowing me to review it. #The Brittanys #NetGalley #teenreads #YA

So, this book is alluring. It has a beautiful cover and what caught my eye was a book titled The Brittanys written by Brittany Ackerman. The synopsis confirmed that it was about teen-age girls in high school, as I expected, but that's really where the similarities ended. So, this book is mainly told from the perspective of one Brittany out of the five. And I was expecting something along the lines of Gossip Girl, but really the combination of the writing style and narrative made me feel more like I was in a The Clique series novel (which takes place in middle school). And for such young, immature sounding voices, they sure thought about boys, sex and drugs a lot. And I'm not that far removed from high school that I don't remember the experience. I admit, I thought about boys A LOT. But maybe not to the extent that these girls do... and definitely not drugs. I guess I was hoping to feel nostalgic while reading this novel and instead I was left feeling happy that high school and my teenage years were behind me.

I think this is a book best suited for high school age students. Maybe ones who are a little more rock and roll than I was when I was in school, and can relate to what's going on in the book.

Thank you to the publisher Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and Netgalley for providing me a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
In terms of readability this book was great, but I just didn't care about the characters. Maybe if I weren't so far removed from my high school days? I think the author did a great job of capturing the fears and emotions that come along with being in high school. The friend drama, the boy/girl drama, etc. And even though the characters were affluent I didn't feel like that overshadowed the overall story presented. So I would say that if the book piques you interest then pick it up and read it, but I wouldn't go out of my way to tell people they have to pick it up.

Oh man. #newadult #knopfdoubledaypublishinggroup #thebrittanys #brittanyackerman I finished this one last night and had to sleep with my thoughts. This will be a book you love or hate. I don’t think there is a middle ground. Imagine your fifteen again. Worried about boys. Fashion. Periods. Popularity. First kiss. That’s what we have with this group of girls. Two of them are very best friends. We have the main character who narrates to us things that happen in her daily life and her POV on the different Brittanys. What I did like and wish we maybe had explored more was we get a glimpse - like #wherearetheynow and while it was neat to see what happened to someone I was left feeling somewhat incomplete. I’m still unsure of my feelings 🙈 however. It did make me think. And. Take me back. To being fifteen. #neveragain #highschool #bookstagram #readersofinstagram #netgalley #bookreview #readingtime #netgalleyreviewer

Dramatic, coming of age, YA version of women's fiction that revolves around a group of friends who share the same name. Some throwback high school Heathers vibes. Well written though unevenly paced, this story will appeal to its intended demographic.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

This may not be for everyone but I loved it. Perfectly sums up what it’s like to be a girl in the world. The privilege blindness does great at certain points but to be fair the author does address it and we have to be mindful that they are only 14. Took me back 30 years when I was these girls, albeit in a much less swanky ZIP Code. Gets everything right

"Parties are happening everywhere. Girls are fighting, getting their hearts broken, and doing all the things they're not supposed to do."

Brittany Ackerman is my spirit animal and I felt this story in my bones. As I was reading, my Kindle kept warning me that it was going to die. And it did, right after I highlighted the last sentence in the author’s note. Fate.

This the story of the Brittanys--but it is especially the story of Jensen and the unnamed narrator--and their navigation through freshman year. This story spoke to my soul and brought back so many feelings, so many memories and I highlighted line after line after line.

Do you remember your fifteen year old self? Do you remember how hard it was but also how exciting? Around every corner was the chance to go on an adventure, to grow up, to have fun and get into trouble. The Brittanys captured all of that perfectly and it felt like a love letter to my teenage self. The writing was beautiful and magical and reminded me of how very hard (and wonderful) it is to be fifteen.

I tried. I really, really tried. I wanted to love this book. The concept of it, a group of friends all with the same name, brought out some serious Heathers nostalgia. Unfortunately, I DNF at 15%. Although, I'm a fan of YA, I recognize that this book is geared to a demographic much younger than my own. I couldn't connect with whichever Brittany narrated the story. I couldn't tell the Brittanys apart. I couldn't get into the book enough to even figure out the point or the plot.
Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for this genuinely appreciated ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I dont know how to put into words how i feel about this book.. 1st off i thought it was going to be a angst teenage book about a group of 5 Brittanys and high-school.

Really its about 1 sometimes 2 of the Brittanys and the one ones here just there sometimes they aren't really a group.

But they are freshman and the only thing the narrator can think about is boys. Sex, kissing, boys,periods, weed, boys, weed... I think you see the pattern. Like nothing happen I really wanted to enjoy this book but I really didn't care for it. I was going to DNF it but since it was a arc I didn't want to but I just didn't care for it especially each chapter was a differbt boy. I just don't remember freshman year or high-school to be like this.

I would of loved to see the click of The Brittanys. But sadly for me this was a miss.


Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a arc of my honest opinion.

The Brittanys brought me back to highschool and I both loved and hated it at the same time. Filled with all of the drama, hormones, and coming of age challenges one faces as a teen, The Brittanys gives a good look at this group of girls, how they see themselves, and how the world sees them.

4/5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a coming of age story of a group of girls from West Florida who were bonded in elementary school by sharing the same name. This book explores so much of the drama, sex and relationships, evolutions of friendships and falling out of them from high.

I feel like I was looking in a mirror  throughout this book. I made so many of these mistakes and did these silly things to get boys to like me or look at me.
I admit it took me well into my 20s to stop.

I felt like this was me growing up in Napa having my group but trying to fit in everywhere and trying everything. Omg I even had someone walk up to me and call me a whore. I did not know he was dating her! High school is rough add in raging hormones, peer pressure, drugs, sex, oh ya I guess homework, it gets way harder.

Honestly I think high school is a social test that is designed to torture or turn you into a narcissist. Just a thesis I have been working on.

My in-laws live in Boynton Beach and when we visit we travel all around so I can envision these mini mansions and all these places described not to mention all the references to the brands from the 2000s.

This is a definitely nostalgic blast back to the early 2000s.

Thank you vintageanchorbooks and net galley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

Rating : ⭐⭐⭐💫

When I first heard about The Brittanys during a Reading Group Guide Book Speed Dating Event, it reminded me of my own little group of friends in high school, except we didn't all have the same name.

But that's the premise of Brittany Ackerman's first novel: a group of girls who are cool but not that popular at a Florida prep school and they all have the same name. The story is told through the eyes of only one of the Brittanys, and covers the whole gamut of teenage girlhood: boys, friendship drama, learning to drive a car, meeting parental expectations, boys, navigating the social hierarchy of high school, and boys.

What I Liked About this Book
At certain times, the main character's older self pops in and gives a more mature assessment of events or more details about what happened to another character after high school. I found that interesting, and I actually thought it might be leading up to something, like readers meeting the main character in the present and maybe something from her high school years has caught up with her. But that wasn't the case.

I highlighted certain passages in the book because there were times when I found myself nodding along with what the main character or another character was saying. My high school timeline doesn't exactly match up with the timeline of the Brittanys (I think I was already in college when this story is taking place, based on pop culture references), but some things about being a teenage girl will always be true.

What I Didn't Like
So even though the book's premise reminded me of my own friends (birthday balloons at school, thinking Jude Law is hot), the nitty-gritty of the book was NOT my teenage experience at all. Perhaps one day I'll just have to write that story.

I always have a hard time reading about teen girls who only want to impress boys with their looks and who slut-shame other girls while the boys get a pass. I'm sure my friends and I did the same thing because we didn't know better, but I sure hope that today's teen girls are being taught by their strong-ass moms to know better.

I also expected the story to be a little bit more or do a little bit more. If reading about the everyday shenanigans of a teenage girl sounds obnoxious, then you don't want to read this book.

The Brittanys is published by Vintage and comes out tomorrow, June 15, 2021. I received an e-ARC in exchange for a review.

This book had all the nostalgia of early high school; a time when chasing boys, outfits and your identity was integral to your entire being. I enjoyed the fact that though the reader stayed in the same space for a little longer than we needed to, it almost reminded me even more of how during those early years your life is cyclical and revolves around the aforementioned topics.
I would say it felt redundant at times and it could've helped to have a more pointed plot and a clear end point.

The only thing I can say about this one is "cringe". I'm not really sure what the point of it was, but it brought back memories of my own teen years that I did not need. I probably shouldn't have finished it but I got suckered in by the title.