Reviews Posted: July 15, 2022
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Storygraph

This book was so freaking cute. The romance and characters all blew me away. I went on an emotional rollercoaster, one moment, I’m laughing, and the next, I am balling my eyes out.

Okay, so I really reacted to our main character Beatrice. I thought her character development was done well, and while we got to watch her grow, she still maintained her core being through the whole story. As someone who also struggles with putting myself out there, I identified with Beatrice, and every time she reflected on her past, I could feel her emits through the book. I think her friends Mia and Nolan blanked her out nicely, and they worked really well as a trio. I also enjoyed the fact that her friends did not blindly agree with her and challenged her to be the best version of herself possible. At first, Nik defiantly rubbed me the wrong way, but he grew on me by the end and thought he was a good love interest for Beatrice.

The premise of Beatrice coming out of her shell by going to theater camp is literally something I did when I was really young. And while she defiantly becomes more comfortable with the world around her, there are still things that she sticks to, and her friends learn and know to love her the way she is. The friendships are what made this book shine. Because while they wanted to Bea to come out of her shell more, they also respected her boundaries. Also, I’m a sucker for anything theater based because it reminds me a lot of my childhood.

The one thing that missed the mark for me was the pacing. The start was slow and sluggish, and things sped up after the halfway point. There were many moments that I wished the author stayed on for longer instead of rushing to the next plot point. I also think the pacing caused me not to feel connected to the characters until the latter half.

Overall I had such a fun time reading this book, and it was the first book in a long time that actually made me cry.

What I wonderfully YA book! I haven’t loved YA lately because they have felt so young, but j really enjoyed this one!

I enjoyed the camp setting and the themes. It brought back so many childhood memories that I reminisced with.

To me it started out a little slow, but once it got going it was a fun read.

Great character development and sweet story.

First, I’ll be honest, having both a Bea and a Ben made me think this would be more of a direct MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING retelling, so I was confused when that didn’t happen. Second, I know it was the point of the story, but Bea was...a lot. Thank goodness for Mia and Nolan.

Long Story Short by Serena Kaylor

Published: July 26, 2022
Wednesday Books
Pages: 328
Genre: YA Romance
KKECReads Rating: 5/5
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.

Serena Kaylor likes to write about that first flush of summer love, whispered conversations at midnight, and endings happy enough to make your toes curl. She grew up running wild as a changeling through North Carolina swamps and hiding in book stacks until she was dragged back into the real world.

“The ugly realization that I wanted this.”

Beatrice is smart. Incredibly smart. And that has allowed her to build walls that have prevented her from living through normal teenage things. She was also homeschooled. So she is also awkward. And very set in her routine. When she gets into her dream school, her parents make her a deal to go with their blessing, and she has to spend the summer at a camp that will shove her out of her comfort zone and directly into the spotlight. She never expected the experience to change her life.

This was such a sweet story. I fell in love with Beatrice immediately. And Mia. And Nolan. And Nik. These characters were fantastic.

I enjoyed the pacing and storyline arc of this novel. I love that the things Beatrice learned weren’t just that she was right and should go to college in the fall.

But that she did need to learn to be a teenage girl. That she needed people. That being spontaneous and silly is okay.

I also loved that her parents learned that there was more to Bea than books and theory. The way this story unfolded was both a coming of age and self-realization that who we are right now is just fine and that we will grow and change.

This was a beautiful journey, with many laughs along the way.

why do Nik and Bea even like each other i feel like they have nothing in common also i feel like it's not rly explained why beatrice is so desperate to go to oxford?

Well, this one was just a delight. The story focuses on Beatrice. Beatrice has been home schooled her whole life, and she dreams of breaking out of her shell and seeing the world. Unbeknownst to her parents, she's applied and been accepted into Oxford. Before her parents will let her go, they want to make sure she's ready. To this end, they send her off to a Shakespeare summer camp. With this camp, they provide her a list of "challenges" she needs to complete to prove she can handle life at Oxford. While an unusual premise, it was a fun layer of this story as Beatrice navigated love, friendship and acting. I love a relatable lead character, and Beatrice was so, so much that. This was just a cute, happy story that made me smile. Thanks to NetGalley for the look at this upcoming July 2022 release!

This book was perfection and elicited such great feelings from me.

Beatrice is a no nonsense girl. Homeschooled her whole life, she has never had time for friends or a life that didn’t involve her studies… and this has been all her own doing. When she tells her parents that she applied early to Oxford and got in, they fear that she won’t be able to handle the very jarring differences that a college life so far from her California home with entail. In order to go, she will have to spend her summer at a theater camp, completing a list of tasks to show her parents that she can handle it.

It’s there, at this camp that she will make new friends, have endless new experiences and catch the eye of the camp owners’ handsome son. This is all new and very intimidating, but Bea is tough and smart.

I loved this so much. I adored the friends she makes, who will stop at nothing to build her up and show her her worth. I loved the enemies to lovers aspect with Nik, the boy who is constantly giving her mixed signals, making her head spin. I loved the heavy Shakespeare we get in this book. It is woven through this book so beautifully. Mostly, though… I loved Bea!! She was such a great character. She learns so much about herself and remains true to who she is through the whole book.

LOVE!
This was such a cute summer read. The enemies to friends to lovers trope never disappoints and this book was so heartfelt. I was a huge fan of Bea and her character development. The banter was amazing too! I loved this book and definitely recommend it.

What a cute YA rom com!

Beatrice Quinn (an actual genius) is trying to prove to her parents that she is ready to go to Oxford at the age of 16, so she goes to theatre camp with a list of normal teenage experiences that she must engage in while she is there.

Really quickly, she learns that all that she read about being a “real” teenager did not prepare her for actually doing it and acting was the absolute last thing she wanted to do!

I thought the characters in this novel were sweet. I had a hard time connecting with Beatrice, especially when she kept going back and forth about her feelings about Nik, but overall I was happy for her in the end. Her two friends Nolan and Mia were literally perfect for her. The love story aspect was one where I literally just wanted them to admit they liked each other, but it was definitely a slow burn.

bookish elements:
- lots of Shakespeare quotes
- enemies to lovers
- coming of age
- YA
- closed door (kissing only)

Ultimately, it’s a sweet and easy read!
Thank

*I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for this ARC!*

Upon first reading the synopsis of this book, I thought it sounded pretty cute. A nerdy, math-oriented girl being forced to act at a Shakespeare camp for the summer? Sign me up! This book ended up having more depth than I was expecting, and I am always here for being pleasantly surprised.

Beatrice was an unusual character for a YA romance, in the best way. She is very statistically and logically minded. She doesn’t really let her emotions lead her (at least she thinks so 😉 ) and tends to say exactly what is on her mind, regardless of the social consequences. I really enjoyed seeing her try to navigate traditional American teenager-dom. It was like watching a socially awkward alien attempt to figure out how the youths of earth talk to and interact with one another.

I loved the side characters in this book. I felt like the friends were well developed and I loved seeing Beatrice start to trust them and lean on them more and more as the story progressed. Her friends Mia and Nolan were precious little weirdos and I loved how quickly they accepted Bea into their friend group. Her romance with Nik was so cute, and awkward, and will they, won’t they, and I was here for it!

I thought the list that her parents gave her (and that Mia and Nolan added to) to help her achieve key points of being a teenager was so cute and such a great plot addition. It really helped to hammer home the fact that Bea needed structure in order to achieve abstract concepts. I feel like the author hinted heavily at Bea being on the autism spectrum, without ever coming out and saying it. I could be wrong about that, but I enjoyed seeing this kind of personality celebrated in a YA romance novel.

This was a really cute read, and I absolutely think you should pick it up ASAP!

My Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I gave Long Story Short 4 Stars!

Beatrice lives a very structured and sheltered life. She is home schooled, has no friends or social interactions, and even eats the same meals. Her dream is to go to college at Oxford and when she is accepted, her parents make a deal with her that if she will go to a Shakespeare theatre camp and experience some new "teen" things, they feel she will be more prepared to go to Oxford.
Now she must survive theater camp and check things off her "teen experience check-list".

I really enjoyed this YA rom com that is a fish out of water story. It was fun and interesting without stressing me out! This one would be great for fans of Emma Lord or Julie Bauxbaum. I do have a small quibble with the boring title that really tells you nothing about the book. Needs a rename and a better cover but if you look past that, this is a good book.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy for review.

At its core, this book is a love letter to theater nerds. Only at a theater camp could Beatrice have found the weird and wonderful friends that she needed. This was a super cute and quick read with great summer camp vibes, and a bit of YA enemies to lovers thrown in. My favorite character of them all was Nolan and I would love to read an entire book about his adventures in the costume department.

A story about treading the waters of friendship, love, and self-discovery. This is a refreshingly light coming-of-age story, with a hint of enemies to lovers theme. This is a fantastic YA novel with a STEM female protagonist, and would be a great addition to a classroom library. G-rated, and covers the ins and outs of what it's like being a teenager (although a little stereotypical at times).

Beatrice (Bea) is 16 years old, and her dream has always been to go to Oxford. She was homeschooled by her parents, who are sex therapists, and received her diploma at 14. She's smart as a whip, but doesn't always approach things in the best way. Her dream came true when she received her acceptance letter to Oxford, but she breaks the news to her parents at a dinner party, and they have several concerns. Her parents don't think she's had the "teenager experience," due to being homeschooled (and an introvert in general). She has a large whiteboard in her room for notes, color codes problems and solutions, has a photographic memory, and doesn't socialize with anyone.

How could she possibly be ready to move to another country to attend school? Two words: summer camp. Shakespearean, to be exact.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

One of the things I enjoyed most about this self-assured debut YA romance is the sharp repartee 16-year-old Beatrice uses to defend herself from just about everyone else in the story. Bea is something of a wunderkind, having graduated from high school early after being homeschooled. Without telling anyone, she applies to--and is accepted by--Oxford University to study advanced mathematics, but her parents don't think she is mature enough yet to live and study far from her home in Berkeley, CA.

Bea has lived a rigid, solitary life, wearing her "uniform" of unflattering polo shirt and khakis every day and eating according to a self-imposed menu that never changes from week to week. She doesn't have any friends, and an unfortunate incident with a boy has led her to meet regularly with a therapist. Her parents' solution is to mandate a summer Shakespeare theater camp in Connecticut, where their daughter must complete a list of goals in order to gain their approval for matriculating at Oxford in the fall.

The goals include making a friend, hugging at least three people, and a host of other things that would be "normal" for any other teenager, but most of them are nearly unthinkable to Bea. It's fun to see how she is slowly and reluctantly sucked into friendship with her roommate and a few others who are willing to overlook her prickly personality and determined to help her attain her goals while learning to experience a teenager's life that she has never known. The supporting characters are well written and entertaining, and the writing is often breezy but full of emotion. This author is one to watch.

My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for the opportunity to read and provide an honest review of this book.

I was in the mood for a cute, summer read that didn’t take too long and would provide a good time; and Long Story Short seemed like the answer to my prayer.

I didn’t really know much about it going in, so I was surprised to find out just how much of a socially awkward person Beatrice really was. I mean I knew she was supposed to be a genius, and that usually comes with certain social difficulties but Breatice was on another level of inadequate, which was sort of painful to witness.

The rest if the cast were fun, though. But a little forgettable in my opinion. The whole story dragged on for a while which interfere with my plans of a quick read. Mostly due to the second hand embarrassment and the fact that I found everyone’s actions a little childish(?) even though it’s young adult it shouldn’t necessarily mean immature, right?

But there were also a bunch of fun parts that were enough to keep me going and at the end I liked it enough to finish it, even if it took me a long time.

I keep switching from 3 to 4 stars because I did think this book was such a fun summer read. A YA book set at a Shakespeare theater camp where they have to put on one big production by the end. I liked the setting and the people. The issue I had was with the protagonist. It's never stated she's autistic but she eats the same thing on a schedule, she's basically a genius, she has a routine with clothes, conversations, etc. So it felt a little icky whenever she was pushed too over her boundaries while at camp however, she was also given her space so it was a balancing act that sometimes tipped over in the wrong direction. That's how I also felt about Bea because while she was the underdog, she felt like the antagonist for a lot of it. She was pretty verbally aggressive and caustic towards the others but, she did eventually calm down. All in all, it was a balancing act of trying to deliver a cute summer romance while also being pretty dramatic. It did have its fun camp moments and a lot of learning that went into it.

I LOVED THIS BOOK. Literally everything about it. Bea/Beatrice was such a unique, but also so relatable MC. As someone who has trouble with certain social situations and cues, I really loved seeing a female protagonist like her. Mia and Nolan were such great characters and friends. I absolutely loved how they immediately brought Bea in and supported her, but also challenged her. The enemies to lovers trope was done incredibly well. I really liked Nik. He owned up to his mistakes and did his best to be understanding of Bea’s behavior and mannerisms. Having it set at a theatre camp was extra fun since I’m a huge theatre nerd. I love Nik and Bea’s Shakespeare battles. This was just such a good story of friendship and challenging yourself and gaining confidence.


Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced digital reader’s copy!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

I absolutely ADORED this! What a beautiful, fun, and sweet romance! I could not get enough. FRTC

Thanks to Wednesday Books for the free book.
I absolutely adored this YA story about Beatrice who needs to learn how to be a teenager. While extremely intelligent, Bea lacks social skills, so she has to attend summer camp or else her parents won't allow her to go to Oxford. This summer camp sounded so fun - and acting and Shakespeare - are not really my thing. At first, I was trepidatious when I read that this was going to take place at acting camp because theater kinds of stories can be a hit or miss with me. But Kaylor fleshed out these teenagers and their drama so well. I was fully invested in Bea and her growth. I could relate to some of her social anxieties and faux pas moments, and I think the author did such a great job capturing the awkwardness of these moments. I thought the Shakespeare sprinkled throughout added to the story - especially the game, IYKYK. This is a book I wish I had had when I was a teen, and I hope it gets into the hands of readers that need it.

Beatrice agreed to attend theatre camp to prove to her parents that she could be “a normal teenager”, and she realized the benefits of being a normal teenager as she grew and discovered the power she always possessed.

This was love at first page for me. Bea was a kindred spirit. Her logical thinking, love of books, and introverted ways called to me. She felt like an outsider in her town and family. She liked structure and was not a big fan of change. All I could think was, “Same, Bea, same.”

Her wit and sardonic sense of humor were a draw for me as well. It’s not often I see so much of myself in a character. Needless to say, I loved going to camp with Bea. It was a pleasure watching her check items off her list of normal teenager experiences, and she was so fortunate to do so under the guidance of two fantastic new friends, Mia and Nolan. This fish-out-of-water setup resulted in a myriad of comedic situations which amused me to no end.

I am a sucker for a camp setting, and as far as camps go, this was a fun one. There is nothing more terrifying for an introvert than theater people. My sister was (and still is) active in theatre, and her super outgoing nature was always a bit much for me. In addition to the clash of introvert and extrovert, there were also all the normal camp trappings to enjoy.

I hope you don’t think this was an Eliza Doolittle type tale. Though Bea does indeed grow from her experiences, she also grew to embrace her favorite things about herself and allowed the things that were always there to shine.

The romance, the friendship, the Shakespeare, the camp shenanigans – I loved it all! When I finished this book, I was smiling so hard, my face near cracked in half. I am hoping that Kaylor is working on a sequel. Maybe make that spring break trip happen. I would jump at the chance to see what the college years have in store for Bea because spending more time with this a character so special would be a treat.