4.5 This was my favorite Casey McQuiston yet and I absolutely adored her first book, so that’s saying something!

Shara Wheeler and Chloe Green are high school rivals. Shara is the perfect popular girl that everyone loves. She’s spent her whole life in False Beach, Alabama at this homophonic bible thumping Christian school. Chloe, on the other hand, transfered here a few years ago from LA and thinks she’s too good for this place. She loves her two moms though and they had to transfer back here, to the town they grew up in, so she sucks it up, begrudgingly. Shara and Chloe are battling for the valedictorian spot and neither of them is playing nice.

Then, the day of their senior prom, Shara kisses Chloe, kisses the stoner boy next door Rory, and her jock boyfriend Smith and then secretly runs away. She leaves behind notes for the three of them and the story then takes us on the journey of these three unlikely group of people following clues and notes to figure out where the hell Shara Wheeler went and why the heck did she kiss them all?!?

I read another review that said this book reminded them of Mean Girls with much less toxicity and a whole cast of LGBTQIA Characters. That is a perfect description. I loved all of this. I’ll admit I wasn’t a fan of One Last Stop but I’m so happy I have McQuiston another shot because this was excellent.

I love Casey McQuiston’s writing style and was so excited to read their take on a YA romance. I think they knocked it out of the park with this one. I don’t want to give too much away, but this is a must read!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was so excited when I saw that I was approved for this because Red, White, and Royal Blue and One Last Stop by this author were some of my favorite reads over the last couple of years! I was definitely interested to see how this book would go since its the author's YA debut novel. I enjoy YA books too so I wasn't worried about not liking it but I wanted to see what the differences would be in the writing style from their previous works.

This book reminded me a little of Gone Girl and Paper Towns. I liked the mystery feel throughout this book and of course, I loved all of the LGBTQ rep. The only issue I found in this book, resultings in this book being 4 stars instead of 5, is that I had a hard time with the characters because they were all kind of annoying to me. But I did enjoy the ending after all of the secrets were revealed.

This could have been a fun high school story about a queer California kid transplanted to an evangelical private school in Alabama. What starts out as a hunt for clues as to the whereabouts of missing Shara Wheeler, everyone's favorite hometown girl, becomes a tale of self discovery for all involved. There were a lot of things I liked about this book, but they were overshadowed by some unlikely major plot points.

First of all, I can't believe that the most popular, well-known (her face is on billboards for her school, for goodness sake) teen girl in town would just go missing and nobody freak out except for a trio of mismatched students. Even if Shara sent notes to her parents saying she was fine and not to worry...I think they would worry. And if they didn't, they'd be seriously called on it. Plus, local media.

Second, by the end of the book there are a lot of queer kids. Like a LOT. I think it's great people got to see that there are lots of ways to be (as it should be, no?), but when a good 1/3 of the senior class (I might be exaggerating, but not by much) comes out in the span of days, I am left scratching my head. Suddenly everyone is accepting? Everyone feels confident expressing themselves after a lifetime of not?

I am a long way from being a teen, so I sometimes have trouble separating wishful, positive, joyful queer themes from the harsh reality of the world. I'm glad there are fewer and fewer books with queer characters that end in tragedy, but it's also hard to take ones that end with a virtual musical montage, either.

I adored M. McQuiston's Red, White, and Royal Blue. I liked One Last Stop (but the magical realism was a stretch for me). I Kissed Shara Wheeler held promise, but it fell a little flat for me.

I am editing this two days after originally posting. I think I was too hard on this book. So, 4 stars now, instead of 3.

Instead of seeing magical realism in the depiction of a senior class embracing individuality and queerness, I should look at this as a real happy ending! How great is it that we expect most readers to see themselves and/or people they love in this book?! Also, the main character has some character flaws (they see them, too), and there’s no reason why slightly difficult people shouldn’t also find their match?.

My thanks to St. Martin's Press Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

While the academic competitors to lovers YA trope is hardly new, I Kissed Shara Wheeler is far from trite. A diverse cast of characters supports the protagonist as she follows a frustrating set of clues sent by her nemesis. Friends are made, personal voyages of discovery are had, and the value of (the appearance of) perfection is questioned. A most satisfying read.

Casey McQuiston is the reigning person of anthemic fiction. I Kissed Shara Wheeler is no different. While this one took a while to truly hook my attention (the pacing at the front end was tricky for me), the characters and their relationships to one another, especially over the course of the story, really shine. A+ banter. A+ queer discovery. I finished this with the biggest smile on my face.

A love letter to every queer teen growing up in a small conservative town, I Kissed Shara Wheeler has all the trademark heart of a Casey McQuiston novel woven into a resonant story about adolescent self-discovery. These characters are trainwrecks, they lie to others and themselves, they're scared and craving the world all at once, and they feel so gloriously reminiscent of my own teenage years. Maybe this book won't resonate for everyone, and that's fine - the people who need to get it can be the people who find it.

This was a great enemies to lovers story! I LOVED all the LGBTQIA+ representation. If you have religious trauma, I think you will feel very seen reading this. I will definitely be picking up a physical copy of this book when it releases on May 3rd!

Casey McQuiston does it again! A cast of characters that could easily be a bunch of real queer people you know, a plot that makes you want to read it all in one sitting, and an ending that is so satisfying!

This is holding the spot for my favorite read of 2022!

I found myself putting this one down every so often… moments when it was just so good… because I didn’t want it to end and I was prolonging the inevitable. I wholeheartedly adored Chloe Green and the people she introduced along the way.

Favorite quote:

“Depends if you don’t mind that they’re all about you.”

—this made me feel a whole freaking way.

I’m finding it hard to articulate my feelings about this book, considering I’m nowhere near done feeling them. This book gives so much light to so many important topics, while telling the absolute cutest story at the same time.

I found myself laughing through so much of this book. Being an expressive reader and reading a book that elicits such real emotion like this one does created some awkward moments when my family caught my outward reactions. But it was just too good! And the entire last quarter of this book and me smiling through tears and laughing WAY OUT LOUD.

I reveled in the glory of this book because of how it was able to express angst and uncertainty of learning who you are in the world and realizing that it’s okay to JUST BE… that it’s okay to not quite know, but to keep striving for change when the world around you isn’t yet accepting of the true beauty of difference. The appreciation of the beauty in the realization that people around you are feeling their own uncertainties in so many ways and how you can let that bring you together instead of farther apart.

This book totally slayed in the very best way and I can’t wait to read it again and again.

Casey McQuiston has done it again! While I cannot rate this book as highly as I did Red, White, and Royal Blue, this book features compelling characters, shocking twists, and a mystery that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page. I intend to pick up a copy when it hits shelves. 4 stars!

First, thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Second, I am a southern queer person who still lives in the south. Parts of this book make me feel seen in a way not many do, and while our main narrator, Chloe, harbors some particular views about the south, Alabama specifically, she learns the south is not a monolith of bigoted, anti-queer people. Also, she falls in love! In the south!

Okay, now on to the juicy stuff! To me, this book was just about PERFECT. It took something familiar, academic rivals to lovers, and made it feel fresh and exciting and lovely. Reading it was akin to experiencing first love, and I was brought back to the sweet moments of falling in love in my small town for the first time at the cusp of leaving for college. McQuiston is just one of my favorite writers in general, but this has got to be my favorite so far.

It was paced very well, the language was thoughtfully chosen, and it just is a plain great read! It was fun and light, and I will fully admit I read it in one sitting only stopping for necessary breaks. This is one I'll be incorporating into my professional life AND buying a print copy of once it hits the shelves for myself and my queer sibling.

If you want a book that feels like that first sip of sweet tea in the hot summer sun with a slight breeze blowing in from a storm still two days away, a book that feels like that first yearning, angsty, sweet falling in love feeling, a book that has sapphic academic rivals to lovers, this is a book for you.

5/5

I was so excited for Casey McQuiston's YA debut and this did not disappoint. I have a soft spot for messy, incorrigible teen girls, and I Kissed Shara Wheeler definitely hit the spot. I'm a sucker for a solid found family dynamic and loved the elements of mystery. I will definitely be passing this along to my young adult readers.

This book is so good. I want to give it to every queer person who has grown up in a repressive community. The variety of representation is fantastic. McQuiston excels at writing real people that also happen to have snappy reparte. There is enough pop culture to pull you in but not too much to be dated quickly. I wanted to alternately slap and hug every one of these teens. The supportive adults were human and real and just what our society needs.

Thank you to NetGalley for choosing me to receive a copy of this book before publication date in exchange for an honest review.

I have enjoyed all of Casey McQuiston's books, but this one is my favorite. As a high school teacher, I know how important books like this are for students who are trying to find their place in a world that doesn't always welcome them. I hope to see this picked up and turned into a movie or TV special. I would definitely watch.

Go Chloe!

**Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a review copy of this work. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. **

Casey McQuiston, I think, is incapable of writing a book that I don’t completely lose my mind over. I Kissed Shara Wheeler is such an enjoyable read, with interesting and diverse characters that grow as they learn more about each other and themselves. It’s also a fun scavenger hunt and is about friendships, family, and home just as much as about romantic love. Once I got into it, I could not put it down. I would love to see this one made into a movie (obviously, same with CM’s other books, but this one really lends itself to a fun teen movie). Highly recommended.

I'll have to come back and leave a more coherent review later but holy CRAP. I loved this so so much and it may have dethroned Red White and Royal Blue as my favorite casey book. I'm a lover of side characters and lord knows there were quite a few to love in this book. If I had to pick a favorite character, I would have to choose my king Smith (he/they of the day????). Sorry to Chloe and Shara and everyone else, but Smith was just so pure and also...so obviously in love with Rory. I love me a childhood best friends to estranged to lovers plotline. I absolutely can't wait to hear what everyone else has to say.

This is a book that every single high school/college age student should read as they are trying to find who they are in this crazy world. I loveeeee the LGBTQ+ representation and acceptance we find through out this novel. While it’s in some ways a romance, it’s also a mystery, and a coming of age novel for so many of the characters! Did I wish for a bit more to the plot, yes but the message from this novel was soooo worth the read. Plus, I loved the side characters almost more than the main characters from time to time which speaks to what a good book this is! I can’t wait to see the positive impact this novel has on individuals searching for their own identity and place in the world. Please please give this one a shot!

I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston tells the story of Chloe Green, a queer Californian transplant to the south whose academic rival, the "perfect" Shara Wheeler, goes abruptly missing after she unexpectedly kisses Chloe. Chloe is determined to solve the mystery of where Shara disappeared to, while revealing the awful side of Shara that no one but Chloe seems to see.
This book has a scavenger hunt-style mystery plot which is fun, but it also goes deeper than that. I Kissed Shara Wheeler explores belonging, acceptance, growing up queer in the South, and carving out a space for yourself in a place that doesn't seem to want you. This is the kind of book I wish I had in high school but am so glad exists now. I dare you not to read this and fall in love with the characters.

I Kissed Shara Wheeler was a fun YA read. It kept me entertained because I was constantly waiting to find out what was going to happen next. Casey McQuiston did it again. She did a great job capturing what it feels like to be queer and Southern in a way that I've never read before. I loved that the story, while talking about coming out, was not a traditional coming out story.