Thank you to @NetGalley and @delacortepress for gifting me a copy of Places We’ve Never Been in exchange for an honest review.

🏕 Mini Review 🌄
Kasie West is one of my favorite YA contemporary authors. I have read all of her contemporaries and her sci-fi duology and although they aren’t all 5 stars for me I will always read her books. I love how wholesome and sweet her stories are and they always make me smile in the end!

I was so excited for Places We’ve Never Been since it’s all about road tripping in an RV. RV living was my life for so long and it holds a special place in my heart.

So I ended up not being a huge fan of this book and I think a lot of the reason is because I didn’t love the narrator. It just sounded off to me 🤷🏻‍♀️ I liked the characters and the plot, especially the traveling in an RV but I realized that I can only handle so much of the miscommunication trope, which was in this book. I really really wanted to love it, but it didn’t happen.

If you are a Kasie West fan I feel like you have to read it. I enjoyed some parts so I do think it’s worth recommending. I gave this book ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️.

*Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

Kasie West has been one of my favorite YA contemporary romance authors for years. I have repeatedly enjoyed her fluffy romances as a palate cleansing read in between heavier books. In fact, a lot of her books are ones I will read, enjoy, and then forget about. Which is not a bad thing!

This is one of those books. I don't need to dedicate a ton of brain space to it and I still enjoy it! I will continue to come back to Kasie West romances for the simple ease of reading and enjoying it. Do I immediately fall in love which all of her books? No, but they're good, which is why I landed on 4 stars.

This book is about friendship and rekindling relationships even after a period of time away from each other. It's about being on the brink of adulthood and getting ready for college and learning those lessons in life.

It was enjoyable to read and I will continue to return to Kasie West each time she had those one-shot fluffy romances to read and enjoy.

I loved this laid back easy read. It’s the kind of book that sucks you in man’s makes you want to keep reading.
Two long time family friends are going on a road trip. Norah is excited to see Skylar again after not seeing him for years. On the trip Norah feels that her mom is keeping something from her and she’s trying to figure out what it is. Is it what she thinks or something different.

It's been a while since I read a Kasie West book, so I was intrigued to see how her new one would go and if I was going to find myself a little too old for this book. I flew through this story within an afternoon of on and off reading. I can say I was left wishing there was more written to the families' story. Norah and Skyler were the perfect set up of the childhood friends to lovers. It's definitely a personal preference but I would have preferred things to be more drawn out between those two estranged best friends as I believe in that kind of time, they would have changed a little bit and felt the need to reacquaint themselves. I do wish the characters were a little more fleshed out, we didn't really get more information on some situations I feel should have been elaborated on. All in all, I was honestly let down by the ending. It felt not just abrupt but lacking on that depth was needed with the bonds between the families and seeing how Norah and Skyler worked through things after that last chapter. It feels as if West tried tying it all together too fast. All in all, not my favourite West book.

The perfect summer read! I love car trip books, so this one was right up my alley!

Kasie West’s use of family road trips, nostalgic childhood memories and sibling banter made this read very relatable. Plus the friends to enemies to lovers trope that Norah and Skyler had going throughout the book was the perfect way to keep me reading. And if you are still on the fence about whether you should give this book a try just know there is a secret being kept that will make you need to finish the book!

Places We've Never Been was either my first or second read from Kasie West and I was convinced that I'd already outgrown her writing style and major plot design. *hiding away* Don't get me wrong; I did appreciate her stories when I was younger, probably around teenage years, but as I got older, most of her books weren't my cup of tea.

Although friends-to-lovers and enemies-to-lovers were my favorite romance tropes, this book felt more like being targeted at younger readers--say, teenagers or slightly upper young adults--as the main characters dealt with everything you might encounter when you grew up. Both Norah and Skylar tried so hard to rekindle their friendship after reuniting four years later when they were both 18 or so; sadly, Skylar was the one struggling the most with his conflicted feelings towards Norah but later found that they all had their personal demons to fight against.

This book was definitely perfect for those who were looking for a coming-of-age, bittersweet puppy love story. I did enjoy reading and learning that Norah and Skylar got to push past the unmentionable imperfections in their childhood memories, and thus, that was why I would very likely recommend this book to younger readers.

Lastly, just because I didn't necessarily resonate with the protagonists as much as I would like to, doesn't mean this book wasn't worthy of picking up. If you're in the mood of reading some fun and light-hearted coming-of-age contemporary romance, then please do not hesitate to give Places We've Never Been a chance!

***Thanks to Penguin Random House International Sales and the author for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.***

This was extremely cute and fun. It makes a great summer escape read. But it also deals with some serious topics that keep it from being too fluffy. I thought the family dynamics and relationships were handled very well. You can always count on Kassie West for a fun romcom with a lot of heart. I loved it!

I almost DNF this one. Thankfully I decided to just come back to it at a different time, I’m so glad I did. I think it’s so important to take a break from a book sometimes. Sometimes you’re just not in the right head space for a certain story.

Thank you to @prhaudio for the complementary audiobook!

Places We’ve Never Been is a sweet YA novel revolving around a summer RV trip between two families. We get two former best friends who are reconnecting after one of them moved away.

This was a fun little adventure with a huge emphasis on family and friends. It’s honestly more than just a teen romance.

I think the reason why I needed a break was honestly my age. This is the perfect book for teens. The MC was just a little too young for me at times.

Overall I loved the story, I loved traveling through the National Parks with the characters. It was a cute summer adventure.

I listened to the audiobook and I really loved the narrator Jorjeana Marie, she gave life to our MC!

Norah and Sylker were childhood best friends, until Skyler’s family moves away and they grow apart. The twist is Norah and Skyler’s mothers are best friends and devise a plan to have both families set off on a cross country road trip. Let the adventure begin!

This was a super sweet YA novel about rekindling childhood crushes, learning to truly value time with family, and how to live bravely and authentically.

Sincere thanks to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

A fun book with two characters who were very easy to root for and like. The mystery was a little predictable but perfect romance for YA readers.

This was a fun quick read, revolving around a summer RV trip between two families that featured childhood best friends who re-connect. I loved Skyler and Norah and loved how their relationship evolved throughout the book. I loved the banter between all of the characters but especially between Norah and Skyler. I liked all of the characters we met in the book. This book gave me some The Summer I Turned Pretty vibes with some similar plot lines but I still really enjoyed it. I loved the emphasis on family and friendship making this an uplifting summer read. I really enjoyed the details about the road trip stops and feel like that really added to this book. My biggest complaint is that I wish the ending had been a little bit more fleshed out. I felt like it ended a little abruptly.

I really liked this and thought it was a fun YA novel and overall it was a 4.5 stars for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children's and Delacorte Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

If you like Kasie West's books, you'll like this one, too! I think I might not be in a YA moment right now, so this one wasn't quite the same for me. Very cute friends to strangers and then lovers story, though!

I LOVE KASIE WEST AND SHE IS MY CHILDHOOOODDD but this book was not my favorite and I wish it was! BUTTTT this book was successful in bringing me into the YA romance genreeeee

While this wasn't my favorite Kasie West book, I'm so happy I picked this up because it completely ripped me out of my reading slump. West's writing is always just so easy to devour and the plot lines aren't super complex, so it's easy to mindlessly read them. The thing that didn't really work for me about this one was that it didn't really feel fleshed out. Both love interests felt pretty surface level to me and I didn't fall in love with their romance. The big "I love you" reveal honestly made me laugh out loud because it was so random and thrown in there to change up the pace and plot of the book. The secret that's hinted at throughout the book felt a bit lazy. Maybe it's because I watched The Summer I Turned Pretty show, but this felt like a second-rate version of the mom dynamic in that book/tv series. Despite its flaws, this is more proof that Kasie West fluff books can always pull me out of slumps.

Another good book by this author. I love the unique storyline about two moms taking their kids on an RV road trip without their husbands. The two families used to live near each other when the kids were younger. but a move has kept them apart for a number of years. Norah and Skyler were best friends back then but have grown apart since the move. Getting back together after a few years apart can be hard as time can take a strain on relationships. Will Norah and Skyler be able to pick up again like the years didn't matter, or do obstacles stand in their way? Can feelings change? A feel good summer read about the strength of human relationships and maybe even love. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley for review. In Places We've Never Been, Norah is looking forward to going on an RV trip with her friend Skylar and his family after they have been apart for 4 years. Little does she know, it is not just like picking up the pieces from where they left off 4 years ago. Everything has changed and someone is keeping a very big secret. This is a friends to strangers to lovers romance with a lot of self-discovery going on to balance out the romance. A well told tale.

I … wasn’t a total fan of this one, and I’m surprisingly shocked.

second chance romances are my new favorite trope, and I could not wait to get my hands on the new kasie west novel that touched on that. however, the past POVs did not flush out the romance at all, and even worse … it made it a super long insta love meet cute (my least favorite trope).

HOWEVER - I really appreciated the characterization and development of the two MCs, and the side characters who also shaped their journey. I would 100% read more of a series by kasie.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

Norah is going on a road trip with her mom, brother, and her mom’s best friend and her kids. One of those kids is her former best friend Skyler. They were so close until his family moved away four years ago.

The pair are artists, and Norah is partially traveling to meet with the dean of an art school with a gaming program in Seattle. There’s some classic miscommunication between the former pals as well as some more serious-toned family drama.

This was a quick read, and the characters were likable. I enjoyed the details about the road trip stops, as well, making this enticing to travel enthusiasts, gamers, and lovers of YA romance.

I’d recommend this to fans of The Summer I Turned Pretty.

CW: cancer.

Thanks to Netgalley & Random House Children’s / Delacorte Press for my digital advanced reader copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and Delacorte Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is my first book by Kasie West and I am sold. This book is about Norah and Skylar who were ar one time best friends until Skylar moves away and over time they lost touch. Then the summer before they graduate their moms decide to take just themselves and their kids on a road trip. Norah is excited to see her best friend again but you can't say the same for Skylar. This was a sweet, heartwarming book about friends to enemies, enemies to friends, and finally friends to lovers.

I loved all the characters in this book. I loved the concept of the book. The banter between the two main characters. If I could wish for anything it would be a little more to the ending. I felt like the ending just came too soon.

Happy Reading

Kasie West's novels always fly off the shelf in my classroom, and new release Places We've Never Been is one students will look forward to! Norah's and Skyler's moms announce a last-minute cross country road trip, and Norah can't wait to reconnect with her bestie. The characters are well developed and both likeable and relatable. Readers will root for their friendship to blossom into something more as they navigate the ups and downs of their vacation in everything from the close confines of an RV to the wide open spaces of parks attached to campgrounds. Thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to preview #PlacesWeveNeverBeen by Kasie West. I loved it and am already waiting for her next release!