*A high school senior navigates messy boys and messier relationships in this bitingly funny and much-needed look into the overlap of Asian American identity and teen sexuality.*

Everything felt too messy, the characters were all over the place. And I know, this is part of being a teenager but it didn't do this story justice. Other than all the downsides of this novel, glad I read it because it had its cute moments.

This will be a great read for people who love messy teen stories, and particularly for fans of Mary H.K. Choi, whose work I found this book reminiscent of. I thought this was an impressive debut, moving, insightful and with lots of character growth, as is fitting for a coming of age story.

This is such a wonderful, funny, heartfelt book and Anna Gracia is such an exciting new voice. I cannot wait to see what she writes next!

This was a book that felt like life. There wasn't any pretty wrapping to any of the questions, there was a lot of uncomfortability, but that is where the beauty of this book comes from. It's such a wonderful, authentic coming of age story, and I really, really enjoyed it.


Thank you to Netgalley and Peachtreeteen for providing me with an arc. All opinions are my own!

This was a great coming of age and romance ARC I received from Netgalley. The author did a great job of creating a realistic high school plot, which can be difficult to do. The plot explored the struggles of selecting a college, especially with parental pressure, and navigating romantic relationships. I enjoyed reading this book, but the entirety of it was pretty static and didn’t really pick up pace. It took me a while to get through the book since I didn’t really get to a part that made it hard to put down.

The Boy I Know is now one of my favorite books ever! I couldn’t keep my eyes off of the pages! I was HOOKED from start to finish. I loved the characters, the plot, and the overall vibe this book gave me!

I really appreciate this author for creating such a personal and realistic story. It may not be exactly my story, but I could find myself as the other sister Wendy. And it did made me realise what kind of sister I actually am.

What I take the most from this book, is exactly how raw and angsty this story was. We follow June as she stumbles across a lot of problems, terrible decisions and failures, but also the love in friendship and family. It's the story of a modern teenager on to move to the adult world. Everything isn't just black and white, there are so many layers to every single person. We're not supposed to love June at every moment, she's not a heroine in a fantasy world. She is an eighteen year old girl who is still learning everything life has to offer, the good and bad. And that's something this author didn't miss.

Never feeling like belonging is a feeling I'm too familiar with. Grown up as a Vietnamese girl in predominantly white country (Norway) and town, I know about all the microagressions against Asians. I've heard enough, as well as my brother. And seeing this internal conflict in June hit way too close. I'm also the same age as her, exactly at a place where I need to choose where my life will go with further studies. The expectations placed on her is similar to mine too, along with the fact that we play classical string instruments. June and I are different, yet similar.

It's interesting that I find some people on this site talk about the representation being amazing, even though they're not even in the ethnical group of the representation. The rating and thoughts about this book also depend on these people too. Very interesting.

All in all, I did really enjoy this book. It was written in a way I could imagine it being an indie drama film, which I appreciated. For some reason I just feel like I can't give it a 5 star rating, but a 4 from me is really good anyways. I've grown a bit these years and I've come to become more critical with my ratings. So 4 stars from me can be seen as impressive, I'll say. And as time goes, maybe I'll like this book even more. For now I'll let it sink in a bit more.

Over and out. -Nora<3

The way I thoroughly enjoyed this book🥺!! Thanks again Netgalley for such wonderful selection of ARCs. I've found some serious jewels purely from reading ARCs.

Utterly relatable coming of age story following a teenage June Chu, a Taiwanese American, in her bittersweet journey of figuring life out. Relatable in terms of the dilemma of a high schooler having the burden of deciding their future. And also in terms of the roof high expectations birthed from living in an Asian household.

My heart is dazzlingly stolen by this whole story. Sailing through teenage life sure was awkward, trivial yet so monumental. The story captured all the confusion and pressure of being at the last step before adulthood brilliantly.

Messy boys, messy relationships done so perfectly. I always crave for romance in YA settings that makes sense. All the unsettling feelings, the unspoken damage, the scalding dissatisfaction of young love. I could feel them so vividly.

And I think what got me the most is constraint of having to live up to such high expectations from Asian parents. Yet a huge part of me is also sadden by the fact that Asian parents find it so hard to properly express their love. They always ended up painted as irrationally demanding. I bet so many parents out there are misunderstood.

If it's still not obvious, I absolutely loove this book. It's a great Asian American rep, it brings out very relatable topics and it's highly entertaining. I'm just floored at all this year's releases😭❤️

thank you to NetGalley and Peachtree publishing for this arc!

What I love this book:
- realistic characters
-gorgeous cover

In the blurb, this book was about a teenager who navigates messy relationships and how she deals with her asian american identity.

this book wasn't funny at all tbh

June, our realistic protagonist, is struggling with the academic pressure from her mother (like comparing her with her sister, etc). She lacks validation from her family and tries to find it by dating the men who wasn't living up to her expectations. She wasn't surrounded by people of her culture and didn't feel like she was Asian enough. I could relate to her struggles at the beginning but I didn't enjoy this book.

Trigger warnings:
- dubious consent kinda? she said yes to her first sexual experience and was in pain but he didn't stop
- the "almost" pregnancy <spoiler>the condom broke on her second encounter, and her boyfriend wasn't really supportive of the morning after pill</spoiler>the bf also wasn't 100% supportive of
- racism
-cultural appropiration
-sexual scenes
- toxic relationships

urg. i didn't get to finish this, but the little that i did read, intrigued me greatly.
as someone who also struggles to live up to her parents expectations, this book almost feels like its MEANT for me.

This was a book i didnt get into i loved the blurb and felt like it was up my alley but it dragged a but and didnt have my interest and been a book i picked up and put down again

If I had to describe this book in one word, it would be: messy. Very, very messy. But I think that's what makes it so realistic. Emotions are always heightened in high school - you're young and you often don't say the right things. Relationships are just complicated - whether it's with your family, friends, or partner. It's this complication that leads to many less -than-desirable circumstances and June in BOYS I KNOW finds herself in them. A lot. Admittedly, as someone who grew up in a strict Chinese-American household, I found it a little hard to relate to her. I was what a lot of people would call the "goody two shoes" and I already know my high school self would most definitely not be friends with her.

However, as someone who is a bit older now, I can also see where she's coming from and why she made the decisions that she did. Not that every action requires a clear-cut reason; I appreciated that Anna allowed her to just BE. To make those mistakes, to not be the best person, or the "goody two shoes". I'd imagine her experience is more relatable to others than it was for me and I'm 100% okay with that. I've seen some people say they believe this book is important for teen girls today and I'd absolutely agree. Was it a bit much sometimes? Yes. Was it a romance? No. I would not go into this book expecting a romance HEA. Does it have one of the best covers I've seen? Yes.

If you're looking to read something truly chaotic but also contemplative, I'd recommend this one!

NOT MY STYLE

What I didn't like

👎 The story felt slightly chaotic and messy and not in a good way, not as if it was supposed to read like that
👎 For my taste this was too character driven and there wasn't enough plot
👎 A character driven novel needs interesting characters who show growth throughout the story. We did not get that with this book. At best the characters were boring. At worst they were downright unlikable.

Anna Gracia's Boys I Know is a YA romance that will appeal to fans of Gossip Girl and Euphoria. Throughout the story, June Chu, who wants a boyfriend, is ignored by her crush, Rhys. When Rhys' fling with June fails, she embarks on a series of encounters, flings, and dates with other boys. Does sex mean love? And will she find out what she wants to do with her life?

Boys I Know is a mature young adult novel that will appeal to older fans of To All the Boys. One highlight of this book is that the main character is Asian, and Chinese to be precise. Due to the amount of sexual content in the book, I took off two stars. This book is being marketed as a "sex-positive" novel. if you like YA romances in general, check out this book when it comes out in July!

This book had so many things going for it.

Rating: ✨✨2.3

The representation.
The positive yet realistic look into teenage relationships with all their struggles and petty scrabbles over that one stray look the girl gave to a donut or something.
(that girl was me)
This book had allll those things.

*puts glasses over teary eyes*
Had as in past tense.
Like for example, I HAD the hope that I would love it.
I HAD thought that I would give it four stars halfway through.
I HAD... had. Yes. Eloquence.

And I even went into this without expectations. I saw the cover, read over the synopsis (ahem, skim read it), requested an ARC AND I GOT MAGICALLY ACCEPTED FDRT7UIJHGFTY. So um... Netgalley? I love you for that.
I hate you.
But I love you.

*smirks in possible enemies to lovers*

But back to the matter at hand. This book had me conflicted at such a desperate level that I was THIS close to throwing a mega humongous (albeit fabulous and with sprinkles... yum) tantrum. Because why???? Did those things happen???

However, I shall start with the golden parts first because after months of not being able to review, I've realized that I'm a tad brutal with books I dislike.
And I forever will be- but this time I'll pat it in the back before decapitating it.
The book.
Not a person-
(sad, I know)

The representation was beautiful, y'all. I LOVE reading books about different ethnic groups, especially when I am incredibly interested in their culture! The mannerisms, the food, the ambience and environment... *sigh* so for that, the book gets a star. (please don't add the amount of times I say that) When a book solidly makes me interested in the way of life within the story, it is always a plus for me.

Unlike half of this book in particular.
I'm sorry- I-
I'll walk away.

*runs back* Teenagers are messy and chaotic. (thus, that abrupt change of topic) (and the plot of this book) And this is speaking from experience. We make mistakes, and we get hurt, and we make even more mistakes and along the path, we obtain expectations. From family, friends, even the public eye. Expectations based on our looks, identities, way of speech, peculiarities, and it is stifling at times. I believe the author captured those feelings very well! (back again to using the exclamation marks to hide the pettiness within) It hurts to be in a mold other people set you in, at least mostly. Like an ache, or an itch one cannot seem to scratch properly.
The book could've been so much more, taking into consideration the topics it delved into. Yet, it just felt messy. Not teen messy. Just a plain mess, let me explain.

The storyline follows the main character in her journey of teen love, familial expectations, second child problems and healthy or unhealthy relationships. Sounds promising, right? But along the way, as the pages unfolded, the greater picture got muddy and gray. There was no discerning what the main purpose was anymore because the characters didn't seem to convey the truth of their personalities.

And that was represented in the MC's relationships. I get making a mistake a thousand times. Even the same mistake over and over again. But not learning from it? Blaming others for the inability to take responsibility for the choices you clearly made? I'm sorry, but that's a plain no. I understand what this book was trying to accomplish by making all the characters unlikable, horrible, disgusting and disturbing human beings-

Wait, I don't.

The MC was a nice person for half of the book. She made me feel her pain WITH her, made me experience her thoughts and emotions and how ugly the world was and continues to be for some minorities that are forced to conform themselves to a different way of life. But after the clearly overly victimization that progressed far more than the plot ever did, I just couldn't comprehend what the story wanted me to think of her. Did it want me to root for her? Judge her? Relate to her? It became overbearing how hard it was to think of her as a good human being. She judged others yet made the same mistakes they made, was shallow and self-centered- and oh my gosh, I need to calm down because I am feeling too evil.

Breatheeeee
In
Breatheeee
Out

(This is never against the author and I feel the need to remind myself of this every few minutes because then I would close up and be like... well, the book uh- the book-)

Everything felt so one dimensional, I couldn't even take the MC seriously.
And that is depressing.

Then we have 'the boyfriends' (cue Justin Beiber BOYFRIEND song, oh how the times have gone astray). I apologize in advance, but pfffffffft. Why did they remind me of stereotypical Disney Channel villains that time travelled from 2005 and teleported to this book??? Omg *wheezing halfway to Hades*
The MC clearly had intense feelings for one of them, yet I didn't feel it. At all.

Oh, and not to forget the pregnancy scare.
Dubious consent.
IGNORED pregnancy scare-
IGNORED DUBIOUS CONSENT-

I- darn it, I promised myself I would be nice.
Oh well.

Apart from the 'boyfriends', the background characters were decent in a way that doesn't make me rant against them because I have nothing in particular to say. Some were good, others were fleeting annoyances that left me with a feeling of 'what the heck just happened, and how can I forget it??' multiples times, and you know what? All those characters mushed together were better than the romance in and of itself.

What romance? I truly don't know, either. And I get it, I truly do. The book wasn't supposed to be a fun rom com, I got that by page 35, however, the forced chemistry the characters evidently didn't have just made this story seem worse than it was.

Am I peeved? Why of course! I got the Peeve Supreme 'buy one get twelve free' discount.

I just need some things in the plot to be recognized as they were and given the proper attention, because some of those things were just not good, you know? And it makes me sad to think that if someone in the world went through something similar (to THAT, I couldn't say spoilers-) and has read something like *that* in other books, they might think it's normal. Which is clearly not.

On a closing note, I would've loved to go deep into the rant portion of this review since I wrote a whole essay (not really but for dramatics, my loves) on my reviewing notebook about the many things this book COULD'VE excelled at had it been for proper management of the feelings the MC was meant to give us and the overall congruence of the story and pacing. Again, this was not against the author not their views, just my own personal opinions of what this book made me go through.

This review was kind of messy and chaotic.
But I'm a teen.
It comes with the territory, *wink wink*

(Every Wattpad epilogue, this one's for you-)

~👑Special thanks to Netgalley and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!👑~

*Behind the scenes*
I could've been nicer-
Why did you do that- well the book was crappy-
You didn't have to SAY IT, THOUGH.
YES.
I
FREAKING.
HAD TO.

And people believe I'm crazy, ha!

Oh.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Boys I Know was so easy to devour in one sitting. I absolutely loved getting to know June and watch her go boy crazy. Then how she interacted with her mother and sister, Wendy, just made me smile. I seriously loved her mother because she was unapologetically herself. I'm pretty sure she was my spirit animal/person throughout this book.

As for June, well she really wants to step it up in the romance department. Whether it's with the guy she may or may not be dating or with someone new. On top of that, she has to practice the violin and get all her homework done. I ended up liking her pretty quickly and rolled my eyes whenever she was compared to her older sister. Definitely reminded me of how my parents were when I was about to graduate high school.

Other than that, the romance drama was so freaking realistic and easily relatable. Mostly because people are kind of shitty and indecisive as hell. The things June goes through were so important because any person reading it could relate to that specific scenario. For example, I can relate to some of the things June did and it made me who I am now. I'd like to think I'm a better person for experiencing it but who knows.

In the end, I'm really happy that I got the chance to jump into this. I'm so in love with June and can't wait for everyone else to meet her. I also can't wait for the next book Anna writes because I seriously need more!

Thank you NetGalley for the free eArc in exchange for a honest review!

First off I would like to say this book was a good contemporary ya story. I keep seeing it called a romance and I wouldn’t call it that. It’s definitely a coming of age story that focuses on June’s journey. I loved the Asian American representation and how realistic it was for teens emotions/ decisions. It was very chaotic and confusing at times! Recently I haven’t been enjoying ya contemporary as much so it was just ok for me- a typical 3 star.

I did not get to finish this book. (Only downloaded it on kindle and technology hates me/I suck at using kindle and whatever), but I plan on getting it after release and from what I’ve read I do enjoy it! I didn’t get far enough in to feel confident giving a review but I’m excited to listen to the audiobook when it comes out(also an easier format for me).

This book was a bit of a roller coaster for me – I went in with high expectations and expecting a light and fluffy story. The book started off jarringly with instances of casual racism and lack of communication between characters. Yet the more I sat with that, the more I felt it did make sense.

One thing I want to get out of the way first is that I feel like this was marketed as a rom-com and that’s not the case at all. I also wish there had been trigger warnings (sex due to coercion/peer pressure, racism and grooming to name a few). That being said, the point of the book is about being BIPOC in the Midwest. I’ve never lived in the Midwest, but I have lived in Central PA and let me tell you – the microaggressions that June constantly faces is an experience that mirrored my last two years of high school. I wish the book had been clearer upfront about this and therein lies my problem with the marketing of this book.

I really liked this book because it encapsulated how messy and chaotic teenage girls are. They can be mean, they can be selfish and self-absorbed, argumentative, and boy-crazy and make very stupid decisions. In short: teenage girls are human and since, like, the dawn of time, teenage girls have always been expected to contort themselves to fit a narrative for other people. I love that June is messy because it makes her feel like a realistic teenager on the cusp of great change and with zero clue in how to handle that.

I can’t speak to the Taiwanese representation in the book, but I loved reading and learning all the Chinese proverbs featured in this book. Like June reflects, there’s something so waxing poetic about proverbs and I will never not delight in that aspect of a story. BOYS I KNOW was also a story about family expectations and that was something I COULD relate to. Though I did relate more to Wendy as an elder sibling myself, June was an incredibly self-aware person who is also incredibly emotional. I liked that she mended her relationship with Wendy and her mother (her father being a nonconfrontational person and thus absent figure was also something I chortled).

The boys in this story are one dimensional. I don’t have much to say about them and the “romance” of the story because this was less a romance and more how these boys mistreat June. I did like how June was able to reflect that she chased these boys hoping for the acceptance she felt she wasn’t getting at home.

Overall, this book sat heavy with me, and I understand the niche it’s filling, having been that one BIPOC girl at school with all white kids. On a personal level, I’d rather read the rom-com.

Special thanks to Peachtree Teen and Netgalley for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions!

** spoiler alert ** Honestly, I was expecting a very fun and cute romance story.
This was not it. It was very difficult to read and the forced sex was really off putting. I mean, if you don't want to do something, just don't do it. Then there was the fact that she got pregnant because she didn't say no and just went with it.

I know these things happen to teenagers, especially when they are not properly informed about sex, basically they don't have any sex education, but at the age where they are... I think she should have known better about everything.

I should probably have expected that these things would happen because the main character was very childish about a lot of things in this book and she just read very very young.


Maybe I am just too old to relate to her and the story in itself and I hope that a younger girl can read this book and learn something out of it.

{thank you to Netgalley, Peachtree and author Anna Gracia for providing me an eARC of the book in exchange for an honest review!}

rating- 3.5/5

Boys I Know follows June Chu, a first generation Taiwanese-American as she navigates high school, college applications, relationships, sex and friendships. A sex positive, poignant and realistic coming of age story; June's bad decisions are as maddening as they are cathartic.
The book addresses a lot of things from parental issues in Asian households to consent and micro-aggressions faced by asians in the US. It's definitely not an easy, light-hearted read and makes you feel discomfort. But that's what the book aims to do. Reading about actual issues faced by people, ranging from racism to heartbreak written in such an authentic manner was very different from the usual new- adult book. It was an interesting read and delves into so many issues with complex laid out characters.

The book refers to June, our protagonist: as 'just good enough'.
As a second child in an Asian household, she constantly feels the need to be as good as her sister, get something other than a third place trophy and manage her relationships well. This low self worth leads her to pursue relationships with the boys she knows. (see what i did there?)
Unfortunately, this book like June was also 'just good enough'. Although it conveys important messages and is realistic in the best way possible, the structure and flow of the narrative seemed a bit disjointed at times. I did read this book over the course of a few days, so it could also be that. But yeah. I found something lacking : maybe in the plot; maybe in the sense of realism it offers; maybe in the way, some instances aren't addressed or the lack of confrontation, calling somebody out and important conversations.
But then again maybe that's what the author wanted to capture. the realistic aspect.
(sincerely apologise for the number of times i said maybe)

Overall, it was a very different reading experience, one that included discomfort (the good, talking about important issues kind of discomfort) and i think everybody should definitely read this book at some point in their lives.