A fun read! The writing style was good and it was easy to connect with the characters. Definitely recommend!

Fast paced and super fun story. I really enjoy both Maya and Skye and their different personalities. As someone who doesn't watch reality TV I do enjoy reading about it. Really fun and enjoyable read.

So I requested an arc of this because the premise sounded really fun (it was), and I ended up reading it all in one day because oH MY GOD it was so good!!!!! First of all, MAYA!!!!! She’s amazing and I love her. End quote.
Really though, I loved most of the characters (except Jordy* he sucks). They were messy and loveable and real, and while Skye took a moment she did win me over (I think because we got Maya’s POV first), and I really liked seeing their development throughout the book! I also really liked the reality show angle and revenge plot, and while I didn’t love the girls fighting with each other over an (objectively terrible) guy, it thankfully didn’t last that long and the team up between Skye and Maya was AMAZING. Also, MAYA AND SKYE????? Adorable amazing spectacular and I loved every bit of it. (AND THE ENDING WAS ALSO SUPER CUTE!!! and really satisfying even though it happened in a way I did not see coming, which I think made me like it more? Idk.)

Anyways, this was definitely a 10/10 read and I am absolutely going to pick it up again!!!

[Honestly this section at the very beginning sold me, I read this and was 100% in. Maya is a legend.]
“Let me be clear, Gwendolyn. I would rather be swallowed up into the bowels of hell and enter an arrangement with the fallen angel Lucifer than date Jordy Miller again.”
Gwendolyn’s pause of surprise stretches on long enough I almost laugh into the silence. “The fallen angel Lucifer is the devil,” she says finally, like she thinks I made a small mistake there.
“Yes, Gwendolyn.”
“You’re telling me you would rather date Satan than Jordy?”
“I am telling you I would sooner go on a reality show with the prince of darkness himself, Gwendolyn, yes.”
“That’s a heck of strong opinion.”
“Hell of a strong opinion seems more accurate here.”


*I sincerely hope Jordy falls down a well; like, how this guy had SIX whole serious girlfriends by the age of twenty is beyond me. He is the worst. Like ‘I would fly to Europe just to punch his stupid face’ the worst.

Sophie Gonzales's new YA book can best be described as The Bachelor, but royal edition, and also all the contestants are actual the Bachelor's exes. In this story we follow Maya and Skye, two of Jordy Miller's ex-girlfriends who are chosen as contestants on Jordy's season of Second Chance Romance (a new reality TV show that follows a celebrity trying to reconnect with one of their past partners). Maya agrees to participate in the TV show with revenge for Jordy on the mind and Skye agrees to participate because she believes that Jordy might just be the one for her after all. As the whirlwind TV show full of competitions and challenges begins, the girls begin to realize that nothing about the show (or Jordy) is what it initially seemed to be.
This story is unlike anything else you have read before. For fans of The Bachelor or The Selection Series, this book is for you. Never Ever Getting Back Together is full of laughs, crazy scenarios, wonderful LGBTQ rep, and lots of drama. I thought this was a fun, lighthearted story that has an air of unrealistic foolery around every turn. Maya and Skye were both great characters, as well as all the other contestants. I thought each girl was unique and fun and down to earth in her own way and I loved reading the scenes where they all interacted together. Despite this, my favorite character of the bunch was without a doubt Isaac. Isaac came out of the blue in this story but had me hanging on to his every word by the end, I thought he was a wonderful addition.
As someone who really enjoys The Bachelor I loved watching the competition progress through the weeks and watching each behind-the-scenes aspect of the show because I couldn't help but relate the story to The Bachelor in a lot of ways. When I first learned about the premise of Second Chance Romance (the reality TV show) I thought that they must be nuts because for most people the prospect of re-dating each one of your exes is probably stomach churning. But, for this story the premise of the TV show works so well. I would read a sequel to this book following another group of contestants in a Season 2 of Second Chance Romance, that's how much I loved this premise. I thought this was a hilarious, fun read that is definitely worth picking up in November!

3.75/5
Ok to be honest it wasn’t bad but adult rom coms aren’t really my thing.I did like however the relationship included in the books.Like I loveee maya and Skye together it’s like they were meant for each-other and honestly I’m glad he cheated or they wouldn’t have met. A reason I rated it low was the premise of the whole situation honestly but if u like ex boyfriend ex lover I feel like this is good for u

Maya dumped her boyfriend, Jordy, a sought after bachelor, after he cheated on her two years earlier, but to the world, everyone thinks Maya is the "crazy ex-girlfriend." But when Maya is given a chance to go on a reality show focused on second chance romance, she seizes the opportunity to make Jordy fall in love with her again, then break his heart and hopefully expose his true colors in the process. But when one of the other contestants turns out to be Skye, the girl Jordy cheated with, she finds out there is more to her than Maya realizes and revenge on Jordy might just be overshadowed by getting to know Skye. 

 Gonzales did a fantastic job of characterization. From the get-go, Jordy was the quintessential charming, yet manipulative guy and so infuriating, but you could also see how Maya and Skye got pulled into his orbit.  "He can't breathe without a lie in the exhale" (p26) is the perfect description of Jordy. He begs Maya to come on the show, while telling Skye that she is only there because the producers insisted.  He primes Skye to believe Maya is crazy, so she won't believe anything she says. Seeing both Maya and Skye's versions of Jordy from the get-go is fascinating, because you can see his manipulation even when they don't. 

I really loved the way that Gonzales sidestepped the “crazy girlfriend” trope. It was clear from the beginning that both Skye and Maya had very different ideas of what happened and while Skye did believe for a time that Maya was just hung-up on Jordy and had misread their breakup, when Maya presented evidence, Skye instantly believed her and apologized, as did Maya for believing that Skye knew that she and Jordy were not broken up. It really showcased how someone can really play you, but you can still be mature when it really comes down to it.

I really loved Maya and Skye’s relationship. Once they realized how much Jordy has played them, they immediately began to bond and they had such a great connection. I also really liked the way that their relationship progressed. Initially, it was just them kissing, but there was a natural progression to them having feelings for each other and it felt really authentic.

Even when there was a misunderstanding near the end, it didn’t last long and it lead to a mature discussion about what was expected from the relationship that Maya and Skye were building and that it could never go anywhere as long as Maya was still letting Jordy stand between them in the name of revenge.

And the ending was perfection! Maya and Skye getting to be together, Maya letting go of Jordy to focus on Skye and Jordy getting his comeuppance? It was everything!

A mature romance that showcases the importance of friendship, being true to yourself and letting go of the past to let yourself have the love you deserve.

A feel-good, cute, and funny romcom! The romance was SO CUTE and entertaining to read about. The story was intermittently a little slower at times, but overall it was wonderfully written! I will definitely be picking up more books by Sophie Gonzales after this read!!

I liked this one okay. I was excited because the plot had a lot of potential. And I’m all for more LGBTQIA representation but this one lacked for me. It was hard for me to get into this one. And I was not a big fan of the miscommunication trope used in this book

4.5 stars

I just cannot stop gushing about Never Ever Getting Back Together. If you have not read this yet, I would highly recommend reading while listening to We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together by Taylor Swift, Better Than Revenge by Taylor Swift, Keeping Tabs by NIKI, and good 4 u by Olivia Rodrigo on full volume. Okay, maybe not full volume, but you get the idea.

The world truly needs a sapphic book like Never Ever Getting Back Together, which centers around a teen reality show called Second-Chance Romances, in which Jordy's exes compete to win back his affection. I mean, really? Just from reading the book synopsis, how egoistical is Jordy? Anyways, instead of falling in love with Jordy, two contestants named Maya and Skye fall in love with each other.

If that book summary did not already convince you to pick up Never Ever Getting Back Together right now... well, let me just say that the characters did not disappoint. I loved revenge-seeking Maya and carefully-planning Skye. They really are good for each other. And they won't fall for Jordy's bullshit again after they find out the truth.

This reminds me of the long-awaited scene when both girls finally realize the truth of their previous relationship with Jordy. That was definitely one of the more memorable scenes and also the start of Maya and Skye's non-rivalry and scheming together.

Oh, I also loved the bisexuality rep.

Okay, I hated Jordy, who is a cheating and gaslighting asshole, with a burning passion, but that was also the point of the book. I would be surprised if anyone actually even liked Jordy throughout the book.

Okay, I also thought that the ending was a little, just a little, anticlimactic, but that is okay because the rest of the book was so good.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review!

Sophie Gonzales did it again!!
I read the author's another book "if this gets out" and it was as FLAWLESS as it was this one. This book flew by. I loved the characters and the "plot"

This book was a dream!!! Sophie had me at the Taylor swift reference for a title but every single sentence was masterful. Sophie is an absolute auto-read author for me and I have never been disappointed.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first Sophie Gonzales book that I’ve read and I’ll be definitely checking out her other books!

The book follows Maya and Skye who both dated the same guy, Jordy (also dated him at the same time for a while.. BIG yikes). The girls are invited to a dating show where they get to re-date Jordy.

This book captured my attention right from the get go. I loved the concept of the dating show. It was so unique and totally something I could see on Netflix or something. The humour in it had me laughing from start to finish. The relationship between Maya and Skye had me nervous at first but just swooning at the end. Perfect enemies to lovers!

This book was so much fun and I can’t wait to own a physical copy ❤️

I would love to do a podcast interview with Sophie Gonzales for my podcast Raise Your Words! I have interviewed authors like Intisar Khanani and Annika Sharma on my podcast. I have also interviewed debut 23’ author Priyanka Taslim on The Love Match. I’m a huge fan of Sophie’s and would love to do an interview for We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together .

!!!!!!!!! so so so good. this is, like, every romance novel i wish i had as a teen. it was delightful and dramatic and so, so fun to read.

Thank you #NetGalley for an early copy of #NeverEverGettingBackTogether by #SophieGonzales to read and review! (Spoiler Free!)

I really loved this super cute and wholesome YA love story, and I think you will too!

Pros:
• Wholesome, enemies-to-lovers content
• Quick read
• Queer Love story between two canonically bi characters (they both identify as bisexual)
• The slow destruction of the ex-boyfriend (who was actually quiet terrible and gas-lighting them the whole time)
• This is the kind of book I wish I had has as a young adult and trying to navigate my sexual identity.

Cons:
• I see a lot of people who want to read this, also have several other Queer/Sapphic books on their TBR that lean more toward the spicy side. This is not a spicy book! For me, that’s not a con at all as I’m not a huge fan of spicy books. But I also understand that is a big draw for a lot of people.
• The ending felt very rushed.
• I’m not a big fan of miscommunication (or lack of communication) as a trope, and this book’s major climax kind of hinges on miscommunication. Not so much so that it’s hard to overlook for someone like me, but I’m listing it in the con territory regardless. To be fair though, who is actually a good communicator as a young adult? So really, maybe this is just realistic to the age group!

As always, these are just my own opinions! Over all, this is a wonderful Sapphic love story that is cute, adorable, quick and easy to read, and just perfect for a casual reader!

This is my second time read by Sophie Gonzales.
This book follows a story of Maya and Skye who joins the forces to get the revenge from their ex boyfriend Jordy Miller.
I loved this book and the bisexual representation.
I just wanted more of Maya and Skye when they got together. Also I felt characters were to too young to participate in a second-chance Romance reality show.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the arc.

This was my first read by Sophie Gonzales! And it looks like I am going to be picking up some of her previous work after reading this. Now, I am not personally a watcher or fan of reality T.V. shows, especially romance ones, so I think I missed some of the mentions and nods towards the shows that the theme was based on. Even with that I found the humour to be amazing! Also loving the LGBTQ+ representation, we need more of that!

I do wish we got a bit more of the backstory for Maya and Skye, in terms of their personal lives between when they dated Jordy to when they went on the show. And I would have LOVED more of Maya and Skye after the show had ended, to see some of their relationship outside of the show setting. For me the ending of the novel felt a little rushed. Even with that there were some awesome twists I did not see coming which was a bonus that I was not expecting when going into this novel!

The selection of side characters were great and I think the writer did an excellent job of giving them all their own personality so that they didn't blend together while they were on the show.

Overall it was a great read, I am giving it a 4/5. I just felt that more time could have been spent building the main characters before the show and after the show. But overall an excellent read!

I enjoyed this book, but there were a few things that I felt jostled the book out of “omg this could really happen” territory. The biggest was the ages of everyone… if they were just mid-20s instead, it would have been a game changer. But 18 and going on a tv show to fight for the love of your life, aka: the boy you dated for a few months at 15 years old? I kept making them older in my head so it made sense, but there was always a detail that reminded me.

Overall, the idea was great, loved the title and the LGBTQ+ representation with the main characters. Would recommend, but probably not fangirl over.

https://www.tiktok.com/@bettysbooklist/video/7115129069515164971?is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1&lang=en

This book was on my list of anticipated reads the second it got announced. Sophie is one of my favorite authors and I was prepared to be blown away again. I’m a sucker for reality TV so when I saw the synopsis for the book I thought it was going to be an instant love. It was really unfortunate when this didn’t instantly become a favorite.

The idea of the story was perfect, the execution? Not so much.

Some of my issues:
Jordy is a royal, which take down the monarchy I am here for that, but none of his royalty makes sense. The reality show is about his exes and them getting a second chance with him but one of the exes is a hookup. I know this is fiction but there’s no way a royal would publicly talk about a hookup, that’s a pr nightmare waiting to happen. I think the ages of the contestants should’ve been older. Having exes come back is kinda tough when you’re only 20 years old. Most of his relationships were quick and due to this it’s quite clear that most of them are only there for publicity purposes. It’s hard to see it as rekindling love when only two of them considered to actually love him. How was he the one to get away when he’s hookup? He’s supposed to get away. Only two made comments about actively being interested in him and the one changed her tune, rightfully so, on day two. So the ages came with restrictions,I do understand this is a ya book but I think new adult would’ve worked a little better.

Also, the royal part deeply confused me. I guess his sister is gonna marry is married to a royal? But his family is very rich? I felt like he should’ve been kept as a rich child and leave royalty out of it.

Okay, now about maya and skye. I’m all for maya getting revenge. She should drag his name through dirt, I would support her a hundred percent. What I didn’t support was how aggressive she was towards skye in the beginning. I understand she thought skye knew that jordy wasn’t single when she started dating him but that doesn’t allow her to go in guns blazing without reason. If skye had been actively aggressive then yes bash her go for it, but skye was really polite in the beginning. Maya knew skye would be there so I’m not sure how she thought she could rampage on her without it being a problem. On the first day Maya tells another girl there, Perrie, her whole plan for being there. Not even three hours in and she’s discussing her plan with a literal stranger. That’s not strategic that’s how you get thrown to the curb with the monarchy wanting your head on the chopping block.

Then still on day one skye tells the other girls that maya is being aggressive, which she was, and one of the girls (who really only did it to want to stir the pot to be honest) decides they all need to confront maya that second. It was just unnecessary drama from a misunderstanding between skye and maya. It felt very catty for no reason. I felt like that situation could’ve been handled differently. It could’ve still had its dramatic element that reality tv gives us without it being a whole unnecessary war. I felt like the resolution between maya and skye could’ve been better. It felt rush, like an afterthought to be honest. Their relationship felt a bit rushed as well. It didn’t feel their progression into a relationship was authentic.

Things I did enjoy:
I was here for the showcasing of unhealthy relationships. Especially relationships when you’re young. I thought it was realistic of how Maya held onto her anger for two years. She never got closure and her name got wrongfully dragged into the dirt. She was filled with resentment and that stayed true until the end. I don’t agree with her actions but I understand her emotions. When you don’t get closure you deserve it’s hard to let things go. Jordy got to live a life of peace and prosperity while she had to heal herself in silence. That’s damaging and I liked how Sophie showcased that. I wasn’t a fan of the characters and I couldn’t fully connect with them but I was here for the emotions. That felt real and it’s what I did enjoy.