This book could best be described as a roller coaster: the beginning is slow, and you're not sure if you're gonna like it, but once the drop happens, you just enjoy the ride. It's thrilling, it made me laugh, it made me cry. I will definitely be reading it again. I will say it's definitely an older teen book, but it was great. I loved it. Wish I could give half stars to give 4.5.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the e-ARC of The Long Run! It was a quick, heartwarming read. I will add this to my library's purchasing list for our Young Adult section.

Wow this book was amazing! Loved the unexpected romance, the evolving of themselves through their new friendship. I had to include the blurb above cause they both had a lot of baggage and they were just starting their lives. But it was so sweet and the door was a little open, they were all onboard. I kept forgetting it was YA except the school part and applying to colleges. They were very mature and this book made me cry! For Sandro at the end when he talked with his Mom. I just have a warm feeling in my chest now from this book.

Thank you inkyardpress and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

My favorite read of 2023 (so far)!

In the forward, James Acker says that his book is “a teenage boy. Gross and hilarious and complicated.” It’s also “a beautiful, tender story about two hardheaded boys finding each other” and “bathroom graffiti with an oddly heavy message.”

Yes, to all of this.

I laughed a lot while reading this novel. I would love to insert a quotation of the passage that made me cackle the most, but the censors would probably try to get me. (Look for the bit about the old man from Up in the March 30 chapter. And really, that entire section is just a hoot.) Some of the humor is off-color and gross, as teenage boys can be. There’s a lot of sarcastic quippery and occasional silliness, too.

Beyond the funny bits, though, the romance between Sandro and Bash is extremely heartfelt. Both Sandro and Bash are lonely and adrift at the beginning of the book. Quiet and sensitive Sandro feels very alienated from his loud and aggressive Italian family; he fades into the background while longing to feel like the center of someone’s attention. Meanwhile, Bash’s stepfather would really like to know him better, but Bash holds him at a distance. Sandro doesn’t have any real friends because he hesitates to open himself up and reach out to people. In contrast, Bash seems to have lots of friends, but since he always tries to be what other people want him to be, almost no one really knows the true Bash. When Sandro impulsively kisses Bash at a party, that moment of openness sets the stage for them to form the close connection that they haven’t managed with anyone else. With each other, they are heard and seen and loved for who they are, and that means everything.

Really, I think the ultimate message of this book could be summed up as “Only connect!” Although Bash and Sandro’s relationship is central to the book, it isn’t the only one that’s important. As the story develops, Bash and Sandro also slowly open themselves up to other people—old and new friends, Bash’s stepfather, and Sandro’s mother. Reaching out to others and being authentic is difficult for them both, but it’s the only way to establish personal relationships that are truly meaningful.

I just loved everything about this book; it’s the best thing I’ve read so far this year. Highly recommended!

A copy of this book was provided through NetGalley for review; all opinions expressed are my own.

This is an absolutely spectacular YA queer romance. I honestly cannot recommend it enough.

Sebastian “Bash” Villeda is a senior track star whose mother died recently. She had been sick a lot and he has been adrift without her. Bash lives with his white stepdad, Del, who is a decent enough guy, just not really clued in on how to deal with a moody, bi-racial teen boy. He works nights, and Bash works days, so he and Bash don’t see each other often. Del’s not abusive or mean, just grieving too, and confused about his role in Bash’s life. Bash spends most of his awake time running or hanging with his loud-mouthed best friend, Matty Silva. Bash is pretty tired of Matty’s BS, causing fights and being homophobic. It’s all so tiresome, honestly. Bash wants to get away, but he’s not sure how. The only thing that makes sense is running as fast as he can, so he does it all the time.

Allessandro “Sandro” Micelli is the youngest son in his family of screaming Italian-Americans, and too quiet for his huge body. He’s a field team captain, throws an awesome shot put, and struggles with his ever-ranging body hair and lack of parental involvement. His overworked parents are currently propping up his elder brothers in careers and managing their young grandchildren. Sandro hasn’t had a private conversation with his mom in years, and his dad has little use for him. He’s gay, and closeted, because he knows they won’t accept him. Sandro can’t wait to get away from his loud, embarrassing family, for good. But, it’s hard because, at the moment, he’s injured. He broke his ankle falling off his house roof, where he’d been sleeping to avoid the chaos of his family. And, the foot didn’t heal right in his cast because he walked on it too much–miles and miles daily to get around. There’s no public transit, and his parents and brothers were too busy to bother driving him anywhere. His family isn’t abusive, per se, but they are definitely neglectful, and casually homophobic. Mostly, they are too busy with their own lives to take interest in Sandro or his needs.

Bash and Sandro know each other from school and track. They aren’t friends, but they connect one night at a big track/athlete drinking party. The cops come, and Sandro can’t really escape with his boot, but he knows a hidey hole–somewhere he’s been chilling in the summer heat to escape his home life. While hiding, he and Bash have a good conversation, a real one, that ends in Sandro unexpectedly revealing his sexuality in a way that shocks them both.

Sandro’s sure he’ll be the target of homo hate, but that doesn’t happen. In fact, Bash and he grow tighter, working together on school projects and experiencing mutual attraction. Because Bash is bisexual, though, he’d not really acknowledged his attractions much in the recent past. He dated his longtime friend and neighbor, Lucy, but she broke things off since he was so emotionally and physically unavailable. As a friend, though, she counsels him well, and Bash and Sandro’s down-low experimentations grow in intensity and frequency.

This is a coming of age, coming out story that takes place over senior year. Bash and Sandro have simple lives, and simple dreams. They have complicated interactions with their friends and families that felt both genuine and relatable. They grow to love one another and trust each other, as Bash takes the time to support Sandro, and Sandro helps Bash find his purpose. There are difficulties–reasonable ones–that expose each others’ vulnerabilities in honest and understandable ways. I ached for both Bash and Sandro. They are well-written and fully fleshed on the page, and I fell into their quandaries just the same as they had. Their teen-boy Jersey speech was an incredible dialect to get lost in. I loved how hard they rode one another, how fearlessly they trashed themselves, how hard they worked to get things right. I could have read ten books on Bash and Sandro and pined for an eleventh.

Expect swearing, fighting, alcohol, and casual drug use. Expect bad behavior and good sports. Expect to cry. Expect your heart to break and be reforged stronger and more capable. Expect a strong ending, and a hopeful outlook.

I'm so emotional right now!!! Hands down this is one of the best books I've read about teen guys. It delves into the complex inner worlds of Bash and Sandro as they navigate senior year, their relationship, and who they want to be. This book is so raw and gets into the super macho, posturing, toxic attitudes in sports culture, and how that carries over into the way men try to mold their sons in their image. The impact of that environment affects Bash and Sandro in different ways: Sandro develops a loud, unquenchable anger in response to the pain and loneliness his family inflicts; Bash crafts different personas to cope with various social situations, meanwhile feeling totally lost inside. Seriously, I could go on and on about how nuanced and wonderfully complicated the characters are; their POVs are so real. And the love story!!! I could write an essay just about the slow building, soul awakening beauty of it. This book is packed with all the highs and lows of senior year, first love, and growing up, and I was engrossed the entire time. Expect humor, pain, crassness, bad decisions, soft moments, tears, rage, joy, and yearning. I don't think I've felt this deeply about a book and its characters since I first read Aristotle and Dante. Highly recommend!

I had a really hard time with this book. I wasn't prepared for it to be so dark and I couldn't get into it. I don't think it would be fair to the author or myself to keep going but perhaps some trigger warnings somewhere would have been good.

thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest opinion

this was such a fun and quick read i really enjoyed it. Sandro and Bash were such lovely characters and i really enjoyed the alternating POV between them. it made it so much deeper because we got learn more about both of them. the storyline was really cute and their relationship was just adorable. Plus the writing was really captivating and it just makes you want to finish the book in one sitting

i was in such a reading slump but this truly helped. everyone should read it !

This was much harder hitting than I was anticipating. Both boys have a lot going on in their home lives which play major parts in their character developments. I like that this is not an 'easy' romance, there are difficult conversations had that are not just breezed over. There is no bullshit last minute problem that breaks them apart just to get back together in the last chapter.

TW: gay slurs, graphic sexual content, physical fights, death of a love one, emotional abuse, physical abuse, underage drinking

5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Inkyard Press for this ARC.

This book was so good! I would agree with all of the reviews comparing it to Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, and I would even compare it with Red, White, and Royal Blue which is one of my personal favorites. I think this one is going to stick with me for a long time, just as Red, White, and Royal Blue did.

I loved Bash and Sandro's story. I loved watching them get to know eachother, I loved giggling out loud at their conversations, and I loved seeing their character growth...this was just such a great story about how two people can be struggling but can really learn to support eachother. I even loved the hard parts, where I was so sad and so frustrated for them. I wish I had more to say besides "I loved" over and over again, but that's the truth. There was nothing I didn't like about this, and I'm honestly sad it ended. James Acker could probably write 20 more books about Bash and Sandro and I'd read them all.

I'd recommend this book to anyone who loves an angsty YA romance like Aristotle and Dante, LGBTQ characters, and stories about family and friendships. Again, this is such a good one and I hope it gets the attention it deserves.

Read this book if you like: Dual POV, LGBTQ representation, multicultural couple (mexican, black, Italian)

Wow. This was amazing. It was dark at times. It was raunchier and definitely deeper than any YA romance I have read. The author perfectly captures teenage boys with the insecurities, the discoveries, the growth. Sometimes in YA the characters feel much older or much younger than the intended age but not in this book. Bash and Sandro were so well-developed as characters, so raw and real. Their chemistry was off the charts. Sandro knows he is gay. Bash is discovering his sexuality. This is so good. I highly recommend it. It came out yesterday. It's a debut. 😲

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Inkyard Press for the gifted e-book ❤️

A really and truly excellent book! I cannot wait to put this in the hands of teens that come into the store. Acker really captures a very authentic teen boy voice, and I was compelled by the story and engaged by how all of the characters interacted. My only critique is that the choppy writing style sometimes interfered with my ease of reading, but that is ultimately a small gripe.

“And the way Sandro smiled. I think that’s how I knew it was true. That I wanted it. That I wasn’t sorry. That I’d drive that kid anywhere he asked me to.”

I truly can’t believe this is a debut. This felt so realistic and beautiful, and seeing these two characters embrace their feelings in incredible. It encompasses those strange feelings we all had in high school so well.

The relationship that unfolds between Bash and Sandro is outstanding. Everything about it feels real: the uncertainty of their feelings, what they should or shouldn’t do, how their friends and family would react, and what that means for the future. They seem so different, but what they find in each other is the person they can confide in above all others. They are supportive and proud of each other, and the way they encourage each other is really lovely.

What I think is so incredibly important about this book is the relationship between to male jocks. I feel like when I reach a lot of YA male-male romances, it’s never two macho jock types. Acker explores this so well. They have to think about so much and it affects a lot of the decisions they make toward each other. There’s also a discourse on locker room language that I think is really important. I can only imagine how many boys and men will read this book and relate.

Sandro’s relationship with his family is particularly heavy, and when he finally confronts it, I felt it. It’s a difficult section of the story, but it’s so necessary and seemingly so cathartic for Sandro. And my God is that entire moment incredible. It’s portrayed with such beautiful honesty and emotion, and it’s a conversation that was clearly a long time coming.

“He loves me so much, Ma.”

I absolutely loved this book.

*In solidarity with the HarperCollins Union, I will be withholding my review from all social media until the strike is over and they receive a fair contract.*

Sandro and Bash need a big, warm, long-lasting hug. That's what I spent most of the book thinking, just give these boys a hug, and don't let go until they start squirming.

Sebastian "Bash the Flash" Villeda and Sandro Miceli seem to have nothing in common. Bash has no family save his quiet stepfather, while Sandro lives in a house bursting at the seams with a loud and brash family. Bash is always at the center of the action, seemingly basking in the attention that being a loud and successful jock gets him. Sandro is happy to sit back and observe, keeping himself out of everyone's line of fire as he gets enough of that at home. They're barely even aware of each other until a fateful night when what seems like fate brings them together. It's the beginning of a series of realizations, confessions, and growing up that takes the reader on an emotional rollercoaster full of all the angst and joy of being a teenager.

My one nitpick is that it gets a little too close to NC-17 for my adult-reading-a-YA-book self. Yes, I know teenagers get physical. Yes, Acker made those scenes some of the sweetest and purest in the entire book. But I'm also allowed not to be entirely comfortable getting so many details when I'm *gasp* old enough to be their mom. OMG, I'm old. It's a minor and personal thing when you consider how integral the conversations and revelations had during those moments are to the story overall, not to mention that I really am impressed with how sweetly Acker wrote them. But I feel the need to warn anyone who might feel as I do to come prepared.

Overall, I loved the story of Sebastian and Sandro and how many complex issues get handled with such sweetness and maturity. It's a great book that shows that growing up sometimes means letting go and speaking your truth. I very highly recommend it.

Delighted thanks to NetGalley and Inkyard Press for the beautiful read!

Thank you to #NetGalley, James Acker and the publisher of the book for the eARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

This story is about two track and field athletes who love in a wonderful YA read! This is the story of Sandro and Sebastian. When a busted party brings them together, neither one of them thought they would become friends, let alone they would fall in love.

I enjoyed this YA read. It was dark at times, but enjoyable.

Oh. My. God. I do not even have words right now. This was everything I didn’t know I needed.

I will fight for Sandro. Such a lovable teddy bear! Bash can defend himself, but ugh what a relatable character!

And the rep?! A Mexican Black bi boy and an Italian gay bear? Like what hello!

I know this isn’t much of a review, but just know I want to tell everyone to read this book!

Thank you NetGalley, James Acker, and Inkyard Press for allowing me to read this eARC in exchange for my honest review!

The Long Run by James Acker releases February 7, 2023!

Thanks to Netgalley and Inkyard Press for the ARC of this!

Darker than the YA romance I usually read, I nevertheless enjoyed this one. The characters sort of stumbled into each other, but the progression of their relationship from there was decently paced and fun to read.

“The problem with being the best is everyone wants to find out why. The problem with being the best is you gotta prove it every day. To people you don’t know. Or like.”

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for my advanced readers copy of The Long Run.

This book wasn’t bad, but it defiantly wasn’t for me. Two track and field athletes find an unexpected but powerful love in this unapologetically blunt and unforgettably real YA debut. This book sounded so good, but I think I didn’t connect with it because it is made for younger audiences. I don’t really have anything bad to say about this book, besides that I couldn’t get into it. What I did like about this book is I liked the dual perspective and the focus on mental health.
I would recommend this book to those who like sports, lgtb+ romance, and just a slice of real life.

I received an arc of The Lon Run from netgalley in exchange for my honest review (I still hate doing these little disclaimer boys).

I really enjoyed this book. I started reading it and then couldn't put it down. Bash and Sandro are amazing characters, and I love the way that they interact with and show their care for each other. I think it's beautiful how they learn each others quirks and how to read the others body language. So many times with YA, teenagers either feel too old or too young, but to me, this book got it right. Something else I loved is that so many books about queer discovery/ people in the closet focus around coming out. And this book didn't do that. It wasn't a huge source for drama or fights. More books should be like that. Because yeah, coming out and feeling like you are actually being known for yourself is pretty important, but it isn't everything, and it isn't the solution to every problem. You never stop coming out either, so making it a big event would have just been a cry for angst in a book already filled with it. All that to say, I like the stuff that the author chose to focus on.

Some stuff I didn't love: <spoiler> I don't care if regular stupid teenage boys drink and drive. I don't want to read it. I don't want to read it in any form that implies it is an ok thing to do, because it isn't. And I know they never drove drunk, just after drinking, but still. I don't like it</spoiler>. As well, I didn't care for boys calling each other the f-slur. And I don't know if that is a realistic portrayal of (a) teenage boys, (b) teenage boys in the States, or (c) heterosexual teenage boys who play sport, but no matter what, I didn't want to read it. That is not a word I am ready to reclaim, and it makes my heart hurt a little every time I see it on a page. So maybe heterosexual high school boys in Jersey are like that (I have no experience with teenage boys from the States, and very minimal experience with straight ones), but I don't wanna read it, even if it is the case. I don't really think it brings anything to the story, to show how fucked up other people are. But what do I know.

Anyways, if you read this far, this is a beautiful book about learning to open up, and to feel emotions again, and to communicate with the world, on top of being about two boys falling in love and learning all about what it means to love and be loved. To all the teens struggling to find a place for themselves in a world that doesn't seem to actually care about getting to know them, this is a book for you.

I sat on this review for a while, trying to figure out how to accurately sum up what is such a beautiful, painful book into a few short paragraphs. The Long Run is a complicated story of finding and embracing your identity, high school survival, and speaking your truth. It's introspective, slow, and melancholy, mixed with some bright moments of ridiculous laugh out loud teenage boy humor.

Sebastian Villeda has grown to hate his reputation as "Bash The Flash," fastest sprinter in South Jersey with a rep as the coolest guy in town with a following of bros to match. His only want out of life is to graduate high school and go to Rutgers on a track scholarship, the school where his mother once worked - before she passed away a few years ago and left him with a stepfather who Bash barely interacts with. He'll graduate and leave all of them in the dust. Meanwhile, Sandro Miceli is the middle child in a huge Italian family; too quiet and accommodating for his own good. He can't even work up the voice to ask for rides when he breaks his foot, opting instead to walk around town on a boot and crutches - after all, he'll be graduating soon and leaving all of them behind for Northwestern.
Then Bash and Sandro, only previously quietly orbiting each other on the same track and field team, meet at an end-of-summer party that gets busted, and they're both forced to reconsider everything everything that they thought they wanted out of their last year of high school.

"It's not enough to want something. You gotta find the right way to want it."

Dual PoV stories are always hit or miss, depending on the talent of the author. Are they able to accurately give both main characters their own unique voice that can be pinpointed without labels? In the case of The Long Run, the answer is a resounding "yes!" James Acker does such an amazing job of weaving two beautifully different points of view in the stories of Bash and Sandro, one so afraid to figure out who he is outside of the identity he's spent so long in, and the other just trying to muddle through until he can escape. It's lovely to see how they both grow together and as individuals throughout the book through their separate narratives.

It's a melancholy, weary story, of two boys with so much baggage to carry and how they each fit in the other's life around that. This is absolutely one that will stick with you long after you finish the last page.