This is such a cute romance. Their banter and relationship was fun to read. Having her be a conspiracy theorist was a fun twist and set up more comedic moments. I thought they mental health representation was well done. Overall the academic rivalry piece felt secondary but still worked out well.

Cw: parental abandonment, living with OCD
Trope: friends-enemies-lovers

Talia Hibbert has been one of my favorite authors ever since I read her Brown Sisters trilogy, so it's not a surprise that this was enjoyable for me.

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute was a quick and adorable read that had me smiling and laughing the ENTIRE time. Like the title says it all!

The book has well-developed characters, dealt with the themes included really well, and there were wholesome friendship moments that just made you smile and swoon.

I love how this book highlighted the ways Bradley took care of himself and how he has a relationship with therapy. Since mental health is sometimes a stigma in the black community, I appreciate Talia Hibbert for showing a light on how helpful therapy can be.

Though it took me a little bit to get into this book, by the end I adored both Brad and Celine and their story. Their love and care for each by the end was really heartwarming. This book was my intro into the author's work, and I'm excited to check out more of her books now!

I am a fan of Talia Hibbert but this book didn't do it for me. I couldn't engage with the characters, and I don't think Ilike Ms. Hibbert writing in the YA genre as much as her adult stuff.

I admit I was a little nervous when I heard that Talia Hibbert was writing a YA book. Excited, but slightly nervous because her adult romances are so deliciously spicy, was this going to be completely different in style from her others? Happy to say, I was wrong. This book combined a lot of the things I love about her other books, while still being firmly rooted in the YA genre.

This book was a friends to enemies to friends to lovers and explored a lot of the stress involved with being a teenager. I loved the rawness and realness of these characters and loved watching them discover themselves and their relationship.

I continue to be a fan of the fat rep in Talia Hibbert’s books. There’s never any negativity surrounding her fat characters’ bodies. They’re just fat people living their lives, and I LOVE her for it! Her books always also contain exquisitely done mental health representation and this book was no different. OCD isn’t something you see frequently in romance books, but I applaud Talia Hibbert for spotlighting it, and doing it in such a realistic and wonderful way.


I was given and ARC by NetGalley and Random House Children’s. All opinions are my own.

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute was one of the cutest YA books I’ve read in such a long time, maybe ever. It’s funfetti birthday cake with extra sprinkles. Hibbert’s humor sparkled and her characters jumped straight off the page, right into my heart. Everything about this book was utterly, unspeakably, unfairly cute.

The plot was set up a bit differently than I expected—less nature survival than the summary makes it seem—but I found myself so invested in Brad and Celine‘s journey back to each other. I really enjoyed the dual POV sections, which I haven’t encountered a lot in YA.

I have the urge to say that both Brad and Celine changed a lot from start to finish, but it was more like they found themselves again. The ending was perfect and shaped up exactly how I’d been imagining. (It was fun betting with myself on which three would win the scholarship.)

The side characters were also super fun (at least the ones we were supposed to like). Celine’s mom was such a bad ass, Aurora was adorable, and their best friends back at school were the perfect support.

Overall, I already can’t wait to reread this. The audiobook is going to be perfection and I can’t wait to see how the narrator(s) interpret the humor.

If you want a major serotonin boost and/or the feeling of eating a maple blondie brownie with butterscotch icing and vanilla ice cream from Apple Bees, read Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute. It’s delicious.

Warning: You will suffer a 336-page sugar rush with the side effect of smiling into your pillow and fizzing like a pop rock.

A cute and quick read centered on mental health, anxiety, and what happens when overachieving becomes the cornerstone of your life. Thoroughly enjoyed this one! Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance copy.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I went into this book unclear that it was a YA book. While I enjoy some YA, this book just wasn’t for me. I found it to be juvenile and I struggled with focusing on it. It took me so long to read because I would stop and read other books in between. I do commend the author for tackling a character with OCD without making it only a story about OCD and without making OCD his only characteristic. I am sure there are people who will love this story.

Celine and Bradley have been friends, but now they are enemies. Navigating this relationship has been difficult for the both of them, because there are unresolved feelings. When they both decide to enter a program, for the opportunity to win a scholarship, they begin to discover even more about each other than they ever intended.

There is so much about this story that really resonated with me including friends growing apart, hiding your true feelings, and dealing with metal health. I thought all of these topics were handled beautifully. Brad quickly grew on me as we followed him on his journey of coping with OCD, but still dealing with everything a teenage boy has to handle. It took me some time to understand Celine, but I found her POV refreshing, because she was so unlike any other female protagonist I've read.

Ultimately, I thought the story was written well, but it could be slow at times. I also hoped that the competition would have a big part in the story, but sometimes it faded into the background.

I was so excited to read this one - thanks to @netgalley, @randomhousekids and @joyrevbooks for early access to this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

✔️ Friends to Enemies to Lovers
✔️ Forced Proximity
✔️ Mental Health Rep

Highly Suspicious & Unfairly Cute by @taliahibbert was delightful. I loved that it tackled a big coming-of-age question "What am I going to do with the rest of my life?" and the feeling that you're behind on answers. I loved watching the main characters (Bradley and Celine) zealously pursue their set plans for their academic life which mostly succeeds in them getting in each other's way. I love when annoyance turns to attraction in YA. 🤣

I loved the characters and how they went from misunderstanding each other to really getting each other. The romance and mutual pining was sweet and earnest and also funny and awkward - I adored it.

The setup was fun as well - going on outdoor excursions to compete for an exclusive program where scholarships are the prize. It was fun to see Bradley and Celine try to win and figure out each other and make friends along the way.

Highly recommend this one to all the YA readers out there! 4.25⭐️ - pub date Jan 2, 2023!

Cute, Quirky, Romantic. Dual POV held back the plot, but not overwhelmingly. OCD rep was good and well written. The UK slang was guide was very useful.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert

Thank you so much to Random House Children's Books for providing me with an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this novel and couldn’t put it down! It was something that I had to keep reading. I’d recommend it to anyone. I really like how the characters were written and the overall story.

I love dual pov and the romance in this book. Can’t wait to read more from Talia Hibbert!

This is a cute YA romcom from Talia Hibbert, the author of the Brown sisters trilogy. I really enjoyed this one. There are two points-of-view in this novel: Celine and Brad, former friends turned enemies after a falling out. The two end up in the same scholarship program, an outdoorsy adventure competition testing leadership skills, and the two are forced to interact and figure out where their friendship went wrong to survive out in the wilderness.

I loved this one, Celine is smart, nerdy, loyal, and an all around boss. Brad is mr. popular, sunshine, but hiding his difficulties dealing with his OCD. Celine also has difficulty trusting others because her father abandoned her family, and in part, this leads to the fall out between Brad and Celine. The story essentially goes from former friends now enemies back to friends and then to lovers once Brad realizes he has a huge crush on Celine. I also appreciated that Celine is a plus size main character but that feature isn't the central storyline it's just that yes plus size people exist and are beautiful and are intelligent and are funny and have interests and can do what other people do because they're just normal people who are plus size! (hopefully the reader can now tell that this is a sticking point for me, as an overweight person myself).

The friendship between these two characters is so well-developed I really just wanted to scoot right in and join them. I got choked up a bit because they were so sad without each other, and it wasn't a silly fight either. The two of them really hurt each other but I felt like the repairing of their relationship was ultimately well-earned.

First I want to thank netgalley for the chance to read the arc for this Talia Hibbert’s debut YA romance.

Celine & Brad were once best friends but had a falling out once they went to high school. Of course that turns them into enemies. Celine is a smart girl who has trouble expressing her emotions while Brad overthinks his emotions due to his OCD diagnosis. They both embark on a expedition to win a scholarship and what more could you ask for in romance that forced proximity! They learn a lot about themselves throughout the novel that a lot on YA readers will connect with.

Hibbert did great with the story line and the relationship between the two MCs with dual POV and proper banter. A cute romance read for all ages!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert

Thank you so much to Random House Children's Books and Joy Revolution Imprint for providing me with an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

*This story involves parental abandonment and portrays living with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).


Talia Hibbert outdoes herself in her YA debut. ABSOLUTELY.KILLS.IT

Bradley is a struggling writer yet successful nerd cosplaying as a jock, + Celine is a brilliant and overconfident student who also happens to be a successful TikTok devoted to conspiracy theories. You had me at hello.

Three things that should put this on your “I desperately want to read this” list:

1. The chemistry/banter between Bradley and Celine is so sharp and full of wit and plays up the BFFS to enemies to lovers relationship.
2. The exploration of both characters’ respective emotional and mental struggles combined with miscommunication trope gave the story an “I cannot put it down” investment into Celine, Bradley, and the story.
3. How absolutely hilarious most of the characters were, especially Bradley (i.e., whenever he can’t figure out what he’s feeling between two emotive words, he’ll combine them into one word…I cackled)


Nicola and David Yoon created the imprint Joy Revolution. It is devoted to love stories written by POCs about POCs. I was affected by the Mission Statement, and I cannot wait to read more of their works that will focus not only center love but also joy.

I want to shout from the rooftops how much I loved this book! It. Was. Adorable.

I’m the first to admit I’m not a YA reader but I’m officially a Talia Hibbert reader. This book was so fabulous and so well done. I might not love a lot of will-they-or-won’t-they in an adult romance, but when the teenage characters are written by Ms Hibbert it is absolute perfection! This book brought me right back to my own teenage angst and first crush (who sadly was no Bradley Graeme).

I loved these characters so much. Brad is an absolutely adorable heartthrob and Celine is my grumpy sarcastic spirit animal. This was easily the cutest book I’ve ever read but it wasn’t sugary sweet. It had depth and heart and humor and I can’t recommend it enough.

Thank you so very much to netgalley and joy revolution books for the ARC.
PUB DATE: JANUARY 3rd

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love Talia Hibbert’s Brown Sisters trilogy and a few of her previous titles. I think she’s an amazing writer who weaves mental illness into her stories in an organic way. I love her storytelling style and it’s a delight to read.

But I didn’t feel it in this. Is this Hibbert’s fault? I don’t think so. I’ve been on a downward slide of YA reading and found that I outgrew the genre. I wanted to read this because of my love of the author and so that may explain why I was so irritated with it. In short, you may want to take this review with a grain of salt.

The format of this book is 19 chapters broken into five sections. There’s an author’s note about parental abandonment and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). There’s a glossary of British colloquialisms and cultural references for American readers.

I’ll be forthright that I enjoyed Brad. From his authorial ambitions to his very honest and real portrayal of OCD, I felt for him throughout the whole novel. There were times when I wanted him to think things through a little more, but I was okay with it.

Celine reminded me of someone in my life who is very much like her and I had a hard time cheering for her. I made it about halfway through and was ready to DNF it because of Celine. The line “Only boring people give a crap what everyone else thinks” was particularly rich since her motivation in life is to do that very same thing. (Side note: I wish we had some idea of Celine’s relationship with her dad before he left because it would give an extra layer to her motivation. Also, it would explain whether or not her whole “I’m going to destroy him” is an overreaction.) I couldn’t get over the utter hatred Celine had for Bradley throughout the first half of the book and then the switch to romantic feelings. It felt a little like narrative whiplash. If Celine felt that Brad was such a bad guy, then why keep him as competition because you wouldn’t want to compete against a horrible person? Once he realized his feelings, Brad was working double time to make Celine feel safe and that bugged me.
I would actually love to see Celine work to get on Brad’s good side since she spends a lot of the time insulting him (and I can’t read it as flirting because she’s mean about it). At one point, she even says she won’t change (reminds me of the boring people line above) but Brad will. That reads as insulting, not something you say to woo a guy since it’s the same things you said to him when you were archenemies. Yes, you can chalk her whole thing to parental abandonment, but I don’t think that can lead to believing you’re better than everybody else (it’s one of the first things you learn about her). Now, I admit that the similarities between a fictional character and a real-life person should cloud my reading judgment, but unfortunately, it did so you may read her whole character differently.

By the way, I loved Giselle and she needed to be more of a presence.

Ultimately, it came down to a simple question: Am I at the tail end of my YA tolerance or was Celine so annoying it ruined a really good premise? I don’t know, but judging by other reviews so far, my YA tolerance is getting low.

Will my irritation with this book prevent me from reading another Talia Hibbert book? No.

Will I select my YA reads a lot closer from here on out? I really should.

Another great story from Talia Hibbert! I was curious if she could pull off a YA romance and keep the same elements of her writing that make her books so devour-able. Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute has fun, relatable characters and will leave you smiling. I especially enjoyed the atypical characters!

NetGalley provided an ARC of Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute. Publication date: January 3, 2023.

This was a cute and easy read that I blew through because I really loved the characters and the storyline. Something I especially liked about this book was that, while it was about Brad and Celine’s relationship, I could also see both of them developing as individuals as the book progressed. Each of the characters grew and became different people alone as much as they did together.

I also found the side characters and use of teenage things to be well done. Normally, when an adult writes YA after writing adult books, it’s so painfully obvious that they are an adult who is very out of touch with teenagers, but I found Brad, Celine, and all of their friends to be relatively believable teenagers who didn’t over-or-misuse slang. I especially found this with Celine’s TikTok account - the inclusion of it wasn’t too cringey.

The one thing about this book that held me back a bit was the pacing. I feel like this book dragged on a big, especially when it felt like Brad and Celine both obviously wanted to be together but kept letting miscommunication or other factors get in the way.

This was a cute and easy read and I loved every page of it. The author was able to capture everything that was beloved about these characters and turn it into a perfectly wonderful read. I cannot wait to read what is next from this author.