A warm and witty queer retelling of Pride and Prejudice, set at a struggling magazine in New York. Liz is immediately skeptical of new investor Daria, and the two squabble over budget cuts and editorial control. The P&P Easter eggs here are a lot of fun. The magazine is called Nether Fields, Liz has four roommates who are more like sisters and cause all sorts of trouble, etc.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

Just as You Are by Camille Kellogg was just okay. I was not the romance I was hoping for, and I struggled to keep reading at points.

As someone who loves a well written sapphic romance, "Just as You Are" was a total delight.

Its storyline was a beautiful mix of both lighthearted and emotional storytelling. The enemies-to-lovers trope was an added bonus I loved. "Just as You Are" features a Pride and Prejudice-inspired romance between two queer women, with a dash of witty banter and steamy chemistry. This debut rom-com was a surprisingly good read!

Where was the chemistry? This somehow took all the romance out of the romance sub-plot of P&P? I loved the writing style, but I couldn't get into the characters at all.

**Thank you NetGalley and Dial Press Trade Paperback for the eARC**

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book! I will be posting my review on social media, to include Instagram, Amazon, Goodreads, and Instagram!

What's not to love about a sapphic Pride and Prejudice retelling? This was a perfect summer read that kept my heart strings pulled and had a full cast of side characters that really brought this book to life. Queer culture really shines through in this book and makes it fun take on a classic story.

This isn't for me. I love pride and prejudice and just felt like that story was so well done it's hard to take a unique twist on it. Not for me. I love debut authors though. Brava

Finally a LGBTQIA Pride and Prejudice retelling! Makes me want more queer rom-com retellings. It was charming and sweet, with a fresh yet familiar take on the characters.

I was so disappointed in this. Pride and Prejudice is the ultimate enemies to lovers trope, but I didn't feel the chemisty. I mostly felt the tokenism of every background character meant to show diversity even if the main characters are very not.

This one didn’t completely work for me. The main couple felt like they had no chemistry and I didn’t believe the romance between them. A lot of the characters also felt very flat and felt like they weren’t completely well-rounded characters.

After I read the book, I read that this was a retelling of Pride and Prejudice. I’ve never read P&P so I might have liked this better if I had – but this one unfortunately this one just wasn’t for me.

Thank you to Dial Press & Netgalley for an e-ARC of this book.

3.5 rounded up to 4

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HEA: HFN
spice: a few open-door scenes.
TWs: unsupportive parents, homophobia
standalone: yes
final thoughts: this book was a melding of a queer Pride and Prejudice retelling with a dynamic cast of queer characters and a forbidden romance in a contemporary setting. Whenever I read an LGBT+ romance I always wish there was less external angst (let the gays be happy!!!) but this was entertaining from start to finish. I wish there were multiple POVs so we could get into Daria’s mindset more since she felt like a secondary character in my mind until more than halfway through the story. Overall- I enjoyed this quick and easy to read story however I wouldn’t classify this as a romcom.

read this book if you love

🏝️ forced proximity
💓 slowburn
🌈 LGBT+ representation
😳 forbidden lovers (boss / employee)
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 great side characters
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 found family
🌀 plot twists
🤐 miscommunication
🔀 opposites attract
🤜 rivals-to-lovers
📖 retelling (Pride and Prejudice vibes)

We need more queer romcom like this!
(That coincidentally happen to be a Pride and Prejudice retelling as well, which NEVER hurts).

More of this book in my video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DiPfrZOg8K4

A modern take on Pride and Prejudice that included queerness. Not really my type of story, but I didn't dislike it. Lots of good character development and a fun, sassy writing style was definitely a plus to this book.

Though I have never read Pride and Prejudice, I enjoyed a lot of this book. The found family trope gets me every time and this book had it in spades with the roommates of the main character, Liz. However, the workplace setting wasn't for me, especially with the main love interest being her boss. I think if you don't mind that, and that it is not as heavy on romance as you might expect, you will enjoy this one!

This book was not for me. I just did not understand what was going on in the book. I might give this book another chance if I am up for it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book, as this book has already been published, I will not share my review on Netgalley at this time.

Representation: Lesbian MCs, many queer supporting cast

I really enjoyed this re-telling of Pride and Prejudice, where Liz and Daria have an employee-boss relationship that could very quickly go wrong. This was witty, funny, and unfortunately reflects what happens to many queer-owned businesses similar to the magazine they're running. I thought it did an excellent job adding in modern-day concerns, mainly ones tied to identity, gender, and the such. I was very frustrated with most of the characters at different points, but it was always for good reason, no being annoying with no point or reason. I would suggest this story for people who want a modern queer retelling of Pride and Prejudice.

I am always up for a good retelling just as I am always up for a sapphic romance. Combine them and I think it's pretty difficult to get me to not like it. Which is exactly what happened here. This is such a beautiful story that's not just a romance but more. The way the author celebrates queer culture is so amazing to witness. The romance itself is also really fun and the book delivers on it's promise! 10/10 would recommend.

In this queer Pride and Prejudice reimagining, Liz and her roomies work at a queer magazine that's going under. At their goodbye party, they get word that the magazine has been saved by two wealthy lesbian investors. One of them, Daria, is so budget-focused, she's taking all the fun out of work! Daria is brash and domineering, and she and Liz butt heads immediately. But after spending more time together, Liz realizes there's much more to Daria than meets the eye.

Camille Kellogg's 'Just as You Are' offers a refreshing take on the classic 'Pride and Prejudice', tailored for a modern, queer audience. As Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorite novels, I was along for the ride from the very beginning.

While some reviewers considered this as a negative, I was a fan of the way the book extended beyond the confines of a traditional rom-com, covering serious topics like gender expression.

The portrayal of the main character, Liz, and her nuanced exploration of gender expression adds a depth I have rarely seen in a rom-com, resonating with readers like myself who grapple with identity. This novel is not just a love story; it's a journey of self-discovery, peppered with wit and a compelling if prickly love interest that Austen herself would have adored.