We return to the Dahlia Adler Literary Universe with her newest book, "Going Bicoastal"! This is a YA bisexual summer romance that contains two stories in one. In the summer before her senior year of high school, Natalya is forced to choose between spending the summer with her dad in NYC, where she currently lives, or with her mom in LA. In NYC, she’s got friends, her dad, and the chance to finally get to know the cute redhead girl she keeps running into; in LA, she’s got an internship, the chance to finally reconnect with her mom, and the cute intern boy she shares a desk with.

Natalya’s two options are presented in back-to-back chapters of her living out either choice. Each chapter has a fun title, which also keeps it clear which location it’s set in, as different nicknames are used in the title for both cities: Tal in NYC and Nat in LA. I rooted for both romantic options and liked them equally, and Natalya’s friendships—new and old—feature prominently in both realities. Whether Natalya spends her summer listening to music in NYC with the girl or bonding over food in LA with the boy, I enjoyed every chapter and thought each relationship was well-developed. This is especially impressive as each character only gets half the book, making for a fast-paced plot. Adler completely pulls it off!

The only possible criticism I could have for the book is that every so often it was repetitive. Natalya has a cohesive, unified character arc throughout the book, so regardless of which romantic option and city she chooses, her relationship with her parents, friends, and career aspirations evolve in similar ways. There are of course differences, too, but in order to keep Natalya on the same main page in each version, there are some repeated lines or paragraphs to show her linear development in both chapters. This did not hinder my overall enjoyment of the book, however.

Speaking of career aspirations, I loved that one of the major subplots was Natalya figuring out what she wants to study in college and what career she could potentially be interested in! I thought I knew what I wanted when I was her age, but have quite recently had my own epiphanies about what I really want, and I really appreciated reading about a character on a similar journey. I also like that, due to her cohesive character arc, "Going Bicoastal" supports the idea that there are many different pathways to a positive outcome in your life. Natalya realizes what she’s interested in in two completely different ways, which I think is a great message for any other readers in high school and college. There’s not just one correct pathway to your future.

I’ve only read one of Adler’s other books, "Home Field Advantage," but I caught a number of references to her other works. I love when an author includes easter eggs like that, and if you’ve read HFA, "Cool for the Summer," and/or the Daylight Falls books (and possibly more, those were just the ones I noticed without having read them all), you will enjoy the inclusion of characters and references to those books in Going Bicoastal.

"Going Bicoastal" is the perfect lighthearted romance to read this summer. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you NetGalley and author for this ARC!

I enjoyed it a lot! Such a cute book. This book is a fun and flirty romantic comedy. I highly recommend this and will most definitely will be reading again.

Going Bicoastal is a refreshing and engaging coming-of-age novel that explores identity, friendship and love in all shapes and sizes. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a really positive queer read this summer.
The story follows Natalya Fox as she navigates the challenges of new environments and becoming more independent. She must choose between her father (and the girl she’s always wanted) in New York, and her mother in Los Angeles (and a guy that makes her rethink everything).
With reliable characters and witty dialogue, Adler’s writing captures the essence of teenage angst and personal growth. This is a must read for anyone looking for a heartwarming and authentic story and self-discovery and finding one’s place in the world.

What a charming book! I don't read many book descriptions before diving in so I was surprised and delighted by the dual narratives. Our main character Natalya is bi (love the bi rep!) and this summer she has to decide if she's going to live with her dad in NYC and ask out the gorgeous girl at the coffee shop or her mom in LA and the hot new intern at her firm. We get to see both scenarios play out on the page and then, in the end, the reader chooses who she ends up with. Really fun reading experience!

Let me start by saying how much I absolutely LOVE Dahlia Adler. Every book is charming, funny, witty, and so refreshing. There’s so much honesty and rawness in her work that you can tell the author always gives little pieces of herself to her characters and readers. Every story feels like a hug from a bestie and a trusting, safe, accepting environment.

All that said, while this didn’t work for me, I think it will absolutely work for many others! The sliding doors aspect was always going to be a tough sell for me in particular because I was never a fan of the movie or any other application of those trope. It always leaves me feeling like each side of the story, each “choice” or alternate reality is never fully fleshed out, while at the same time often featuring a lot of repetition to rightfully showcase how some aspects of the MC were always true or going to happen no matter what choice they made.

Both of those things felt like they happened here. From some of the conversations with the parents, to some specific dialogue and lines, I just felt like the pages were taken up with a lot of redundant information.

Despite this, I loved seeing how Natalya fell in love with both the girl she was crushing on for forever, and the guy she gets off to the wrong foot on with at work. She’s a loves le bisexual disaster still trying to work out so many things, that it’s impossible not to root for her. Her challenges and strained relationship with her mom, her uncertainty over college and what she wants to study, and her flickering self confidence all feel really grounded in the teen experience. Add to that how she navigates each relationship differently and the specific challenges with each, and Natalya is a character that truly shows a lot of range and depth.

This is a wonderful queer TBR selection that happens to come out during pride but can and should be read and enjoyed at any time of the year! I highly recommend it for those who are fans of the author, the sliding doors trope, or just want to see a wonderful bisexual MC represented. As always, the jewish representation is respectful and lovely to see and overall, this feels really balanced, despite the trope itself being a downer for me.

Thank you netgalley and Wednesday books for my galley and finished copy!

Dahlia Adler can do no wrong. Their books are always a great big hug and leave so many readers feeling seen! This book is no different and I devoured it from beginning to end! I highly recommend

When I read the summary, I knew I had to read Going Bicoastal!

I've always loved the idea of following the story through two parallel paths and the various outcomes that each path presents.

I have to say, I'm a foodie at heart, so I'm totally biased to Natalya venturing out to California instead of staying in New York.

But both paths have a great story that will appeal to everyone.

A cute and fast paced romance(s). Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for allowing us the opportunity to read this ARC for our honest review. This was a fun read where you get to see both story lines flesh themselves out without the MC having to “choose” one path. This can some times be a form of story telling where you clearly lean toward one story line or the other and sometimes you can tell which one the author leans toward as well. However both story lines were fun to read. Although low key I am Team NYC.

Super cute and definitely worth the read.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I love bisexual rep and this book was great at showing that. While Home Field Advantage is still my favorite from Adler, this one was a really strong 2023 showing and I quite enjoyed it. It's so important that we have queer literature out there for our youth - especially for bi babes, like myself - so this so important to have on the shelf! The way this was written was super unique and I don't think I've ever read anything quite like it before, but I wasn't mad about it. In fact, I would love to find more books similar to this one.

I can't wait to see what Adler comes out with next!

Going Bicoastal was a fun read, interweaving two parallel but mutually exclusive narratives that diverge from the same point: the protagonist choosing between her two options for how to spend the summer, a question we have all faced at one point or another in time.

In some ways this book was a breath of fresh air in this sub-genre, leaning more on levity and opportunity rather than the darkness and constraint that often characterizes other similar works like The Midnight Library, The Two Lives of Lydia Bird, and This Time Tomorrow. However, due to the fairytale too-good-to-be-true aspects of both of our protagonist's paths, it also lacked the emotional punch that one typically feels from these parallel-worlds works, and each narrative feel hollow and rather dull when looked at individually. The strength of the work comes from the comparison between the two, and how there would be elements in both realities that could be shared and develop regardless of the choice.

Overall, I found it a fun-enough but forgettable narrative with somewhat bland characters, an okay execution for a good premise. While the resolution felt a little too perfect, I thought the moral of the book was a good one that we should all be reminded of from time to time. My thanks to Goodreads and the publisher for allowing me access to this ARC!

4.5 rounded up! Going Bicoastal was so cute. I picked this up without reading the summary so when main character Natalya says she’s bi for the first time, I was like ‘ohhhh the title makes sense now!’ From there things just got better. The voice perfectly captured that uncertainty and anxiety that I felt during my late teens- feeling like everyone else has their lives figured out except for you. Then the story splits!! And Natalya gets to live out both options for the summer, complete with two separate romances. I loved seeing her relationships develop. Elly and Adam were very different, but the little parallels between their relationships with Natalya made me so happy when they appeared.

There’s a line that I really liked about possibility, and I think this story did a wonderful job of showing that there’s so much possibility in any choice we make. Sometimes no choice is the clear best choice, but each choice has as much possibility as the other, and that is super reassuring.

Natalya’s parents were hilarious and really grew on me, particularly her mom who I totally disliked in the beginning. I did have a bit of a hard time keeping track of all the friends since there were so many of them in each location.

This one was a bit different for me since it wasn't what I thought it was when I requested to review it. Guess I should have read what the book was about. All reasons aside it was cute enough but still a bit confusing as it jumps back and forth between her two lives and love people. I would give it 2 to 3 stars. Just wasn't crazy about it.

Loved this book! A fun and inventive story with thoughtful characterization. This would be a strong addition to any classroom library.

I don't know how I got close to pub day without devouring this book! I've become a big fan of Dahlia Adler's YA books and I really enjoyed this one. I feel like the blurb accurately describes this better than I could:
A queer Sliding Doors YA rom-com in which a girl must choose between summer in NYC with her dad (and the girl she's always wanted) or LA with her estranged mom (and the guy she never saw coming).
I remember seeing Sliding Doors in the theater and being so confused (which is probably the definition of being a high schooler in the late 90s), both because of the accents and because I was fascinated by the possibility of seeing both sides of a seemingly small decision. As someone who handles life by evaluating all potential outcomes, I was overwhelmed that someone else had understood the crazy way my brain works. I'm feeling the same way about this book, especially since the MC is probably the age I was when I saw Sliding Doors 🤣
I thought the dual choices were covered very well, especially with the variety of love interests. It was a great idea and it was executed well - what more could you want in a book?!
Many thanks to Wednesday Books for the ARC via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. Going Bicoastal is now available everywhere. There is great Jewish and bisexual representation in this YA romance - it's a great read for this pride month OR ANYTIME!

Dahlia Adler books are always so fun. And Going Bicoastal was no exception. Told in a unique choose-your-own-adventure format, Going Bicoastal is a queer rom-com in which a girl must choose between summer in New York City with her dad (and and the perfect girl) or in Los Angeles with her estranged mom (and a surprising guy). Natalya Fox has twenty-four hours to make a choice that will change her life forever.

Mara Wilson does a beautiful job narrating the audiobook.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and OrangeSky Audio for providing me with a review copy.

When I first heard about Going Bicoastal, I knew I had to read it. A queer romance story with a bisexual main character? Count me in! And I think that overall, we were given a cute romance that plays with the idea of how much a choice can affect your story.
First, I have to say I wished for more. Let me be clear; I enjoyed this book. It delivers on the cute romance and kind of coming of age aspect. I think it is a cute book that most readers who are intrigued by the summary will enjoy.
My first issue was that because we follow both stories at the same time, it could feel a little confusing to me as to which details were part of which story.
The second one is the length. It felt so short for a book that follows two stories. I wanted a little more meat to both sides of the stories, to really deepen the process of those two blooming romances.
Still, I think that most readers who are looking for a cute queer romance will enjoy this. This was my first book from Dahlia Adler, and it definitely makes me want to check more of her work.

Wildly inventive storytelling by a wildly talented author.

I've read all of Adler's books and she just keeps on giving us classics.

Bonus points for tying elements of ger previous books in this new work.

Go buy it!

Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Wednesday Books for providing an eARC for a honest review.

This was the book I didn't know I needed to read.

It was so darn perfect.

Natalya (Nat/Tal/Tally) is 17 years old - lives in NYC with her dad. She's forced to decide is she wants to spend her summer in NYC, as per usual - or if she should join her mother in LA (she and her mother are estranged).

And so begins a story that rather than having dual points of view - gives us dual storylines. One that takes Nat to LA and the other that keeps her in NYC. Each chapter jumps back and forth between the two locations.

This book is a sort of literary version of "Sliding Doors" - only, unlike that movie, I genuinely didn't know if I was happier with Nat going to LA or staying in NYC. BOTH choices, both summers were exactly what I wanted her to experience.

In NYC she finally meets "The Redhead"(Elly), she works on improving her relationship with her mother, she makes new friends and learns that her passion can become her career.

In LA she meets Adam and they connect over their love of tacos, Shabbat dinner, "dinner parties". Their friendship blossoms into something so beautiful. And again, her relationship with her mother is vastly improved.

I loved Elly. I loved Adam. I cheered on both love stories - but mostly I loved Nat.

This was my first read by Dahlia Adler and I will definitely read her books again. Well written, well paced, great characters.

Totally a recommended read. Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's press for the advanced copy in return for my honest review.

Going Bicoastal is a fantastic summer read! I absolutely could not get enough of Natalya’s journey(s) through her choice of a summer in LA or a summer in NY with her dad. I loved that it felt like a true Bisexual story! Both timelines are fun & it’s easy to not get lost going back & forth.

5 stars!

This book was fun but didn't draw me in as much as I hoped it would. I loved the Jewish and bisexual representation but didn't really connect with either of Natalya's love interests. I was really waiting for the moment that the two realities would collide and she'd have to make a choice, and because that never happens, it really felt like the stakes were very low. Which on one hand is a nice change of pace that makes for a lowkey read, but on the other hand, removes the conflict and strife that usually bring about a good climax!