I love Eric Smith so much because he always takes these fun little tropes and creates three dimensional relatable characters while also having the best puns and humor! I especially liked that this took rivals to lovers and then said. psych! it's all AN ILLUSION.

I really liked that this book discussed the idea that your big dreams don't HAVE to include college but they CAN. Jordan wanting to just drive around and make simple delicious foods in a food truck was so real of him. Especially because it's often put into teenagers' minds that you HAVE to go to college or else the dream doesn't count. I also liked that this had a sprinkle of reality tv in it to add extra drama! The fake showmance meeting the fake rivalry meeting the actual secret romance was just so fun!

I do think the beginning with the script form the reality show came a bit too early especially considering it took about 20% of the book to introduce the reality tv show plotline. But overall I really enjoyed this!

3.5 stars

It’s common knowledge that Jordan Plazas and Cindy Ortiz hate each other. They’ve gone viral many times with their shouting matches between their families’ food trucks. The food truck rivalry between their two families has been well-established the entire time they’ve been in high school.

However, what everyone doesn’t know is that it’s all a front: Jordan and Cindy are actually dating. When they get approached by a TV studio to do a reality show, they have to pretend that they aren’t. Otherwise, everything their families have built could come tumbling down around them.

Thanks to NetGalley and Inkyward Press for an advanced copy of With or Without You by Eric Smith to review! Eric Smith is always a good time for a rom-com, and making it food truck themed just upped the fun. And it might make you hungry!

We don’t often get YA romances where the relationship is already established from page 1; it’s kind of fun to get to see the relationship play out without all of the (kind of awkward) beginning stuff. Jordan and Cindy have chemistry from the beginning, and the way they play up the rivalry between their families has a fun spin to it.

This book does read like reality TV, with little scenes sprinkled throughout that are confessionals for the characters. These add a fun element to the story, and really put you in the reality TV zone. While this works for the story, I’m not a huge fan of reality TV; I think that’s part of the reason this didn’t resonate with me like Smith’s other books.

However, if you like food themed romances, this is definitely the book for you!

My thanks to #NetGalley and #InkYardPress for giving me access to the ARC of With Or Without You.

A salty but never cheesy frenemies romance perfect for young audiences of today grappling with the unreality of social media existence vs. real life. File under: careful what you wish for - as Cindy's love of reality TV turns into her being the subject of a new show pilot, Cheesesteak Wars. Only the rivalry between her family's food truck and the one owned by her (secret) boyfriend Jordan's family is all fake... Or is it?

These messy, confused characters are as unpredictable as they are realistic, and the Philadelphia setting rings true - no shame bell!

Another winner by Eric Smith! Always loving the trip to Philly when reading one of his stories, and this one comes with the unique food truck showdown, fake enemies/real lovers conflict. Jordan, Cindy, their families and friends are complex characters that leads to layers and twists to keep the story very engaging and unpredictable. Loved the appeal for foodies & reality show fans, which isn't something we often see in YA. Very satisfying read!

**3.5 Stars**

I have a husband who was born and raised in Philly so I love books that are set there because I get to learn more about the city and culture. We get a lot of the culture in this book through Jordan who is a Philly boy and then the other perspective through his girlfriend, Cindy, a transplant from Boston, MA. They both run a food truck and they have a rivalry going on between them when they are outside but in secret they have been together for awhile. When a television company wants to do a show on the rivalry, things start to unravel.

Jordan and Cindy already have an established relationship, so I thought this book did a good job showcasing the different challenges a young relationship could face when both parties are about to start their lives after high school. Jordan has a dream that he and Cindy will do a road trip together and run a food truck. But Cindy has dreams of actually returning to Boston, her hometown, and go to college. With all the secrecy going on, trying to hide their relationship from the public – they realize they were keeping secrets themselves…well actually mostly Cindy. I felt bad that these teens couldn’t be together without lying to the public and on camera. I don’t read a lot of books where the couple is already together so I thought this was different but in a good way. Thing is you don’t get the falling in love feels in this book, but more the -“I love you, let’s fight for our relationship” vibes instead.

I did wish Cindy could have told Jordan right away what she was feeling but it’s not always easy. And I was surprised with Jordan – yes he should have listened to Cindy and realized the food truck business was not her passion, but he was pretty forgiving of her after some things went down. I felt like that showed both of them were pretty mature for their age and were in it for the long haul, which is heartwarming. I like how they made it work in the end.

There are other themes in this book other than Jordan and Cindy’s relationship. The story explores how their families went into debt from their small businesses and how they dealt with that challenge. Some of that burden falls on Jordan and Cindy’s shoulders, but they deal with it in different ways, just like their parents.

Tropes: secret lovers, family rivalry

My Final Thoughts:

Instead of a falling in love type of romance, we get an established relationship between two teens who hit a few road bumps in their relationship, but they decide to fight to make it work. I loved that the story is set in Philly, and that it’s a story based around one of their favorite foods, cheesesteaks. It definitely made me hungry! All the characters are vibrant and unique and I liked the themes about family, debt and belonging. I like how both Jordan and Cindy are coming of age and really have to make some big decisions about their lives, with or without the other. I enjoyed this one!

This books was so cute. It had me a little stressed in the middle, but all the best books do. I am the definition of “judge a book by its cover”, I hate that I am but it’s true. And this book absolutely lived up to is adorable and perfect cover. I was giggling and gasping throughout the entirely of this book, Jordan and Cindy are so stinking cute.

The relationship between Jordan and Cindy feels so real. Like I’m reading about real high school graduates that are planning their futures, dealing with real, high school graduate problems. Like what you and your high school boyfriend are going to do when you both move away (a real life problem I actually had)

This book is a must read if you are on the hunt for a light hearted read. The fake feud keeps things interesting, Cindy and Jordan keep things real.

Story of food truck wars is told from two points of view, Jordan and Cindy, competing on the same corner. They appear as enemies for the camera but are really in love with each other with big plans for the future. The parents are actually friends, too, but they hide it especially when a directer wants to make a reality show about them. Fun story with great characters.

With or Without You
By Eric Smith
November 7, 2023

With or Without You is a cute young adult contemporary book about Jordan and Cindy who both work on their family’s food trucks and both hate each other, but is that really true? Actually they are not fighting and feuding at all, it is all an act because they are in fact in love.


I love The Great Food Truck Race and this book really reminded me of it. I enjoyed all of the characters, both Jordan and Cindy were fantastic together and separately. It's Romeo and Juliet with food trucks, yes please!


Thank you to Inkyard Press and NetGalley for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really fun YA romance, I loved the (fake) enemies trope and the reality show premise. I felt like Smith’s story went in directions that I was not expecting, which was a really fun and pleasant surprise. I think I rooted for the families more than the MCs but I ultimately really liked this.

I really enjoyed this book! The characters were well-written and believable. Each had their own secrets and motivations that impacted everyone involved. The dash of reality TV was really fun too. I learned a lot about how reality TV is made from reading this book.

I liked that the whole book didn't focus on the creation of the reality TV show. It showed the real challenges people face while trying to run a food truck business. The confessional chapter dividers were a really fun way to get more information about the characters. I loved them.

Normally books like this feature characters who are trying so hard to get into top colleges or elite situations. It was refreshing to have a character who just wanted to run a food truck. I loved that readers were able to see a character who was choosing the working path. It was a nice change from traditional YA books.

This is definitely a book I would like to add to my classroom library.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I never really got into the book. I mean it was a cute story but there was nothing in it that made me WANT to read it. The ending made me happy al though very unrealistic. Overall I probably won’t be recommending it to people but I wouldn’t not tell them to read it. Maybe it’s for someone just not for me.

this was a solid book but i sadly did not fall in love with the characters enough. i think it could be enjoyable for some but i wasn't a fan and ended up skimming through most of it.

I'm one of those adults that still enjoys reading YA fiction. This book was cute and enjoyable and I can see my young adult patrons at the library loving this one. I definitely thought the story was cute, the character development was fantastic, and it really felt like a relatable story. Highly recommend this one!

This was a really cute and fun read!
Cindy & Jordan have to keep their feelings under wraps because their family food trucks are in a long standing war.
But along the way they find who they are supposed to be and how decisions can shape their future.
Delicious food, good banter, and friends are great things featured within this novel!

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC.

3 stars
with or without you follows jordan and cindy, the kids of two rival family-owned food trucks. the two put up an act in front of customers, acting like they hate each other, when in reality, they're dating. they're pretty good at keeping up the act, up until they land a reality tv show, and things get harder to hide from everyone.
the whole book felt a bit repetitive for me, like both cindy and jordan kept dwelling on the same problems, and not actually doing anything to help solve them? this kinda led to me being bored for a good portion of the book. i also feel like the whole thing could've been shorter. most of my problems are actually with the character though. i read some of the reviews before starting and thought people were exaggerating cindy being selfish but they're so right, cindy was super annoying with how she acted about laura (who's the best character in this whole book, actually) and like how didn't trust jordan, when in reality, it should've been jordan who didn't trust her. if jordan so much as talked with another girl she would get mad, but obviously it's fine when she does something else towards the middle? end? of the story. (won't go into detail because of spoilers). their whole relationship felt really rocky and unhealthy to me, i genuinely think they'd be better off without each other. i also felt like cindy was being unfair to jordan the whole time. i do have some problems with jordan too, though. it really bothered me how he was so stuck on not having any change whatsoever, but at least he did getter better at that! i liked the confessionals more than the actual chapters (because most of them were so long!) but also it was quite confusing when they appeared out of seemingly nowhere, when the reader didn't know there would be a whole reality tv show going on. perhaps the most pressing problem is that the plazas family only uses salt & pepper and shames people for wanting mushrooms. (i'm just joking, obviously, but i really don't get how people can be fine with just salt & pepper ??) i'd have to say my favorite scene out of all the things that happened would have to be the bookstore date at the start of the book! i want someone to do that for me.
thank you to the publisher inkyard press and netgalley for a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
this review will be posted on my blog at the end of the month in a post titled "august 2023 wrap-up"

This was a cute YA read! reality TV, food truck culture, ambitious teens, secret romance, recipe competition, family drama, and really fun characters to boot!

This was an okay read, but nothing will really stick with me now that I've turned the final page. The characters are distinct, and as I've been in Philly for their cheesesteaks, I enjoyed that angle. Jordan's chapters were a bit lackluster, whereas Cindy's had more depth. However, I didn't get fully pulled in by either of them, and the "twist" wasn't really a surprise.

This was such a cute a book and I enjoyed the romance. The character development was great and the story was believable.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for the opportunity.

With or Without You by Eric Smith is funny, and thought provoking. Jordan Plazas and Cindy Ortiz work in rival food trucks in Philadelphia. They are parked across from each other in Bardhan Square and taunt one another daily. At the same time, they are secretly dating.

The families are approached by a reality TV producer to film a pilot based on their competition. Jordan is trying to develop a new menu item for Truck Off, so that he can buy his own food truck and spend a year traveling the US with Cindy.

The author alternates between their points of view, and does credit to them both. All the characters are quirky and engaging.

I found myself thinking about the story when I was doing other things. I gave it five stars because of how well the author drew me into the book, and got me interested in food trucks and the people who own them.

Two recent high school graduates, Jordan and Cindy, work at their respective families’ food trucks parked across the street from each other. They have a very public rivalry, which is emphasized both in person and online. However, unknown to the public, they are actually dating each other and their families are close friends. The rivalry is simply a way of gaining publicity for their businesses. They are approached by a reality television producer who proposes creating a TV show about the two families. Cindy, who loves reality television, is excited about this opportunity, and Jordan agrees to participate a bit more reluctantly. This takes place against a background of a food truck competition that Jordan is desperate to win because he wants to use the prize money to purchase his own food truck and embark on a year long road trip with Cindy. The reality television filming stirs up a true rivalry between the families and the protagonists that is unexpected and causes everyone to look within to understand their true feelings.

This was a cute spin on the enemies to lovers trope, and while the plot was fun, there were some difficulties that impeded my enjoyment of the book. First, even though it was manufactured, the rivalry between the two families didn’t make much sense to me. Although they both sold sandwiches, the types of sandwiches would likely appeal to different palates. One family uses heathy, organic food while the other serves greasy, traditional food.

However, what hurt the story the most was that the characters needed deeper development. Neither of the main characters was especially compelling, and their motivations weren’t always clear. Additionally, both families had ethnic surnames, and there was a brief mention of Cindy’s father being from Peru, as well as a brief mention of Cindy feeling that she doesn’t fit in due to her heritage, but it felt cursory and not very authentic. The main characters were described as having brown skin and dark hair, but nothing else really spoke to their cultures. I also just didn’t feel much chemistry between the main characters. Further, I didn’t understand Cindy’s jealousy of Laura. There was no reason for her to be jealous unless she was very insecure, and nothing other than her jealousy of Laura suggested insecurity to me.

However, on the positive side, I liked the way the author brought the different plot points together and wrapped things up. It wasn’t completely predictable, and I loved that it made use of a fun side character. I believe that careful language choices were made overall, and almost none of the language was stigmatizing to any marginalized group. I also appreciated the strength of both of the families. Despite the occasional disagreements and misunderstandings, they all had each other’s backs and there was an abundance of love.