It is honestly difficult to write about young/college-aged people without diving headfirst into YA territory. I find the distinction to be the extent to which the characters speak to the broader human condition. Some writers (Batuman, Rooney, etc.) are able to successfully write about young people while still being relatable to a wider audience.

What prevents this book from accomplishing that is how underdeveloped the characters are. The entire book hinges on the attraction between Aisling and Maya (and in some cases, Aisling and Orla/Maya and Ethan), but the characters have such little personality it's hard for me to understand one's attraction to the other. At least when I have a crush (or a full blown relationship), I expect the other person to bring more to the table than their eye color and mysteriously reserved demeanor. These characters are so tormented by their feelings for each other, but why? How are their feelings this strong when their personalities are so weak?

It's possible that New Adult just isn't for me because I'm on the upper end of the target audience, but this was not at all the tormented love story I imagined. The entire book reads like a Nanowrimo challenge from someone who has never been on a date. 

That being said, I do think the broader themes (sapphic love, unaccepting parents, long distance relationships, alcohol abuse) will resonate with a lot of readers. A YA audience is more appropriate than NA, but young folks who are drawn to melodrama and the tragic nature of young love will be more likely to enjoy Something About Her.

Aisling and Maya meet at the University of Edinburgh at a poetry club. Aisling is in her first year and it is fall of 2013. She comes from Ireland and has an alcoholic and abusive mother. There is both physical and emotional trauma. Maya is a Londoner in her second year of University. She has a boyfriend at another school and isn’t expecting her attraction to Maya.

To me the book comes off wanting to be serious and brooding. The story is told from both POVs but Aisling is the star and you don’t get to know Maya as well. Is this the first time she’s been attracted to a woman? This story is about a first serious relationship, but so much is left unsaid. I don’t mind melancholy stories but there wasn’t enough here for me to think Aisling is going to get the help that she needs and I’m not sure what I hope for Maya. I did care about both but the story just abruptly ends. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC and I am leaving a voluntary review.

Something About Her is a queer coming of age story following University of Edinburgh students Aisling and Maya as they meet and fall in love. Aisling is a first year student from Ireland who has a complicated relationship with her family. Maya is a second year student from London who's finally dating with her childhood best friend, Ethan. As the two girls meet in poetry society, they begin a relationship together.

One strength that stood out to me was the setting and descriptions of it. I instantly remembered my own time in Edinburgh at the university and could picture all the parts of the city. In the book, Edinburgh felt like a refuge, which is how it felt to me as well - if you've never been, I highly recommend visiting.

The main characters were interesting and layered, though I thought the side character of Aisling's mother could have been expanded on more. This definitely reads like literary fiction - it's slower and more character-based, which can be absolutely lovely. At times it did drag a bit, but the nature of the genre is that it's not super fast paced.

I actually liked the ambiguity of the ending - I just wish it had been set up more because it felt a little abrupt and/or rushed. But the moment when the title makes sense? Gorgeous. This is an interesting and thoughtful look at trauma and growing up.

Strong trigger warnings for alcoholism and domestic abuse.

This book was so emotional and so raw. We have two young women from vastly different worlds trying to come into their sexuality, together while dealing with very different forms of coping.

Aisling and Maya come from very different worlds that have shaped them to live and handle situations very differently.
This book tackles trauma, PTSD, Child abuse, alcoholism, anxiety, and blends it with the struggles of living life after the fact. Attempting to heal. All in a very raw, emotional, and heart wrenching way.

The end of the book leaves something to be desired which, in a way, I feel was the authors intent. We, like Aisling, don’t get the answers we want, though we might we also may not ever. We return full circle to Aisling using writing to cope, to understand, and to explore what has happened, this time with a new perspective. An open ended ending for endless possibilities. Some may call it not enough, but some may call it hope.

As always thank you to publishers and Netgalley for a free arc in exchange for an honest review.

This review contains spoilers, please avoid parenthesis and asterisks if you want to avoid spoilers!! Please check TW

This book gave me all the feels! I loved the relationship between Aisling and Maya and was rooting so hard for them to get together. The way their story is so real, especially for children of religiously abusive parents. The expression of trauma and grief and how it shows up in even the most wonderful of relationships if you don't take the time to heal was absolutely gorgeous. While not everything was handled the way I wish it would (getting absolutely wasted in front of someone that has experienced abuse from an alcoholic is an awful thing for a person to do, partner or otherwise) I did thoroughly enjoy this book, I would have absolutely rated it higher if it was properly handled. I will absolutely be looking forward to more from Clementine Taylor!!

Aisling and Maya meet at college in Edinburgh and instantly feel a connection. However, Aisling is dealing with her abusive alcoholic mother, and Maya is trying to come to terms with her sexuality. But maybe they can work through things together.

The writing was overall lovely. I liked the way things were framed and the journey Aisling had to go on. But the relationship felt like a lot was told instead of shown, and the ending was abrupt and confusing. The last two chapters were set up in a way where you couldn't tell which POV it was from, and that was frustrating. It does feel like a realistic representation of a college relationship.

I liked the characters in this book, and I liked that there were some very real mental health concerns and other difficult topics addressed in the story. However, there were a lot of tropes that felt very played out, and the plot was a little lacking for me. Overall, still a good read.

Aisling and Maya are two university students living quite different lives. When they meet through poetry society, they're each forced to face their individual identities, pasts, and obstacles.

This book gutted me and put me back together several times.

The writing was gorgeously done. The imagery and use of smilies and metaphors really helped me feel and believe what was happening throughout the novel. I quite enjoyed the pacing as well, although some people may find it too slow and with too many time jumps at times.

Aisling's history with her mother was so raw and real. I don't often see this type of relationship portrayed in novels but I feel like it's important to address and to be aware of.

Without spoiling the ending, I can say it made me feel all the feelings. And in typical literary fiction fashion, it had me wanting to stare at a wall for hours afterwards.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

I wasn’t sure what to expect when reading this. From the first page I was instantly pulled in. I wanted to jump into the pages and hug the main characters. I hated the ending (mostly because it broke my heart), but it made perfect sense. I would absolutely read this again.

I loved this book, it made me both desperate to fall in love and afraid of being in love when you aren't a perfect person. I found it so genuine and beautiful. The descriptions of Edinburg were like balm and the book felt like a warm hug while also breaking my heart.

thanks netgalley for the arc!

i wanted to like this more than i did. while i thought it was a cute concept, the execution felt a little corny and v surface level at times. it never quite went as deep as i wanted it to, and i felt like the chemistry between Aisling and Maya was hard to believe, and i wasn't connected to them individually or as an 'item' at all :/ also didn't particularly care for the ending!

i'd probably give it 2.5 stars, but i'm rounding down because it just wasn't quite a 3 star read for me.

Beautiful novel. I was so lucky to get an early copy of this beautiful love story about exploration and self discovery, Highly recommend.

Content warnings: Abuse from parents, Anxiety, Alcoholism

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group - Putnam for the ARC copy of "Something About Her"


Aisling and Maya are from two different worlds. Aisling grew up in a strict Irish Catholic household, with alcoholism and resentment towards Aisling living the life she wanted for herself. Maya, grew up as an only child in London with her artsy mother and supportive father. She knew growing up that her parents would always love her, even through tough times. But the one thing that Aisling and Maya have in common is a secret, one that will set them free, but could also cause a ripple effect among close friends and family.

Aisling and Maya meet each other in the fall of 2013. Aisling is leaving home the very first time for university and is excited to start fresh in Edinburgh, Scotland. Maya is returning for her 2nd year at the same university. They first see each other at Poet Society and from there they begin the journey of self-discovery within themselves and with each other.

I thought the writing from the author was strong and I would like to read other books from them. However, in the particular story I would have loved to see more exploration in each character. There were many times where I felt like I knew Aisling’s whole life story, but nothing about Maya - even though the book is dual POV. Aisling and Maya’s relationship is the type of what they needed in that moment, but not something that would last forever. Which is why I needed a little more little more self exploration/discovery. They just both publicly came out as a couple and we’re instantly glued to each other's hips - which is to be expected in a new relationship, especially fresh in college. But would have loved to know them a bit more individually.

The main characters in this book are Aisling and Maya. Maya is in her second year at the University of Edinburgh. She is content with her boyfriend and feels like everything is going well for her.
Aisling is in her first year at the University. She has left everything behind in Ireland for a fresh start. However, things are not going as well as she had hoped. She joins the Poetry Society and everything starts to go her way. Including meeting Maya, who thought she had everything she needed.
I would recommend.d
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the story of the relationship between two young women, Aisling and Maya. It is also about the effects of abuse and how it can follow you.

A lovely novel; the kind you don't come across much anymore. It's quiet but filled with emotions and complicated main characters. It doesn't rely on dramatic actions and words to create a powerful and engaging story.
If you've been to Edinburgh, the setting will have you planning a return trip. If you've never been, you should really go!
Those looking for an easy, formulaic HEA, please look elsewhere.
#NetGalley

I really enjoyed this queer coming of age story following Maya and Aisling. While I enjoyed it, I do feel it fell flat for me. This book lacked the depth it needed to reach the potential of being like a queer sally Rooney novel. The ending unfortunately fell flat and felt out of character. Thank you Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

3.75
From the description of this book, it sounded right up my alley. Queer girls coming of age, finding themselves, and finding each other. Feeling liberated and raw after having to hide for so long. Aisling’s story was heartbreaking, but I was hoping for her to start healing. I also found Maya’s metaphor for anxiety and compulsory heterosexuality intriguing. A gnawing that tells you there’s something wrong with you, that you suppress but always comes back out. You feel it when you try to conceal yourself, but you also feel it when that hidden part starts to emerge. There were many touching descriptions of finding peace, finding a home, and finding yourself when you’re around the right person. I wanted so desperately for Aisling, specifically, to find the space and understanding to allow herself to begin to heal. But I know healing isn’t always linear. I appreciated this about the book. These were two messy people, just coming into themselves and wanting to love each other. It wouldn’t always be perfect, and maybe they wouldn’t even always do their best. The end did feel abrupt to me. A lot happened in the last few chapters that felt like a bit of whiplash. However, I won’t fault this too much because it again felt like a depiction of non-linear healing.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. This book left me truly speechless — I loved the storytelling style of the author, and the interweaving of poetry and prose made this book so truly beautiful. This book was pure art in the sense that it not only told you a story about two characters… it brought them alive and made us feel their struggles, successes, victories and pain. Speaking of pain, there was so much pain in this book, but some of it was good pain… the pain of trying something new, the pain of loving. What a beautiful and captivating novel. Truly fantastic.

I would like to warn folks that there is some violence and that it could trigger folks, depending on their own upbringing and coming out stories (along with life in an abusive or alcoholic home). I would pay attention to this trigger warning if needed.

****Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an eARC so that I may give my honest feedback and review****

All the feels, Clementine Taylor puts you in the shoes of her characters making you engage in the deepest part of your soul with their happiness and suffering. So much more could be said, but I believe the trauma is still buried and will stay that way until it breaks free.