I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
I have never read anything by Addie Woolridge before, but I was charmed by the cover and premise of The Homecoming War, especially the concept of two schools merging, something I had never heard of happening before. The book itself is lighthearted fun, and exactly what I needed, following a somewhat lackluster read.
Meg is a solid, fairly relatable protagonist. She’s class president, and desires to leave town upon graduation. While it could have been easy for her to be the typical overachiever character, I liked how her reasons for wanting to leave stem from grief from the loss of a parent, and while the book never loses its overall light, fun nature, this is a nice dose of heart that grounded it for me, and added a little something extra to complement the fluffiness. And while she has her own motivations, I do like that she has good intentions, and wants to do what’s best for the students of her school.
The romance itself was quite cute as well. While there is an initial rivalry, she and Chris do have common goals in their desires as the class presidents, and once they get out of their own heads, I like how they’re able to not only put the other students first, but bond over what they do have in common.
And while there are a lot of people in the supporting cast, and it can bog down the story a little, I liked that the cast was colorful and diverse, making the story feel authentic to the California setting, as well as giving names and faces to the people that Meg and Chris are meant to advocate for.
The one thing I didn’t care for was the pacing. It started off quite slow, and I did feel like there were quite a few moving parts, from the prank war to the rivalry to the romance, that often left the story feeling a little scattered. But once the story found its rhythm, I was invested.
This is a cute book, and I’d recommend it to readers looking for a fun, lighthearted YA contemporary romance.

The Homecoming War was a fun prank-wars filled book following two rival class presidents, Meg and Chris! This was my first book by Addie Woolridge, and I think she did a great job of capturing the teen experience at a local high school in CA. Firstly, speaking to the student body depicted at Hirono and Davies, I think the portrayal of the diverse student population (seeing Meg have a Bengali best friend meant so much to me!), the interests among teens, and the liveliness at high school was very accurate to my experience being born and raised in CA as well. I loved Meg and Chris's interactions, seeing them slowly grow feelings for each other, and also seeing their leadership and interactions with their friends and peers.

Aside from the teen rom-com plot, this book also features a subplot of Meg navigating life after the death of her father and now living in an "unconventional" household with her widowed mother and her grandmother. I think the exploration of how teens deal with grief was very thoughtfully done and I liked seeing the parental and grandparental dynamic between Meg and her mother & grandmother.

Overall, this was an enjoyable YA read that I'm sure many young readers will enjoy!

When it comes to young-adult books, I don’t pick up many these days yet The Homecoming War sounded like a lot of fun. The story follows Meg who is a junior and class president at Hirono but we find out quickly that Hirono and another school: Davies have combined to become Huntersville High School.

Of course, that results in there being two presidents, and Meg is paired up with Chris Chaves who is utterly dreamy. While the two start off not trusting each other, they quickly form a friendship and even, decide to clue each other in on a prank war between the two schools. From there, we watch as the two start to grow closer.

While The Homecoming War does have an adorable romance between Meg and Chris, this book is a lot heavier than the cover makes it out to be. Meg is dealing with the grief of losing her father especially how her mother is dealing with the loss. Meanwhile, Chris is trying to figure out what he wants to do while not disappointing his family. The book is very much Meg’s story but we do learn a lot about Chris and his struggles.

I think The Homecoming War does a great job of encompassing a lot of different tropes including rivals-to-lovers, a coming-of-age story, and a high school dance. On their own, they’re all classic tropes in YA books yet they work together great within The Homecoming War.

As I mentioned, I don’t read in this age range much anymore but I do think this is a fun one if you read young-adult. The only complaint I had was that the pacing felt off. Maybe it was the way the third-act conflict played out but it felt a little too long. Then again, this is my first time reading Addie Woolridge so maybe I’m the problem.

This fell flat and I was very disappointed. It felt very rushed and I felt that there were so many missed opportunities throughout the book for so many bigger conversations. I wanted more character development.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my e-ARC!

𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐈𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔
🦅 were ever class President
🏫 are currently in high school
🪩 loved the homecoming dances
🩷 want love but put work first

• 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈𝐓’𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓

Meg Williams is on the way to making her dreams come true. As the incoming Junior class president for Hirono High School, all she needs are a few more As and an excellent college recommendation letter, then she can leave Huntersville, California, and her ghosts behind.

Or, at least she was on track until the school district decided to combine Hirono with their rival, Davies High School. Now, Meg is wandering the pristine hallways of Davies High, her life plan threatened by Hirono’s queen mean girl, Freya Allenson, and the maddeningly perfect Chris Chaves, Davies High School’s class president.

When it turns out Huntersville’s Golden Boy won't just step down, Meg begrudgingly accepts that they’ll have to work together for the year. Worse still, escalating pranks between the rival classmates and a developing crush threaten to throw Meg even further off course. As homecoming draws near, both Meg and Chris will have to decide where their loyalties lie.

• 𝐌𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒

This was a cute read that will really resonate with younger readers, especially those currently in high school. I really liked Meg’s character and wish this book was around when I was in high school because she was someone I would have looked up to. Rather than chasing boys, she put her head down and worked for her excellent grades and class Presidency. I wish that I had done what she did. But I also enjoyed the fact that she did let her heart lead with Chris, and how she opened up to her family and friends when she needed to. Overall, this is a good one for high school students to read!

"The Homecoming War" by Addie Woolridge presents readers with a charming and engaging story that delves into themes of rivalry, friendship, and finding love in unexpected places.

Meg Williams, the incoming Junior class president at Hirono High School, has a clear plan for her future, and she's determined to achieve her dreams. However, when the school district merges Hirono with their rival, Davies High School, Meg's carefully constructed life is thrown into disarray. The sudden rivalry with Freya Allenson, Hirono's queen mean girl, and the presence of Chris Chaves, Davies High School's class president, challenge her plans.

Woolridge does an excellent job of capturing the essence of high school dynamics and teenage emotions. The story offers a thoughtful exploration of Meg's character as she navigates the challenges of the merger, the rivalry with Freya, and her unexpected feelings for Chris. Meg's journey is relatable and allows readers to connect with her on a personal level.

The relationship between Meg and Chris is a central focus of the story, and while it may not follow the traditional rivals-to-lovers trope, it offers a fresh and nuanced take on teenage romance. The development of their relationship feels genuine, and their interactions are both sweet and realistic.

One of the strengths of the book is its diverse and well-drawn cast of characters. Each character has their own unique background and backstory, contributing to the richness of the narrative. While the large ensemble cast may feel a bit overwhelming at times, it adds depth and authenticity to the high school setting.

The novel also addresses themes of grief and healing, which are handled with sensitivity and depth. Meg's personal journey of coming to terms with her grief adds emotional depth to the story and makes her character more relatable and multidimensional.

Overall, "The Homecoming War" is a heartwarming and entertaining read that captures the complexities of high school life, rivalries, and unexpected romance. Addie Woolridge's storytelling is engaging, and her characters are well-developed and relatable. This book will resonate with readers who enjoy contemporary YA fiction with a focus on personal growth and relationships.

3.9 rounded up to 4/5

This was cute. I'm glad I read it, and it was a good time filler. I probably won't read it again, but I'll be recommending it to some friends who will definitely love it, maybe even more than I did.

The premise was good, and I liked the basic plot set up. However, the one complaint I had is that there were A LOT of characters introduced. Normally I have no issue with a large cast but this seemed a little disjointed, it was hard to keep track of them all.

Thanks for the fun read!

Ahhh, this was absolutely adorable. It was such a fluffy, sweet, slow-burn high school romance, but at the same time, touched upon the duality that many high school students live in experiencing grief and uncertainty as well. I loved our main character, junior-year-student Meg Williams, and her love for her home high school Hirono. She is so clearly passionate about making sure her fellow classmates have a great student experience, and she tries pretty hard to ensure there is no erasure of their school spirit happening! However, I also adored the golden retriever energy from Chris, the Davies High School class president, whom she works with to prevent destructive pranks and try to unify their high schools in a more productive way. I appreciated the diversity of the school, which reflects the diversity you would probably see in a high school in California. I will absolutely read more from Addie, and thank you for the arc!

First off, I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Meg Williams has been elected the junior class president, she has great grades, and she has a plan: make it out of this town as soon as she graduates. But when her school, Hirono High, and their rival school, Davies High, combine, tensions rise between students. And suddenly, she is a co-president and has to get along with her fellow co-president, Chris Chavez. On top of that, she has to deal with her classmates thinking she isn’t doing enough to show support for Hirono students. She ends up having to work with Chris to try to keep the rivalry under control, which isn’t easy with the elaborate pranks Hirono students and Davies students are playing. It becomes more difficult as she starts developing feelings for Chris, who she should not be falling for out of loyalty to her school.

This book was very cute overall! The transition period of two rival schools becoming one was definitely not going to be easy, and it was interesting to see the pranks they thought of.

I liked the depiction of grief and how different it is for everyone. I wasn’t expecting it, thinking that this was going to be focused solely on the romance, but we learn why Meg wants to leave town as soon as she can. We saw how Meg’s mom handled the grief of losing her husband, but also how that impacted how Meg grieved for her father.

The romance was very cute! Despite the rivalry between schools, it didn’t feel like rivals to lovers. While it took longer for Meg to admit what she was feeling towards him, it didn't take long for them to strike up an alliance. I also really liked the side characters, Nadiya, Riley, and Russ!

One thing that I think could’ve been handled better was the third-act breakup. It just felt like with how far they had come that Meg suddenly wanting to break things off with Chris was thrown in so they could break up before getting back together in the end.

Overall, I give it 3.8 stars rounded up to 4!

I wanted to like this book so much more than I did. It has such a cute and unique premise, but the storytelling bogged it down. It's a slow start of a story, which isn't inherently a bad thing, except that I don't want a slow start story to *feel* slow. Given the reviews of the author's previously published stuff, I'd say this is just her writing style. It just didn't work for me as a reader this time.

The storytelling is more reminiscent of mid-2000s YA Contemporary, which was a little like Early 2000s Chick Lit trying to tell a teenage story. Almost reminded me of Emma Lord's Begin Again. So if you like that, I have great news for you!

Because it took me a while to get into, I found this book very easy to put down and come back to later. The only reason this is a problem is because the author did a wonderful job crafting complex characters with intricate backstories. Putting it down and coming back made it more difficult for me to keep up, but the characters and plot weren't enough to keep me drawn in. I found myself skimming and skipping ahead to get into the story, find the action.

The cast of characters is large, diverse, and unique. I felt like some of the characters were added in just to check off the LGBTQ+ diversity box because nothing was really done with the characteristics of diverse sexuality and pronouns.

Despite the cover making me think I was getting a YA Contemporary Romance, I'd say this squarely falls into the category of YA Contemporary with a Romance Plot like Emily Wibberly's stuff. Not bad, by any means. Not good, either, just is. I thought the school rivalry taking center stage of the plot with the romance developing because of that, around that, was really sweet and realistic. And fun! from a plot perspective.

I really enjoyed the arc and growth that a lot of the characters took--I loved Freya being more than just a mean girl, and her explanation of her background to Meg at the end actually impacting Meg and making her stop and think. I loved that Nadiya handled Meg keeping Chris a secret in a realistic way, being happy for her friend but sad that her friend hid something from her. I even loved how Meg learned a lesson from that and compared herself to Freya and had some empathy there--but I took issue with the third act conflict.

Meg suddenly breaking up with Chris because it wasn't "part of the plan" seemed very plot-device-ish and out of nowhere. She dated before. Was she not worried about Trevor not being "part of the plan" to get out of town? Chris was also clear that he, too, wants to get out of town, so, like, I really wasn't sure what the big issue there was. It's then explored in a really teenage and yet really mature way (that I loved!) that Meg is scared and a lot of characters help her talk and walk through that. Which was very realistic. And on the one hand, I completely understand and empathize with a teen who has A Plan and can't deviate from it, but I also felt like Meg, of all characters, should have understood earlier that Plans change.

I liked how the third act conflict was resolved with her friends, family, and Chris. I just wish the conflict hadn't happened to begin with. Or had happened differently; I don't know.

Even though this book didn't resonate with me, I love love love that it's harkening back to traditional YA roots compared to some of the recent YA releases I've read lately. I would still 100% recommend this to anyone looking for a YA with a fun plot. If the writing had been a little snappier, this would've been a 4 star read for me because the plot and the characters really were fun.

3.5 stars rounded up!

This book was super cute and lighthearted! However, I did find it quite slow which took me a while to get into and complete. Nevertheless, the author crafted the story beautifully and wrapped it up quite nicely as well!

Thank you NetGalley and Underlined for allowing me early access to the novel in exchange for an honest review!