At Greenlough Academy, Brynn is everyone's go-to person for help with texting their crushes; after all, she's a dating expert and self-proclaimed flirting coach. But when a viral video surfaces after a Halloween party, she's instantly on the outs. All her classmates believe she is the one in the video doing a dirty deed since she was the only one in a banana costume at the party. What makes things even worse is that the guy in the video is her ex-best friend's current boyfriend, Duncan Rowe. Her only hope now is that Duncan will clear the air and tell everyone it wasn't her so things can go back to normal. But when she returns to school and her peers throw all the banana references her way, she realizes it won't be that simple and becomes determined to reveal the real person wearing the banana costume. As the story unfolds, Brynn and her friends work to uncover the truth while also creating a feminist club at their school to start a "femolution" to change how their classmates think and encourage acceptance.

I felt like this book really fell flat. I sensed that the author was trying to push an agenda, and while it was nice to see the main characters feel empowered to drive change at their school, it just felt over the top and like they were trying to take on every possible hot-topic issue. It would have been better if their club just focused on one or two issues instead. Each chapter began with blurbs of what Brynn's classmates were saying about her, and throughout the book, you could see how their opinions changed as the truth came out. At times, I found myself frustrated with Brynn. I realize all of these horrible things were happening to her, but I would have liked to have seen her rise above it better instead of trying to get even. I also never really felt like she had been "canceled." Sure, people at her school were judging her, but she still had her core group of friends and seemed to be doing okay. I was happy to see she was able to mend broken friendships and step outside of her comfort zone. I also enjoyed the little bit of romance that was included. Overall, I gave this 3 stars on Goodreads.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

I was pleasantly surprised with Cancelled and how quickly it grabbed me and did not let me go until the very end! I read this book in a sitting, let me tell you more about it:

It all starts with Brynn, a senior in high school who helps her classmates connect with people they are interested in (a sort of matchmaker but for communicating). Brynn finds herself at the center of a scandal that jeopardizes her future college prospects and financial income.

Now, I live for the drama, and the gossip was nonstop with this deliciously-paced novel. I really enjoyed the depth that this book brought to dealing with bullying, harassment, misogynistic classmates, and cancel culture. I think the author navigated lots of heavy topics with ease and what made it incredible was seeing the intricate friendships that provided the best support system to Brynn throughout all the chaos and drama.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and recommend it to anyone looking to read it! Nothing like some YA drama, with a little bit of mystery, lots of humor, growth, and heart.

High achieving, serial dater Brynn is having a great senior year. Until there’s a video that everyone assumes is Brynn with her former best friend’s boyfriend. Many of her classmates immediately turn against her after seeing the video on social media. Brynn must figure out how to repair her reputation and hopefully still get admitted to her dream school.

I really enjoyed Brynn and her friends taking on the double standards, sexist stereotypes, and misogyny at the school. This friend group is loving, supportive, and uplifting. They take a bad situation, learn from it, and help others.

Side note, I loved the diversity within this group. Each character was fully fleshed out and had their own concerns. Readers will learn something from each of them.

The romance between Brynn and Charlie was a secondary storyline, but it was so cute! The mutual pining had me cheering for them to figure things out!

Cancelled is a fast-paced, fun YA coming-of-age story in the age of social media with a great message.

Thank you to PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group for a copy of this book.

Cancelled by Farrah Penn is a funny and adventurous novel.
The relatable characters and entertaining story will have you sucked into the world of these diverse array of characters who captured my heart.
I really enjoyed Brynn, she was so confident and such a complex character. I loved the friendships that these characters had with other.
And Penn’s writing is just amazing. She pulled me into the story and held me there till the end.
A riveting coming of age story with and empowering and thought-provoking message.

Thank You NetGalley and Viking Books for Young Readers for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This is a very progressive young adult novel. The characters are a diverse group dealing with cancel culture. I found the novel to be creative and thought provoking. It is interesting and unique. Highly recommend, especially for the young adult progressives.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for advanced copy, and I give my review freely

Thank you Penguin Teen for the #gifted ARC of Cancelled!

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐂𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐅𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐡 𝐏𝐞𝐧𝐧
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝟏𝟗, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒

★★★★★

If you are a fan of Jenny Han or Emma Lord, you are going to LOVE Cancelled by Farrah Penn! I could not get enough of Brynn and this YA romance. I loved the focus on gender equality, cyberbullying, and friendship.

I found Brynn to be such a strong and likable character, and I love how she was portrayed. She is witty and overall a great role model. There is a mystery element to this book and I really enjoyed the added element.

📱YA Romance
📱Flirt Coach
📱Easy A and Mean Girls Vibes
📱Slow Burn
📱Cinnamon Roll Love Interest
📱Friendship

Posted on Goodreads on March 16, 2024: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around March 16, 2024: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on March 19, 2024
**-will post on designated date

Brynn is a scholarship student at a prep school near Los Angeles. She has become an expert at flirting over text messages and people pay her to help them get dates. This is a fun, fast read with some snarky humor and a good message. The book will become dated very quickly because of cultural references. There's sex, drinking, and addiction in this book making it a solidly high school title.

A great YA story about a diverse group of girls tired of the sexism and double standards at their high school who form a "femiloution" club to help correct the power imbalance and fight for more equity and respect. Perfect for fans of Veronica Mars or Margot Mertz and good on audio. Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and @prhaudio for a complimentary digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Disability rep: vaginismus

Brynn Whittaker has her life as in control as possible when someone releases a video that makes it look like she's with her ex-best friend's boyfriend and the entire school suddenly decides she's the worst person in the world. Rumors and awfully hurtful comments start flying and no one cares to listen to Brynn when she tells them it's not her.
Brynn and her friends decide to show their classmates that they're after the wrong person, but as they work to prove it, they find that it's not even about who the person in the video is, it's about the boyfriend getting off scot-free because all the blame lands on the woman. It's always the women at fault and that have to change themselves, so they start a feminist movement that will help them see themselves and those around them better.
Of course, there is also some family drama and some sweet romance to balance it out, but I loved the angle about changing the way people think and how it's always on women to take the burden.
It's some very mature themes treated respectfully and age appropriately with some drama and romance sprinkled in to keep things interesting.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and Viking Books for Young Readers for the thought-provoking read!

I received a complimentary copy of this book via Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

#Canceled has Easy A vibes, but one a 2024 level. It is a very realistic look at Social media and Cancel culture, no matter what you do you need to think of who's watching/taping. I like Brynn's personality as well as her friends, they would have been my ideal group in high school

Thank you to Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group for the advanced copy!

This is the book I wish I had when I was a teenager. This book covered real issues with such delicacy and keeping it appropriate for a YA audience. We follow Brynn as she is accused of a video scandal involving her ex best friends boyfriend. Although it’s not Brynn in the video, she becomes shamed and cancelled by her classmates. Following this, Brynn with her group of friends and new friends start a revolution to try and show her classmates how girls are treated with this double standard. While we also follow the friends try to unravel the mystery of what happened that night and who leaked the video.
I truly applaud this book for the topics it covered and how sex positive it is. It is refreshing and important to see a YA book like this. This audience needs books like this.
If you like Easy A and Moxie, this is the perfect book for you. I really enjoyed this one.
Thank you again to Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group!

While I appreciated the author's witty writing style and the way she tackled important issues like slut-shaming and double standards, I couldn't fully connect with the story. The characters felt a bit forced at times, and the heavy-handed political agenda detracted from the overall narrative. Despite this, Brynn's journey to clear her name and stand up against injustice was empowering, and I admired her resilience in the face of adversity. Overall, "Canceled" is a thought-provoking read that may resonate more with a younger audience. I received an ARC from NetGalley, and while it wasn't quite my cup of tea, I can see its potential appeal to others.

For high school senior Brynn, she's the queen of flirty texts. She's so good, other students pay her to text for them. That is until a viral video of what appears to be her doing something she shouldn't is seen by everyone. Then, of course, she gets cancelled.

The writing is quirky and laugh out loud funny. However, the subject matter and situations the characters find themselves in, while most likely true that teens these days fall into these incidents, I really don't want to read and enjoy this type of content. Society is quick to vilify anyone that may say or do one little thing that offends anyone. Social media has caused so many pressures, no one can hide from anything.

This wasn't my cup of tea, but I see potential for other offerings from this author, so I'll give her another try in future.

Thank you to Penguin Young Readers Group and NetGally for the ARC. The opinions expressed are my own.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The fast paced entertaining plot made me an instant fan. Centered around cancel culture and double standards in society, it also included topics of friendship, therapy, romance, and everyday life. This was one of the most entertaining coming of age stories I’ve ever read. Brynn is such a badass and her friends are just as amazing.

Cancelled is a story that explores how messy high school can be especially when there's untrue things spread widely on social media. Brynn, our text expert has been falsely accused of having relationship with her ex best friend's boyfriend. It caused huge damage to her part-time job, scholarship and her dream of going to university.

I appreciate the female empowerment in here, and how it critics the double standard that woman has to go through (where they take all the blame whereas man can just go freely without any guilt).

But, some parts are kind of boring for me, it started off strong at the beginning but halfway throughout the story is messy. I don't even feel the chemistry between her and the love interest.

Thank you to Netgalley for the review copy.

What a great story!! I loved the character development, I was feeling so many emotions with each character. Brynn is awesome. Such a strong person, I don’t know if I could handle everything she had to go through. I loved each of her friends, especially Cadence. Charlie is my new book boyfriend, what a great character added to Brynn’s world.

I felt I was in this book every step along with Brynn.

I loved this book and sat up into the wee hours reading this because I couldn’t put it down. Highly recommend this book!

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Penguin Young Readers Group for the advanced reader copy.

Brynn is finishing up her senior year making some extra cash as a flirt expert. She is well liked and respected at her school. Until she is accused to hooking up with her ex-best friend’s boyfriend and a video is sent around. She knows it’s not her but no one else does.

Fans of Moxie, here’s your next favorite read! This was a very empowering tale of taking back power from shame. I don’t enjoy a lot of young adult, unless it’s clever, mature, or witty; this one was all three. The main character was funny and despite all the drama she was going through, made me laugh out loud several times.

“The more we came together to break down double standards and unlearn the stupid spiral construct bullshit we’ve been fed all our lives, the more empowered we felt.”

Cancelled comes out 3/12.

This book was just to young for me. I did not enjoy this one. I felt like I could not relate to any of the characters and I found myself bored at points.

Last year of HiGh School. Lots of emotions, feelings. Friendship, family. A so much more. Brynn’s life will change for the worst when a sexual video goes viral after a Hallowing party. All her hard work to fit in High School is destroyed. But with the help of her mismatched friends she is set to find the truth. And in the process start a feminist and self conscious revolution between her peers and finally open her heart to love.

Main Characters:
-- Brynn Whitaker – a senior on scholarship at upscale Greenlough Academy, wants to study product design at Stanford, known around school as the Flirt Coach because she knows how to help other students talk to one another,
-- Tahlia Nasiff and Marlowe – Brynn’s best friends
-- Cadence Frazenberg – Charlie’s twin, comes from an extremely wealthy family, ostracized once it was discovered she is pregnant
-- Charlie Frazenberg – Cadence’s twin, an artist, stays out of the limelight
-- Lenora Kahue – Brynn’s former best friend, the school sweetheart, Duncan’s girlfriend
-- Faith Tobinson and Katie Delcavo – called “The Holy Crew,” started a club called Abstinence Angels, Katie went to “Jesus camp” with Faith one summer and then stopped being Brynn’s friend
-- Duncan Rowe – Lenora’s (cheating) boyfriend, school jock, runs with the popular crowd

Farrah Penn’s sophomore novel tackles head-on the impossible double standards evident in any high school. I love young adult novels for the same reason I love watching teen shows on television with my daughter. They’re in-your-face honest and deal with situations every parent should be aware of because I think a lot of us forget how emotionally charged high school can be.

Set in California’s luxurious Pacific Palisades, this first-person narrative from Brynn’s point of view starts with her coaching someone about text flirting. She’s on an academic scholarship and the daughter of a divorced mom and an absent father, so Brynn earns extra money by helping students talk to their crushes. Her mother thinks she’s tutoring, which I suppose she is…just not the way her mom thinks.

Brynn’s client sees something on his phone and becomes extremely uncomfortable and takes off. As it turns out, someone posted a video from a recent Halloween party where it looks like Brynn is hooking up with Lenora’s boyfriend Duncan. And to make matters worse, someone sends a photo of Brynn from the Halloween dance drinking from a flask, and the Dean rethinks whether to send a letter of recommendation for Brynn to Stanford.

The entire book revolves around Brynn trying to find out who could be out to get her since she is not the person in the video. She makes a lot of missteps trying to defend her honor and really just ends up making things worse. Over the course of the school year, Brynn, Cadence, Tahlia, Marlowe, and Charlie are determined to get to the truth, and while they attempt to get there, they expose the double standards so prevalent in high school.

While people look down on Brynn for allegedly hooking up with Duncan, no one makes a peep about Duncan. Lenora doesn’t even break up with him. Cadence is ostracized for being a pregnant teenager, but the boy who got her pregnant goes about his senior year unscathed. Even the Dean doubts Brynn’s credibility because she’s historically kind of toed right up to the line. He accuses her of making a fake online profile to make it look like someone else Airdropped an old risqué picture of her to everyone in school, and he does nothing when someone trashes her uniform sweater and the books in her locker. The story lines are painfully realistic, and I was eager to see how the final months played out.

Each chapter starts with three comments that we assume are Snapchat or Instagram or some other social media and show attitudes changing. I’m not entirely sure they worked since they didn’t always relate to the chapters, and it was pretty obvious from the way things played out that attitudes were changing. I think the book would be fine without them. That said, I also like that Brynn’s happily ever after isn’t all puppies and rainbows. It’s not perfect, and that’s life.

I would read Farrah Penn in the future, and I might go back and read her debut the next time I’m in the mood for a good young adult novel.