Senior Sunrise is the kickoff of Natalia and Ethan’s senior year in HS, but it also represents the first time seeing each other after being separated all summer after their long-time friendship was put to the test. Now awkward is the norm and guilt and secrecy plague the exchanges of the once very close friends.
When anxiety riddled Natalia starts making one mistake after another, Ethan will be the one by her side offering his never wavering unconditional help and they will be forced to face the truth.
I found this story beautiful and profound. Filled with teenage angst and drama, is a tale about finding yourself and facing the reality surrounding you no matter how painful. The characters are full of the hope for the future and reading about those hopes and the choices they make made me feel the melancholy of a time long gone.
The book is touching and one of the best young adult stories I’ve read in a while, totally moving and one can only hope others can feel it too.

3.5⭐️

every thought i had about this book literally flew out of my head the minute i started typing. idk what to tell you.

there’s a HEAVY miscommunication trope in this book and i was so frustrated with it and mentally SCREAMING at natalia and ethan to JUST FUCKING TALK. their problems would literally be solved if they just talked. but yk. teenagers.

i’m not really understanding how natalia didn’t think art was a career option..? like yes, she thought her dad would force her to give up art forever, but there’s no way she didn’t see other people on the internet pursuing art as a career and didn’t think “i want to do that”?

This book was such a gem and I and I am so happy to have discovered it.

“As soon as I read your letter, everything just made sense. You two have always had this...snow globe thing. Like, your own magical world. Everyone else can see it, but you’re so deep in it, you can’t. I’m just shaking the snow for you.”

This is friends-to-lovers done SO WELL. This book has easily launched itself into being one of my favorites! From the first page, I was swept up in the magic and romance. This book captured the feelings of being a senior and on the verge of starting the rest of your life. The confusion that comes with figuring things out and wanting to put your best foot forward but not really knowing how. Despite being on the shorter side, this book is not afraid to dive into some heavy feelings and emotions and is able to tackle them with grace and care.

I fell in love with the characters really quickly and got to know them well. It easily weaves between POVs without it being a drag to read either one. This book really benefits from having both of those POVs as you got to empathize with both Natalia and Ethan, and got to know what was going on in their head. There is a maturity and growth seen in them throughout the novel that almost sneaks up on you in between some of the teenage drama moments.

This is such a sweet and summery romance novel that you don’t want to miss. It is a story that has stuck with me and that I have come to cherish.

I Wish You Would comes out on May 21st! Thank you to Netgalley, Henry Holt and Co, and Macmillan for this review copy!

thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

⭐️=4.5 | 😘=3 | 🤬=4 | 14/15+

summary: friends to lovers; after an almost-hookup on prom night, three(?ish?) months later the MCs have to like collaborate at this high school senior event thing? and get their lives together and admit their feelings??? and be open and honest!!!!!

thoughts: the intense miscommunication slow burn was… so much. like it’s kind of ridiculous that these two couldn’t just talk to each other from the start, but honestly it mimicked how wild and dramatic it actually felt like to be a teenager!! by the end I wasn’t frustrated, I was just rooting for them, which is cute.

so basically: adorable and emotional with very lovable characters! friends to lovers is so underrated and honestly the only trope that actually makes sense in a contemporary romance. also i think the 24 hours timeline worked very well, which is quite impressive. cute! very soft!! made me Feel Things 🥹

This book swept. me. away. I devoured it over the course of one evening/morning and oh, my. My teenage heart would have simply gone feral for this read. I loved Natalia and related to her so deeply. This is a swoony, best friends to lovers romance with gorgeous prose. I absolutely loved it!

A highly anticipated read that delivered on all the angsty YA romance fronts. There was banter, there were mistakes and miscommunications and teens just trying their dang best to survive the chaotic throes of finding their voice. There was also a lot of added depth involving the dynamics of their friend groups and families. The narrative was inclusive and raw and REAL. Ethan and Natalia’s chemistry was *chef’s kiss* and the added stakes of the missing letters on a senior trip propelled the plot and conflict. Plus the writing and voice itself was powerful. Poignant and at times poetic, at times deadpan no-BS teen and humor. Both POV’s were immersive and distinct and blended so well to heighten both the characters’ internal landscapes and their intersecting moments. I can’t wait to reread this work a second time post release day and highlight all my favorite lines.

I Wish You Would is a YA contemporary romance that explores the complexities of romance developing from a lifelong friendship and the different conflicts that can arise from it.

I thought the writing was strong and very well done. The beginning chapters are gripping. I was hooked right away. The story itself was very compelling to read, and the quick pacing helped my eyes glide over the pages. The author also did well at showing instead of telling. Vivid descriptions of all the characters made them pop off the page, and each one felt unique. There is good diversity representation in this book, including different LBGTQ characters.

I loved the narrative. It's told through first-person dual POV, and I loved seeing the story through each of the main love interests's perspectives. Our FMC Natalia was a very relatable character. I connected with her on several things. Lastly, the author included one of my favorite things in a romance novel, an epilogue. I thought it fit the story perfectly.

There are a few things I wish the author did differently. Even though this is a contemporary novel, I wish the author would've spent a little more time describing the beach setting and the world in general. Most of the book was spent at the beach. Someone should've been sun burnt by the end.

Also while I did find the romance plot to be very compelling, the constant angst did get tiring near the end. For me, the 'will they, won't they' pull part of the plot dragged on too long. I also found the use of the F-word very excessive for a YA book.

Content: references to teen drinking, excessive strong language, kissing and one off screen sex scene

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This book was my favorite read of the year so far! Eva has an incredible talent for emotional depth and intriguing chemistry between her characters. I devoured this read and can't wait to read it again!

I wanted to like this book. I love the concept of writing down anonymous wishes or hopes and then letting them go into the universe. The main characters Natalie and Ethan in this book are very realistic, yet the amount of miscommunication that they have throughout the entire book, got to be so repetitive that I kept getting taken out of the story. I don’t think this type of teen romance is quite my cup of tea. While it is more realistic than a typical romance story, for two people who are best friends I would hope they could communicate better. Overall, this book is okay. It didn’t wow me or make me really excited for the overall romance.
Thank you so much to Macmillan Children Publishing Group, Henry Holt and Co., and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

I WISH YOU WOULD by Eva Des Lauriers

👫 Friends to Lovers
🏫 Senior Year Rites & Rituals
🧠 Mental Health Rep
🎵 TSwift Nods
💔 Teenage Angst

I am absolutely smitten with this book. The writing sparkled and I found myself rooting for two completely loveable, but seriously clueless teens who just could not get themselves together. (Gosh, I love YA.) It was sweet, swoony, and planted a smile firmly on my face. The high school nostalgia was strong with this one.

Was the miscommunication a lot? Oh, it was, and I did not care. Somehow the author managed to make everything seem perfectly plausible even though it would have driven me mad in an adult novel. I'm able to dismiss the trope easily with teens, but if you aren't, you may love this one a little less. (Maybe. I still think you should give it a try.)

Minimal cursing. Closed door, implied sexual situations. I'd be fine with 8th grade and up.

This is a debut novel which is truly so impressive. I now have this author on my auto-read list because I think she'll be doing big things. So. Damn. Good. Read it now.

3.5 stars!

I just finished reading my second arch ever! Not going to lie did I see a Taylor Swift title and request it immediately? YES!

If you are a fan of the summer turned pretty series. I highly recommend this book. It was the perfect young adult summertime read. This book deals with so many messy true teenage emotions which is exactly what a young adult book is suppose to deal with.

I absolutely loved this book. It was such a sweet, nostalgic, teenaged exploration of growing up and dealing with difficult things. As a person of color who often feels pressured to take a certain path in life, Natalia’s resolution with her parents felt unrealistic *to me* but I absolutely adored it anyways. It was hopeful and positive, which healed my soul a little. I’m also not often a fan of the miscommunication trope but watching Natalia and Ethan fight for each other and never let go made me fall in love with their story. It wasn’t spread out over a long time and it was fast paced and made me appreciate how dramatic and lovely young adult life is. I finished high school pretty recently but I often feel caught up in “adulthood” and this was the perfect reminder to stop and be a little childish and enjoy a sunrise with a loved one.

This checks all the boxes for me. ✅Stubborn AF friends-to-lovers. ✅Forced proximity in a cozy beach setting. ✅And angst. Lots and lots of delicious angst. Eva Des Lauriers’ debut YA novel I Wish You Would is as addicting as the Taylor Swift song it’s named after. It follows best friends Natalia and Ethan, who are so in love but oh-so terrified to rock the friendship boat. After a disastrous prom night and a summer of ghosting each other, they reunite for their Senior Sunrise school trip. Giving them 24 hours to fix things.

Other than the points I listed, what drew me in was the concept of Senior Sunrise. The students gather to camp out and fulfill the tradition of writing anonymous wishes along the lines of “If I were braver, I would…” Naturally, Natalia and Ethan write about each other, completely vulnerable in their letters. Immediately regretting this, Natalia attempts to retrieve her confession and is horrified when the wind scatters the letters all over the beach. As she and Ethan work together to find seven letters, the tension skyrockets. We get to read these letters as they’re found, and it’s interesting trying to piece together who they belong to. It’s also nerve-racking, because Natalia and Ethan’s letters could be out there too.

The short timeline gave me the sense that they had to get their feelings out at this trip or it would be too late. There’s a heavy amount of miscommunication, which would usually be annoying, but the emotion was so raw and well written that I was okay with it. Loving it, even. Natalia and Ethan felt like real people with real history — the kind of friends who get under each other’s skin, in every definition of the phrase. It made their arguments just as enjoyable (well, almost) as the tender moments. They’re a precious, perfectly shippable couple, and I already miss them. I finished this book deliriously happy, as I would after my own beach day.

This was just what I imagined it would be. An emotional journey and a story my teenage heart wished it had, but is finding healing still today. I loved the character arc of Natalia and Ethan, as they grew strong enough to fight for what they wanted.

A beautiful YA romance about two friends wanting to be more while dealing with family drama. Highly recommend for fans of 'To All the Boys I've Loved Before,' friends to lovers romances, and real life situations in books.

I think the author did a great job writing about the final year of high school, with all its blood, sweat, and tears. Literally.

The story felt like it could've happened just as it was written. Parts were dramatic but teens are dramatic so ...

I know not everyone likes reading YA books, but I'm not one of those people. I find them refreshing in their honesty.

I think this would make a fantastic movie and I really hope it becomes one!!!

I would recommend this book!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I read this because of the Taylor Swift song. But this was not for me. I am not a big fan of YA romance they tend to feel super immature for me. If I was younger I think I would have really enjoyed this one.

The premise of this book sounded so good to me but I picked it up hoping for something that I never really got. I'm a sucker for a friends to lover's story, but I didn't really feel the friendship between Ethan and Natalia. I personally hate the miscommunication trope and that is all that the relationship between Nat and Ethan boiled down too. Not for me.

I also felt like this book was trying to do way to many things in under 300 pages. So many conflicts you see in YA novels were all shoved inside this one. Inappropriate teacher relationships, ratial issues, sexuality differences, pervy dads, divorce, college fears, unrequited love between long time friends, mean girls in high school, etc. Similary, I'm getting very tired of so much LGBT characterization being added into every single YA book. It's overdone and in this instance I felt it added no value. I just want to read a good story! It was just way too much. And I don't think any of the topics were handled well or with particular care.

This was fun, but I'll go ahead and say that if you don't like miscommunication, this probably isn't the book for you. From the very first chapter--and everything that evolves from it--the book revolves around Natalia and Ethan having feelings for each other but keeping them hidden, and then eventually more secrets are kept and it all just kinda snowballs. I don't like miscommunication, and I think that's why this was just a "meh" read for me. It was quick, diverse, well-written, and took place over 24 hours so the pacing was good, but I just couldn't get over the constant "i love her but i cant tell her shes my best friend" "i love him but he deserves better" GAH just confess already!! Anyway, I liked it overall, just not that the entire book was them keeping secrets and getting their feelings hurt because they kept secrets.

I loved this book, it was such a cute read full of teen angst. It is perfect for those people that are stuck in limbo when trying to figure out the friend zone and getting out of it. I loved the slow burn and all the drama that came from little misunderstandings.