3.5? It was cute, but it never really hooked me in. If this were just a story about friendship and finding yourself at summer camp, it would've held up a lot more. But as a frenemies-to-lovers YA romance? It kinda let down. The initial "rivalry" between them is really one sided and in Juliette's head, and honestly Priya was so nice right off the bat, it was hard to root for the MC on that front. This story could've really benefitted from a dual-POV to see what both girls were going through.

I absolutely loved this book. I loved the dynamic between the two main characters and I couldn't put the book down. Super cute, definitely recommend

Wish You Weren't Here is a fun YA romcom about two girls who have known each other since elementary school. They share a school and friend group and tend to gravitate toward one another, but they never really get to know each other and seem to dislike the other's company.
Forced proximity sets these two opposites up to see their relationship in a new light. It is Juliette's last year at summer camp, and unexpectedly, Priya is in her beloved space. Amid the camp hijinks, they find a place where they can freely be themselves. 
It is told successfully from Juliette's first-person POV as she discovers some hard truths about herself. The writing is well done, and there are a lot of laughs in the dialogue and inner monologues. The pacing is steady and makes for a quick read.
The tension is sweet, and there is no spice. It is just a really cute story with a HEA and tidy epilogue. I recommend!

do you ever have those moments where you have to sit and process everything that’s just happened in a book because you absolutely devoured it. that’s exactly what happened with wish you weren’t here. amazing, i read this book in under two days, a feat which i almost never do just to having no time in the world anymore. but this lovely little book broke through that barrier. i couldn’t tell you the last time i read a book so fast. truly.

so of course it took me a few days to gather all my thoughts on everything. figure out how much i loved this book. figure out my feelings on juliette and priya’s relationship. on juliette’s camp experience, which this was truly one big beautiful ode to….

let’s start with juliette’s camp experience because i can relate to her thoughts fairly well. while i never went to camp the way she did, where it was outdoorsy, and you go there every summer for every year (i was in summer sports so that wasn’t really an option!) but i did do a few specialized camps in high school, for the sciences, which i did then work at when i was in college. so i recognize juliette’s pure passion and joy during her experiences. how something she held so dearly can so quickly turn sour by the little things (a counselor who has a vendetta against you, an injury, the girl you definitely don’t like showing up). i think her absolute love made her often justifiably protective when it came to everything about camp. and maybe something that hindered her a bit since she could get so hung up on her ideal experience.

and i think that would be the only way she would ever be “too much” because although others were supposedly telling her this left and right off page, it’s not something that we ever really saw. i mean, in the opening scene she talks about NOT being able to advocate for herself as a child, even if in teenage years that particular scenario (her name) is something that she did get better about. but how much of that was internalizing what she perceived as true rather than her actual personality. because if she would’ve been, i think she might have caused a lot more outwardly responses to gallahad’s poor counselor decisions much earlier than she did (and did she even really? or was it just priya and her other firend’s that exposed those wrong-doings). i do think, this thought about herself really did lesson many of the enjoyment and love i have for juliette. it made it difficult to be on her side when she’d think one thing and do something completely opposite. and that trait was what pulled her through a lot of her actions, even with priya.

so let’s get into their relationship. i’m sure i’m going to have similar thoughts to others when i say, i don’t understand what juliette’s issue was with priya in the beginning lol. like they’re very clearly like classmate acquaintances where one (juliette) has a bit of a jealousy problem and the other (priya) wants to become closer but doesn’t really know how to best approach the situation. i honestly think i would’ve enjoyed it so much if we dropped this non-issue of juliette kinda sorta disliking priya but for no valid reasons other than she’s popular(?). i think it would’ve been my perfect story if juliette just truly was like, there’s this girl. she’s super popular and sort of an influencer. and we kinda sorta run in the same circles but there’s never been a strong connection. and i’m sure that it was written the way it was because it conveys juliette’s pent up feelings FOR her, romantically, but i would’ve found it all that more believable had this just been the chance for them to connect. even if they run in similar circles and act polite at birthdays. having that weird dynamic removed would have made this a top tier story for me.

listen, this isn’t me saying that i didn’t love this story because i absolutely did. i just think that these were two aspects that is why i wouldn’t hold this higher than a four star rating personally. because i truly loved all the camp shenanigans. the activities. the way juliette was stubborn enough to try and continue to make the most of her summer even when things tried to stop her. and i LOVED the romance. they were so cute when they started to flirt with each other, the way juliette just never got it(TM). we were able to see their quirky sides, in this enclosed setting. how they were able to relate to similar life experiences, like their mixed-heritage, their similar life goals, etc. and it was truly just such a fun time. but if these small changes were made, it would have easily been a five star for me!

but overall, let it be known that i’m beyond excited to see what baldwin writes next. i know in my heart that she can become a favorite author of mine down the road.

This book was so dang cute 😫

The ending had me bawling my eyes out. The nostalgia is big in this one.

Juliette’s one sided hatred of Priya takes up most of the story. I didn’t think I’d connect with such young characters but I read this book like a proud I’m mother watching my kids grow and develop into good humans.

Although I never went to summer camp, I could feel the excitement and the fun that the author wrote into the scenes. It made me think of The Parent Trap camp 😆

Overall really enjoyed this book! I can’t wait to see what else Erin Baldwin writes.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin for the advanced copy!

As someone who grew up with Summer camp basically being my second home, I'm drawn to Summer camp stories. Camp is a perfect place to figure out who you are and figure out where you fit in. Wish You Weren't Here is great at relaying that. Priya and Juliette also have the whole rivals-to-lovers thing going on. And in a setting like camp, it's a fun and relatable journey to read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Viking Books for Young Readers for providing me with a review copy.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Viking Books for access to an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Juliette Barrera-Wright lives her life surrounded by others who come above her in the pecking order. A home, her slew of siblings soak up all the attention thanks to their special skills and hobbies, and at school, her mortal frenemy Priya Pendley rules the roost. They've known each other most of their lives, they go to all of the same parties and even have all of the same friends, but aside from a tradition of swapping the same crappy gift back and forth each year, they do their best to stay out of each others' way. The only chance Juliette gets to be herself and feel like the person she is is okay is during Summer break at Fogridge Summer Camp. So going into her last year as a camper, she has the best summer ever planned. Until she finds out that her new roommate in her bunk is none other than first-time Fogridge attendee Priya Pendley, who of course proceeds to charm everyone she meets at camp, including Juliette's two best friends. With her least favorite person forcibly glued to her side for the Summer, how is she supposed to make the most of her last year of camp?

The Fogridge gang get up to all sorts of crazy, fun hijinks as the Summer progresses, and despite what she deems bad luck hitting her hard at every turn, Juliette manages to make the best of it and to not only strengthen her bonds with some of her closest friends but also to form new ones--including with the one person she never expected to like as much as she turns out to--and as she learns to be more accepting of Priya, Juliette also learns to accept and love more of herself. It's a beautiful, fun, wild, color-splashed roller coaster ride from start to finish, and I loved every second of it. The characters were all so fun and silly and refreshing, the setting was beautifully fleshed out and so easy and fun to picture, the dialogue--especially the banter between our two FMCs--was *hilarious', the conflicts felt real and heavy and even heartbreaking and had me looking back on my own struggles from when I was younger more than once...but possibly my favorite part of this book was the love you can tell the author has for the summer camp lifestyle coming off the page. It only made me fall more in love with Fodridge and all the campers, counselors, and specialists that made it what it was.

Honestly, I'd kill for a series of books based out of Fogridge just for the chance to see this beautiful camp Erin Baldwin created again. Wish You Weren't here is an impeccable debut by an author I desperately look forward to reading more from in the future, and I highly, *highly* recommend you check it out.

I recently read “Wish You Weren’t Here” by Erin Baldwin, and it’s a delightful young adult romance about Juliette, who finds her summer plans upended when her rival, Priya, becomes her cabinmate at Fogridge Sleepaway Camp. The book explores their transition from rivalry to romance against the nostalgic and vibrant backdrop of summer camp. Baldwin’s character development and the engaging “hate-to-love” dynamic make the story heartfelt and humorous, touching on themes of self-discovery and personal growth. It’s a perfect read for anyone who enjoys a blend of humour, romance, and summer magic.

A cute fun read!

In Wish You Weren’t Here, we are following Juliette who is described by many as intense and Priya who is described by many as the It Girl. Juliette goes to a camp every summer and this year she was awarded the Northstar and has a roommate who happens to be Priya.. Juliet and Priya are what people would call Frenemies. They don’t hate each other and Priya invites Juliet to her birthday party every year and they still exchange a gift card between the two of them every year however they are not actually friends. They’re just nice to each other.. so when is now Juliet‘s roommate in this camp that is Juliet Haven, where she is kind of the it girl, Juliet kind of goes through an identity crisis, but also gets to know Priya and her friend group gets to know Priya, and of course, one thing leads to another and a crush ensues.

Book was very cute. It was a quick read. It was fun..

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this story.
SPOILERS TO FOLLOW

I could hardcore tell that this was a "I never hated you. I was kind of jealous of you" shtick by the popular girl and I SO CALLED IT. It was docked a star for that because I seriously can't think of any popular person I know who would ever say this to someone. In my experience most popular people were generally privileged, annoying, assholes. Priya wasn't like two of those things (she was privileged in a sense because she had a lot of money), but she also seemed like a genuine person. It was hard to like her at first though especially when it seemed like Juliette barely tolerated her but as Juliette warmed up to her, so did I.

I was genuinely very pissed at Juliette for not going to Pat about what Galahad was doing. She talked CONSTANTLY about how much she adored camp and how loving all of the counselors and the owners were (Pat) and yet it never occurred to her to actually talk to Pat about the shitty things her councilor was doing! Then the AUDACITY she had to get mad at Priya for telling Pat what was happening the whole summer???? Made literally zero sense. Based off of Juliette's personality, I would've thought she'd tell Pat DAY ONE of what Galahad was doing and how WRONG it was. It didn't sound like he was the kind of guy who wouldn't believe his campers over the adults so I can't fathom why she didn't just tell him what Galahad was doing!

Regardless, I did really enjoy this novel. Lucy and Gia were some really great side characters. They were so funny and I loved every scene they were in together!

While I do still read some YA, I think this one was a bit too young for me. In addition, the galley was unable to be sent to my kindle so I had to wait until it was available at my library to read and review.

While the chemistry between Juliette and Priya was entertaining, I found most of the plot to be surface level. And that’s coming from someone who reads a good chunk of enemies-to-lovers and summer romances! All in all, I was just left wanting more.

However, I can see any teen loving this sapphic romance, especially if they enjoy banter, nature, and a little bit of angst!

An enjoyable shenanigan-filled sapphic book. Love the enemies to lovers trope and the characters in this book

📚Book Review 📚

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wish You Weren’t Here by Erin Baldwin

This book surpassed my expectations!! It was a YA which I’ve kind of gotten away from but I absolutely loved this book! Loved the enemies to friends to lovers! Loved both the main characters very well developed! The theme of finding your true self throughout the book was very well done!!

I cannot wait to read more from this author!

This author knows how to write!
I read this book while I was out of ADHD medication and still managed to follow the story, which sounds strange but is a huge compliment to Baldwin.

What I liked about this book is that the story isn't only based on romance. Furthermore, as someone who dislikes insta love tropes, I enjoy that the characters develop their feelings slowly. As readers, we can feel the tension between them growing and only really giving into it close to the end of the book. When it finally happens, it feels realistic and statisfying.

When I was the protagonist's age, such a thing as queer romance was not really a thing, but I know that teenage me would have enjoyed the hell out of this book.
I am looking forward to reading more from this author.

I was not able to access the file provided. I did read an early copy of the book but it was an ALC from PRH Audio. I liked the book and thought it was a cute summer romance!

Obsessed. I’m obsessed. Oh, did I mention? I’m obsessed. This was the most perfect, joyful beginning of summer read I could’ve asked for. I am a huge sucker for anything summer camp-related, and this book absolutely lived up to my high expectations. On top of all that, it’s a sapphic frenemies to lovers? AND there are multiple Survivor references? Yeah, there was no way for me to not fall in love with this book.

The sapphic summer camp book was always going to capture my heart, but WOW, it did not have to go this hard. Juliette and Priya’s enemies-who-tolerate-each-other dynamic was well established from the get go, so it was really no surprise when the former’s safe space of Fogridge summer camp was infiltrated by the latter—and oh my god, they were roommates. Their transition from foes to friends to something more was utterly seamless, and I was just screaming at them to kiss about it throughout. Paired with an unforgettable supporting cast just as voicey as our narrator, a rich setting that felt almost like a character itself, and the chaotic magic of theatre kids, it was such a fun ride from start to finish. This book is a serious masterclass in wholesome enemies to lovers romance.

Priya Pendley has everything--gorgeous couture clothes, a huge social media following and all the perks and celebrity friends that come with it, the sweetest parents, a yearly birthday bash called Priyatopia that's the envy of everyone not invited, and more--so Juliette Barerra-Wright cannot understand why Priya has to take her beloved summer camp Fogridge from her too when she finds Priya, of all people, staying in her cabin.

But nothing is going to stop pugnacious, intense Juliette from enjoying her senior year at Fogridge: not the counselor that's bullying her, not thoughts of her life at home with six other siblings, and certainly not frenemy Priya. That is, until she sprains her ankle. Juliette sees the rest of her perfect summer slip through her fingers as she has to switch her circus class for theater, wilderness exploration for painting.

Being forced to slow down and spend time with Priya behind the scenes in theater class makes Juliette realize maybe there's more to Priya than she realized. And maybe she even likes her?!

Wish You Weren't Here is a sweet YA enemies-to-lovers romance set a summer camp. While I don't have personal experience with camp myself, I imagine the setting would be nostalgic and extra fun for readers who do. I appreciated the depth of Juliette and Priya's characters, and their slow-burn relationship was sweet to watch blossom. Fans of Jennifer Dugan will definitely enjoy this book.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I started this book as a test for my classroom. I really liked it because it gave me goosebumps and I could feel the characters.

I wouldn’t recommend it in my general classroom, but I will recommend it to my queer students.

Thank you to Penguin Young Readers and Erin Baldwin for this sapphic summer camp read. My dream as a kid was to get to go to summer camp and I never got too. I had to live vicariously through my friends that got to go. So when I saw this book I was like yes please. And what a summer camp this would have been!
The story was medium paced I’d say but it was really cute and I liked following the “coming out story”. I really enjoyed seeing the camp activities as well since I never got to experience them myself. The frienemies to lovers was a nice touch as well.
I really liked both of our characters. Juliette was a great character to follow as she found herself over the course of this novel. She also found her place with friends and family. Pryia grew as well. She got the girl she had been besting over for almost her whole life and it was rough getting there lol. Both girls deserve each other for sure and I’m glad we got the sneak peek of how they are doing.
I would recommend this read. Again it was a great sapphic read that others would enjoy.

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin for my copy.