Running Mates by Emily Locker was such a delight to read. Truly. It’s heartwarming, funny, timely, and very entertaining. It does lean heavily on the young adult side—which isn’t a genre that I read often—but Locker also included strong elements of friendship, parenting, family, activism, and social issues which broadened the scope for a wider audience. I actually think that this novel will appeal to a lot of moms—especially ones with a teenager in the house. My daughter is just months away from becoming a teenager, so I’m all about dissecting the teenage brain! Ha!

Before picking up this novel, please be aware that politics is a major component to the story. I feel that a lot of politically-themed novels tend to be one-sided lately, which may deter readers from picking them up. What I appreciated most about Running Mates is that we receive representation from both sides. A liberal teenage girl gets involved with a conservative teenage boy. It causes some major rifts and ripples between their friends, family members, and even the couple themselves! I’m happy to report that Locker handled this tricky dynamic wonderfully.

READ THIS IF YOU ENJOY:
- Running and fitness
- Young love
- Politically-charged storylines
- Teenage behavior
- Witty banter
- Family drama
- LGBTQIA+ representation
- Opposites attract trope
- North Carolina setting

Overall, this debut was a major winner for me, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. 4/5 stars for Running Mates! It’s out on February 14th!

Advanced Book Review! Thank you @netgalley, @emilylocker and Bancroft Press for sending me this book for review. Opinions are my own.
Running Mates is kind of a Romeo and Juliet or West Side Story for the 21st century, about two teenagers on opposite sides of the political spectrum, living in a very politically charged American town.
Annabelle Morningstar is an impassioned, quirky high school activist raised by her news anchor and surgeon mothers, champions of progressive ideals. Annabelle lives on the East Side of town – the Democrat side. Gabe Delgado, is the quintessential all-American boy, molded by his conservative, Cuban senator father. Gabe’s family lives on the North Side – the Republican side.
Rarely are Eastsiders and Northsiders friends, so when Anna and Gabe end up training for track together and become friends, and then more than friends, it’s mind-blowing – mostly for Anna’s besties Del and Mason, and Gabe’s ex-girlfriend. Gabe’s friend, Sam, who also trains with them, doesn’t seem bothered. I think he’s the best secondary character in the book.
This book could have used a lot more editing and character development, but I’m also trying to remember that it’s a young adult book and that I don’t read a lot of YA. A lot of the characters and storylines in this book are completely one-dimensional. The town is hyper-focused on political issues, through extracurricular activities and weekly protests, and I question how many high school students are that invested in politics to the exclusion of everything else. However, I like that Anna and Gabe are figuring out that they are a bit more than that – which I think is the point. I also think the storyline with the strike at the bookstore was really confusing, and never fully explained or wrapped up well. I found the book pretty repetitive. Gabe and Anna kept getting along and then fighting over and over again, and it got a bit tiring, along with the same reactions from the secondary characters each time. Some of the story lines seem to appear out of nowhere and don't relate back to anything specific.
I like what I think this book is trying to do, which is to make more young adults aware of politics and explain you need to figure out for yourself what you stand for. And sometimes, when you have a proper discussion with someone on the opposite side or work together, you just never know what kind of positive influence you could have.
However, I think that it needed a lot more editing before publishing.
I would give this book 2.5 stars, but rounded down to 2 stars here.

sports romances are fun. This was different than I expected. I did truly enjoy it though. I love the main characters.

A take on the classic opposites attract akin to Romeo and Juliet, two high school students fight their attraction and their identities while falling for one another in Running Mates.

Here’s what worked for me:
•The romance is tender and sweet. I liked both Anna and Gabe, and especially Gabe’s best friend, Sam.
•The characters feel true to the emotional capacity of teens.
•It feels very much like YA romance.

Here’s what didn’t work for me:
•Anna has a learning disability; however, the actual issues associated with it and how it’s described don’t match up, and as a teacher I was frustrated that she doesn’t have an IEP. It sounds nitpicky, but authors have a responsibility to do the research.
•These kids are too precocious. The intensity with which the organize and support political causes doesn’t fit with their age. It might have been better suited in a setting with college kids.
•Frustrating that the kids who are to the left in the political spectrum are the least understanding, most judgmental, unkind characters while the kids to the right, in general, are more understanding and accepting. That was a wild choice.

High school junior Anna is growing up in a liberal household with her two successful moms, one a doctor, the other a talking head who makes the rounds on TV sharing her views.

Gabe, also a junior, approaches Anna to join his running club to help prep for college recruitment. Despite the fact that Gabe is the son of a right leaning, conservative senator, she agrees. She needs this because her learning disability is hurting her chances of getting into a good school.

Over time, the two realize their friendship is blooming into more, but can either overlook or even accept the vast differences in how they view the world? Can their friends be supportive? Can their parents accept them as a couple?

Unfortunately the e-ARC has no formatting and is quite difficult to read.

Thanks to Netgalley and Scribner for the ARC to read and review. Available February 14, 2024.

It was a fun read. From the start, the mood and point of the story are well established. I am inclined to say that “it was one of those romance novels usually available in the market,” but there is this charm that makes it stand out a little bit, for sure. The author did a tremendous job spicing up the book – with witty remarks, catchy dialogue and romantic excitement. She has a knack for shifting moods and subject in a timely manner, which is remarkable.

The author is able to dig deep into each character’s maturity, and I love that throughout the story, each personality is justified.

It is not just all love, flirting and relationship issues, things we usually expect in this genre; it also talks about present-day social issues that divert the plot to a lot of other topics and introduce plenty of characters. Despite this, I find the book so light to read. The vibe is all good. The positive aura transfers from the book to the reader. Versatile is a good word to describe the book. I am pretty sure even non-romance book readers will find the material entertaining.

The idea is interesting - taking two very different students politically and putting them together but the execution was lacking finesse and balance. Just like their political leanings, the characters alternated such extreme feelings (‘how can I be friends with a Republican?’ ‘I can’t speak to you for weeks to figure things out’) that I felt ping ponged back and forth through the chapters.

Everything about eleventh-grader Annabelle Morningstar says, “blue state.” She’s the daughter of a left-wing TV pundit, a member of the school’s “Liberal Liaisons,” and attends just about every human rights protest in her North Carolina town. To help her track times (which would then help her college chances) she joins an elite training group, but one of the participants is Gabe Delgado, son of the Republican senator who lives on the Northside (code for rich and conservative). She hates everything his father represents, but what happens when Gabe actually happens to be nice? And attentive? And thoughtful?

Yep, it’s set up to be a Trump-era Romeo and Juliet, all right. Locker includes all the requisites: Anna’s friends who can’t stand Gabe; her parents who sneer at the mention of the Senator’s name; and even a jealous, crazy ex. Anna tells the story from her perspective, and she comes off both vulnerable and tough. She shares just about everything, and you can’t help but adore her. I thought giving her a learning disability made her more likeable, and Locker treats it with care and attention.

Being a blue stater myself, I thought I’d dislike Gabe. But he’s gallant, respectful, and kind, especially to Anna. The other characters develop and fold into the plot a bit more gradually than the MCs, but by midstory we get a clearer picture of their roles. The ideological difference between this version of Capulets and Montagues pervades the story’s conflict, but doesn’t overwhelm things with too much explanation, a tactic I appreciated. The “rom” is more important than the politics, and it shows.

Frankly, I wasn’t sure about this whole thing until Gabe helps Anna with a homework assignment. They both won me over at that point. From there it got heartwarming and sweet. The little love story is charming, and the conflicts they encounter are surprisingly edgy and well-constructed. Anna is a rom-com fan (and thus, I assume, so is the author), and it shows: the crescendo of the last hundred pages or so is just as compelling, fun, and meaningful as the best of them. Think Sally Thorne or Katherine Center.

For a second there, I wasn’t sure of the target audience. Was this for teenagers? Middle-school? Twenty-somethings? Again, I got to midway thinking this, but once the romance starts cooking, it was pretty clear she wants high schoolers to read it. (Right?)

And yeah: I’m a sucker for a book about running. Sure, I was denied visions of track meets and cross-country races, but there was enough to keep me interested. And the cute love story and likeable, realistic characters got me to stick around.

Locker surges into the lead pack of the rom-com genre with this endearing teenage love tale.

3 ⭐️

Overall a cute and quick read. I think it’s a book that a lot of YA will find to be very relatable. There was a lot of good dialogue between the characters who were trying to figure out how to navigate some tough conversations with people they love.

The writing needs a little more work. There were a lot of times where things didn’t flow nicely from one chapter to the next. While I think the book has the potential to be better with more editing, I still enjoyed it as is.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC.

Running mates was such a fun book! First off, I love that Annabelle is a secret romance reader. I mean, aren’t we all? Edgar town sounds like such a charming city and I loved all of the setting description. It really makes you feel like you’re part of the story. The meet cute between Annabelle and Gabe in front of the book store is HILARIOUS! A very interesting and thought provoking story about love and politics and how people can come together even though they were raised totally different. I loved it!

984 prompts
I recently had the pleasure of reading Emily Locker's Running Mates, and I have to say, it was an absolute delight. Set in the politically-charged town of Edgartown, North Carolina, the story centers around two high school students from opposite sides of the political spectrum. Annabelle Morningstar is a progressive activist raised by two mothers who champion liberal ideals, while Gabe Delgado is the son of a conservative Cuban senator.

Despite their differences, Annabelle and Gabe find themselves thrown together when employees at their favorite bookstore decide to unionize. As they work together to support the union, they soon discover a connection that goes beyond politics. And as they train together for cross-country competitions, their feelings for each other grow even stronger.

What I loved about this book was how it tackled the complex issues of political polarization and cultural differences with grace and empathy. The characters were nuanced and well-developed, and the romance between Annabelle and Gabe felt authentic and heartfelt. Running Mates is a timely and important read that I would highly recommend to anyone looking for a beautifully written love story that also explores important social issues.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC and the opportunity to review this title.

What I enjoyed: the cover, the pacing, the opposites attract dynamic, the dialogue between the characters and the tough conversations they tackled while remaining true to themselves

What was a miss: it was predictable and a bit cheesy, and the narration wasn't my favorite.

I can see a lot of people really enjoying this title.

Running mates tells the story of high schoolers Annabelle, a more liberal activist, and Gabe, the conservative, and how their relationship develops despite their philosophical differences. Annabelle and Gabe also live on different sides of town, which mirror their life perspectives.

I appreciated how the author tackled some deeper questions like recognizing that there may be more than one way to look at a situation, and that not everything is black and white. She also addresses the challenges that can occur when your opinions start to differ from those of your friends, and I liked how she had the main character navigate those situations. The author did some of this by integrating topics into the book including conversations around LBGTQ families and unionization within small businesses.

The plot at times is cheesy and heavy handed related to some of the issues, but overall I enjoyed being part of Annabelle and Gabe's developing relationship and following along with how their relationship is impacted by their family and friends.

This novel seemed like a good fit on paper, but unfortunately, I DNFed it after the first few chapters. While I didn't find anything inherently wrong with it (except for some typos and edits that are easy to fix), the story just didn't get to me. It could be the right story for other people though.

Running Mates was a fun, lighthearted coming of age story with a twist: a Liberal LGBTQ+ Journalist's teen daughter falls for Republican Latinx Senator's teen son.

I definitely appreciate the commentary on considering the nuances in every situation, as that is something I believe everyone can benefit from; however, I felt the characters' opinions were quite shallow, on all sides. I can understand how that is a major part of the commentary regarding how our parents' and peers' views can affect our own opinions and beliefs, as well as the significance of finding your own political stances and doing your own research, etc.

With that said, this book missed the mark for me. It did one of my least favorite things that romances tend to do: the MMC/love interest is wonderful, can do no wrong, perfect book boyfriend/girlfriend ever, yet the FMC/protagonist is annoying, overly unlikeable, stepped all over like a doormat, and beyond infuriating. Additionally, I found the plot to be flimsy and the writing to be more 'tell' than 'show' (which is a personal preference, but I definitely do not love).

Listen- I really wanted to like this book, but it wasn't it for me. The main characters were quite infuriating, especially the FMC and her friends (which were liberals, and I found that to be a little interesting how the right winged characters were typically showcased as hot, athletic, cool, popular, chill people who only did good deeds, while the left winged characters were cliquey, stereotypical, overly sensitive, judgemental, and actively non-inclusive people? that didn't sit right with me, personally)

I can appreciate the commentary on our current political state and the continuing polarization of opinions, as well as the reminder to find the nuance in every situation. However, I think the commentary and reminder are not enough to make up for the poor characterizations, lack of plot and overall irritation I found while reading this book.

A huge thank you to Netgalley, Bancroft Press and author Emily Locker for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a cute YA rom-com with a timely twist. I could definitely relate to the whole loving and learning to live with people whose political stances don't line up with mine thing. I was glad to see that in the platonic/familial relationships as well as the romantic one.

This is definitely a character/relationship-driven story. The plot's pretty thin, but that's okay since I liked the main characters for the most part. There were times their actions annoyed me, but that's pretty typical for this genre/age. It was good to see the characters grow and learn without forgetting who they are.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

Republican senator’s son and democrat journalist daughter meet through extra track practices and start to fall in love.

I’ll admit when I first saw the title I assumed this was going to be a shifter romance or omegaverse related, neither of which are really my cup of tea. So, I was confused when starting this book only to realize the title was a play on political running mates. The politics in this book are… iffy at best. The fmc is liberal but seems to have never interacted with anyone with more moderate views and constantly can’t wrap her head around the fact that people’s beliefs straddle party lines. She is regularly surprised when the mmc does anything deemed as understanding of women, though he has a sister that is relatively close to his age. I think the story was supposed to be Romeo and Juliet but political parties. I think it may have worked better if the characters were older, not in high school when political ideologies are only just beginning to be formed.

The author’s writing style is more “telling” than “showing”. I couldn’t sink into this book and picture the scenes. I’m not sure I could describe the main characters other than the fmc has curly hair (how curly or color, no clue) and the mmc smells like pines. I’m not convinced any of the fights the main characters were in would actually make me as irrationally angry as they made the characters.

The last thing I have to say: if anyone, and I mean anyone, that you are in a relationship (romantic or friendship) with ignores you or ghosts you for 2 weeks regardless if there was a fight or not, you need to reevaluate if you want that person in your life. Communication is key, people.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is a sweet, fun YA rom-com following the classic plot line of enemies to high school relationship. Set in a politicised small town where everyone is clearly northside (Republican) or eastside (Democrat). Centring around Annabel and Gabe and their respective friendship groups, I really enjoyed the characters being pulled from different political perspectives and seeing the two main characters influence each others perspectives was a delight.

Unfortunately the ARC I received was full of typesetting errors and could also do with a tighter edit in a few places.

Rounded up from 3.5 in the hope those edits get done!

Thanks to Netgalley and Bancroft Press for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to hoenstly review this book. All opinions are my own and everyones tastes differ.

Honestly I wanted to like this book, I typically love cheesy rom-com works with Romeo and Juliet vibes or shared interests but unfortunately this one just didn't hit the mark for me. I found Anna (FMC) quite annoying with no self-awareness. There was multiple plot points running at the same time which all just felt a little under-developed for an actual core storyline. As a result of this the ending was rushed and some of the interactions were just cringe, unfortunately. Gabe (MMC) is one of the positives (usually), he has a bit more awareness and wasn't quite so grating. I suppose overall, I also just expected a bit more running in this book!

I enjoyed the idea of two people from opposite sides of the aisle falling in love and learning to live open to each others opinions despite their differences. However, this particular book is not anywhere near ready for publishing. There are dozens of typos, for one. Even more concerning is that the writing feels immature and needs more development: the whole idea of Northside vs Eastside is trite and pretentious considering both sides are clearly comprised of wealthy and powerful families. The descriptions of characters and settings are overwritten, and there are problems with the story structure, In several instances, the action doesn’t flow smoothly from chapter to chapter: The stakes between Anna and her friends don’t feel realistic, and the timing is off in the Anna/Mason storyline. I can’t recommend this book to anyone in good conscience. It needs a couple more rounds of edits before I would be willing to do so.

4.4 rounded down to 4/5.

"Running Mates" by Emily Locker is a delightful rom-com set in the politically charged town of Edgartown, North Carolina. The story introduces Annabelle Morningstar, an impassioned high school activist from a progressive background, and Gabe Delgado, the quintessential all-American boy raised in a conservative, Cuban senator's household. As their worlds collide unexpectedly, the novel explores the possibilities of love in the midst of political discord.

The book masterfully combines elements of romance and comedy, making it a perfect read for fans of Red, White, and Royal Blue. The enemies-to-lovers trope is well-executed, providing an engaging and entertaining narrative. The story takes a deeper dive into the complexities of identity and belief systems, especially when shaped by the shadows of political parentage.

One of the novel's strengths is its well-thought-out plot, which keeps readers engaged and entertained. The unionization of a local bookstore serves as a backdrop for Annabelle and Gabe's unexpected interactions, adding depth to their developing relationship. The humor is both witty and heartwarming, contributing to the overall charm of the book.

"Running Mates" successfully navigates the challenges of teenage romance amidst the backdrop of political polarization. The characters are well-developed, and their journey of self-discovery is relatable and authentic. The novel strikes a balance between humor and heartfelt moments, creating a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience.

In conclusion, "Running Mates" is a well-crafted rom-com that captures the essence of young love in the face of political differences. Emily Locker's storytelling prowess shines through, making this book a compelling and entertaining addition to the genre. Readers will find themselves rooting for Annabelle and Gabe as they navigate the complexities of their budding relationship in the midst of a politically divided town.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.