Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC for my honest review.

I think this was a case of right book, wrong time for me.

I was excited for this book but I was just kind of bored throughout, which is so unfortunate because I love the plot idea.

I will give this a try again though later on!

I didn't love this one. I thought Id like the competition between the 2 main characters, but I didn't enjoy the way they went about it.

If you’re looking for a story about two high schoolers who are trying to navigate making friends, dating, and some challenging relationships with their parents (keeping this a little vague so as not to spoil anything), you might enjoy this book! It’s not a predictable sort of romance book - relationships of so many different forms (both good and not so good) are woven into this story.

I would categorize this as a Young Adult book. If you like the found family trope, you might really enjoy this book! As the story unfolds, you learn so much more about each character’s childhood, which I found really endearing.

Caleb, one of the MCs, is a lanky, awkward, golden retriever just trying to make it through high school. Initially, I felt like he could be the dorky but well-meaning male lead of a high school drama from the 90’s or early 2000’s - slightly cringy at times but kind and considerate! If you’re looking for a change from morally grey MMCs, Caleb may be just that! However, as the story went on, I realized that there’s much more to Caleb than I initially realized (in the best way! He’s definitely a kind little golden retriever though).

The story is told partly from Emma’s perspective and partly from Caleb’s, with some flashback scenes sprinkled in. The other characters are great too!! I focused on these two MCs in this review, but they aren’t the only ones you’ll meet in this book. Emma was my favorite character, and gave me fantasy book heroine vibes. Multiple times in this book I just wanted to give her a hug! Being young can be hard, and watching her story unfold kept me reading and rooting for her.

There’s something very 90s nostalgic about the way the characters communicate, particularly early in the book - messages ending with “lol”, and words I can’t recall hearing in the last decade. I found this really fun and felt like it added to the story.

I had no idea where this book was going to go for a while, which I think is so fun!! The characters have complex backstories, family dynamics, and histories with each other. The plot and how the story developed were so different from other books I’ve read. I loved the queer characters, the plot twists, and I think my favorite parts were the flashbacks to key moments in the past. These were interwoven and added something so special to the book.

P. S. This book had one of my absolute favorite epilogues. It fit perfectly and felt like A wonderfully cozy ending.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an electronic ARC of this book for my honest review.

I loved the cast of characters in this book! I fell hard for both the main characters Caleb and Emma! This was my first young adult LGBTQ+ story. Growing up in a conservative Christian home these types of characters were not ones I was familiar with or allowed to feel comfortable to know. As adult that feels like she missed out on getting to know people because of how she was raised I felt like with this story I got to go back and meet people that would have benefited my life. Aside from my personal experience I loved this story because Emma was a tough badass that didn’t take any crap and was fast to defend her friends. And Caleb was that kind steady presence that every badass needs in their life. They were best friends that one day just stopped being friends and speaking to each other to both liking the new girl and competing for her attention and that ensues.

2.5 stars
I went into this book with high expectations. I knew that the throuple option likely wasn’t going to fly, given the YA/publication imprint. I was worried when it was just Emma and Caleb’s POVs because maybe that meant that Emma wasn’t going to get the girl. I continued on with growing sadness as I realized that this was going to be yet another book where the bisexual female character was going to end up with the guy. I’m really sick and tired of this being as far as most books go to be inclusive. Gay guys get the guy but bisexual women almost always get the guy. Boo!! It’s actually almost worse than just reading a M/F romance where at least the orientation is established, without the unpleasant surprise of yet another book that basically writes a straight romance under the guise that something else had even a remote chance of happening. I was going to say that it was better than nothing but, at this point, I’m not so sure anymore.

I read this in one sitting—it's THAT good. I loved the relationship between Emma and Caleb; friends to lovers (especially if they're estranged) is one of my favourite tropes. A few negatives that come to mind: I did think the ending was a bit rushed—conflicts between the MCs & parental figures are resolved a little too abruptly and unnaturally—and I think there are some lines that feel younger than the reader's age. As well, there are some scenes that felt like they were catering to "new" readers of queer fiction—since some lines didn't feel like what a queer character would say in that context (although I only know of myself and my circle & what I've seen on the internet!). However, the voice, romance, comedy, and emotion are SO well done. I inhaled this story, it had me hooked from the very first page!

Exes and Foes was a great young adult read! The storylines were great with some complicated family relationships and friendships. The story of how your early friendships can drift apart and find their way back to each other..

Normally we see the MMC being the dominant and strong one and the FMC being reserved and quiet but in this book, Caleb is quietly strong and Emma is outwardly strong but with some soft spots. They truly bring out the best in each other. The competition for Juliet rekindled their friendship and Juliet was a breath of fresh air and a great coming of age character that was finding herself and expressing herself in a new school.

I love Caleb’s mom she’s such a strong and self-confident character and such a good mom to Caleb and to Emma. It shows that our maternal guardians don’t always have to be our birth family and who is rather there for you and loves you wholeheartedly!

I enjoyed this book it was great for a coming of age and about finding yourself and confidence in yourself and sometimes your best friends see things differently than you do and can stand by you through the hard times.

This story was so cute. I loved the flashbacks that is shows of the two main characters starting from when they are kids..I love how accepting the kids in the story are if each other's sexuality. I couldn't put this story down. I love that even though Emma broke Caleb's heart he still is there for her and she does the same. Fantastic

Exes & Foes didn't quite live up to my expectations. It's always a bummer when a book you've been excited for isn't what you hoped it'd be but Exes & Foes did pick up by the end and I really enjoyed the last part of it.

I really enjoyed this. I also learned a lot!! I am a bit older and so many gender and sexual terms are a bit new for me. This story actually help me define some of those and I really enjoyed the characters!! Their struggles felt genuine.

A perfect book! Amanda never disappoints. I laughed and cried and felt all the emotions for the characters the entire book. A superb sophomore novel for Amanda.

I found this to be a really fun, and refreshing read. The characters were very likable, and they were written quite well in my opinion. I thought the story flowed well, made sense, and did a good job of not rushing things too much. The story also managed to delve into serious topics with its characters as well, and it never felt as if the story was clashing with itself. I would definitely read more from this author, and I wouldn’t complain about a sequel if the author felt there was more story to tell with these characters.

Now this isn’t to say that everything is perfect, I felt that maybe there were perhaps too many flashback chapters. Towards the end of the book, I felt like I just wanted to stay in the present timeline rather than continually going back. However, this is just a minor gripe. I also feel like Juliet’s sexual & gender identities could have been explored more, but again that is still just a minor gripe from me. Some would perhaps even accuse me of nitpicking.

I really enjoyed this story, and would recommend it to everyone. 4.5/5 stars & leaning toward 5.

There are many stories within this book. A parent - child relationship. A sister's relationship. Friendships. And romantic friendships. All of these were great stories on their own and when you wove them together they made a complex intriguing read.
The character development was so well done. You really felt like you knew them and could almost guess how they would react. I loved how the author didn't make any simplistic solutions or unrealistic expectations. It made you really think about how teens could be in these situations.
It's worth your time to read.
Enjoy!

I enjoyed this book! The competition was okay, but I found myself preferring the portions of the book and conversations that didn’t revolve around it. These characters definitely acted like they were in high school, which they are, so I didn’t have any issues with some of the more immature responses and choices. I thought they both did grow and mature throughout the book, which I really liked.

I really loved both MCs best friends, maybe even a little more than the MCs! I like that they were not afraid to call their friends out and thought they were very funny.

a satisfactory ya book that explores multiple different topics with grace.

this book follows emma and caleb, two ex-best friends who compete for the affection of the new girl at school, juliet, but slowly falling for each other as the competition continues. this premise definitely is light-hearted and i could see this being a rom-com, but it also delved into some deeper subjects as well, such as the complex relationships around family.

i thought the characters were the strongest part of the book; they're all so different and real, like these could be real people! i really liked emma; she was fearless, confident, and a good friend, even though she's going through so much by herself. caleb was a good character as well; he's not as loud and out there, but i loved his quiet style of caring and how he was always there for emma.

the pacing started slow, i'm not going to lie, but progressed more smoothly as the book went on. the writing was okay; i wasn't like moved or anything but i thought it was decent!

3.5 stars rounded up! it was a light romcom with good chemistry and enjoyable characters!

thanks to netgalley and penguin group for the arc

I really wanted to like this book. It looked like it would be a fun rivals-to-lovers, but I just couldn’t get into it. DNFed a quarter of the way through.

If you need a light hearted rom com this is the perfect book for you.

Full disclosure, I am an adult. Like an old-lady adult. Like almost 50. And I do love YA. But I don’t know if it is my age but some things in this book are either red flags or just don’t make sense to me. And maybe what seems cool to influential YA readers might not be so cool in real life. But hey who am I to judge?! I grew up on Sweet Valley High.

Anyway this book is very current. It always throws me off when I read about someone who prefers them pronouns because I always have to go back and try to find out who they are. Oh wait, them is one person. So confusing!

All in all it was a good diversion.


Thank you to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book.

Emma and Caleb used to be best friends until Emma suddenly cuts off all communication with him in eighth grade. Now seniors in high school, they discover they both have a crush on the new girl, Juliet, so they decide to compete for her. Whoever Juliet kisses first gets to date her. Unfortunately, Juliet seems to only want to hang out with them as a group of three. Though they start as icy toward each other, Emma and Caleb soon fall into a familiar rhythm as they restore their friendship and previous romantic feelings return (or possibly never left). Only... they both have feelings for Juliet, right???

I loved both Emma and Caleb as individual main characters. Emma is fierce, protective of those she loves, and refuses to take shit from anyone, even those in positions of authority. Even though she can see the inherent worth in others, she struggles to see her own self-worth, constantly being torn down and belittled by her mother. She's combative, but she also oozes a certain kind of vulnerability (sorry for the weird imagery the word 'oozes' provokes, LOL). Caleb is so tender and caring; his love language is most definitely acts of service. He used to make Emma lunch every day, he stocks his freezer with mint chocolate ice cream (even though he hates the flavor), he cleans her car for her, and he wakes up early to do some much needed repairs on her car. He wants to see the best in people, gives them chances that they might not deserve, and believes they have changed for the better, even when they continue to walk all over him (like his dad). I thought Emma and Caleb's relationship was sweet, and I enjoyed getting glimpses of their past to understand who they were to each other.

I didn't think Juliet was as well-developed. She is quirky and bubbly and clumsy/klutzy and cries at any confrontation. She felt like a caricature or skeleton of a character. I also didn't like or appreciate how Emma and Caleb talked about Juliet, like she was some prize to be won and not an actual human being with human emotions and free will. They never even CONSIDERED that Juliet might not be interested in them, which seemed out of character for Caleb. It's obvious that they became more interested in and attracted to the competition than they ever were in Juliet. Which just feels icky. I have to cut them some slack, though, because they are teenagers doing teenager things, learning and growing through making mistakes (like this one).

I liked They Hate Each Other way more than this! But that might just come down to personal preference. Read this for the amazingly diverse queer rep (like, we're talking multiple letters of the LGBTQIA+ acronym, haha) and tender romance! But definitely also check the content warnings before diving in, because there are some pretty heavy topics covered.

Thank you to Viking Books for Young Readers for the advanced copy of this book!

Representation: bisexual (main characters), demisexual (main character), aroace (side character), BIPOC (side characters), nonbinary (side character), lesbian (side character)

Caleb and Emma stopped being friends years ago but when Emma publicly defends Caleb, who was defending Juliet, against a bully, they enter each other’s orbit again.
Brought together by this incident and the quirky Juliet Emma and Caleb make a bet about who can get Juliet to kiss them first.

This cute YA novel was very slow at the beginning and picked up in the last third, so if you like the premise keep reading!

⭐️3.5⭐️

I loved how dynamic all of the characters were in this book, both main and side characters were full fledged and so easy to picture in my head. It really was a testament to “you never know what someone’s going through” as well, every character had their own challenges and things going on that made it all the more realistic. Also loved how much representation there was!

The concept of Caleb and Emma being friends to enemies and fighting over Juliet while also slowly falling for each other again was so so much fun. And all the situations they got themselves into was goofy and fun to read and, once again, so easily vivid in my head.

My biggest complaint is I didn’t feel anything with the characters. I was definitely rooting for them and invested in seeing them together, but I never got butterflies for any of their moments unfortunately.