Teen love angst and drama in Tasmania (4.5 stars)
I've read everything published by the author to date and always appreciate how accurately characters are written, particularly those in their late teens and young adult years without resorting to stereotypes. With each book - and this one is no exception - O'Beirne manages to be a fly on the wall observing teens and adults beyond their behavior, burrowing into their thoughts and feelings, and dictating it onto the page in a way that's often illuminating reading. Even knowing that her books are not geared to my specific age demographic, I look forward to reading each one because the storytelling is top notch and the characters are refreshingly real: distinct and complex in their makeup, with interpersonal relationships heavy with history and/or affected by insecurities and assumptions that color communication between them, be they friends, lovers, colleagues, or family.
There is humor in the book as well as drama and some angst. The setting of Tasmania Australia is lovingly portrayed with its mix of tourist draws and the places the locals flock to; it may entice a reader to hop a flight to see it in person for more than the penal colony attractions the island is best known for. The ending is fitting to the story's trajectory but some of the many plot threads felt to me off balance where they received a lot of attention on the page initially to introduce and develop, but their resolution by comparison was more abbreviated. They were not central plot threads but the way they tapered off at their end was noticeable to me and left me wondering about a few things that could be covered in a follow up story at some point with a time jump. It's a minor issue and my only criticism of the story. I recommend it and all other stories by the author.

I unfortunately did not love this book as much as I thought I would. Maybe this book just wasn’t for me, but I have read a lot of YA sapphic romance books, and this just didn’t hit the mark. The writing felt extremely juvenile for a YA book, and the plot was both fast paced but also extremely slow. It also was way too long, certain parts seemed to drag. I thought their initial breakup was poorly done and honestly didn’t make much sense. And then when they see each other again a year later, I felt like the story focused more on their journalism job that it did their relationship.

I did like the dual POV and that they both were unapologetically themselves around each other. I think the personal maturity that comes from your first breakup was shown really well. Overall, I think this book would be better suited for a younger audience than myself

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review

Samira comes from a conservative and powerful political family, and has a controlling father. So, she is desperate to get away from her relatives in Brisbane, signing up for a summer course on journalism taking place in Tasmania.

There she meets, and (majorly) conflicts with, Alex who has a very different set of family issues, but is also planning her escape. In Alex's case, that means heading off to University in Melbourne.

Soon enough, as they begin working on stories together, the duo find that the initial heat of their arguments is matched only by their equally intense level of attraction to each other. But in the end, the expectations of others - alongside their own fears and inhibitions - win out and the two go their separate ways.

Only to encounter each other once again a year later when they are both found working on their campus paper. Not surprising the tension can be cut with a knife. So things are decidedly awkward...

This is a sweet YA romance, and smoothly draws in wider issues of how families, society and friends (not necessarily in that order) impact a person's choices and shape their views - and how this, in turn, directly affects the level of non-conformity they are willing to engage in. A fun and interesting read.