This was an amazing YA read! Deeply funny but also poignant and meaningful. The characters were relatable and immediately lovable, even though their behavior could frustrate at times - but isn't that human nature? So, very authentic characters. I loved this read and have recommended it often to our high school library patrons.

A tender YA love story with a twist. A MC now in the afterlife - and such an average one at that - inds love. This was a sweet story, definitely YA and some funky word choices but overall a good read!

arc via netgalley

tender and sweet and unique and a goorgeous tale of the afterlife and analyzing your own memories. sweet and cool

I liked the concept of the book but it fell flat for me. The romance was cute though and I enjoyed the exploration of Tegan’s healing journey.

The Worst Perfect Moment by Shivaun Plozza

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed "The Worst Perfect Moment." The book exceeded my expectations and was well worth the hype I had for it. The character development was particularly impressive, and the story’s ability to weave together humor and heartbreak made for a compelling read.

The setting of the book was vividly detailed, from the peculiar tampon in the motel pool to the slimy mushrooms at breakfast. These small touches really enhanced the immersive experience. The balance between light-hearted moments and the more somber aspects of Tegan's journey through her afterlife was skillfully handled, especially as she navigates her feelings about being dead and the peculiar choice of her heaven—a place tied to some of her worst memories.

Zelda, the angel guiding Tegan, was a standout character. Her presence and role added a lot of depth to the story, and I found her interactions with Tegan to be both touching and memorable.

The book deals with heavy themes like abandonment issues, neglect, failed friendships, childhood crushes, and death, all while maintaining a thread of hope and self-discovery. The blend of these elements made the story both thought-provoking and heartfelt.

Overall, "The Worst Perfect Moment" is a sweet, introspective journey that I would highly recommend. It’s a unique take on the afterlife with rich character dynamics and a perfect balance of humor and emotional depth. If you’re a fan of queer YA and enjoy stories that explore complex emotions and relationships, this book is definitely worth picking up.

♡ Afterlife
♡ Sapphic
♡ Chaotic Angel

This book was way better than I anticipated, definitely worth the hype I had for it. I really enjoyed the character development and how everything came together. The setting of this book was so good, all the details were amazing—from the tampon in the motel pool or the slimy mushrooms at breakfast, it was literally so well detailed!

The story was a good mix of humor and heartbreak, touching on more depressing moments as the main character coming to terms with being dead, that her heaven was a place she had some of the worst memories.

Also Zelda was amazing, I loved her so much.

This book talks about some heavy topics as well such as abandonment issues and neglect, failed friendships and childhood crushes, and of course death.

The Worst Perfect Moment by Shivaun Plozza is a compelling and heartfelt exploration of friendship, identity, and the challenges of navigating change during the transition to adulthood. The story is infused with wit and emotional depth, offering readers a poignant glimpse into the lives of her characters as they grapple with love, loss, and self-discovery. The novel shines with authentic dialogue, relatable characters, and its ability to balance humor with more serious themes, making it an engaging read for anyone who enjoys contemporary YA fiction with a lot of heart. Fans of character-driven stories will find this book both touching and resonant.

4.5/5 (rounded up)

I really enjoyed this story. The only thing I wish was different was the pace, at times it felt a bit slow. This gave me the good place vibes 😂 would recommend

True Fact: The book offers a refreshing perspective on friendship, resilience, and the importance of staying true to oneself, making it a must-read for young adults seeking inspiration and guidance in their journey toward adulthood. For me, simply it didn´t resonate as it should…

Zelda is a character that in some kind of way can be described as a spoiler character for the plot. The most mature readers it will have a rush time to keep going.

Sweet story I really enjoyed reading. Starting with a one night stand their life really changed for the better. Cam finally was noticed at work with her new Found confidence and Jackie realized she was into women and could finally break free from her restricted family upbringing.

This YA novel is about Tegan Masters and her journey to self-discovery, grief, and love. After Tegan wakes up in her own, personal heaven, she has some strong opinions about her angel's choice of her perfect moment to relive forever, none of them positive. Zelda, the angel, begins a whirlwind tour through Tegan's memories to help her understand what mattered most to her and so what if they fall in love as the journey continues.
In the beginning, I found this novel to be moving quite slowly, but as it got towards the excursions the pair went on, I got more invested in the story. I quickly got more involved with the characters and it was a great journey to go on with the characters. The character development was so great to see and wraps up the story so well. As Tegan tries to figure out her complex emotions, we learn what you sometimes think makes you the happiest in life, is sometimes the thing that can make you the saddest. Tegan is a very relatable teenage character, I felt her emotions with how well the scenes and feelings were described. I really enjoyed the reading experience.

Thank you Netgalley and Holiday House for giving this arc in exchange of an honest review. This book is such a journey, a great one of course, but a very had one too. We meet Tegan, a 16 years old teenager who wakes up in the horrendous motel she stayed at with her father and little sister some weeks ago. She is confused as to why she is there, as they already left and she has no memory of coming back. We find out (and this is not a spoiler as it is known from the synopsis) that Tegan died, and she now will live inside her heaven which is supposed to be her “best memory” according to Zelda, an angel she meets there. For Tegan, this makes absolutely no sense as she remembers her stay at the Marybelle motel as one of the most horrible moments in her life, however throughout the novel we will be presented with other memories and will have to judge if Tegan’s opinion is objective about this matter.

As a reader, you do not need to know more than this to understand and get completely captivated by the story. We do not only get to know Tegan not only in the present moment, but also in different moments of the past: interacting with her friends, with her family and we observe her reactions and the reasons behind why she is so reactive and opposed to accepting the Marybelle as her heaven. Tegan is so well constructed as a character, she is portrayed as a very angry and confused teenager, as if she were at the very edge of imploding at every given moment; which makes her such a realistic and relatable character not only to current teenagers but also to every person who was once a teenager and acted like her.

Of course, her anger and confusion are many times so combined that they leave her in an existential crisis (ironic as, she does not “exist” as such in the real world) and her responses are even more justified. However, there are times when she is just nonsensical in her responses and actions, and that makes her even more real. I think her most used words could probably be “dickcheese”, “buttface” or “this sucks”, which is pretty accurate as we all know that, even if we could think of these as cringe for someone to use, all teenagers love to use the most ridiculously funny insults and are always complaining about everything.

Zelda most times is as teenagery as Tegan, which is accurate as if I remember correctly they were either the same age or very similar ones, and she is given another layer of characterisation by being an angel, having magic powers and having to follow some rules, which this last thing is clear that she hates to do. The reader is new not only to the type of magic that Zelda uses, but also to the rules; therefore many times the reader is left to wonder about how these affect Zelda as a character, as she does seem affected by them in some way or another. Tegan and her totally match each other’s energy, and they are such a sweet pair or main characters, you really have no difficulty in falling in love with both of them. I myself, have officially adopted them :)

The rhythm in which the story evolves is medium paced, so it gives you enough time to assimilate what is happening, what you are reading and how to connect each happening to the other in order to solve the “mystery” of why this horrendous place is Tegan's heaven. I really do not want to say much more about the plot as I think its a special journey which you HAVE to make with Tegan and Zelda at the same time without knowing much beforehand. Just be well seated, prepared mentally to suffer and have some napkins at hand because you WILL cry for sure. I took the (very wrong) decision of reading this story on a bus journey and I swear I was holding on for dear LIFE because if I let myself cry I would start real sobbing like a baby.

I think this could be a very special read to absolutely everyone because you are not only reading about Tegan and her story, you could also start questioning happenings and relationships and interactions you’ve had before in your life while on this journey with her. It treats death from a very heartbreaking point of view, for God’s sake our protagonist is dead at 16 I think that is enough to start the reading with so many questions. It is not only heartbreaking though, the story also reassures and sometimes gives you big warm hugs to make you get back on your feet after so much suffering and crying. The ending is such an experience to read, and it left me so satisfied after such a painfully beautiful experience. I do not want to anticipate anything but this might be my favourite book of this year, and I would be completely happy about it. Now I need a physical copy to be able to mark every page in this wonderful book.

Grief, figuring out complex emotions about love and pain, going deep into what makes you *you* is a topic very close to my heart, and this story delivered masterfully. Sprinkling in some humor on top of the dialouge and adding the romance that is seeable from the get-go, the main story focuses on Tegan, a teenager who sadly passed away and founds herself in a heaven that might as well be hell. I honestly couldn't care less about Zelda, but I havent found a protagonist so relatable as Tegan in quite some time. Bold, immature and being so sure about herself when she is one little tip away from breaking, I loved how the author depicted her and the messiness of grieving not just life, but relationships.

The Worst Perfect Moment was such a heartwarming and reflective read. The story is unique and written so well. It is very much YA, especially with the dialogue and word choices that are used in the book, but I think the story itself is deep and deals with very serious topics. I highly recommend giving this book a chance.

There was not a single moment in this book where I was uninterested. The characters are so easily lovable and funny that even parts that seem slow are still great to read. Zelda and Tegan were my favorite part of this book. Tegan has gone through so much and I just wanted to hug her the whole time. Zelda was a ray of sunshine and deserves to go to a cat cafe!

Overall, this book was something that I didn’t know I needed. I loved it and the ending was perfect to me. Thank you NetGalley and Holiday House for the arc! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Today I finished reading The Worst Perfect Moment by Shivaun Plozza, just in time for my tour stop with @pridebooktours! Check the comments section for a synopsis of The Worst Perfect Moment, or keep reading here for my review!

The Worst Perfect Moment was an absolute five star read for me! The story was emotionally packed, with each page having layers to unravel. As Tegan deals with the realities of being dead and stuck in a 2-star motel as her perfect heaven, there are moments of joy, hilarity, and grief. I felt that the pacing was spot-on for this novel. Readers uncovered pieces of Tegan’s story as she dealt with the memories herself, which drove the story forward. The Worst Perfect Moment is a raw, real, personal introspection on death, and on what it means to be happy. You won’t want to miss reading this one!

For this picture, I decided to take Tegan to the ocean, as a nod to the plot. No spoilers, but if you read the book you’ll know why!

My Recommendation:
If you enjoy books with original, fascinating takes on death and the afterlife, you need to grab a copy of The Worst Perfect Moment! I would especially recommend this book to fans of The Good Place and Shaun David Hutchinson’s The Past and Other Things That Should Stay Buried.

I do love books with a different approach to the afterlife, and this one is quite unique. While I am still not 100% sold on spending my entire eternity in one place, unless it was a library, I found the story charming.
In the beginning, I found the voice a bit young, but it´s a 16-year-old, so I think it´s a pretty good depiction of a teenager and I am just old.
It was pretty relatable to watch Tegan deal with the complex feelings for her mom and it was so well done, showing that in the end nobody is perfect, we all have good and bad sides.
The portrayal of heaven as a bureaucratic mess was beyond funny and the perfect satirical jab at religion that I needed to see.
Another point that I loved was the portrayal of Tegan sexuality, it was refreshing to see a coming-of-age story where the gay teen doesn´t have to deal with coming out but is just there, being blissfully lesbian.

*some spoilers* (I can’t help it I loved this book and I wanted to dive deep into why it’s so good)

What does heaven look like? How does it function? Is heaven actually as dysfunctional as life on earth is? ‘The Worst Perfect Moment’ tackles the answers to these questions and presents a heaven run similarly to a corporate office. Angels will take a look into all of your memories to decide what was your best memory in life and creates your heaven from that moment.

What happens when they create a heaven for a 16 year old girl who lived with parents constantly arguing with each other and whose life experience consisted of falling in love with girls who loved someone else. Tegan is awkward as most teens are and she never got a chance to figure out what in life would make her happy and she never found a sense of purpose. When she winds up dead and in heaven she finds herself in the shitty hotel she and her dad and sister stayed at for one of the most difficult memories she had had. She questions why should this be my heaven? Her Angel Zelda surely made a mistake?

From there a huge mess unfolds between Tegan, Zelda, and the management angels as they try to figure out who made the mistake and if there ever was a mistake at all. Even pushing as far as to question if the system that heaven functions on is truly the correct system it should have at all. As Zelda shows Tegan her memories and asks her to try and see the truth behind what made that hotel memory so special a spark of love unfolds between Zelda and Tegan. The enemies to lovers relationship between these two was adorable. Zelda making the effort to try and soothe the difficulty that Tegan was having with little gifts stolen from there excursions into her memories.

In the end, this book shows what life itself truly is about. The heart in the worst moments. Who loves and chooses you for who you really are. How sometimes you can’t see those thing when your so focused on how deeply things cut you. Yet, as much as this book is about figuring out if Zelda made a mistake, I love that it’s more then that. It says regardless if she made a mistake or not the system in place is a huge facilitator and maybe there’s something bigger that needs to be changed so this kind of experience wouldn’t happen again. It’s an idea that can be applied to a lot of things in life and in the world. So many systems are broken and the smaller stories of people pushing against it and complaining are just a symptom of something larger.

There is so much to take away from a book like this. It’s rich in story and rich in ideas. It’s thought-provoking and wholly original. I loved every word.

I love this book! I am not even sure how to express it well enough to do it justice. The pacing is perfect, the writing style works so well for the story and characters. The characters are so well written, deep, and complex, they struggle, they grow, they ache, they love. They are immature, stubborn, beautiful. This novel is therapy. Self-acceptance, grief, eye-opening...It is an interesting take on the afterlife and there is some sadness, but it is ultimately a story of hope.
Heavy subjects are examined thoughtfully, such as Teagan's family dynamics.
I enjoyed the banter between MCs, it portrays their age and personalities so well. They are absolutely delightful. The Worst Perfect Moment is a sweet, enlightening journey. My heart grew three sizes :) I highly recommend it!
#enemiestolovers #death #grief #divorce #family

‘The Worst Perfect Moment asks what it means to be truly happy.’

Let me start by saying the premise of this book was captivating. I was excited to crack it open but was slightly disappointed at how immature some of the dialogue was. Now, I know this is a YA book but it was very… Young. Or at least want to be edgy with some of the words they use?

Other than that the book was good. I did read up, I can’t lie about that. All in all I do think I would recommend this book to friends!

The Worst Perfect Moment was a true epiphany. In the simplest terms, Shivaun Plozza's words made the reality of modern life, all its revelations and disappoints, essential to the meaning of something so basic to us all, happiness and love. Overwhelmingly enjoyed this read.

Thank you to Holiday House / Peachtree / Pixel+Ink | Holiday House and NetGalley for providing an eARC for an honest review.