Absolutely loved this book and soaked up every minute of it! This was such an adorable rom com! Very lighthearted and easy to enjoy. Highly recommend

The Rival by Emma Lord is an enemies to lovers YA romance. The novel focuses on Sadie and Seb, two former childhood friends and next door neighbours, turned rivals who (as a surprise to Sadie) head off to the same college and are both gunning for the same spot on the college newspaper. Both Sadie and Seb are discovering who they are as they move away from their families and figure out what they want for themselves as opposed to what their families want for them. The book has a great cast of side-characters that added to the story line.

Thank you to the publisher, St. Martin’s Press | Wednesday Books, NetGalley and the author for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

The Rival was my second young adult book that I’ve read by Emma Lord and I liked it! The Rival follows Sadie as she heads to university as she looks to join the school magazine while competing with her academic rival and childhood friend, Seb. I enjoyed following Sadie on her journey as she transitioned into the new stage of her life. I liked the banter and tension between Sadie and Seb, though at times I did find that the book felt slow. This one was a fun, cute (pancakes and the Alphabet party!) and I absolutely love the way Lord writes.

Overall, I liked this one and rated it 3.5 stars. If you are looking for a young adult childhood rivals to friends to lovers that has lots of good banter and tension with a university setting, check out The Rival! While I loved Begin Again more than this one, I’m so excited to keep reading more of Emma Lord’s work.

Thank you to Netgalley and St.Martin’s Press for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

"The Rival" brings with it themes of competitive dynamics and personal growth for main characters Sadie and Seb and as usual a whole lot of shenanigans. The college setting and the evolution of a relationship from rivalry to something more is so sweet to see unfold. I do think this one lacked some of the emotional or reflective tone I'm used to from Lord. As a reader who loves complex feelings, this one fell a bit short in that regard. Overall, this was a fun read with characters that were flawed but loveable, who brought me back to the early days of college and what it feels like when something goes from catching feelings to falling in love.

I put off reading this book. Why? I don't know now. It was super cute. The characters had growth. Like so many characters not just the FMC and MMC. Their families were fun. They grew up together and everyone saw the end. I also liked that the big story they found was something that probably happens all too often. On a different note I really want pancakes now.

You had me at Emma Lord and enemies to lovers! As always, an enjoyable read by and author I have been a fan of for quite some time. This was a little slow for me in some places, but for the most part, I enjoyed the story and the relationships.

I’m going to start by saying I LOVE Emma Lord. I’ve read a handful of her books and they’re usually easy five stars for me.

Unfortunately, this one just felt…bloated? There was too much going on. The characters are supposed to be Rivals but much of that Rivalry happens before we meet them, and we’re seeing them start to be more friends to lovers, slight rivalry but nothing compare to the stories we’re told within the book that apparently MAKE them rivals.

There’s outside family stuff going on, which is normally fine, but there’s a whole thing with Sadie’s younger sister where she blows up cause she find out Sadie and Seb don’t like each other and it all felt a bit too much? Cause apparently they were hiding from their families that they were rivals but they actually grew up together and used to be best friends and now they’re unexpectedly at the same college and they’re supposed to be competing for a spot on this school zine thing and the stakes are supposed to be high but they never really FEEL that dire?

And I think because there’s just so much excess stuff going on and random characters to keep track of, it’s hard to really dive deep in the main story. And that’s a bummer, ‘cause I feel like this author has always been pretty successful with that in the past.

Overall, this was just an okay for me. It could have been trimmed a lot, the 11 hour audio felt like it dragged.

Thank you @netgalley and @wednesdaybooks for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

In The Rival, Sadie and Seb have a lifelong friendship that grew a bit sour in high school, despite them always being thrown in competition together and forced to socialize with their families. Sadie thinks she is finally rid of him when she begins her freshman year of college, but she soon finds out that she's very, very wrong.

The thing I like best about Emma Lord's books is her dialogue, which I first noticed in Tweet Cute. The banter between Sadie and Seb is great, and even the supporting cast gets a lot of good lines. The only part that falls flat for me is the "enemies/rivals to lovers" description. While Sadie certainly sees Seb as her enemy, it's obvious from their first encounter that Seb does not feel the same, even if she is determined to misread his intentions. But overall, this was a sweet and fun story that comes together in the end.

The Rival by Emma Lord is a delightful and witty rivals-to-lovers romantic comedy that will keep readers laughing and swooning. Sadie has always been the top of her class, determined to outshine her charmingly infuriating neighbor and academic rival, Seb. After securing a spot at her dream college, Sadie believes she’s finally won. But when Seb is unexpectedly admitted off the waitlist, her world is turned upside down, and they’re back to competing—not just for academic supremacy but also for a spot on the prestigious school zine.

As Sadie grapples with family chaos, self-doubt, and hidden writing talents, she finds herself battling unexpected feelings for Seb, her longtime nemesis. But as the competition intensifies, Sadie and Seb start to see the cracks in the school’s system, forcing them to team up in ways they never expected.

Emma Lord’s trademark humor, relatable characters, and clever writing shine in this story about rivalry, self-discovery, and the unexpected turns love can take. The Rival is perfect for fans of enemies-to-lovers tropes, with an added layer of heart and commentary on how far competition can go before it reveals deeper truths. It's a fun, fast-paced read full of heart, humor, and just the right amount of tension.

Sadie and Seb have been a part of each other's world since they were kids and thrive on competition. Now in college, they are both vying for the same staff writing position. I enjoy the enemies to lovers trope and these two were fun to read. Their banter and unexpected tender moments kept me listening and the audiobook, narrated by Jesse Vilinsky, is a great way to enjoy this new adult romance.

Thank you net galley for the ARC and thank you Emma Lord for the sweet sweet friends to enemies to lovers /second chance friendship, rom com.

I did not like this as much as I loved her other works I've read. I really connected with previous characters but tbh found Sadie a little hard to connect with but Seb was a 5/5 lovable character.

Emma Lord's writing is so fun and endearing and reading about her characters instantly transports the reader back to being a chaotic teenager. I loved both the friends to enemies to lovers romance and the journalism story lines and how intertwined Sadie and Seb were from the beginning. The family dynamics were particularly moving! I definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a fantastic, dessert-laden coming of age story.

This was my second Emma Lord book and I think I am on the fence. I wanted to like this a lot more than I did. I wanted more from it and felt it dragged at times.

The first half of this book was a bit of a struggle for me because I felt a little confusion about the relationship between Sadie and Seb. The first chapter made it seem like they were true enemies, just to find out that they were actually the oldest friends turned rivals and didn't actually hate each other at all. I felt like I didn't know at any given point where they stood until things turned about half way through. Besides that confusion, I enjoyed the plot of the book, the background characters and little family they created at Maple Ridge. It stood true to Lord's previous work of digging into newly independent adults trying to find their way. And the resolution between all the conflicts amongst all the characters was exactly what i hoped for.

This was a cute read! I love that it represented a college girl who isn’t the most experienced in the dating world. I love that representation for readers out there. It was probably my favourite part of the book.

\\\\\ 3.5 \\\\\

This one was quite cute, exactly what you can expect of a young adult romance with all the rom-com vibes.

Read if you like:
Rivals to lovers
Childhood bestfriends
Academic set-up
Coming of age story
Slow-burn romance

My thoughts:
The bond between our two characters was easy to understand, and I enjoyed their friendship quite a lot. Even though they stuck to saying they were enemies, you still could feel how deeply they cared for each other. The fact that they knew one another so well, made for really sweet interactions. It was a bit hard to not get mad at the miscommunication at the chore of their rivalry.

I have to admit that I would have loved for this one to be a double POV because I had a hard time connecting with Sadie, I did not always agree with how she acted, meanwhile, Seb was simply perfect to me. It would have certainly helped my reading experience to get to his POV once in a while.

The first part of the book was more compelling to me and went by far more quickly than the second part. I'm not someone who enjoys conflict and confrontations, and at some point in the book it was all that was happening and that was not appealing to me. While I do appreciate some deeper stuff, it definitely dragged on and I just wanted to get back to the more quirky and fun vibe.

Overall, the plot was interesting with a touch of humour and a heartwarming side as well. I always love seeing characters learning to be their true self and find their path in life.

As for the audiobook, the narrator did a great job and it was an enjoyable one!

Thanks to Wednesday Books for the eARC All opinions are my own.

Thank you @wednsdaybooks for the #gifted copy of The Rival by Emma Lord
This was fun YA romance that follows, Sadie and Seb, lifelong rivals who find themselves at the same college competing for a spot as a writer for the popular college zine.

The story was fun and engaging with opposites attract, enemies to lovers, and slow burn romance. The romance was minimum but sweet. The story was more about Sadie and Seb figuring out what they want/navigating a new life at college, away from home. I’m a sucker for academic setting and the rivalry between Sadie and Seb was fun and flirty. If you’re looking for an easy, delightful read check this one out.

I love everything Emma Lord writes, and this was no exception.

Seb and Sadie are rivals. Born to families who are close, they grew up together and started competing in all areas of their lives, particularly academic. When Sadie and Seb both end of up Maple Ride, the rivalry continues as they compete for a writer's spot on the school's zine, Newsbag. But do they actually hate each other? Or is the rivalry born out of a type of friendship?

Lord writes books that are heartwarming, funny, and keep me interested. I loved following along with Sadie and Seb as they developed into their own people away from their families, and as their relationship changed throughout the novel.

If you already read Lord or are a fan of Emily Henry, this one is for you!

ೃ⁀➷ I’m a sucker for enemies-to-lovers, and in this case of childhood friends to rivals to lovers as described in the premise, I was pretty much hooked right away from the get-go. I was really excited to see the two MCs’ progress throughout the entire story but for some reason and while it was mostly a feel-good story for anyone looking for witty writing, it didn’t capture my attention the way I was anticipating it to for a few reasons 😔

ೃ⁀➷ One of the book’s main themes was the self-transformation that almost every teenager entering a new chapter of their lives struggles to come to terms with. In this case, our FMC, Sadie Brighton, had internal conflict of feeling like she had to remain the responsible, level-headed person in the family along with the nagging feeling of her wanting to branch out into the world as her own unapologetic self and chase after her own dreams that she never had the opportunity to confide in to her family. She went through a lot of growth in the book of deciding to set her own boundaries, learning to not be afraid to come to terms with who she was in front of her family who she cared for the most, and making her voice heard despite her fears. I thought her character was well-fleshed out and the fact that she was so clever enough to help bring light to the issue of their school not treating student organizations and athletes equally was very important 📝

ೃ⁀➷ Her friend-turned-rival, Sebastian Adams, is also on a similar road as she is. I was really pleasantly surprised with the fact that Seb was introduced as bisexual very early on in the story, yet it isn’t emphasized as his greatest personality trait as some books accidentally tend to do. He’s shown as caring and protective towards those he cares about most, especially Sadie. It was really admiring to read about how much he put his heart and all his hard work into helping expose the truth about the corruption of their school, even if it meant his own future would be in jeopardy. I think he’s a character with a lot of integrity and honesty, which is so refreshing to see in new adult and contemporary romances 🔍

ೃ⁀➷ That being said, I’m a little disappointed that it took me a while to actually get through the story itself. I’m not sure if it was the pacing of the events or maybe it didn’t capture my interest enough to continuously keep reading, but I found myself skimming through almost 50% of the book. I was also frustrated that there was so much miscommunication between Sadie and Seb, and as well with Sadie and her sisters and with her best friend, Christina. It almost felt like they were all stuck in their own little bubbles of what they were so focused on and it didn’t feel like the good kind of chaos that made me want to keep reading. There were so many parts of the book that either felt like filler or dragged on too much 😕

ೃ⁀➷ Overall, my favourite part of this book was the banter and chemistry between Seb and Sadie. There are some quirky comebacks and quips between the two of them that made me laugh out loud 😂 It really did feel like they were each other’s person and that they would always find their way back to each other like magnets attracting and repelling just like Sadie mentions. I think it was really interesting to see them tackle on their school’s corruption issue and expose them for what they were doing to all the students, and to know that they eventually found what they truly needed wasn’t exactly what they wanted was a good ending all on its own. I just wish I really remembered most of the book from the inconsistent pacing and the fact that I struggled to connect with both MCs, but maybe it’s just me.

<i>Thank you to Emma Lord, NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Wednesday Books for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for my honest review!</i>

<b>Tropes:</b>
- Childhood best friends to academic rivals to lovers
- Slow-burn romance 💘
- University life 🏫
- Found family
- Coming-of-age
- Student advocacy, academic and social issues ⚖️

Sadie has gotten the coveted spot at the college of her dreams, and finally gets to leave her high school rival, Seb, behind. However, Seb is unexpectedly pulled off the waitlist, and Sadie’s and Seb’s high school rivalry is reignited as they compete for a spot on the school paper.

Emma Lord always delivers wholesome, feel-good stories geared toward teens and adults alike. While I have loved most of Emma Lord’s other novels, I struggled a bit with this one, and ultimately it was a slow read. I typically do love YA novels, however with the campus setting, perhaps those currently in college would connect to and enjoy the book more. It was still an “okay” read, just not the best match for me personally.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for my gifted e-ARC!