The main character, Patch, a gay teen looking for dramatic success and for his first love, is, unapologetically, extremely silly. Plus, more apologetically, petty, resentful, and self-centered. At first I was caught up on the immaturity of these unattractive traits, and not expecting to enjoy the story, but it really did grow on me. There was good banter and enjoyable antics, and the pettiness was pretty funny because it was accompanied by a real lack of follow-through, showing that Patch was, generally, his own worst enemy. Patch and all the other characters (particularly the gruff sister and the equally extremely silly best friend) were a lot of fun, and Patch actually did, over the course of his character development, learn to be less of a jerk—without losing the silliness that, I swear, you absolutely come to enjoy.

The sentence in the synopsis that really hooked me was “Whether or not they actually like boys or him is a problem for later.” That sentence alone perfectly sums up who our main character Patch is and the sheer amount of self-confidence he has. Nothing can bring him down, even the crazy amount of publicly humiliating situations he finds himself in (or, more accurately, creates for himself).

However, that same confidence is also what I disliked most about this book. Don’t get me wrong, it was entertaining and caused me to actually laugh out loud a few times (which is very rare for me when reading), but it also led to an underwhelming self-discovery journey. Meaning, I wish Patch had shown more character development. Like learning to take responsibility for his own actions. He gets into a fight with his best friend and, sure, he does end up apologizing with a Big Gesture, but he also never really seems to understand exactly what he did wrong. He just blames a lot of it on the other person. And yet she forgives him anyway? And then everything is all sunshine and roses again? I can enjoy a confident and more often than not self-absorbed narrator, but I wanted Patch to have more depth and I was disappointed that he didn’t.

Overall, though, it was an enjoyable read, which is why I gave it 3 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, Althea Mignone, and Harry Trevaldwyn for an eARC of The Romantic Tragedies of a Drama King in exchange for an honest review. 

Trevaldwyn did a great job of emulating the high school experience with the varying social dynamics and relationships. As someone who spent much time in the theatre department in high school, the rehearsal representation felt very accurate.

I enjoyed reading this novel and reliving my high school theatre days. That being said, the main character is quite self-centered and becomes hard to root for throughout the book. I'm all for flawed main characters, but some of the things he does are a little inexcusable especially when things still work out for him.

I would recommend this book to any high schooler who’s struggling romantically to feel less alone knowing their time will come soon, with the knowledge that this should not be a guidebook on how to get a boyfriend.

Thanks to Wednesday Books and St Martin's Press for a NetGalley ARC and Libro.fm for early access to the audio as part of their Educator program. I mostly listened to the audiobook, narrated by the author, and thought it was engaging and fun.
This queer YA romcom follows Patch, a high schooler who is over-involved in a drama program, who has decided he is going to find his first love in time for prom. Enter some new drama members, although the identity of his first love doesn't seem to be as important as his looks. Patch's dramatic interpretation of everything going on in his life is hilarious to hear, yet it seems very realistic for a high schooler. I'm surrounded by well-meaning, self-absorbed high schoolers at the school where I teach every day, and in that way the book felt very realistic. I loved getting a really deep dive into Patch's mental space as he contemplates the show, school, his best friend, and his hopeful new relationship.
I recommend this book to YA readers, especially ones who like theater, as I think those readers would be most willing to get behind the "drama king" main character! Patch is absolutely a character that will stay with me - I hope others will enjoy him as much as I did!

“Drama, Cake, and Self-Help: The Deliciously Chaotic Life of Patch Simmons”
1. Will there be drama?
Oh, darling, the drama practically leaps off the page, pirouettes across your brain, and lands in a heap of glittery chaos. Patch Simmons—excuse me, “Patch,” self-styled icon—delivers a level of melodrama so pure and unfiltered that Shakespeare himself would clutch his pearls.
2. Will there be excitement?
Let’s just say, the exclamation point key on my keyboard is exhausted from trying to match the energy in this book! Patch’s narration is an unrelenting burst of enthusiasm, angst, and unapologetic fabulousness, reminding us that life is, in fact, a stage, and Patch is always front and center.
3. Will there be romance and scandals?
Naturally. This is a book where high school romances bloom and wither at a speed that would leave a soap opera gasping. Secret crushes, awkward first dates (are they considered first dates if the date in fact doesn’t know that it is)—Patch’s life is a delightful mess, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
4. Is this a book I wish I had growing up?
One thousand times yes. Patch’s unapologetic queerness and willingness to embrace his true self would have been a revelation. The mix of campy fun and genuine emotional growth makes this story not just entertaining but deeply affirming.
5. Mom’s self-help wisdom corner!
Patch’s mum’s self-help book collection is the unexpected MVP here. Patch regularly pauses his own theatrics to drop nuggets of wisdom like a pint-sized life coach. Who knew “It’s only bloody cake” could simultaneously solve a meltdown and become a mantra for life?
6. The supporting cast
Friends and family bring heart to this whirlwind story, keeping Patch grounded when his drama king tendencies threaten to spiral into full-on monarchy. Their love and support anchor the chaos in moments of genuine reflection.
7. Final thoughts
The Romantic Tragedies of a Drama King is a whirlwind of camp, laughter, and heartfelt emotion. Harry Trevaldwyn delivers a YA rom-com that is unapologetically queer, outrageously funny, and quietly profound in all the right moments. Patch Simmons is the hero we didn’t know we needed—a self-proclaimed drama king who reminds us that even when life is overwhelming, there’s always room for cake.

Thank you Wednesday Books, NetGalley, and Harry Trevaldwyn for this eARC!!

This is the story of Patch and his quest to find a prom date. Can he find someone who likes him back? While the "quest for love" trope has been done before, it’s one I usually enjoy. However, for me to love a book, I need to connect with the main character—and unfortunately, I just didn’t like Patch. He came across as overbearing, overly dramatic, and a bit self-important. While I get that some actors might have those traits, spending the entire book with a character like that was a bit exhausting.

The love interest wasn’t well-developed, so I had no sense of what made him special or why I should root for them. The supporting friends didn’t stand out either, leaving me with no one to cheer for. That said, there were some funny moments. I especially enjoyed Patch’s teacher, who was hilariously blunt in her own quest for love.

If you’re a fan of theater and prom drama, this book might still be worth checking out. For me, though, it felt underwhelming overall. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

Thanks so much to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the complimentary advance copy of this book!

Patrick (call him “Patch”) is ready for an amazing school year. The thing he’s most looking forward to is finding a boyfriend, one whom he can take to Prom. The challenge is, the only openly gay boys in school are dating each other. So what now?

And then two boys arrive at the first drama club meeting of the year. Peter, an American from New York (fabulous) moved to England to live with his best friend Sam’s family. Patch is determined that one of them will be his boyfriend. (He’s fine with either of them.)

The thing is, Patch is full of personality. Maybe too full? He desperately wants to make a good impression on Peter and Sam but mostly winds up tripping over his words and embarrassing himself. The quest to get one of them to be his boyfriend gets more complicated when Sam doesn’t appear to like Patch, and Peter (who is bi) starts dating Tessa, Patch’s former friend and current nemesis.

As Patch tries to negotiate matters of the heart without tripping over himself, he has his devoted best friend Jean to confide in, as well as Ms. Beckett, a former teacher he’s appointed his life coach. He also relies on his mother’s self-help books, but they’re not particularly helpful in his case.

Patch is one of the most hysterically vain and egotistical characters who made me laugh at every turn. (To try and land the lead role in Sweeney Todd, he decided to shadow some barbers, for example.) This is a fun and sweet book about being yourself no matter how wacky and annoying you might be.

The book will publish 1/28.

The Romantic Tragedies of a Drama King follows Patch as he navigates his senior year of highschool. Patch has one main goal for senior year: get a boyfriend in time for prom. Sadly, there are very few candidates for the role: meaning zero. At least Patch still has drama club where he plans to finally play the lead role, whoever that may be. When in walks two mysterious strangers. Peter who has just moved to New York from the UK and his best friend Sam. Each of these boys would make a perfect boyfriend to Patch... if only he could decide which one to chose!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. Patch was fun and although he made mistakes he did his best to try and fix them. The romance was very slow-burn, but I am ultimately happy with how it concluded. An enjoyable read for fans of YA for sure! I look forward to what Trevaldwyn writes next.

This latest entry into the gay YA genre follows the classic trope of the naive teenager who learns from his mistakes, becomes more self-aware in the course of the book, and finds a boyfriend. I loved the author's breezy, high energy, and often laugh-out loud funny writing. I will look forward to more from this author.

That said, I had a few issues with the book. First, as others have noted, the main character, "Patch" is too unlikeable. We want to root for him but he is too self-centered and treats everyone in the book pretty badly. Other characters, particularly his best friend Jean, come off as doormats (or like Sam and Peter, underdeveloped). We only get Patch's first-person view and all he can talk about is himself -while often funny, being inside his head is not a pleasant experience. We don't get the sense that while he wants a boyfriend, that he really cares enough about other people to make that happen. The plotting was a bit wonky as well. The musical is glossed over. The rehearsal process could have been a great place for Patch's character to develop empathy and really connect with others. We finally get a bit of this when Patch soothes Sam's nerves before the opening night. The author throws in an additional boyfriend possibility in the last few pages--why? We are actually never sure why either boy is interested in the self-absorbed Patch. Why do Patch and Jean cook horrible food? And Patch's lists get tiresome.

I think bottom line, the author writes well and with wonderful bursts of humor. The plotting and the characters need more work. And crucially the book needs more heart.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the pre-release copy. Below you'll find my honest review:

Not gonna lie, for the first 40% of this book or so, I found the main character absolutely insufferable. It dragged for me because I didn't like him enough to want to keep going. But the premise was intriguing enough, and the side characters/love interests were pretty good, so I pushed through. I'm glad I did, because eventually, the main character actually starts to GROW as a person and it was a joy to "watch" the process.

It was also really cute, and wasn't smutty at all. Just adorable high school nerdy gay kid finding himself and his first "love" while learning about life and relationships of all kinds. Quite a chaste book, but perfect for YA readers.

Definitely recommend. I'd read something else by the author in the future, for sure.

Four stars!

This was so much fun. The characters were adorable and hilarious and the story is perfectly paced. Highly recommend for fans of YA, you'll be smiling throughout. A must read for fans of Simon James Green. I can't wait to read more from this author and I'd happily read more about these characters in future books.

3.5 stars

This is a solid debut from Trevaldwyn, who not only writes a memorable character in Patch but who also does an exceptional job of narrating the audiobook (which I received thanks to Libro.fm).

Patch is the titular drama king, and readers should know that Patch's drama is not confined to the stage; it really lives at the core of his being. As a result, spending so much time in his head, as readers of this book do, can become intentionally exhausting at some moments. Folks looking for a more settled, mature character won't find that here. Be prepared to dive right into the drama, as promised. While this approach may frustrate some, it'll likely also be the central selling point for others. It definitely made the read more enjoyable for me.

While I was always invested in Patch's outcomes, I did want a bit more depth in the relationships between Patch and various secondary characters. The romantic tragedies are also only "tragic" by the standards of a very young, inexperienced person, and this made it a bit tough to get as engaged with this motif as I'd have liked.

Overall, this is a fun listen. I'll recommend it to students looking for a book that features a character with a big personality and a lot of learning ahead.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

The Romantic Tragedies of a Drama King by Harry Trevaldwyn is a first person-POV YA contemporary. Patch is sixteen-year-old determined to finally get his first boyfriend and the lead in the Drama Club’s yearly play. When two new students, Sam and Peter, join their club and so does Patch’s old friend Tessa, Patch is gonna have to navigate one messy situation after another.

This book was marketed as Heartstopper meets Derry Girls and this absolutely has a Derry Girls-ish voice. Derry Girls is one of my favorite TV shows of all time, so I was skeptical, but the very first chapter sold me and the voice kept me absolutely gripped. Patch is fairly self-centered but also hilarious but also really desperate for some kind of guidance. It’s that mixture of a confident attitude and then mistake after mistake after mistake and awkward situations everywhere followed by the belief that he was absolutely correct that makes the voice so fun and captures that feeling of being sixteen.

Patch’s strongest relationship is with his best friend, Jean, who he does almost everything with. We do see hints of petty jealousy from Patch and moments where he does think he’s better than her, but it’s not really anything I wouldn’t think is out of the ordinary for a sixteen-year-old trying to find their place in the world. Patch does keep all of this in and is trying his best not to tear Jean down, even though she does annoy him sometimes because she’s a better person as an ally than he is a Queer person (his words). It’s potentially losing Jean because of a misunderstanding that wakes Patch up to the fact that he doesn’t always listen and that places such great emphasis on the importance of friendship, which is wonderful.

The two potential romances for Patch are Sam and Peter. Peter and Sam are childhood best friends with Peter living with Sam for a bit after having lived in America for around a decade. Peter represents a lot of things Patch thinks he wants, such as being from New York and just being chic as an image, an ideal. Meanwhile, Sam is quiet and very unsure of himself but is talented enough to get the lead of Sweeney Todd in their musical. Patch initially goes for Peter but due to Peter making different choices, Patch starts looking towards Sam and I think it’s the better choice as Sam grounds Patch and Sam’s little sister can deal with Patch’s wild imagination.

I would recommend this to fans of Derry Girls and readers looking for a YA Queer contemporary that is very voice-driven

New school year brings to Patrick the need to transform his life. Starting from how he should now me called Patch. With the help of the advice from his mother's self-help books, he decided to find a boyfriend to take to Prom. And it's almost serendipity when he meets two new guys at drama club.

The narrator has a lot of personality, so have the title of this book as a warning for what you're getting into. Patch is definitely a drama king. I might even say the focus of this story is more the coming of age of the main character than the romance. There is romance, and I'd even add that was the best part for me, but the central point was Patch's transformation. Or not. I'm not so sure he learned anything in the end, but that's beyond the point. lol

This book also has a lot of words, as consequence of what I was saying. A lot of ramblings. They were funny but they also got in the way of knowing what would happen. I'm sure they would work great in a TV series, with short episodes, the narration was consistent to the end with that tone and style. In a book, I ended up skipping whole sentences while rolling my eyes at Patch. I'm really not sure how people managed to bear with him in a everyday basis. At the same time, it gets us in sudden and because of that hilarious outcomes. It's funny how what I hated about the book was what led me to what I'll remember most about it in a good way.

But my favorite part was the romance. The scenes were the cutest thing. Plus, they gave me a thrill I can only get from YA romances but which I haven't been feeling lately. They were that good.

If you like or if you don't mind garrulous, this story has some great sides that make it worth reading.



Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

Thank you to @macmillan.audio for the complimentary ALC of this title. Also, a huge thank you to @wednesdaybooks for this gifted Advanced Readers’ Edition.

What. A. Delight.

I read this title mostly through the audiobook, which is read by the author. I know I cackled at least five times while listening, often loud enough to warrant stares from my family.

This is marketed as Derry Girls meets Heartstopper - so I went into this with super high expectations as Heartstopper is my favorite graphic novel series and Derry Girls is one of my favorite series. The pitch line is spot on. It is such a lovely amalgamation of soft, tender coming of age moments meeting snarky and poignant vignettes of everyday life as a young person.

I typically avoid calling something, “voicy,” but damn if Patch wasn’t one of the most voicy and loveable characters I’ve read this year!

A very brief summary: A theater kid decides he needs to find his first boyfriend before prom. Hijinks ensue.

really cute teen romcom with a SUPER overdramatic but fun protag who i thought was cool! would recommend. 4 stars. tysm for the arc.

This book was not for me. If you like gat British teen com, this will be a good fit. I'm not a huge ofbooks set in British so I was not in the right mind-set from the beginning. If the book was set in America, I might have enjoyed it more.
Thank you for Netgalley for the ARC

This was a cute, YA book about Patch and his journey to find a boyfriend. The characters in the book were all memorable and I thought the writing was fun and vivid. I could really visualize the book as I was reading, which doesn't often happen for me. Overall, I would recommend this to most teens!

It's been a long time since I laughed THIS MUCH reading a book. Perfect for theater lovers, queer joy love story enthusiasts, and people who want their characters to leap off the page and walk straight into their living rooms. Can't wait to read more from Trevaldwyn!

Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of The Romantic Tragedies of a Drama King in exchange for an honest review!

Patch Simmons wants to find a boyfriend, and so it’s time to stop with distractions (namely his pen-pal, Jean-Pierre) and start getting serious about love. He has options, a bold new attitude, and a bestie to get him through this new era. Yet, love is always a teensy bit more complicated than expected… especially when taking a big chance.

Charming, sweetly nostalgic, and capturing the embarrassment and big feels of being young, The Romantic Tragedies of a Drama King succeeds not only as a romance, but an exploration of identity and human wants/needs. Heartstopper meets Love, Simon for theater nerds, and those who remember their high school days all too painfully clear. I’m so happy it exists, and we are embarking on a new age of queer fiction. This is the type of story I wish I had when I was a teenager. As a thirty-something, I’m not quite the target audience for it now, but like many my age, I have some healing to do and reading novels like this always does the trick. Romance is great, but don’t forget to fall in love with yourself, too.