I was so lucky to receive this eARC from NetGalley!
This book hit all sorts of sweet spots with me, in the best of ways. Since I've been to ComicCon with my friends, consider myself a huge Harry Potter fan, and I'm definitely curvy, I could really identify with Taylor. But Taylor has more depth, as do all the characters, than I was expecting in a story that takes place over the span of one weekend.
1 & 2 stars - This story has two POV (why we don't get to hear from Jamie, I'm not sure but it works fine) and the story stays very focused on our group. This trio has always wanted to attend SupaCon, and has just flown in from Melbourne, Australia to have an epic weekend before they make some choices and moves for college. Right from the beginning, I was invested in these characters' lives. What happened before, what was going on, and where things would taken them afterwards. While there are still some unknowns, we are shown a great level of growth in these characters over the span of one weekend. I adored every moment with them.
3 stars - Not only was there a non-stereotypical woc (Charlie is Asian, with pink hair!), but there's Taylor, who is an "aspie" and she tells us she is somewhere on the spectrum. Oh, and she has anxiety disorder. Having chosen to attend SupaCon, she sets all that aside because she wants to meet her idol- the star of the Queen Firestone books & movies. What she doesn't anticipate are the people she meets (many in fact, good and bad), a Firestone contest, and her best friend Jamie's flirtations. And it's fantastic. I won't say how things turn out, but being in Taylor's headspace was really opening for me and is really fantastic to see in YA.
4 stars - Charlie also gets a nod of her own because she's very deep as well. A YouTube vlogger, she's just struck big in the next dystopian movie series The Rising . Her acting managed to score the trio tickets, but it did not manage to score her time away from Reese- her awful recent ex. Since Reese, Charlie has openly come out as bi but hasn't dated a girl. While at the Con, she meets her crush Alyssa, another YouTube vlogger and celebrity of sorts. And while the girls hit it off with a lot in common, Charlie can't tell if Alyssa likes her back. It's a charming and adorable plotline and I really appreciated Charlie's narration.
5 stars - Jamie <3 , the boy who gets it. This trio has the healthiest and most open friendship I have seen in a YA book in awhile. With the exception of some things that give Taylor anxiety (i.e. things she won't talk about), they're pretty open and very close. And there are some great scenes where Jamie supports both of the girls by standing up, both verbally and physically. He's the dude you want your son to be.
I don't think I have a favourite character, but I love this book and will be thinking fondly of it as I wait to open the paperback copy.*
*Originally published for Goodreads
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