Book Review: "Woke Up Like This" by Amy Lea

There are a number of ways to get to my literary heart. One is to manipulate my emotions. (I'm totally a sap, as those of you who have been following my reviews for a while should be aware.) Another is to throw me a time loop or time travel storyline. (I'm addicted.) So when it came time to pick my Kindle First Reads pick for September and I found that Amy Lea's Woke Up Like This was a YA rom-com with a time loop, what do you think I picked?

Charlotte Wu is a type-AAA high school senior. She's never met a situation that couldn't benefit from a checklist, and she thrives on being the glue that holds everything together. With just a few weeks left of high school, she's determined to check the last thing off her high school bucket list—plan the perfect prom. But standing in her way is JT Renner, her ridiculously handsome, charming nemesis, who wears "smedium" shirts (to show off his biceps) and serves as student council president. One day as the two are decorating for prom, Charlotte falls off a ladder—and JT's ripped body mostly breaks her fall.

When Charlotte wakes up, she's in bed...and then she discovers that she's somehow 30 years old and her fiancé is a bearded JT, who somehow is even more muscular than he was in high school. Is this some kind of practical joke? How did they somehow wind up 13 years in the future? How could they have wound up engaged when they absolutely hated each other in high school? And perhaps most importantly, how can they get back to 2024 and the last few weeks of high school?

Of course, finding a way back to the past isn't easy. And while it's difficult to constantly pretend they're in love with one another, as they occupy their future lives, they learn about what they've missed over the last 13 years and how much has changed. At the same time, Charlotte starts to realize that some of the things that annoyed her most about JT are actually kind of charming in adulthood, and there is a lot she never took the time to understand about him in high school because she was so mad at him.

As their feelings toward one another grow, Charlotte wonders what will happen if they can ever get back to their high-school selves. Will things be different between them? Will they even remember this time from the future?

I thought this really was a fun read. It's definitely predictable but I love the whole concept of seeing your future self and then using some of that knowledge to change your behavior. If you enjoy cute YA rom-coms with a little bit of a time loop thrown in, pick up Woke Up Like This when it officially releases October 1.

Book Review: "Pumpkin" by Julie Murphy

Holy hell! Pumpkin, Julie Murphy's latest book, is an absolutely amazing book about living your life as unabashedly you as you can.

Waylon Brewer is a flamboyantly gay (and fat) high school senior from a small Texas town. Being gay at his high school isn’t ideal but it’s not too traumatizing; while he has to endure some taunting, having his twin sister Clementine (who is also gay) by his side makes everything more endurable.

“There are times when I feel like I can’t be me. I can’t simply exist. I have to offer something in exchange. Something that absolves me of being fat and gay and even worse—both of those things at once.”

When the audition video he made one night for his favorite TV drag show is accidentally shared with the entire school, he gains a little more notoriety and takes a few more insults. But ultimately, he is nominated for prom queen, and Hannah, Clem’s girlfriend, is nominated for prom king.

Although they were nominated as a joke or insult (or maybe a little of both), Waylon and Hannah decide they’re going to do anything they can to win. And when Waylon is paired up with Tucker, one of his nemeses, on prom court projects, he learns that sometimes first impressions of a person don’t always reveal the truth of who they are.

Pumpkin is so funny, so sensitive, so utterly squee-worthy, I can’t find enough words to express how much I loved it. I’ve been that fat gay kid too, and I didn’t handle it with even a fraction of the flair Waylon did. Every single one of these characters is so exceptional in their own way. This is definitely a book I wish existed when I was growing up.

I hope we get a sequel someday! I love buddy reads with my friend Louis because the discussion is always so great, and this certainly was no exception!!