นิกกับชาร์ลี : Nick and Charlie

Solitaire #1.5

by Alice Oseman, วลัยลักษณ์ จิตตะยโศธร (Translator)

CHARLIE: “I have been going out with Nick Nelson for two years. He likes rugby, Formula 1, dogs, the Marvel universe, the sound felt-tips make on paper, rain and drawing on shoes. He also likes me.”

NICK: “Things me and Charlie Spring do together include: Watch films. Sit in the same room on different laptops. Text each other from different rooms. Make out. Make food. Make drinks. Get drunk. Talk. Argue. Laugh. Maybe we're kind of boring. But that’s fine with us.”

Everyone knows that Nick and Charlie are the perfect couple – that they’re inseparable. But now Nick is leaving for university, and Charlie will be left behind at Sixth Form. Everyone’s asking if they’re staying together, which is a stupid question – they’re ‘Nick and Charlie’, for God’s sake!

But as the time to say goodbye gets inevitably closer, both Nick and Charlie question whether their love is strong enough to survive being apart. Or are they delaying the inevitable? Because everyone knows that first loves rarely last forever…

Genres: Romance, LGBT, Young Adult, Queer, Contemporary, Fiction, Audiobook

152 pages, Paperback

First published July 16, 2015

About the author

Alice Oseman is an award-winning author, illustrator, and screenwriter, and was born in 1994 in Kent, England. She has written four YA contemporary novels about teenage disasters: SOLITAIRE, RADIO SILENCE, I WAS BORN FOR THIS, and LOVELESS. She is the creator of LGBTQ+ YA romance webcomic HEARTSTOPPER, which is now published in physical form by Hachette Children's Books, and she is the writer, creator, and executive producer for the television adaptation of HEARTSTOPPER, which is set to be released on Netflix.

Alice’s first novel SOLITAIRE was published when she was nineteen. Her YA novels have been nominated for the YA Book Prize, the Inky Awards, the Carnegie Medal, and the Goodreads Choice Awards.

Alongside writing and drawing, Alice enjoys playing the piano semi-proficiently, Pokémon games, and purchasing too many Converse.

Find Alice on Twitter and Instagram @AliceOseman.

Reviews

[Alice Oseman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Signed copies available to pre-order here!

NICK AND CHARLIE, a short story originally released as an e-book in 2015, is being rereleased in August 2020 as a paperback!
- Set two years after Heartstopper Vols 1-3.
- Nick's excited about going to uni, but Charlie's scared about being left behind. Can their relationship survive long distance?
- Leavers day antics, a house party, a beach date, and summer vibes!
- I promise Nellie is still alive.

[Kai Spellmeier]

I first read this book in 2015 just after finishing Alice's debut novel Solitaire because I needed more Nick and Charlie in my life. There was no Heartstopper: Volume One then. Suffice it to say, I loved it.
Five years later and I still really enjoyed it but I'm feeling a little different towards it, for two reasons. The first being that I can't help but feel like there's an element of fetishisation in this novella and I'm not 100% percent able to stay unbothered by it. While on the one hand I'm all for sex positivity, I'd have preferred it if there were no post-sex images of shirtless Nick & Charlie cuddling in bed for all the world to swoon over. The other reason is that while I love how popular and successful Alice is as a writer and artist, we have entered the phase when the publisher has realised they can make a lot of money with very little content. This means that a novella of 80 pages was turned into a novel with huge spacing and a large font plus a few pages of doodles and Heartstopper-style comic pages (which I loved, don't get me wrong). So while I admire the cute repackaging, I can't oversee the dollar/pound signs twinkling in the publisher's eyes.
Oh and one more thing - if I have to hear one more time about how weird Nick and Charlie think they are, I might have to scream. Charlie, you're an average 17 year old boy with a nice but average boyfriend, living in a nice, average house, wearing a nice, average school uniform who likes to do nothing all day but cuddle and hang out. The only potentially weird thing about you is your sister. Get over it.

Find more of my books on Instagram

[daph pink ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who miss Nick and Charlie ? Me
Who want to cry ? Me

[Bryce Rocks My Socks · Rating 5 out of 5]

i
cant
stop
smiling
my
face
hurts

[Ellie Spencer (catching up from hiatus) · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first novella by Alice Oseman was definitely a winner.

Nick and Charlie follows the couple shortly after the Heartstopper books are set. Nick is due to leave for university soon but Charlie is worried about what it will do to their relationship. Can they work things out, or will the distance break them?

I absolutely adored this charming novella. My main issue with the Nick and Charlie books is that I want more!!! I would quite happily just read them for the rest of my life. This book managed to wrap itself right into my heart as usual. I just wish it was longer, I don’t feel like I’ll ever be fully satisfied because I love Nick and Charlie too much! When I started this journey I never thought it would get to this, but they are genuinely my favourite fictional couple. I get so much nostalgia from their teenage love, yet their love has an extra depth and is so so cute!

I loved the references to my favourite characters and feel like this is such a helpful book for teenagers who are heading to university soon. I feel it may really help them work through some of their feelings if they are in a relationship. I do think that this one is a little more grown up than the Heartstopper books, a little less PG. All I want to do now is devour every single one of Oseman’s books. They just make my heart feel light and put a smile on my face!

I recommend this novella to any fans of the Heartstopper books, it’s lovely to see how Nick and Charlie have progressed!

[Carolyn Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two Alice Oseman books in one day...life is GREAT!!!
I could read about Nick and Charlie for THE REST OF MY LIFE!!!
I have very few words, and they are...READ HEARTSTOPPER AND READ NICK AND CHARLIE!
You'll thank me later!
You're welcome in advance!
;)

I could go on and on, but no words will do justice to such extraordinary characters and their extraordinary love!

**re-read via the audiobook!
Loved it all over again!!!

[s.penkevich [hiatus-will return-miss you all] · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Two idiots in love. Couple goals.’

Sometimes you just need something overtly adorable, and Nick and Charlie certainly delivers. Set two years after the events occurring in Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper graphic novel series, this novella finds the charming couple headed towards a massive hurdle in their relationship: Nick leaving for college. It is a very emotional arc full of anxieties for the future and self-doubt that will likely be relatable or resonate with many readers and it is fun to see these characters navigating teenage drama during a period of time when the circle of high school life cracks open and everyone heads down new paths towards adulthood. Miscommunication is central to this story, and I enjoy how Oseman allows it to be sad and frustrating as it feels real that the characters would make bad assumptions due to the anxiety of their interior lives and stumble into miscommunicated mishaps. Nick and Charlie is as cute as you would hope it would be and Oseman continues to have her finger on the pulse of fun, queer, teenage stories.

While this just came out in the US, Nick and Charlie was originally published in 2015 in the UK. The story came out after Solitaire in which Nick and Charlie play supporting cast in a story about Tori (Tori continues to be great here, probably my favorite character honestly) and was written before Heartstopper . Due to this, some of it feels a bit off, like in the way after watching several seasons of a tv series if you return to watch the first season the characters don’t feel as nuanced or dynamic quite yet. It’s also two years later so it makes sense they come across a bit differently. But also we are so used to these characters in graphic novel format where here we are much more inside their heads—Oseman rotates between both character’s perspectives every new chapter—so it is a fun way to revisit familiar friends in a new way. That said, its best to approach this without trying to overly compare it to the Heartstopper series. The illustrations throughout the story are also a nice touch.

This is a really cute slice of life in the story of a couple that ‘if you had to provide evidence for soul mates, everyone would pick you two.’ I really enjoy how much miscommunication and assumptions derail their stories, or anxieties growing worse seeing other friends break-up as this feels pretty true to life. I remember being this age and people having theories on if it is better to just go into college with a clean slate or seeing couples break up almost immediately under the weight of distance dating, so this story felt like a good catalyst to test the relationship of a couple. While the story may be overly simplified and perhaps too happy of an ending, that’s also what you expect with these characters so I enjoyed that. Sometimes you just need a good happy ending to wash away the built up sads and feel good. Nick and Charlie delivers in a quick novella that makes for a nice afternoon read.

⅘

[ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

this version of Charlie and Nick wasn’t sweet and wholesome like in Heartstopper. it was pretty messy and realistic.

well, they still were sweet and wholesome but it just wasn’t as achingly sweet... more heartbreakingly sweet. it was just a really nice insight into the more vulnerable and volatile side of their dynamic. in Heartstopper, despite some of the traumatic things Charlie and Nick experience, it’s always with an edge of soft hopefulness, and their relationship continues to remain steady and strong.

while here, it was a bit more complex and realistic imo. you see the slightly mundane, repetitive and even bitter side of their relationship (in comparison to Heartstopper where it’s this elevated beautiful romance... this was more humble for sure). i liked it though, it just added an extra layer to their relationship that was kinda nice bcos it made me think “ohhh so they are human after all?”

bcos at times in Heartstopper, despite my adoration for them, their love seems almost too perfect. so this provided a nice balance for me.

I didn’t really like holding his hand anywhere where people could see us [...] because groups of other boys would look at us like they weren’t quite sure whether they were supposed to be making fun of us or not.
Nowadays the weird looks only make me want to hold his hand even more.

and the way i felt scandalised when it was mentioned by Nick that him and Charlie have sex😭😭 since the graphic novel is very wholesome and doesn’t do much beyond the odd sexual innuendo that makes them blush, being reminded that these two fumbling cinnamon rolls have sex was a shock to the system, lemme tell you.

then the scene where they have sex? i felt like my eyeballs should not have been reading that. it’s not explicit, mind you, but it’s there. and i guess it added to the air of maturity since this is set roughly a year or so after where Volume Four ended, so naturally Charlie and Nick felt different.

and like i said just a little bit more human. they argued over stupid shit. Charlie was annoying for like half of the story in comparison to the sweet boy in Heartstopper. Nick could get vocally angry when he wanted in comparison to his golden retriever vibes in the graphic novel.

so yeah... it was just a nice addition to their relationship. i low-key wanna read all of Alice Oseman’s books now. Tori’s book is calling my name, while i wanna read more of Aled too.

im officially obsessed. Nick and Charlie own my soul.

I remember the exact moment I decided to take it, walking into my room after getting a glass of water to find Charlie curled up so beautifully in my bed, the orange street-lamp light shining on his skin, and I felt like if I was going to die, this.

[Lucy Tonks (the invisible life of a reader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

“You're... it's hard to explain. It's like, if you had to provide evidence for soul mates, everyone would pick you two.”


It's no surprise that I once again love a Alice Oseman book. She is one of my favourite authors, if not my favourite author alongside Cassie Clare.


In this novella we see Nick and Charlie a little bit over two years after the beginning of Heartstopper and a over an year after the events of Solitaire as they are struggling a bit in their relationship when Nick is preparing to go to university. Everyone knows that they arev a perfect couple, but Charlie can't help wondering if this is when their relationship will end.


Even though this is one of my least favourite books by her, as a novella I much preferred This Winter, I still really like it. It's not my least favourite, that would probably be I Was Born For This , as I didn't really like one of the narrators there, but this was still a great story.


I loved seeing Charlie's side of the story a lot as we saw how his mental health got better with time, even though you can clearly still see him struggling with it through out the novella. Alice Oseman portrayes a very realistic image of how mental health can be, how it usually takes years and years for someone to get better and how you would probably never be fully “cured” as this is not how mental illnesses really work.


It was interesting seeing Nick and Charlie again and just seeing how much stronger tehir relationship got since the beginning of Heartstopper. Although they had some things they were struggling with here and there, they were still there for eachother and they just cared and loved one another so much. They are one of my all time favourite ships and I just love the way Alice Oseman has developed it over the years.


This book was originnaly published in 2015, I think, but last year it was released in paperback and it just has this stunning artwork done by the author herself through out it and I just love it. Not only her art is so beautiful, but it just fits with the story so well!


In the end this is just a nice extra novella for anyone who wants to see more of Nick and Charlie which is perfect for big fans of Alice Oseman's works as myself.



______________________________


Not my favourite novel from Alice Oseman, but it was still very cute.
RTC.

[Anjal · Rating 3 out of 5]

a good filler book/novella but if i have to hear one more time how weird they think they are im calling the police. ffs they’re 17 something they can’t be that weird...”omg we are so pathetic and weird” just STOP. 🛑

major pick me energy

[Katie Colson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think Nick and Charlie 'work' in this format. I was so looking forward to this and it just fell very short. The way that I fill in the gaps of their characters and personality traits in the graphic novel were not represented in this writing style. That isn't Alice Oseman's fault but it didn't make it an enjoyable read for me personally. I liked getting a futuristic look at them because the graphic novels are set in their high school years. But it didn't feel at all necessary and I wish I had just waited to see how the graphic novels end.

The format of the book was very cute though. There are plenty of adorable illustrations that I really enjoyed.

[Rodrigo Unda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lo importante que es tener buena comunicación estando en una relación…

A ver, estoy consciente que “Nick y Charlie” salió antes que “Heartstopper”, por lo que entiendo que los personajes no estén completamente desarrollados o construidos. De hecho me gustó conocer la visión inicial de la autora sobre los protagonistas.

Pero no puedo evitar sentir que este libro es un romance más, con personajes a los que queremos y conocemos :(

Eso no le quita que no haya disfrutado del conflicto y de las escenas cursis. Además, es muy rápido de leerse 🙌🏻

Le iba a poner dos estrellas, pero le puse tres porque me gustó reencontrarme con los chicos ✨

[ella (taylor’s version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

“ok i love you more than my dogs…i actually love you more than anyone”

currently sobbing in the corner. leave me alone.

[Alex.andthebooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

Z przykrością stwierdzam, że w komiksach jest więcej treści i emocji niż w tej nowelce. Mam tylko głęboką nadzieję, że „Loveless” jest lepsze, bo jeśli nie to będzie mi strasznie przykro.

[elio · Rating 5 out of 5]

« it’s like, if you had to provide evidence for soul mates, everyone would pick you two »

[Virginia Ronan ♥ Herondale ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m on BookTube! =)

”No, but – “ he shakes his head – “you’re Nick and Charlie.”
I laugh. “What does that mean?”
“It’s ...” He laughs too, a nervous expulsion of air.
“You’re ... it’s hard to explain. It’s like, if you had to provide evidence for soul mates, everyone would pick you two.”

I can’t believe this were only 159 pages, yet they packed such a punch! Leave it to Alice Oseman to put us through the emotional wringer. *lol* Seriously, to read “Nick and Charlie” was such a roller coaster and my emotional bandwidth went from happy to sad and depressed right smack back into slap happy and cosy territory! It was.... A LOT! XD

”People we know usually message Charlie these days when they want to talk to either of us because I’m horrific at replying to messages. He’s way more organised than me.”

First of all let me tell you how much I loved to see the entire “Heartstopper” crew again! I loved to read about those tiny details like the fact that people will text Charlie because they know Nick is with him. I mean this was such a nice look at their every day life and extremely wholesome to read about! <3 Also their sweet and fluffy moments. They are just too adorable together and I guess I’m guilty of thinking “They are Nick and Charlie” too! I mean, they are! With some couples you just know that they are meant to be together forever and those two are like the epitome of this feeling!

”After a few seconds I go to move backwards, but he just pulls me further down. I laugh against his lips and I feel him smile too, but neither of us stop and after a minute or so I feel my hand subconsciously reach to run through his hair."

Unfortunately Nick is leaving for uni soon and that causes quite the trouble between them. They wouldn’t be Nick and Charlie if they wouldn’t be able to manoeuvre around that bump in the road though, right?! Well, I suppose you’ll have to find that out for yourself. Not gonna spoil anything! ;-P What I can say for sure is that I absolutely love Tori and Nick’s mum! They are amazing and I really wish every LGBTQIA+ teen would have people like them in their lives! You need the support of loved ones and those two did an excellent job! As did Aled Last! Gosh! It was so good to see more of Aled in here! I just love my boy and I missed him ever since I read the last page of “Radio Silence”. <3
Plus can we acknowledge how he is so damn good with Charlie’s feelings? He always said the right things and was the person that gave the best advice.

”You okay though?” he asks. “I feel like you’ve been really down today.”
I pause, a little taken aback. “Oh. Yeah. No. I’m fine.”
“Yeah?” He fiddles with his fingers and gives me a look.
“Yeah. I don’t know. Nick’s just talking a lot about uni, it’s kind of ... just makes me feel a bit crap... I don’t know.” I groan and run a hand through my hair. “That sounds so bad when I say it out loud.”
“No, you’re allowed to feel things.” He smiles. “I get it.”

This said I really enjoyed reading “Nick and Charlie”! It was a great addition to the main series and it’s always so nice to be back in the world of “Heartstopper”! For me it felt like coming home and meeting a lot of good old friends, which is legit one of the best feelings ever! =)

”I think he just took them because he wanted to remember what this was like. What our life is like now. Chilling round each other’s houses, going on walks, eating together, sleeping together.
It sounds boring but it’s so wonderful.
It is. I feel myself tear up just looking at our life together.
I love this. I love us. I love our weird, boring life.”

_____________________________

Oh boy, those 159 pages had it in them. This book was such an emotional roller coaster!
Seriously my emotional bandwidth went from happy and cosy to sad and depressed right smack into slap happy and snug territory. Like uff! XD
I loved it though! Nick and Charlie are amazing and I absolutely adore all their friends! Loved to see more of Aled in here! He’s so precious! <33

Full RTC soon! ;-)

_________________________________

I wanted to read this ever since it came out and since I'm reading lots of short books in September I decided to squeeze this one in as well. *lol*
(Also my library wants it back and I don't want to give it back, but that's a story for another day. T_T)

Can't wait to read about Nick and Charlie! <3
This edition even has pictures in it so I guess I found a special treat?! =)

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[B · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a very average read. It was nice seeing Nick and Charlie again, but I didn't like this as much as I hoped. I do like that we got a more 'realsistic' view of their relationship, becase in Heartstopper it seemed as if they were the 'perfect couple', but apart from that I wasn't a huge fan of this book.

Also Charlie's comments on how 'weird' he and Nick are were weird. Nothing about their dynamic is weird, they are just normal teenagers. As someone the same age as themselves, it was odd to see how these characters considered them 'not like other teens', and frankly it was quite annoying. I'm glad it wasn't that way too much in Heartstopper.

Overall, an ok novella that was kind of fun, albeit a bit boring. Looking forward to read more by this author!

Reviewed on 22nd April, 2022

DISCLAIMER-All opinions on books I’ve read and reviewed are my own, and are with no intention to offend anyone. If you feel offended by my reviews, let me know how I can fix it.

How I Rate-
1 star- Hardly liked anything/ was disappointed
2 star- Had potential but did not deliver/ was disappointed
3 stars- Was ok but could have been better/ was average / Enjoyed a lot but something was missing
4 stars- Loved a lot but something was missing
5 stars- Loved it/ new favourite

[Anya Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel so lonely

[Romie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nick and Charlie are the purest and softest boys to exist. knowing that they're going to spend the rest of their lives together is making me extremely happy (4.5)

[Imme [trying to crawl out of hiatus] van Gorp · Rating 3 out of 5]

|| 3.0 stars ||

Not sure how to feel about this one. Obviously Nick and Charlie are cute together, but I’ve always hated how much drama Charlie can create out of nothing, and he did it again here. He basically drove Nick away because of his own insecurities, without telling him why, and then let him stew in his heartbreak for two whole weeks before finally saying he doesn’t actually want to break up. I felt a little bad for Nick to be honest…

Also, I have to say I was a little shocked to see how easily both of them were willing to give up on their entire relationship because of one fight. I would have thought they wanted to make up right away, or at least try to talk it out. But nope. Just radio silence for weeks…

That said, I did really enjoy reading about these two in novel format for a change. It’s definitely very different from experiencing their story through a graphic novel, so this gave an interesting new perspective.
It was also very different because the story takes place two years in the future, so the vibe between these two was much more mature and less wholesome. If I’m being honest, they actually didn’t quite feel like themselves to me, but not to the point of it feeling too weird.


'Heartstopper' series:
Volume One - 3.0 stars
Volume Two - 4.0 stars
Volume Three - 2.5 stars
Volume Four - 4.0 stars
Volume Five - 2.5 stars

Companion Novels:
Nick and Charlie - 3.0 stars
The Heartstopper Yearbook - 1.5 stars

[Celia {Hiatus until August} · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars
"Vocês...
É difícil de explicar.
É, tipo, se fosse preciso apresentar provas para a existência de ALMAS GÉMEAS, toda a gente vos escolheria aos dois."
E assim inicia este livro.
E só com esta frase, ficamos esclarecidos o quão fofinha, amorosa é a história de Charlie e Nick.

Neste livro, encontramos um Nick e um Charlie mais maduros, numa relação de dois anos, mas que vai ter de sobreviver a muita coisa...
Nick vai para a faculdade, Charlie fica mais um ano no colégio.
Dois anos sempre juntos, vão ter um duro desafio pela frente.
Como sobreviver a uma relação à distância?
A mesma provação irá Tao e Elle passar.
Como Elle é um ano mais velha que Tao, será ela a ir para a faculdade e Tao a ficar para trás.

Apesar da evolução da relação, Charlie ainda é muito inseguro e tem uma recaída com a ida de Nick para a faculdade.
Vão ter que superar obstáculos, mal entendidos, orgulho, mas...
"Esta é uma verdadeira história de amor."

Apesar de...
"Toda a gente sabe que o primeiro grande amor raramente dura para sempre..."

[tania (semi-active) · Rating 3 out of 5]

➣09/02/2024
ଘ(੭´3 stars`)°* ੈ‧₊˚

such a cute novella🎀 saying this only bc it's about Nick and Charlie
here we find out more about them after the volume 5, their struggle with growing up, Nick going to uni and their concerns about doing long distance❤️‍🩹

not bad, not bad. I think I'll check some of her others books too🤭

MOOD OF THE BOOK:
Sweater Weather by The Neighbourhood

QUOTES:


“I used to think I was pathetic for thinking soppy, romantic stuff like that. I don’t anymore. I just keep thinking it. I keep wanting him here. I keep wanting him to stay.”

“It's like, if you had to provide evidence for soulmates, everyone would pick you two.”


“Exactly. Two idiots in love. Couple goals.”

I started reading it now cause I couldn't resist when I saw this abandoned, taking dust on the shelves of my local library🤭


🪼⋆.ೃ࿔*:･🪼⋆.ೃ࿔*:･🪼⋆.ೃ࿔*:･🪼⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

I'm gonna cry, I just found out this book (chronologically speaking) comes after volume 5 of Heartstopper☹️
so I have to wait to read this til I get my claws on the fifth volume.

➣ 20/12/2023
pre-review: reading this out of desperation since the fifth volume of "Heartstopper" didn't come out yet in my loser country actually so jealous of y'all

[Jenna · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 out of 5 stars

TW: eating disorders, toxic relationships

Oof. I can’t believe that I’m actually rating an Alice Oseman novel less than 2 stars, but here I am.

This novella follows the two most beloved characters in Oseman’s body of work—Nick and Charlie—as Nick prepares to graduate high school and subsequent issues arise due to Charlie’s insecurities and fear of abandonment. Frankly, my major issue with this book and the primary reason for the low rating is that Charlie is just so damn unlikable in this story.

I’ve always personally had a very, very soft spot for Nick—he’s bi and his struggle with his sexuality was super relatable to me, not to mention he’s an utter sweetie. And I’ll grant that I may have some slight bias towards him over Charlie. So, when Charlie was unable to put aside his insecurities to share in Nick’s excitement and happiness at being able to move forward into the next chapter of his life, it put a sour taste in my mouth.

While all of his insecurities and concerns are entirely valid, the way he went about expressing them and his dependence on Nick for his happiness and well-being is super unhealthy and toxic. Charlie spends the entirety of the book annoyed and upset by Nick’s excitement regarding uni, but never properly articulated these feelings to Nick. He constantly calls himself pathetic and horrible and lame in his internal dialogue because of these feelings, but his supposed guilt over it never develops any further than being a justification for his anger towards Nick. While these feelings are realistic the portrayal of them wasn’t nuanced enough to capture how, while understandable, the way Charlie feels isn’t fair to Nick. And the way that it was never addressed by Nick, Charlie or any of the supporting characters was super disheartening.

It’s completely valid that Charlie is experiencing anxieties over his relationship becoming long-distance—it’s a big change for a high schooler to accept—but the characters never have an actual proper conversation about it. They just assume what the other is thinking. And while I think miscommunication is a realistic component of a lot of new and young relationships, it was so overdone here.

Likewise, I feel like this was Oseman’s weakest portrayal of anorexia and mental health issues in any of her work, which I think may be a symptom of ‘Nick and Charlie’ being one of her earlier, less polished works. Charlie displays no signs of actually being in the process of recovering from his eating disorder; he actively doesn’t eat snacks, doesn’t have an eating plan, relies on Nick for the preservation of his mental health and to ensure he actually eats. In one instance, he seems to focus on the eating habits and consumption of other people as well—which is a clear sign that he is not recovered from his ED at all. As seen in Oseman’s ‘Solitaire’, Charlie’s mental health almost entirely hinges on the continuation of his romantic relationship with Nick, and neither his parents or Nick’s seem to show issue with this.

It’s one thing to feature these issues in a book and provide commentary on very real problems that young people face—such as eating disorders, toxic traits that aren’t healthy but don’t necessarily make you a bad person, and co-dependency in teen relationships—but when they’re glanced over and/or glorified it can do significantly more harm than good.

Personally, I am the first person to recommend and support Oseman’s body of work because I do really enjoy her novels and see the merit in them. However, this novella simply wasn’t up to her usual standard of complexity and nuance. If you’re looking to read Alice Oseman’s books, I would still highly, highly recommend her post-Solitaire novels because I genuinely think they’re fantastic.

[el · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 120th book in 2018 is also a four star read, my heart is full. :’)

Also … I completed my reading challenge for this year sndjfndsjf; (🎊).

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[Tomasz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ta książka jest tak absurdalnie głupia i niepotrzebna, że to aż szokujące XD. Charlie jest maksymalnie irytujący, a reszta bohaterów też zachowuje się dziwnie w porównaniu do komiksów, co jest paradoksalne, bo tutaj wszyscy powinni być starsi i bardziej rozsądni. Do tego jest słabo napisane, a tej fabuły nie starczyłoby nawet na jeden rozdział Heartstoppera, moim zdaniem Oseman po prostu kiepsko radzi sobie w formie powieści. 1,5 i sam jestem w szoku, że zaokrąglam w górę, ale sumienie i sympatia do tej serii nie pozwalają mi na wystawienie jednej gwiazdki.

[Karla Martínez · Rating 4 out of 5]

EXCUSE ME? por que me hacen sufrir 😭😭😭

[elea ☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

cried my eyes out 😀😀

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

alice oseman you have my whole heart in the palm of your hand.

this book was SO GOOD. it was kind of weird to read about nick and charlie in novelised form. i'm so used to reading them through images as a comic or on a screen. but i did enjoy reading them in text. im a novel person so this definitely fit more me.

i did like occasional illustration of nick and charlie, it reminded me of the graphic novels that i got so used to for heartstopper.

it was weird but really cool seeing nick and charlie's relationship two years after the time period of heartstopper. i wish we saw more of their relationship and how it's changed (or not) from two years ago. it was only mentioned for maybe three pages and then it got into the plot of the novella. to be honest i would have been completely okay if this was a full length novel just so that we could get more exposition.

i'm a character-driven person, so the descriptions of their relationship is really important to me. it kind of saddens me knowing that this could be the last of the nick and charlie timeline. i know alice is trying to expand into writing the adult genre so i assume we won't be getting much out of nick and charlie.

i would love to see a full length adult fiction novel of them later in their life. together or apart (preferably together), i would love to see how they have evolved as human beings.

anyways, back to this book. alice has the amazing ability to rip my heart apart in two seconds only for them to piece it back together in a heartbeat. i am OBSESSED with their writing. i've never read any of their novels (though I will be purchasing each one of them and obsessively reading it) but now I know that it's a number one priority.

i sort of knew what was going to happen in this book prior to reading it, so my heart was already extremely sensitive. and this shattered it.

i loved every minute of it. i can't even say anything else without repeating my words because i just loved it that much. it's an extremely short book and will be an in-between read for anytime that i don't have anything to read. i have made that executive decision now.

all in all: i'm going to tell my kids that nick and charlie are the original adam and eve. adam and adam. 5 stars
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pre review
FUCK. this took apart my heart and brought it back together in the span of 150 pages. i am crying on a plane right now. this one is going to take a second before i talk about it.

easiest five stars ever.

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tbr review
with all of the audios that i've heard from this book literally everywhere, i know somewhat of what's going to happen. and im fucking terrified. this book is going to destroy me and i don't know how i will survive it. if this does not end in a happily ever after im done.

[Aleee (libroslibroslibros) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 :)
En esta cuenta, somos fans de Alice Oseman y vamos a leer todo lo que este ser maravilloso escriba. Por eso mismo, hoy les traigo la reseña de Nick y Charlie, es un libro que nos sigue contando la historia de nuestros protagonistas en Heartstopper. 2 años después de empezar su relación, vemos el paso que sigue pata estos 2 bellos seres, Nick se va a la universidad. Obviamente no es cosa fácil las relaciones a distancia ni el decidir que hacer.
Vaya que fue un libro bello, pero en lo personal, no estuvo al nivel de Heartstopper. Alice Oseman tiene una forma de contar las cosas que yo amo infinitamente y en esta historia no es la excepción. También es rapidísima de leer y super ligera, yo creo que es ideal para salir de un bloqueo. Se las recomiendo si quieren seguí conociendo a Nick y a Char, aunque siento que es ideal leerla hasta después de haber leído el quinto tomo, porque puede haber spoilers. Aún así, ame leer a mis bebés de nuevo, ya en su vida un poco más adulta.

[Maram · Rating 3 out of 5]

I swear bullet points reviews are the best!

-I was expecting to like this more than the other novella because Nick and Charlie are like cuteness overload
-but I mean I was expecting way too much because of the comic heartstopper.
-Also, Charlie is my fav so I thought I would like this a lot
- I wasn't expecting a sad story (I know things get better at the end) Why is this???
- The characters are different from heartstopper I get it's two years later or one but still
- I need to stop comparing it to heartstopper
- Anyway, it was okay