My Return to the Walter Boys

My Life with the Walter Boys #2

by Ali Novak

The highly anticipated sequel to My Life with the Walter Boys, the internationally bestselling novel that inspired the Netflix series!

Jackie Howard returns to the Walter ranch after a summer in New York. She needed space—and got it. But she doesn't know where things stand with her and Cole Walter after that goodbye kiss. Over the summer, she stopped texting him. She never stopped thinking about him.

Still, with Cole living off in town to work at Tony's garage before he heads off to college, Jackie thinks it'll be easy to avoid him—only to find that when she sees him face to face at last, it's, well... impossible to resist him. Things are getting complicated: he's the boy she can't get off her mind, and the Walters have become the family she loves and needs. How can Jackie move forward when she's afraid of taking the next step?

Genres: Romance, Young Adult, Audiobook, Contemporary, Fiction, Young Adult Romance, Realistic Fiction

336 pages, Paperback

First published April 15, 2025

About the author

Ali Novak is a Wisconsin native and a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s creative writing program. She started writing her debut novel My Life with the Walter Boys when she was only fifteen. Her work has received more than 150 million reads online.

When she isn’t writing, Ali enjoys Netflix marathons, traveling with her husband Jared, and reading any type of fantasy novel she can get her hands on. You can follow her on Wattpad, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat @fallzswimmer.

Please note that I don't answer messages on Goodreads. Please feel free to contact me on Twitter or Instagram.

Reviews

[Sophie R · Rating 2 out of 5]

Will this book ever come out. It’s been way to long and I want to read it.

[♥︎ Heather ⚔ (New House-Hiatus)]

.

[Bookfanic]

I NEED THIS NOW

[Belle₊˚⊹♡ (for keeps ∞♡) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.75 stars!! 🌟🌟🌟🌟

(spoiler-free🐵🩵🩵🩵💝)

Going into this book I DID NOT think I’d love this as much as I did!??👏🏼😭💝

I’m a little surprised not more people are talking about this book, it’s so underrated and I CANNOT wait for the third book??? (Hasn’t been announced but I’m hoping!🤞🏻)

And just a fyi Book Cole and TV show Cole ARE TWO COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PEOPLE👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Like truly, in a world of boys HE’S A GENTLEMANNN

I’m more Down bad for book Cole than him on tv tbh 😩😭💝💝idk book Cole just HITS, he has me giggling and just screaming more than on tv lolll

Anywho, I adore this book and ate it up so hard, so I highly recommend this series 🫶🏼


🎧Songs:

~Everything I Want~Beabadoobee

~I Love You, I’m Sorry~Gracie Abrams

~Risk~Gracie Abrams

~Adore You~Harry Styles

~Back to December~Taylor Swift

~The Other Side Of The Door~Taylor Swift

~Come back…be here~Taylor Swift

~Savior Complex~Phoebe Bridgers


💌Favorite Quotes:

(Minor-spoilers 🔽)


~"𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙢𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙗𝙚 𝙪𝙣𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙤𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨. 𝙄 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙄'𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝙒𝙚𝙡𝙡, 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩'𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙚, 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪,” 𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙢𝙚. "𝙔𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙚 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙬."
(⬆️this scene 😭😭)


~ "𝙊𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙙. 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥, 𝙅𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙞𝙚. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙢𝙚'"
(⬆️NO ONE COULD EVER MAKE ME HATE YOU COLE)

~ “𝙉𝙚𝙭𝙩 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚, 𝙢𝙮 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙩𝙨 𝙢𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙠𝙞𝙘𝙠 𝙞𝙣, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙬𝙤𝙣'𝙩 𝙗𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙙𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙚."
𝙃𝙚 𝙨𝙢𝙞𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨. "𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙄'𝙢 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙮?"
𝙄 𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙚𝙮𝙚𝙨. "𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙮"
“I 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙮.”
(⬆️idc if this line was used in Powerless too, i ATE THIS SCENE UPPP🎀)

~ “𝘼𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙚𝙨?"
“𝙄-𝙮𝙚𝙖𝙝.” 𝙄 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙. “𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙄 𝙖𝙢.”
"𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄’𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙚, 𝙅𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙞𝙚"
(⬆️I can’t he’s the sweetest 🥹🥰)

________________________

💙🩵💛Preread:

My hopes aren’t too high for this book and I haven’t seen many people talk about this one 🤔
I really loved the first book and hope I love this one as well! 🫶🏼😚

[ellie જ⁀➴ · Rating 3 out of 5]

➳ 3 ☆! 🪟 mini + spoiler free review
⤷ cute ending but i feel like i needed MORE, like an epilogue maybe? what about her life in ny??

“then I’ll be your someone, jackie.”

₊‧꒰my thoughts꒱ ‧₊
⤷ super quick and easy read!! my only complaints were the ending and some of the characters. i feel like i wanted more w the ending. like more time of seeing them TOGETHER as a couple, and im really curious about jackie later on in the future because they are still soso young 😔 so college era for jackie wouldve been amazing! and then the characters.. sometimes i didnt understand them at all. like thier actions or when they got moody. but they're only human so 😭 wait their fictional GET YO ACT TGT anyways, it was good overall! and im happy to finally complete a series <3 ON THE OTHER HANDDDD i cant wait for s2 in august!! oh and shout out issac, nathan, and danny!! love them <3 OH AND KATHERINE 💗🥹 but anyway, it was still cute and seeing moments of them !

------------

🫐 | preview! 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ𐙚
⤷ eek its always fun to read a new release 🥹 the show is fun and i cant wait for s2! but anyways, needed a quick genre change after reading a fantasy novel & a dystopian novel! haha anyways hope this is good 💐 team cole <3

[Nour (FREE PALESTINE) Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

may 3 - finished
3.75 stars
GOD JACKIE CAN BE SO FRUSTRATING
THAT ENDING THO
rtc when I can think properly (and when my computer isnt at 1%...)
oh and ISAAC = BAE

april 15
ITS OUT. ITS OUT. ITS OUT. ITS OUT. ITS OUT. ITS OUT.
IT IS OUT
dont even think about trying to get in contact with me bc this gonna take over. it was nice knowing ya

april 4
11 MORE DAYS AHHHHHH
AJSNJFTNEGUIVPT#$BV

february 11
COVER UPDATE!! COVER. UPDATE.
ummm its definitely... something

october 16
this... this is definitely gonna be interesting... but im here for it!

[Shannon · Rating 1 out of 5]

harry potter references in a book published in 2025 is certainly... a choice

[Bookish Spy · Rating 2 out of 5]

•UPDATE AFTER SEASON 2 RELEASE•
If you hated this book like I did, never fear, the TV show is nothing like it! I binged the whole thing in one night and it was everything this book wasn't!

Please go watch that instead. Then come back and thank me lol

••••••
•ORIGINAL REVIEW•
I hate to say it, but this was disappointing.

This review is not going to give major spoilers, but it will be spoiler adjacent because it's the only way I could explain my feelings. Please keep that in mind and skip this if you need.

Initially, I was super invested! Jackie was on her way back to Colorado and the Walters. Everything was right in the world

Nope. Immediately, Jackie wanted space from Cole for her mental health. Did this man take that well? No. He started being actually horrible to her. Because she said she needed space to grieve... seems fair 😒

Like, fine, we love creating drama for the plot, but this was just not it.

Oh, and Alex is hot now? But also such a background character that it really doesn't matter. That was odd. Why bother mentioning it?

Someone tell me why didn't Danny come back or feature in more than just one phone call? And that phone call was somehow purely a plot device, but we never get to see if that's accurate? It's just an assumption Jackie makes lol

Oh and when Cole changes his behaviour, he goes back to flirting non-stop with Jackie DESPITE her being very clear about her boundaries. To the point where he pushes her back into being his girlfriend but without ever asking her. At which time he decides to treat her like trash again!!!

He then has the audacity to seem shocked when she yet again states her boundaries and tries to get space

And then the whole ending... please tell me why they have one conversation, and then it just... ends. I was shocked and not in a good way.

I don't know if that was the plot? Or if there just wasn't one.

This book is just one huge mess, if I'm honest.

The only character that didn't make me want to throw things was Isaac! He had depth. He felt real! And if I'm honest, he weirdly had more chemistry with Jackie than he should've 😂 He was flirty af! And he knew when to apologise sincerely, unlike someone *cough* Cole *cough*

Tbh every star I give this book is because of Isaac.

Despite loving the first book and the TV show, I can't really recommend this. Maybe the author should've left this series in 2014?

➛ 𝟐 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐬

PS. Can someone teach Jackie to knock? 💀

PPS. Why is there a whole Harry Potter trivia night in this book? Gross.

[Ali Park · Rating 4 out of 5]

this family needs a fucking therapist

[mia♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐️
Cole is so so hot.

[Kara Crevier · Rating 1 out of 5]

Praying the second season is nothing like this book 🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱

[yifan · Rating 3 out of 5]

i just want s2.

[Avery Dunn · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a fan of the first book, the cliffhanger killed me. Sadly this book didn’t deliver a satisfying ending. There wasn’t any resolution between Cole and Jackie like I would have expected from a sequel. This book has no plot. It was basically a back and fourth Cole and Jackie book. There were loose ends that didn’t make any sense. Why? 😭 to me, it felt like she forgot who the Walter’s are, who Cole is, and what the book is about. I guess 10 years between books will do that. 😞. The magic and unity of the Walter family wasn’t there. It felt like the Walter’s were falling apart. I love them so much so it saddened me to see them in chaos. Their personalities were not the same. They were very off. What happened to Issac!? Issac basically made a point to make dirty sex jokes in every conversation. Sometimes multiple. Cole did a complete 180. He’s no longer the bad boy we all love. The “Cole effect” seems to be something the author forgot how to write. I’m very disappointed that this book didn’t live up to my expectations. I only read this because I’m such a fan of the first book.

[crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

SOOOOO FREAKING CUTE UGH I LOVE THIS FAMILY

[Kallie DeMeyer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I so badly wanted to love this book. Really enjoyed the first one and the Netflix adaptation of it as well. But this book just had so many things that didn’t make sense? Like I hate to say it that it just felt poorly written and was all over the place. It was almost like the first book was ignored and the second was written based of things that happened in the show and not the book. ☹️

[modezireads]

im going to become a magician just so i can make this book disappear!!

[Lilian♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just as good as the first one. Oh my gosh.

This is an exceptional duology that everyone needs to read! I could not put down either of the books!!

My life with the Walter Boys is my favorite read of the year so far! Thank you, Ali Novak! You know what you're doing!

I loved the dirt racing element in this book!! Considering my dad is a dirt race car driver, and I spend so much of my time at race tracks, I loved reading about it! I've never read a book where they went to a race track!!

Thank you, NetGalley.com, for the arc!! Make sure you guys check this book out when it releases on April 15th!!

Thanks for reading💗

[ੈ✩‧₊˚ faithreads *ೃ༄ (inactive) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was just kinda nothing! It was literally just back and forth of ‘I like you’ and ‘no I can’t date I’m healing.’ And repeat!!! So annoying! I love the show so hopefully it’s better lol. Cole seemed totally different in this book, it didn’t even feel like him. Alex and Kim were cute but wayyy overplayed…how did they get away with it lol? Idk what’s up with Isaac bc I love him but this book totally ruined him! And Jackie is sooo pick me! I think this was just a thrown together book so it really didn’t hit for me….

[Sivan Simhi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please write and release book 2🙏

[Christine]

THERE'S NOT EVEN A DATE YET?!

I'm slowly dying....

[݁&#x1d717;&#x1d71a; tasia (matching with beloved aimes) &#x1f9f8;ྀི · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ .75 That was a SOILD 4.75. This is what I waited for, and needed in my veins. I’ve been waiting for YEARS and she did NOT DISAPPOINT.
When I say Ali is the QUEEN of allusions, I mean she is THE QUEEN. We got a whole lot of name drops, and modern living vibes. Taco Bell, Freaking Powerless (this was probably not intentional, but you can’t have the words “look what I did to your pretty face” and not have me scream in delight), Shakespeare, Harry Potter, and just that classic tsitp vibe. But at the same time this is a LOT different than tsitp. To me, it’s a lot better. Tsitp walked so Mlwtwb could run in my opinion. We are giving attention to the wrong show, YALL. And don’t take it wrong, i was obsessed with tsitp, so no hate at all. I loved it. Mlwtwb did what tsitp couldn’t in two books.
The character design and development, though, that was SO FREAKING AMAZING. Each character had their one original story and it wasn’t all just romance, the fmc really connected and helped these characters. I guess that’s why they called it My Life with the Walter Boys, because it’s genuinely her life with them. We get a side story of each Walter (or at least almost all of them…there ARE 12), and I saw that it was so cool and fun to learn about. They all found what was lost from each other, and it was from the main character, which I’m really happy about because the fmcs who do/change NOTHING make me mad. Yes, I’m all about the romance, the banter, the mmc, but a story with things other than romance, that’s a golden book. It can literally be the slightest hint or something that isn’t soully focused on the main characters, and it would get an extra star or at least half.
I CANNOT WAIT TO SEE HOW THEY MAKE THIS INTO THE TV SHOW…IM GOING TO LOVE THIS SEASON. TEAM COLE ALWAYS🫖. Thanks for reading my rant! I’m going to go and rant to my teacher, who, unlikely for her, told me she has watched mlwtwb…

[nat!! · Rating 4 out of 5]

i really liked this!! i think it was a really good follow up to the first book, and even though jackie and cole kept going back and forth it never seemed too dramatic and i wasn't getting bored or fed up with it. i think the walter family and all of the other side characters really kept me invested, and i loved getting to see jackie become a bigger part of their family!

im so glad she finally felt at home in colorado and found a place that brought her joy, but i do truly think it was the people that made the place for her. i loved getting to see her interactions change with the walters from the first book to this one and see them accept her as one of their own!

im also definetly going to keep watching the show now that i have read both books, and before the next season comes out!

[✨LEAH✨(semi hiatus) · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m disappointed. I waited so long to get off hold on Libby to read this book. I was so excited when I finally got it on my Kindle. But the book was really losing me since the beginning. I waited so long just for it to be such a crappy book. The ending was so… meh. It was an ending where you would get the reaction “That’s all…? Okay then… I guess…” if you think you’re really missing out by not reading this book, trust me. You’re not. Jackie is rude and annoying still. No idea what Cole sees in her. And the part where Jackie walked in on Cole j3rking off was so cringe and weird as heck man. There was like no plot. Not an exciting book at all. :/

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

When’s the next book come out??

[Awkwardoceans · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a giant waste of time, this book was trash.

[⋄⋆ taylor ⋆⋄ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only read this so I could know what happens after S1 of the Netflix show.

[sofi]

dnf at 64%

tbh i just don’t care

[rayhanah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book didn't need to happen. It was just a lot of filler, a messy, stupid run around with cole & jackie conveniently resolved at the last second, and we're left with an open ending. Where is the epilogue with them as a couple in the future?! What happens with Nathan and his seizures? Isaac and his attention seeking asshole streak??? Did cole go onto pursuing mechanics and opening his own business??? I WANT TO KNOW.
So much was introduced and dropped halfway.
I also only just found out this was published THIS YEAR!! That's wild to me considering this has that bad YA wattpad feel...the harry potter references? atyd? in 2025? please 😭😭 I have no idea how they're gonna spin this in s3, but for the love of god I hope they make it better.
still #teamcole 💙

[Madden · Rating 1 out of 5]

Despite hating cutesy YA romances, I can't seem to stop myself from reading them. I actually did enjoy My Life With The Walter Boys (both the book and the show), because I felt like it had much more complex characters and relationship dynamics than most other books of the same genre. That was all lost in this one.

This book was absolutely pointless. All of Jackie's growth from the first book was erased. She started the book at the EXACT same place (airport!) and relearned the same lessons about grief and found family that were resolved in the first book. Her relationship with Cole also progressed exactly the same, minus Alex, who was almost written out entirely. I can see why the show kept up the love triangle, because the story is just so boring without it. There was no real plot, just a cycle of arguments, Cole violating Jackie's boundaries, then some kissing.

Also, maybe this is kind of random, but I hate how they act like Cole not being able to play football is THE SAME as Jackie's WHOLE FAMILY suddenly and tragically dying. I didn't really notice that in the first book, but in this one, it was explicitly stated that those were equal loses. Maybe I just don't understand the epic highs and lows of high school football, but something about that whole thing seems a little wrong...

Despite coming out a few months ago, this book felt so dated. There was an absurd amount of Harry Potter references that brought me right back to middle school. I had so much second-hand embarrassment it made my stomach hurt. Some of the tropes used were very common in the Wattpad era and not common in books now. A lot of the book just seemed like it was trying to string together romantic one-shot fan fictions. Things like the star gazing date, followed by Cole getting into Jackie's bed reminded me SO MUCH of those One Direction Imagine things, I don't even know how to put it into words.

I will say, one thing I liked about this book was that it explored (albeit on a surface level) the impacts Nathan's epilepsy diagnosis had on him. In the show, it wasn't even mentioned in the second season, which I found strange. This also explored Isaac and Parker's characters in more depth, which was nice. But compared to this first books, the Walter siblings and family unit have a very reduced role. Jackie spends substantially less time interacting and bonding with all of them, and a lot of major characters from the first book hardly make an appearance. The book revolves entirely around Jackie and Cole, which is probably nice if you like Cole, but I do not.

I think Cole is worse in this book than the first. He disrespected Jackie's boundaries over and over again. That's literally the whole book. Jackie is also part of the problem though. Her internal monologue is all about how he's ruining her life and stuff, then he'll "smirk" in her general direction and she'll fall apart. I don't even dislike Jackie, but that poor girl would follow Cole into oncoming traffic. If there's a third book (I will read it), I hope Jackie learns to stand up for herself and the Walter's stop letting Cole get away with things just because he's Cole.

I don't think my review is very coherent. I just have a lot of thoughts.

[Ria Camden]

«I'm going to focus on fixing myself and figuring out my future, whatever that looks like. Maybe when I do, the timing will finally be perfect.

All my love, Cole»

Imagine getting a continuation of a story 12 years later... Well, here you don’t have to—it just happened!

Let's start with the fact that I absolutely adore the TV show, and I read the original novel only days before the Netflix premiere. So when I saw My Return to the Walter Boys on NetGalley? I almost choked on nothing.

This book picks up right where the first one ends, then jumps ahead to the end summer—and honestly, it felt so nice knowing Ali Novak got the chance to revisit the Walter House and give us more.

To be completely honest, to me Cole and Jackie's relationship in this book was too emotional-swings-like? The letter tho? PLEASE!

He smirked at this. "You think
I'm pretty?"
I rolled my eyes. "You think you're pretty."
"I think you're pretty."

You know who did not disappoint? ISAAC! If you know, you know, but let’s just say… here? He’s spicyyy!

A huge Thank You to NetGalley, SOURCEBOOKS Fire and Ali Novak for the ARC! It was so nice to step back into this world.


˙⋆.˚୨ৎ ria’s romance rating scale ୨ৎ˙⋆.˚

• plot 55/100
• writing 67/100
• characters 69/100
• giggle & feet-kick-ability 63/100
• general enjoyment 60/100
• cringe -0/-100

0.25/5 🌶️ (Yeah, it's even a tiny bit spicy as a YA)
total: 314

*500-471 - 6 stars
470-401 - 5 stars
400-341 - 4 stars
340-201 - 3 stars
200-101 - 2 stars
100-0 - 1 star