The Secret of Us

Coates Academy #2

by Zarin Madiyha

Izzy Evans thought her final year of boarding school would be a quiet countdown to freedom—a chance to dodge university brochures and steer clear of her ex, Ryan.

While everyone else seems to have their futures mapped out, Izzy is paralysed by the thought of making the wrong choice.

Noah Park just wants a fresh start. Kicked out of his old school, he’s now the new boy with a target on his back, and Ryan seems determined to make his life miserable.
;
But when Izzy steps in to defend him, it ignites a rumour that catches fire: Izzy and Noah are dating.

And once the school rumour mill starts turning, there’s no stopping it.

Dealing with Noah’s sudden bad reputation and Izzy’s ex who won’t leave her alone, the two strike up a fake dating deal. But the more time they spend with each other, the harder it gets to pretend that it’s not real.

Genres: Romance, Sports Romance, Fake Dating, Friends To Lovers, Young Adult, Sports, Contemporary

388 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 30, 2025

Reviews

[vita ౨ৎ (semi ia) · Rating 2 out of 5]

╭₊˚๑ 2.50 ⭑﹕⚽️🌟₊˚੭

tropes .ᐟ
⤿ sports romance (football x field hockey)
⤿ fake dating
⤿ friends to lovers (slow burn)
⤿ dual pov

ꔛ˚🪁 ◟˚ 𝐩𝐫𝐞-𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 ⊰⊹ ࣪

love the cover and title (gracie yayyy) buddy read with pretty giu 💌 i hope we enjoy this more than the first book!!

⤿ started: february 04 ⋆｡˚୨୧˚｡⋆ ⤿ finished: february 08

[joni ౨ৎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 6 stars ⭐️


⤿ 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 april 12, 2025
⤿ 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 april 16, 2025

arc review 💌
release date: april 30

⁀➴ 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬
🩵 fake dating
⭐️ asian rep (korean)
🩵 slow burn
⭐️ opposites attract
🩵 mental health rep
⭐️ boarding school

oh my freaking days guys. zarin does it again - writes an absolute masterpiece !!
like what?!! to be able to write like this y'all 🤌 this girl deserves so much more hype!!

this might be my fav read of the year - like infinity stars

anyways let's actually yap about the story ↓↓

i had so so so much fun reading this and it might be one of the best books i've read all year so far 🤭🫶 i loved izzy's character from book 1 (the story of us) and this made me understand and love her even more. i just wanted to give these sad, precious characters a hug and tell them how amazing they are. i don't think many authors are actually capable of making you fall in love and be obsessed with their characters- flawed ones too.

i cried so many times while reading this and i don't think i'll ever see stars the same way again ☹️💕

and many many thanks to zarin for sending me a digital arc of your second novel 🫂 so happy to be one of your early readers and i'll definitely be buying a physical copy asap!!!

﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏

⭑.ᐟ 𝐢𝐳𝐳𝐲
this girl deserves everything in the whole world, her parents are actually horrible and she's just such a pure soul. i know what it's like burying your sadness bc others are going through 'way more' than you and that you don't want to burden them, i could see myself so easily though her eyes. her feeling like she'll never experience true love/having a soulmate?! felt that right to my bones like that's my most inner thoughts. the fear of never finding my person and doing life alone. also we love her supportive friend group - no toxic friendships here ❌ it was so nice to see that she had a super supportive close circle with issac, violet, her two best friends who are amazing 🫶🥹 i loved how she worked on choosing happiness for herself and not what others expected of her - we don't need every fmc ever being an academic weapon. also how she realized that she didn't need to keep doing things bc it might make others happy, it was so refreshing to see her take control of her life.

⭑.ᐟ 𝐧𝐨𝐚𝐡
my boy ☹️🫂 brb crying over him
you guys, he's actually PERFECT. #loverboy there's nothing he could do wrong. he just wanted to support izzy without burdening her 💔 when he was broken already. THIS is a guy written by a women. like literally but why isn't he real 😫 let's actually talk about him & his grief. so he already has a hard time when he left his old school and moved here, but then there were horrible rumours going around - which gave the new guy a bad reputation. noah didn't comment on anything, sticking to himself and hardly talking to anyone. it's hard being the new kid, even harder when they aren't shy from badmouthing you - when they dont know a single thing. i loved his relationship with his family, especially his grandfather. also love the asian rep in this!!! something that i didn't know i needed before reading this, was characters actually healing before getting into a relationship - we almost never see that in books. 2 people who are in horrible mental states literally always get together when in reality they'd kill each other, depending on someone else for happiness is NOT the right way to do things. this is coming from someone who can very much relate to relying on others/things for happiness when you need to find it yourself, you can't LOVE someone without loving YOURSELF. you'll burn out and actually not be in a healthy mental capability for that.

⭑.ᐟ𝐢𝐳𝐳𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐚𝐡
SQUEALING - the most precious couple ever, i fear they're padlocked to me from now on. no izzynoah slander here 🤺 live laugh love them. they are two broken souls who found comfort in the other and healed parts of each other. but in a healthy way.

⭑.ᐟ𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐜
the snippets of them being happily in love together after seeing them in the story of us ?? something i was dying for since the drought i'd been in since i read about them back in january.
﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏

ᝰ.ᐟ 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥
izzynoah forever and ever
#1 stan
please add this to your tbr and read on KU once it's released !!!!!!
﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏

🤍┆｡𖦹°‧ 𝐩𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 ౨ৎ
so so thankful to zarin for sending me an arc of this 🥹🫶 violet and issac are my babies and i cannot wait to dive into izzy's story !!

[giu ౨ৎ · Rating 3 out of 5]

˖ ִֶָ𐀔 𓂃 ࣪˖ ⋆ 3.5 stars

“I thought about buying you a star, but it didn’t feel like enough. You deserve a whole constellation.”

first in first tysm vita🤍 for reading this together ! you mean the world to me 🫂. i had and i always have so much fun with you.

i have to say that fake dating has never really been a trope i go crazy for, but in this book i absolutely loved it. i adored finally getting to read izzy’s story (isaac’s little sister) and noah’s. on my most honest opinion, this is exactly the kind of book I fall head over heels for, because it goes beyond today’s typical idea of a “romantic relationship.” i don’t think there’s much else to add, except that I truly loved the characters. i loved the way noah and izzy’s relationship developed, but most of all i appreciated izzy’s openness and emotional depth. that said, this applies to Noah too, especially to him. the last chapters were quite unexpected for me, but i didn’t mind them at all. on the contrary, i was so emotional that i almost cried. as of now, i’m not sure whether the writing style is one of my favourites, but it was definitely smooth and very enjoyable to read. i absolutely recommend it! and i also recommend the story of us, another book by the same author.

also from zarin madiyha:
@ the story of us review 3 ★

[Shay Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is for the girls who have ever felt that love has passed them by. For the ones who watch everyone around them fall in love and wonder when it’s their turn.

Izzy and Noah are the perfect coming of age couple. Their personalities balance each other so well and their dynamic is impeccable.

Izzy our FMC is just finishing up her final year of high school and questioning what she wants to do. She is strong, resilient and a secret lover girl. She cares so much about people which we see when Noah starts out at the school. She befriends him even though he seems closed off and unwilling to open up. As time goes on we see how Noah brings out parts of Izzy that she has kept hidden from those around her. He brings out her vulnerability which she tries to keep hidden.

Noah our MMC just moved to a new school during his final year. His past year has closed him off from those around him. A strained relationship with his dad and a situation at his old school has caused him to withdraw. When he meets Izzy the first day he connects with her even if he doesn’t want to admit it. Watching him grow with the support of Izzy was amazing. She brought out parts of him that he has shut away because of his hurt. Seeing his growth felt so honest and real.

These two went through so much but their openness, and communication with each other was incredible. Noah’s emotional intelligence was so wonderful to see. Izzy’s support and understanding of Noah was beautiful to watch unfold. They are what a healthy young adult couple should look like.

The healthy friendships was another incredibly important part of this story and seeing past characters make appearances was great. Izzy and Isaac have such a wonderful relationship and I am so glad we got to see more of them together.

[୨ৎ─⋆YASMIN₊˚✿ · Rating 1 out of 5]

dnfed at 9% 💙.° ୨୧
i'm just not in the mood and izzy was already attracted to noah after he was introduced to her class. 🙄





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𝐩𝐫𝐞-𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 ☄. *. ⋆
let's see if this cures my reading slump!! 😭

[Elinor. · Rating 3 out of 5]

- ★ ★ ★ . 5
Better than the first one indeed

[- ̗̀✮ 𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚎 ₊˚୧‧ (jess’ version) · Rating 5 out of 5]

izzy and noah are the sweetest

[kaila | kd.reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book two in the Coates Academy follows Izzy and Noah who are starting their final year of boarding school together. We got glimpses of Izzy back in book one (The Story of Us) because she's Issac's sister, and Noah just transferred to Coates his final year. I love the both of them so much and this really is a story for the girls who thought love just passed them by. Izzy and Noah both deal with some hard topics that I feel like a good amount of teens have to deal with.

I loved this story and being back at Coates Academy, and school was in session for real!! I did find myself crying at the vet's office while reading this, Izzynoah's relationship is so tender and sweet and this was such a great YA romance.

————————————
thank you so much Zarin for sending me an eARC in exchange for my honest review. all thoughts are my own.

[Mariana ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book could’ve been half the size. I’m not exaggerating: the story was basically done by the 50% mark. The author simply decided to drag and stretch the book for another 200 pages for literally no reason.

Izzy and Noah met and *immediately* felt attracted to each other. 😑 The instant crush was really annoying to me, because they were literally STRANGERS, and yet were pining for NO REASON. Y’all don’t KNOW each other!!!! Why do you like each other, I don’t get it!!!?!??!?! The book literally acknowledges multiple times that they don’t really speak about anything other than school, and that they don’t even spend any time together outside of class, and that they’re not even friends at that point, and yet the author wants me to be invested in the romantic feelings they somehow have towards each other??? 😑 Be for real…… I hate insta love! This book could’ve been a delicious slow-burn, but alas…

Despite not knowing each other that well, Izzy and Noah decide to fake date. Fake dating is always silly, but the reasons in this book are especially flimsy. Izzy hopes her ex will leave her alone if she’s dating someone else (even though he’s already proven to be unreasonable), and Noah just straight up says that *perhaps* people might stop spreading rumours about him, and “he’s got nothing to lose” from fake dating Izzy… okay then. 🫥

It takes more than 1/3 of the book for the fake dating to start, and it’s not even fun, because Izzy and Noah already like each other, at that point. Less than 50% through the book and both of them have fully accepted that they like the other person, so the rest of the book is literally just them dragging this shit out. Like, just DATE FOR REAL, omggggg. 🙄

It was so infuriating that the story kept going for literally no reason! What am I still doing here??? You both like each other. You’re aware of your own feelings. You’re pretty sure the other person likes you back. Why is this book dragging on for hundreds of pages, still? 🫩🥱

What really kills me is that I really enjoyed the relationship itself. I didn’t like the way the romance was (not at all) developed, but I ABSOLUTELY LOVED how tender the relationship was! Noah and Izzy cared so much about each other! Their romance was so soft and sweet and tender, which is exactly how I like my romances! And I really enjoy when the MMC is kind and caring, like Noah!

This book had A LOT of potential, but the author fumbled it by making it insta love. 💔💔💔💔💔💔 Sure, they only got officially together towards the end, but they literally started crushing on each other immediately after they met, even before they became friends. Even when they strated fake dating, they were already secretly crushing on each other, which took away all the fun from that trope. The ending would’ve hit much harder if I had cared at all about their romance throughout the rest of the book, but alas.



Regarding the characters: I really enjoyed Izzy and Noah as MCs. They were really sweet together, but I also enjoyed their individual journeys. The SCs were mostly irrelevant. Noah and Izzy’s friends didn’t add anything to the story. Ryan (Izzy’s ex) was cartoonishly antagonistic. We should’ve seen more of Noah’s grandpa, especially since he ended up being a big part of the story; as it was, I didn’t feel anything for him, because we’d only seen him like twice. I did enjoy Izzy’s relationship with her brother, though.



I’m really sad I didn’t love this book, because the softness and tenderness of the relationship was everything I adore. For that reason, I would check out this author’s next book. I think there’s a chance I’ll enjoy her books, if she doesn’t make them insta love.

[mylla ♡·˚ · Rating 5 out of 5]

i can definitely say i’m obsessed with izzynoah

[Shaïna · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,5⭐️

🇬🇧 In one word : wholesome. The Secret of Us is just the story of two small beans absolutely adorable! I’ve loved the first book of the Coates Academy series and this one was just as good.

In this book, we followed Izzy and Isaac’s evolution in their relationship that started as fake. Even if it was an act, we felt every single feeling they had for each other throughout the story. There were little attentions and words that didn’t cheat anyone, even them. The whole thing was sweet and I loved that!

Besides that adorable love story, the author added a good backbone to the characters. Izzy was so relatable in her worry for her future and Isaac was refreshing as a male character through his shyness. Loved the plot around his family btw!

In a mix of sweetness and heartache, the author succeeded in creating a really good book! Can’t wait for the next one ✨

🇫🇷 En un seul mot : incroyable. The Secret of Us c’est l’histoire de deux adolescents absolument adorables ! J’avais adoré le premier tome de la série mais celui-ci est tout aussi génial.

On suit Izzy et Isaac dans l’évolution de leur relation qui a commencé comme étant fausse mais on ressentait tous leurs sentiments à travers leurs points de vue. Ils ne trompaient personne, pas même eux. J’ai adoré leur relation !

À côté de cette romance, l’autrice a su donner une histoire à ses personnages. On pouvait s’identifier à Izzy à travers ses doutes concernant le futur et Isaac était assez différent dans sa façon d’être plutôt timide. J’ai beaucoup aimé l’histoire autour de sa famille d’ailleurs !

J’ai hyper hâte de lire le prochain tome de cette série ✨

[Emilia · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75☆
So this was the most mid book ever.
I expected this to be a super cute fake dating book and while ig it was exactly that, I was kinda dissapointed. The fake dating was random and didn't feel as fun as it usually does.
I also didn’t like the fact that Noah didn't make any friends. I get that that was part of the story line but he was just hanging with Izzy all the time, it felt sad. I did really like Izzy‘s friends though.
I did enjoy the last about 100 pages, I really liked that the author used character development as a break up reason.
Still, it just feels so random and while I liked the mcs I feel like the development of their relationship happened so randomly too lmao
At least it didn't take me long to read and it did have some cutesy moments, I legit won't remember anything about this in a weeks time though ups

“Is she pretty?”
“So pretty. The most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen. And she’s smart, too. We study together and she always gets the answer before I do. And she has the kindest heart in the world.”

"I had this warped idea that because my parents were adults, they had everything figured out. But now I realise I don’t think that ever happens for anyone."

"The smile she gives me lights up the night. I don’t think I’ll ever need to see the sun, moon, or stars again as long as I can see that smile."

[nandini · Rating 4 out of 5]

izzynoah my absolute babies 🥹

[giulia (arianna's version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fist thing first I want to say that I’m so grateful for getting an ARC for this book because I loved the first one so much and I wanted to return to these characters.
In this book we meet Isaac’s sister, Izzy, and a new student at Coates, Noah.
Izzy and Noah completely stole my heart with their dynamic, the little moments, and the slow, sweet build of their relationship. I loved how since the first moment they both had a soft spot for one another and they were supposed to be fake dating, but let’s be real… there was nothing fake about it.
I also liked the strong friendships in this story, especially between Izzy, Chloe, and Amelia, it added so much warmth and heart. Chloe and Josh were absolutely precious, and Mina (Noah’s little sister) was the cutest.
I think the part that i appreciated the most was both Noah and Izzy’s growth, they both went through a lot and I loved how through that they realized a lot about themselves and they fixed what needed to be fixed.
Lastly I want to say how happy i made me feel to read again about Violet and Isaac and how I’m happy for their happily ever after.
This book gave me all the feelings. It’s sweet, emotional, and full of characters you’ll love. Highly recommend if you’re into heartfelt YA romance with a little depth.

[Heurel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spoilersss... 👉🏻
I honestly didn’t know what I was expecting from this book — I think I was just in the mood for a university romance. But what I got was something far more emotional than I was prepared for.

The way Noah disappeared from her life completely broke me. I cried for so long that I didn’t even know how to stop myself. How can you do that to someone who loves you? You wanted to become a better version of yourself for her — then why leave her alone like that? It made me so angry.

And Izzy… I don’t even know what I expected from her, but it definitely wasn’t that. After a whole year of him being gone, I just couldn’t understand how she ran straight back into his arms. I know she loves him, and maybe you can’t just unlove someone — especially when they’re struggling too — but I still felt like she deserved to be angry, to yell, to question him. Instead, the way she immediately gave in really put me off.

This book made me feel a lot — pain, anger, and confusion — and even though I didn’t agree with everything, it definitely left an impact.

[Pavreet · Rating 2 out of 5]

very tell, not show vibes.

didnt give , iykyk

[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

TROPES:
✨Fake dating
✨Popular girl x Shy boy
✨Sunshine x Sunshine
✨Letters
✨Academic setting
✨HEA (happy ever after)
✨closed door romance (no spice)
✨young adult (14+ according to amazon)

THIS BOOK IS SO FREAKING GOOD! I have A LOT I want to unravel. The first is the characters! Noah and Izzy are SOULMATES. I love how it’s popular loud girl x shy boy it’s a trope that’s SO underrated and usually don’t get me wrong I am a grumpy mmc girlie through and through but something about Noah was PERFECTION! I loved it so much. I thought both Izzy and Noah were relatable for me in different ways and one thing about me is if I relate to the characters i’m done for! I absolutely devoured all the tropes and scenes in this book. I will say at one point it was slow for about 3% and I messaged my bestie (who is also reading) and told her this and then BOOM it was SO good again! Genuinely can’t complain about 3% being slow. Their first kiss being on New years was so sweet and I just loved that scene along with SO many other scenes. Chapter 31 being that one liner had my heart dropping but instantly I just KNEW it had to be Noah’s Grandpa. The letters that Izzy writes waiting for Noah to come back to her🥹 I was not expecting to cry when reading this book but here is me now knowing I have done exactly that! The chapters being … months later had me WILD in the best way possible. It gets so close to the end that it’s like is this actually going to be a happy ending?! Me having to give my bestie confirmation of this had me laughing cause I knew she would be stressing. Izzy not knowing where her life was taking her was so relatable for me as it’s something i’ve been struggling with lately so it hit perfectly for me. The scary fact is I wasn’t planning on reading this book for a while after it was revealed because I only gave the first one a 3 stars and wasn’t a highly anticipated read for me to then me LOVING it. It takes a lot for me to be bothered writing quotes I love from a book but here I am because this book deserves it 🌌🩵

QUOTES

‘I didn’t have many friends… But from that first day, I was his target. He ruined my life that year. I felt like there was no point in living. But I knew if I gave in to those thoughts it would be signal… So I refused… I studied hard.’

‘I thought about buying you a star, but it didn’t feel like enough. You deserve a whole constellation.’

‘If something doesn’t bring you joy anymore you don’t have to continue. Your happiness is the most important thing.’

‘I know. He says, and I trust that he does.’

‘I’ll be here… I’ll be here whenever you’re ready to come back. Whether that’s next month or next year it doesn’t matter. I’m with you, Noah. We’ll look at the same moon every night, see the same stars. I’ll be with you, you’ll be with me. It doesn’t matter where we both are as long as we can both see that moon.’

‘How long can you stay? For as long as you’ll have me.’

‘We might not have been written in the stars above, but I made sure we were in these.’

SONGS FOR TSOU:
~Any cigarettes after sex song
~Waiting room Phoebe Bridgers
~You’d be stars Sydney Rose
More songs to come to my review in the future but until then…

This will be a book I HAVE to come back to and reread along with the story of us maybe I’ll appreciate it more the second time just like it’s a second chance romance.

[Natalyastyles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you so much Author Zarin Madiyha for giving me the beautiful opportunity to read an ARC of your new upcoming
Academic Sports Romance Novel🩵⭐️✨
“The Secret Of Us”
The second Installment In The-
“Coates Academy Book Series”
5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Read!!! I was completely smitten with this book and fell so deeply in love with it from the very beginning!!! I just knew this was going to be a favorite of mine and it truly delivered with my high expectations🤩🩵 I instantly became obsessed & connected with the main characters, loving each & every one of their interactions and the thrilling moments they experienced and The author's outstanding storytelling is showcased in every chapter, creating an engaging plot & characters that it’s hard to resist taking a break from the pages🩵✨
Im so excited I can’t wait to read what the Author has next in store for the future🤩✨

“The Secret Of Us,” Takes you on unforgettable heartwarming journey through the beautiful crafted lives of-
(✨🩵Izzy Evans & Noah Park🩵✨)
Zarin Madiyha, Starts their tale when-
My girlie Izzy✨Anticipated a peaceful final year at boarding school, avoiding university pressure and her ex, Ryan. But while her peers seem to have their futures figured out, Izzy is frozen by the fear of making a wrong turn. And that’s when the Author finally introduces us to new book boyfriend💋✨Noah Park. He wants nothing more than to turn over a new leaf. After being thrown out of his old school, he's the new kid with a reputation for trouble, and Ryan seems dead set on making his life a misery.; But when Izzy stands up for him, it ignites a rumour that rapidly spirals out of control: Izzy and Noah, the school's newest 'it' couple. As the rumour gains traction, Noah's reputation takes a hit and Izzy's ex refuses to back off. To salvage the situation, they propose a pretend romance, but the more time they spend together, the more genuine their feelings become and the only way to find out how this love story truly unfolds is by reading this beauty ASAP!!! And not only does the author delivers a amazing plot but she does for the main character backstory🤩✨

My lovely girl Izzy takes her character with the heart of love and kindness, possessing a presence that gently unveils a captivating appeal✨Within her story, she always continues to shower her loved ones with genuineness and care, instilling emotional richness into every moment especially to her lover boy who she loved since the moment they met🥹🩵✨

Noah Park my favorite lover boy💋✨exudes sweetness, with a shy-ish charming lover boy persona✨His words weave a magical spell, creating a strong bond and filling you with affection, especially when paired with his stunning soul of loyalty and protectiveness making his character irresistibly captivating, drawing you in with unforgettable love and it's super heartwarming when it's for the girl he has always adored and loved since forever✨🥹& always pining to be by her side, Enthralling her senses and filling her heart with love every step of the way🥹🩵✨

Pre-order
(The Secret Of Us)
Releasing April 30th 2025
ASAP for a tale you can never get enough of 🩵✨And you can do just that by visiting the author’s social media @author.zarinmadiyha ON IG and also get the chance to view beautiful character artwork & teasers🩵✨

[Tera · Rating 3 out of 5]

First of all, I want to say thank you so much for the ARC and opportunity to read this book early!

Unfortunately, for me, this didn’t match up to The Story of Us. At first it felt like a strong 4 stars to me, as it started a bit slow. Though, I expected that. I enjoyed the pace of The Story of Us, I enjoy the pace that Madiyha sets in her novels- as I enjoy time to get to know characters.

My issue here, unfortunately, was that the characters didn’t match up to the previous novel for me.

Noah did, certainly. I do think he’s absolutely on par with the beautiful character development and characterization that Madiyha achieved in her previous novel.

Though, Izzy didn’t achieve the friendships for me that Issac and Violet managed. This is a very large drawing point for me with character development and expansion. I loved Luke, I loved their respective friendgroups, and Izzy- despite being characterized as popular- I never really got to know who was in her life beyond Noah. Maybe Josh is semi there. Some friends were mentioned, but we just didn’t get as much of them in a solid manner.

My main issue here was unfortunately Izzy. To me, she felt extremely entitled. I can understand the stress of feeling as though you’re failing a family member. Especially because knowing Issac’s struggles and challenges, massive ones despite being of his social class, I know who has fought for her. Yet, her feeling of being lost, and being reliant, and falling out of love with her goals and aspirations- that was never resolved for me. It moreso felt like she was handed a bandaid for everything she couldn’t figure out on a silver platter rather than actually reaching any kind of satisfying conclusion. A trust fund… going traveling… a postcard highlighting that she was in a nice hotel room rather than a hostel. I don’t know. It made me a bit bitter.

On the other hand, Madiyha achieved absolutely gorgeous descriptions of healing and grief that I expected of her in Noah. He was everything I wanted and more. I just was left feeling like the main part of this novel fell flat with Izzy due to how character heavy this was!

On a very good note, I can absolutely see massive improvement in writing in this novel, despite the tragic case of Second Book Syndrome. This won’t stop me from buying other novels from Madiyha, but it was a rollercoaster.

I really enjoyed from about 55%-85% here, I liked the tension and the drama- some sweet moments intermingled. I think it picked up here and got through that initial hump, and then that ending with Izzy just fell so flat for me and I really wish it didn’t.

Maybe I need to sit on it more, I don’t know. I’d say this is unfortunately in a 2.75 range.

[Estrella · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

It’s been a few days since I finished this book, and although I usually manage to write a review right after finishing a novel, this time it has been impossible.
Even now, I’m still struggling to put my thoughts into words.

The first book in the series was sweet, enjoyable, and pleasing, but this has been a wholly different experience.
First of all, it’s obvious how much the author has grown and how significantly her writing style has improved. She’s managed to write a gripping story while also tackling mature themes.

I adored how profound the characters were, their development, and the way their innermost thoughts were portrayed through the different POVs.
As I said, it was an absorbing yet pleasantly light read.

I resonated deeply with Izzy and Noah’s struggles and doubts, especially hers. They were absolutely adorable together, and I loved their interactions.
Moreover, the inclusion of Violet and Isaac in the sequel was excellent—I’ll always appreciate any content about them.

Overall, I still find it difficult to express how I feel about this book, but I can say it was so endearing and left such a deep impression on me that I’ll definitely be rereading it sooner rather than later later

[Allisyn DeGraff · Rating 4 out of 5]

*⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

So I am an OG Zarin Madiyha fan because I read her debut novel The Story of Us and let me just say that she outdid herself with that book, but then blew me away with this one.
First off, I want to talk about the characters. Both the main characters, Izzy and Noah, were so great and really relatable. I feel they both had real world problems that so many kids in there state struggle with and the way that the author wrote their stories was so good. I think I did like these characters more than Isaac and Violet because I think they just had more personality to them and even though they both had things going on in their lives, they turned to each other for that support and help even though they didn’t really know each other at the beginning; it was like that attraction and the sense of familiarity that brought them together.
Also I thought that the fake dating part of the book was really well done and that the way that they felt so comfortable with each was so cute and made me want to stay up all night to read the book.
Overall, this was a really cute romance and I think it’s a nice book to read in between other series or as a pallet cleanser.

[Lucy Porter · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. I read the first book and I knew I was in love, I said in my review I would read anything the author writes and it's still true. I love these books so much. This book made me happy, it made me cry it made me feel so much. I related to both characters so much. I just love the connection that the author forms between these characters, it's such an art to be able to put in words how deep a connection can go, and put in words feelings you've had that you've never managed to formulate. The bond between Izzy and Noah was palpable. Seeing so much of Issac and Violet made my heart so incredibly happy.

[ava:] · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I thought about buying you a star, but it didn’t feel like enough. You deserve a whole constellation.”

Noah and Izzy were such accurate representations of teenagers, and Noah’s struggle through grief is something I relate to massively it’s nauseating.

also i loved seeing Violet and Isaac living their lives💗

[maricoti ⑅ · Rating 5 out of 5]

— 5 stars 𐙚

football player mmc & field hockey player fmc. i already loved the first book in the series, but i loved book two even more. fake dating, friends to lovers (slow burn), and all that longing and yearning for each other. i also loved how it included stars and constellations. i love it!

[nakia · Rating 5 out of 5]

so i’m sobbing and can’t stop smiling all at the same time. i love you izzynoah 😭😭😭😭😭 rtc.

thank you zarin for letting me beta read once again ily lots (ur also so evil u deserve jail time) 🤍

[m · Rating 4 out of 5]

well that was a sweeeeet ride

[Isabelle Smal · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75⭐️

[Ioanaxbooks 🪩⸆⸉ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,40/5
⭐️⭐️⭐️

[michaela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Again, Zarin has made me uncontrollably sob

[claraht · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️