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Love Stories #1
Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me
Scotty Williams is the nerdiest 17-year-old at Havensdale College - and proud of it. However being a nerd can have its downsides, particularly when you're constantly being targeted by the school bully Taylor Raven and his cronies. As Scotty tries to navigate his final college years with the aid of his best friend Olive, he also finds himself on the radar of the mysterious and intimidating Vincent Hunter, toughest guy in the Sixth Form. Is Vincent really as bad as he seems? Will Scotty's darkest secret ever be revealed? Can he ever just finish his last few college years in peace? But most importantly... will any guy ever find the reasons to love a nerd like him?
417 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 12, 2015
78 people are currently reading
657 people want to read
About the author
Becky Jerams
6 books95 followersBecky Jerams is a writer and musician from Portsmouth, UK. Her first published novel The Songs You've Never Heard, co-written with Ellie Wyatt, blends story and real-life music into a unique 'booksical'. It was shortlisted for The YA Book Prize 2023, and featured in World Book Night and The Big Eurovision Reads campaigns.
Her 2015 self-published novel Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me found a loyal following on Wattpad with over two million reads. It later became a multi-book series for Kindle, and is now re-releasing in a special 10th anniversary edition.
Becky lives by the sea with her husband and splits her time between fiction writing, songwriting, acoustic gigs, and working in a student art shop. Her songs have been featured internationally on TV and by artists around the world, and her stories have connected with thousands of young readers from the UK, US, Spain, the Philippines, Nigeria, France, Egypt, Jamaica, Australia, India and beyond.
She writes romantic, emotional, and uplifting YA fiction for the dreamers, the underdogs, and those who’ve never quite played by the rules.
Her 2015 self-published novel Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me found a loyal following on Wattpad with over two million reads. It later became a multi-book series for Kindle, and is now re-releasing in a special 10th anniversary edition.
Becky lives by the sea with her husband and splits her time between fiction writing, songwriting, acoustic gigs, and working in a student art shop. Her songs have been featured internationally on TV and by artists around the world, and her stories have connected with thousands of young readers from the UK, US, Spain, the Philippines, Nigeria, France, Egypt, Jamaica, Australia, India and beyond.
She writes romantic, emotional, and uplifting YA fiction for the dreamers, the underdogs, and those who’ve never quite played by the rules.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 131 reviews
December 22, 2019
So much useless melodrama. I wanted to like this story because, hello, who doesn't like the "nerd gets the mysterious bad boy with a heart of gold" trope? Who, I ask you? Who? But thanks to some seriously mediocre writing and character crafting, this one falls short of the mark. I couldn't like Scotty. At all. He's a lying liar who lies, and he's too stupid to realize that at some point, those lies have to stop. Scotty is a coward and he didn't deserve Vincent.
Then again, Vincent had a knack for being a clueless douchebag, too. So yeah. Didn't I say something about mediocre character building?
Then there's just goofy shit like Scotty being incredulous that he and Vincent are wearing ties while out on a fancy date. Because, "When do either of us ever wear ties?! (Loc. 3732)
Meanwhile, way back at Loc.290: "His school tie was hanging loose..."
At one point, Scotty refers to Alexis as a "silly little girl". This is creepy. Teenage boys don't think or talk like that. Just...*shudder*
When Scotty is trying to get into Vincent's building to talk to him, he makes up a story to a neighbor about housesitting and accidentally breaking his key off in the lock, so the neighbor uses her key to let him in.
Okay. If he broke his key off in the lock, how would the neighbor get in?
After Taylor's dad shows up at the school and proceeds to assault two students (Scotty and Vincent), Scotty laments that, at the end of the day, he's "Taylor's Dad" ('Dad' should not be capitalized here), and Scotty couldn't be responsible for sending him to jail. And besides that, the school was already pressing charges on him for being drunk and disorderly on school property.
This isn't how assault is handled. It's particularly not how assault is handled when you're dealing with an adult attacking a minor. Scotty is only 17. Still legally a child. So...yeah. Mr. Raven would be looking at much more than a fine for being drunk and disorderly, and Scotty would have absolutely no say in it.
"I was glad we had support from our classmates and didn't go to a college where we were banned from coming to the Ball together or something. I'm sure I'd seen that happen in movies before."
It happens plenty in real life, too, you self-centered, spoiled, naive little jack-off.
You see why I hate this character?
Also, shit like this: "I hated myself for being so dishonest, but I really didn't know what else to do."
And then there's this, which is almost poetic...
"Vincent had peaked my curiosity..."
"...her husky voice perfectly complimented Vincent's rich tone."
"Nothing ever seemed to phase Vincent."
"You're fucking on Specs!"
And then, in the acknowledgements:
"My Mum, Elizabeth Jerams, for teaching me how to write."
"Katie Paxton for looking over my final edit with a steely hawk-eye and picking up all the mistakes I missed."
Mum and Katie may need a refresher course or two.
1. Piqued.
2. Complemented.
3. Faze
4. You're fucking on, Specs! (Unless you're really alluding to them doing unseemly things on eyewear.)
Then again, Vincent had a knack for being a clueless douchebag, too. So yeah. Didn't I say something about mediocre character building?
Then there's just goofy shit like Scotty being incredulous that he and Vincent are wearing ties while out on a fancy date. Because, "When do either of us ever wear ties?! (Loc. 3732)
Meanwhile, way back at Loc.290: "His school tie was hanging loose..."
At one point, Scotty refers to Alexis as a "silly little girl". This is creepy. Teenage boys don't think or talk like that. Just...*shudder*
When Scotty is trying to get into Vincent's building to talk to him, he makes up a story to a neighbor about housesitting and accidentally breaking his key off in the lock, so the neighbor uses her key to let him in.
Okay. If he broke his key off in the lock, how would the neighbor get in?
After Taylor's dad shows up at the school and proceeds to assault two students (Scotty and Vincent), Scotty laments that, at the end of the day, he's "Taylor's Dad" ('Dad' should not be capitalized here), and Scotty couldn't be responsible for sending him to jail. And besides that, the school was already pressing charges on him for being drunk and disorderly on school property.
This isn't how assault is handled. It's particularly not how assault is handled when you're dealing with an adult attacking a minor. Scotty is only 17. Still legally a child. So...yeah. Mr. Raven would be looking at much more than a fine for being drunk and disorderly, and Scotty would have absolutely no say in it.
"I was glad we had support from our classmates and didn't go to a college where we were banned from coming to the Ball together or something. I'm sure I'd seen that happen in movies before."
It happens plenty in real life, too, you self-centered, spoiled, naive little jack-off.
You see why I hate this character?
Also, shit like this: "I hated myself for being so dishonest, but I really didn't know what else to do."
And then there's this, which is almost poetic...
"Vincent had peaked my curiosity..."
"...her husky voice perfectly complimented Vincent's rich tone."
"Nothing ever seemed to phase Vincent."
"You're fucking on Specs!"
And then, in the acknowledgements:
"My Mum, Elizabeth Jerams, for teaching me how to write."
"Katie Paxton for looking over my final edit with a steely hawk-eye and picking up all the mistakes I missed."
Mum and Katie may need a refresher course or two.
1. Piqued.
2. Complemented.
3. Faze
4. You're fucking on, Specs! (Unless you're really alluding to them doing unseemly things on eyewear.)
November 5, 2015
4 stars!
Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me is a really nice YA story that I enjoyed reading.
Our MC, Scotty, is openly gay and the target of three school bullies. He has a history with one of the bullies, the main bully, Taylor. I can’t say I was expecting the history, to be honest. Normally I can tell something like that is coming, but apart from a little niggle right before, there was nothing. It was nice to be surprised.
I liked Scotty a lot. He wasn’t the perfect MC you sometimes read about. He made mistakes and he did things I didn’t like. But he never intentionally tried to hurt the people he was closest to. Actually, he really believed he was protecting them and that made him so much more likable. I was rooting for him throughout the book.
I also liked his best friend Olive “Ollie”. A couple of times that wavered because I thought she was being very hard on Scotty. But I warmed up to her again pretty soon after that. And their friendship, when going well, was strong.
The love interest, Vincent, I adored him from the start. He had been through a lot and wasn’t always the nicest to everyone. But the way he was with Scotty melted my heart. I would have liked a chapter or a few scenes from his POV because there were a couple of times, during the massive fallout, that I think his POV would have been useful. I could understand how he was feeling, but I still got frustrated with him and I don’t think it would have been as bad had we gotten his POV.
Taylor and Alexis are two characters I’m still not really sure if I liked or disliked. I didn’t particularly love them, even in the end, but I didn’t hate either of them in the end. Out of the two, Taylor, was the hardest for me. But while I never completely warmed to him, I did sympathize with him a little close to the end. On the other hand, I really liked Scotty’s mum. She was supportive and loving, which was needed in some of the chaos of the story.
The negative for me was the drama that ensued after Scotty’s past relationship with Taylor came out. I didn’t hate it completely. But it bugged me more than once. It did fit with the book, however, and it made the ending even more enjoyable for me. I think had the fallout not continued for as long as it did, I would have loved this book.
I’m so glad I read Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me! This is Becky Jerams first book and I’m excited to see what she releases next.
A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me is a really nice YA story that I enjoyed reading.
Our MC, Scotty, is openly gay and the target of three school bullies. He has a history with one of the bullies, the main bully, Taylor. I can’t say I was expecting the history, to be honest. Normally I can tell something like that is coming, but apart from a little niggle right before, there was nothing. It was nice to be surprised.
I liked Scotty a lot. He wasn’t the perfect MC you sometimes read about. He made mistakes and he did things I didn’t like. But he never intentionally tried to hurt the people he was closest to. Actually, he really believed he was protecting them and that made him so much more likable. I was rooting for him throughout the book.
I also liked his best friend Olive “Ollie”. A couple of times that wavered because I thought she was being very hard on Scotty. But I warmed up to her again pretty soon after that. And their friendship, when going well, was strong.
The love interest, Vincent, I adored him from the start. He had been through a lot and wasn’t always the nicest to everyone. But the way he was with Scotty melted my heart. I would have liked a chapter or a few scenes from his POV because there were a couple of times, during the massive fallout, that I think his POV would have been useful. I could understand how he was feeling, but I still got frustrated with him and I don’t think it would have been as bad had we gotten his POV.
Taylor and Alexis are two characters I’m still not really sure if I liked or disliked. I didn’t particularly love them, even in the end, but I didn’t hate either of them in the end. Out of the two, Taylor, was the hardest for me. But while I never completely warmed to him, I did sympathize with him a little close to the end. On the other hand, I really liked Scotty’s mum. She was supportive and loving, which was needed in some of the chaos of the story.
The negative for me was the drama that ensued after Scotty’s past relationship with Taylor came out. I didn’t hate it completely. But it bugged me more than once. It did fit with the book, however, and it made the ending even more enjoyable for me. I think had the fallout not continued for as long as it did, I would have loved this book.
I’m so glad I read Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me! This is Becky Jerams first book and I’m excited to see what she releases next.
A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
July 14, 2015
I loved this, took me less than a day to finish reading it.
Where shall I start?
The characters -
Vincent is truly one of the cutest characters I have come across so far in any of the MM Romance books I've read so far.
Scotty - He really took you along on his roller coaster ride of emotions which went from A-Z.
Olive & Alexis - The epitome of the words "best friend"
It was kind of cute how hard Scotty tried to talk his way out of his growing feelings for Vincent, even though it was so obvious to everyone around him (including himself) that they were growing.
Then there's that scene with DAC club - the look on everyone's face
The drama that slowly unfolded, the need to keep on reading just so you could figure out what'll happen next.
If there's any grievance I have with this book, not plot-wise or anything, it's something small but every time I noticed it, the same mistake over and over and it kind of started getting to me - "was stood" (the conjugation of the word "stand") - it's a small grammar thing (I'm guessing), but it should be was standing (present continuous) instead of past tense.
Seriously, if my only grievance with this amazing book is this (tiny and insignificant) error, it just goes to show how much I loved it :D
I truly recommend it to anyone looking to read a book that would make you have this giddy feeling of having butterflies in your stomach :)
Where shall I start?
The characters -
Vincent is truly one of the cutest characters I have come across so far in any of the MM Romance books I've read so far.
Scotty - He really took you along on his roller coaster ride of emotions which went from A-Z.
Olive & Alexis - The epitome of the words "best friend"
It was kind of cute how hard Scotty tried to talk his way out of his growing feelings for Vincent, even though it was so obvious to everyone around him (including himself) that they were growing.
Then there's that scene with DAC club - the look on everyone's face
The drama that slowly unfolded, the need to keep on reading just so you could figure out what'll happen next.
If there's any grievance I have with this book, not plot-wise or anything, it's something small but every time I noticed it, the same mistake over and over and it kind of started getting to me - "was stood" (the conjugation of the word "stand") - it's a small grammar thing (I'm guessing), but it should be was standing (present continuous) instead of past tense.
Seriously, if my only grievance with this amazing book is this (tiny and insignificant) error, it just goes to show how much I loved it :D
I truly recommend it to anyone looking to read a book that would make you have this giddy feeling of having butterflies in your stomach :)
June 27, 2016
“I’m someone who’s sick of bullies like you throwing your weight around all the time. I’ve been scared of people like you my whole life and I’m done with it!”
I started this ebook after lunch and couldn’t put it down until almost 1 am. I had the urge to finish it; I was so scared about the ending that I kept going because I needed to know that everything was going to be okay in the end. I couldn’t go to sleep not knowing what was going to happen after one chapter. Maybe that chapter was a happy one but what about the next one? I knew drama was lurking in the shadows waiting to jump out when I was least expecting it. I couldn’t do it, I gathered my strength, locked away my procrastination, and read and read and read!
Every hour spent on this book was worth it, every chapter better than the one before. The frustration, the anger, the sadness, the anger, I got so many feelings for one day and it was seriously overwhelming. The story is quite simple but it has many depths and it took my breath away. I wasn’t expecting the characters to be this sweet and adorable, I love them so much it hurts!
“Why am I so pale?!” I suddenly announced. “And weedy?! Oh God, I’m a disgrace!”
Scotty is a petite nerd with thick glasses, lack of fashion sense, good at school, member of a sort of Dungeons & Dragons after school club and bullied by the popular guys. Life is not looking good for our hero, right? The bullying part was hateful and I was in killing mode every time someone was hurting Scotty. He didn’t deserve any of it and after finding the reason why he was being bully by Taylor the handsome tennis player, I was even angrier! No excuse is acceptable when it comes to bullying but his excuse was even worse than any other lame excuse!! So mad!!!
I know it’s really sad and unfair, but just because someone has a lot to deal with, it doesn’t give them the excuse to take it out on other people.
Then along came Vincent! Out of nowhere there he was, handsome, tall, a rock star with the fame of being a bad boy. Rumors because he is the sweetest cupcake in the whole wide world. Sweet, cheesy and adorable in a muscular package! And gay, for our Scotty’s luck. Scotty, what did you do in your previous life to be so damn lucky? You can have a sweet and loving Vincent all for yourself, beautiful and with a wonderful velvet voice. But is he interested in Scotty? Can he find a reason to love a nerd like him?
Wow, it looked like the Vincent Hunter fan club was growing. If he wasn’t careful he was going to become King Of The Nerds whether he liked it or not.
I don’t want to reveal anything because the beauty of this book is that it slowly unfolds so many situations. You think everything is going to be fine then you see you’re only at like 60% of the book and you know that the happiness can’t last. How can it last if there are so many unresolved things? I was so scared all the time. Will there be a twist? Will people who made mistakes be forgiven? Can a second chance be possible?
Vincent may be the sweetest and my love for him is immeasurable but my loyalty lies with Scotty. He is an amazing character. He is flawed, he lied a lot but it was due to shame and fear. I understood his intentions and stood by him. I hoped everything would turn out perfect for him because I wanted him to have the quiet and wonderful life he deserved. Scotty grew up so much, he started becoming bold, not being the one on the sideline, only receiving and never reacting. He accepts who he is, knowing there is nothing wrong with him. Everything he loves is part of who he is and the one who sees the greatness that is Scotty will be the one that’ll get to be with him forever.
I actually quite liked being me. I mean, maybe I wasn’t the coolest or most attractive guy in the world, but I wasn’t exactly hideous.
I loved this book so much and I want everyone to read it but I won’t recommend it. I kind of want people to find it by themselves just like I did and be surprised by its beauty.
5 wonderful nerdy stars for this jewel!!
“You know what Specs? I can’t fucking wait.”
“For what?” I questioned.
“Life.”
I started this ebook after lunch and couldn’t put it down until almost 1 am. I had the urge to finish it; I was so scared about the ending that I kept going because I needed to know that everything was going to be okay in the end. I couldn’t go to sleep not knowing what was going to happen after one chapter. Maybe that chapter was a happy one but what about the next one? I knew drama was lurking in the shadows waiting to jump out when I was least expecting it. I couldn’t do it, I gathered my strength, locked away my procrastination, and read and read and read!
Every hour spent on this book was worth it, every chapter better than the one before. The frustration, the anger, the sadness, the anger, I got so many feelings for one day and it was seriously overwhelming. The story is quite simple but it has many depths and it took my breath away. I wasn’t expecting the characters to be this sweet and adorable, I love them so much it hurts!
“Why am I so pale?!” I suddenly announced. “And weedy?! Oh God, I’m a disgrace!”
Scotty is a petite nerd with thick glasses, lack of fashion sense, good at school, member of a sort of Dungeons & Dragons after school club and bullied by the popular guys. Life is not looking good for our hero, right? The bullying part was hateful and I was in killing mode every time someone was hurting Scotty. He didn’t deserve any of it and after finding the reason why he was being bully by Taylor the handsome tennis player, I was even angrier! No excuse is acceptable when it comes to bullying but his excuse was even worse than any other lame excuse!! So mad!!!
I know it’s really sad and unfair, but just because someone has a lot to deal with, it doesn’t give them the excuse to take it out on other people.
Then along came Vincent! Out of nowhere there he was, handsome, tall, a rock star with the fame of being a bad boy. Rumors because he is the sweetest cupcake in the whole wide world. Sweet, cheesy and adorable in a muscular package! And gay, for our Scotty’s luck. Scotty, what did you do in your previous life to be so damn lucky? You can have a sweet and loving Vincent all for yourself, beautiful and with a wonderful velvet voice. But is he interested in Scotty? Can he find a reason to love a nerd like him?
Wow, it looked like the Vincent Hunter fan club was growing. If he wasn’t careful he was going to become King Of The Nerds whether he liked it or not.
I don’t want to reveal anything because the beauty of this book is that it slowly unfolds so many situations. You think everything is going to be fine then you see you’re only at like 60% of the book and you know that the happiness can’t last. How can it last if there are so many unresolved things? I was so scared all the time. Will there be a twist? Will people who made mistakes be forgiven? Can a second chance be possible?
Vincent may be the sweetest and my love for him is immeasurable but my loyalty lies with Scotty. He is an amazing character. He is flawed, he lied a lot but it was due to shame and fear. I understood his intentions and stood by him. I hoped everything would turn out perfect for him because I wanted him to have the quiet and wonderful life he deserved. Scotty grew up so much, he started becoming bold, not being the one on the sideline, only receiving and never reacting. He accepts who he is, knowing there is nothing wrong with him. Everything he loves is part of who he is and the one who sees the greatness that is Scotty will be the one that’ll get to be with him forever.
I actually quite liked being me. I mean, maybe I wasn’t the coolest or most attractive guy in the world, but I wasn’t exactly hideous.
I loved this book so much and I want everyone to read it but I won’t recommend it. I kind of want people to find it by themselves just like I did and be surprised by its beauty.
5 wonderful nerdy stars for this jewel!!
“You know what Specs? I can’t fucking wait.”
“For what?” I questioned.
“Life.”
May 8, 2018
DNF the second time around, which means that I'm lowering my rating to 2 stars instead of my original 3.
I was really annoyed with the behaviour of Scotty, his best friend AND Taylor this time around, and I SERIOUSLY do not understand how Taylor kept getting away with it, especially because Scotty had vast opportunities to tell someone!
What clinched the DNF for me, was the boohoo-highlight where the MC is saying that nobody helps him..........
Because you didn't tell anyone, you doughnut!
Also the abuse Taylor lobbed Scotty's way was disgusting and horrible, and it made me so uncomfortable!
So yeah, exactly two years since my last read and I'm calling it.
I was really annoyed with the behaviour of Scotty, his best friend AND Taylor this time around, and I SERIOUSLY do not understand how Taylor kept getting away with it, especially because Scotty had vast opportunities to tell someone!
What clinched the DNF for me, was the boohoo-highlight where the MC is saying that nobody helps him..........
Because you didn't tell anyone, you doughnut!
Also the abuse Taylor lobbed Scotty's way was disgusting and horrible, and it made me so uncomfortable!
So yeah, exactly two years since my last read and I'm calling it.
June 30, 2015
I found Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me on wattpad late february this year and I instantly fell in love with it. To be honest, wattpad had never really impressed me at the time. I never found a book that I truly liked. But then, I discovered RTLANLM and I couldn't be happier.
This story brings out so much emotions and I am so impressed with all the different characters. You really could feel the love between the author and the characters.
Everytime I got home from school I would lie down in bed under a thick layer of blankets (because of the cold I always experienced outside and in school) and read RTLANLM. I actually sat in school and longed for that very moment when I could just disapear in the story and not think about anything else.
It's such a lovely story about forbidden love and the struggles of being a gay teenager. At the same time it's not predictable at all, as many books easily tend to be.
I never really had any experience with boyxboy novels before I read RTLANLM. Now I have started to look for more books like that because it turned out I really like that genre. Nothing has yet lived up to RTLANLM though. But honestly, what will?
I truly recommend this fantastic book to anyone who likes a great bunch of unique interesting characters, true love between two so very different individuals and a good book you can get lost in for hours and is very hard to let go of. Five out of five! All thanks to the awesome Becky Jerams!!
This story brings out so much emotions and I am so impressed with all the different characters. You really could feel the love between the author and the characters.
Everytime I got home from school I would lie down in bed under a thick layer of blankets (because of the cold I always experienced outside and in school) and read RTLANLM. I actually sat in school and longed for that very moment when I could just disapear in the story and not think about anything else.
It's such a lovely story about forbidden love and the struggles of being a gay teenager. At the same time it's not predictable at all, as many books easily tend to be.
I never really had any experience with boyxboy novels before I read RTLANLM. Now I have started to look for more books like that because it turned out I really like that genre. Nothing has yet lived up to RTLANLM though. But honestly, what will?
I truly recommend this fantastic book to anyone who likes a great bunch of unique interesting characters, true love between two so very different individuals and a good book you can get lost in for hours and is very hard to let go of. Five out of five! All thanks to the awesome Becky Jerams!!
February 1, 2016
Okay, so everyone needs to stop what they're doing and buy this book right now.
Read it and love it.
Read it and love it.
October 22, 2021
This book started out good and pretty cute, as Scotty develops a huge hero-worshipping crush on Vincent, the misunderstood "scary" guy on campus. Scotty's being bullied and Vincent is the only person to stand up for him (except he's not) and scare the big mean bully away. The getting to know you parts were sweet and filled with puppy crush cuteness. But then everything quickly got bogged down in teen melodrama and one ridiculous movie-at-eleven scenario after another. It was like Nick at Night on crack or something. It just got weird and completely unbelievable.
I'll try to keep this simple.
Likes:
~Olive - Scotty's BFF is her own woman. She's not going to be swayed by teen lust. She's head girl, darn it, and she's getting things done.
~Alexis Mae - She gets some really great character development which was a little unexpected considering how clichéd she was written for the first half of the book.
~Scotty's mum - We don't get to see her much, but she's super supportive of her son in every way, as a mom should be.
~Young love - Like I said, the first third of this book is pretty sweet
~The RPG group - I wish we had seen more of them! One scene to highlight Scotty's nerdiness is just not enough.
Dislikes:
~The bullying story arc - This might seem like a no-brainer, but it's not a dislike for the obvious reasons. I actually liked how this was being handled while Scotty was being bullied by his super-in-the-closet ex-boyfriend Taylor. But at some point, everyone starts to buy into Taylor's "my dad made me do it" excuses and Taylor doesn't do anything to redeem himself except feel super duper bad about his lot in life. Oh, cry me a river. I mean, I'm glad Scotty found it in himself to forgive Taylor after all that abuse and terror, but the whole "let's be friends" thing just felt weird and apologist to me. This isn't The Red Sheet-level of bully apologist, so I guess it could've been worse.
~The big misunderstanding - Scott lies a lot in this book, and while he thinks he has a good excuse for it, he's also lying to himself about it. Which is understandable. He's ashamed of his former relationship with Taylor and wants to pretend it never happened. I think we've all been in situations like that. However, when Olive and Vincent finally find out about his lies, he expects them to forgive him almost immediately. Um, no honey. You're not owed forgiveness either just cause you feel really bad about it. So shut up your face and give your friends time to come around on their own.
~Actually, Scotty in general got on my nerves a lot in the second half of this book. There's this scene where he calls out the school administrator/principal/head mistress/whatever her title is about the special treatment Taylor gets for being a star athlete and his dad being super loaded, yet they do nothing about his bullying Scotty. Um...how can they when you don't tell them about it? And even in that scene, he still back pedals and changes the subject and still doesn't tell them about it. Scotty has a bit of a special snowflake complex going on.
~Nick-at-Nite on crack - This is the worst. I wasn't in the in-crowd in high school. I was a band geek. I knew who the popular kids were, at least some of them, by name and sight but that was all. My school was pretty large, over 2000 kids, and you didn't even know all the kids in your own grade, which in my high school was 9-12 grades. So the whole rumor mill thing and the "OMG there go Scotty and Vincent aren't they so cute" thing was just eye roll inducing. Does this actually happen in any school ever? It's such a TV drama thing. As is the photograph thing, and don't even get me started on these idiots' inability to open their phones and call the cops when students are being choked half to death in plain sight. Like, really? Where are the teachers in this school? And what school in their right mind lets students decide if another student should be punished for hitting them? That should have at least gotten him detention. There was just a lot of non-sensical cray-cray going on in this book.
~The editing - Love your commas. Embrace your commas. Use your commas. Most of the time, the implied comma was easy to figure out, but there were one or two sentences that could be read in entirely different ways if that comma wasn't meant to be there. To use an old comic strip example, there's a big difference between, "I would never all you stupid," and "I would never call you, stupid." Sometimes, you really need that comma. There's also the whole "my Mum" and "his Dad" thing that drove me bonkers, and I could not find anyone among my British friends and acquaintances to confirm that this was a regional thing. The use of all-caps instead of italics was part and parcel for the teen drama, I guess.
I'll try to keep this simple.
Likes:
~Olive - Scotty's BFF is her own woman. She's not going to be swayed by teen lust. She's head girl, darn it, and she's getting things done.
~Alexis Mae - She gets some really great character development which was a little unexpected considering how clichéd she was written for the first half of the book.
~Scotty's mum - We don't get to see her much, but she's super supportive of her son in every way, as a mom should be.
~Young love - Like I said, the first third of this book is pretty sweet
~The RPG group - I wish we had seen more of them! One scene to highlight Scotty's nerdiness is just not enough.
Dislikes:
~The bullying story arc - This might seem like a no-brainer, but it's not a dislike for the obvious reasons. I actually liked how this was being handled while Scotty was being bullied by his super-in-the-closet ex-boyfriend Taylor. But at some point, everyone starts to buy into Taylor's "my dad made me do it" excuses and Taylor doesn't do anything to redeem himself except feel super duper bad about his lot in life. Oh, cry me a river. I mean, I'm glad Scotty found it in himself to forgive Taylor after all that abuse and terror, but the whole "let's be friends" thing just felt weird and apologist to me. This isn't The Red Sheet-level of bully apologist, so I guess it could've been worse.
~The big misunderstanding - Scott lies a lot in this book, and while he thinks he has a good excuse for it, he's also lying to himself about it. Which is understandable. He's ashamed of his former relationship with Taylor and wants to pretend it never happened. I think we've all been in situations like that. However, when Olive and Vincent finally find out about his lies, he expects them to forgive him almost immediately. Um, no honey. You're not owed forgiveness either just cause you feel really bad about it. So shut up your face and give your friends time to come around on their own.
~Actually, Scotty in general got on my nerves a lot in the second half of this book. There's this scene where he calls out the school administrator/principal/head mistress/whatever her title is about the special treatment Taylor gets for being a star athlete and his dad being super loaded, yet they do nothing about his bullying Scotty. Um...how can they when you don't tell them about it? And even in that scene, he still back pedals and changes the subject and still doesn't tell them about it. Scotty has a bit of a special snowflake complex going on.
~Nick-at-Nite on crack - This is the worst. I wasn't in the in-crowd in high school. I was a band geek. I knew who the popular kids were, at least some of them, by name and sight but that was all. My school was pretty large, over 2000 kids, and you didn't even know all the kids in your own grade, which in my high school was 9-12 grades. So the whole rumor mill thing and the "OMG there go Scotty and Vincent aren't they so cute" thing was just eye roll inducing. Does this actually happen in any school ever? It's such a TV drama thing. As is the photograph thing, and don't even get me started on these idiots' inability to open their phones and call the cops when students are being choked half to death in plain sight. Like, really? Where are the teachers in this school? And what school in their right mind lets students decide if another student should be punished for hitting them? That should have at least gotten him detention. There was just a lot of non-sensical cray-cray going on in this book.
~The editing - Love your commas. Embrace your commas. Use your commas. Most of the time, the implied comma was easy to figure out, but there were one or two sentences that could be read in entirely different ways if that comma wasn't meant to be there. To use an old comic strip example, there's a big difference between, "I would never all you stupid," and "I would never call you, stupid." Sometimes, you really need that comma. There's also the whole "my Mum" and "his Dad" thing that drove me bonkers, and I could not find anyone among my British friends and acquaintances to confirm that this was a regional thing. The use of all-caps instead of italics was part and parcel for the teen drama, I guess.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 7, 2015
Read full review Here
I didn’t know exactly what I was expecting from this book, but this was not it! And that’s a good thing, oh, such a good thing. I will admit that it took me a bit to actually understand where I stood in the story, not being familiar at all with the british school system, it took me a while. It was also a challenge to familiarize myself with all the british slur and that kind of stuff, but I got there ;-) .
The writing is pretty impressive, it really surprised me how easily I ended up going through the 500+ pages of this book.
I really liked most of the characters. Scotty was pretty amazing, in all of his imperfections. I loved that he was who he was and that he was sure and confided in his own skin. And even if I wanted to bludge his head with something for most of the time, I do understand why he did what he did, and why he kept all the secrets. Ollie got on my nerves sometimes, mostly because she fluctuated too much between being too much of a grown-up and too much of a kid, and I had a really hard time pegging her as a 17 yo. She was a great friend to Scotty though, and I appreciated how their friendship was built.
I absolutely loved Vincent and I was swooning for the guy most of the time. His relationship with Scotty was kind of perfect and I really loved that he didn’t really care about what people thought. While with his best-friend, Alexis, I had a similar problem as with Ollie: I liked her, but she got on my nerves sometimes… her reaction to what her interpretation of the truth was was awful, she didn’t even think about things before she started to bully Scotty, it was just not right at all.
Now for the bully, Taylor, it really took me surprise the real reason why he did what he did, and even after I knew it, and I kind of understood it, his cold reactions and violent behaviour while they were alone still baffled me a bit. I did like his ending, and I’m kind of curious to read his story :) .
I really liked the plot and all its elements, but I do think that the book could have been shortened. As much as I liked seeing Scotty and Vincent’s relationship blossom, I do think it could have come a little faster. The same with their fallout, it was bound to happen, and it was terrible – my heart was hurting all that time – but it could have come and been resolved faster.
I obviously liked the ending, though the fact that Scotty and Vincent not only forgave, but became friends with Taylor kind of put me off. I understand the forgiving part, and I applaud it, but hanging out with the guy that bullied you for over a year… I don’t know…
Also, I applaud that Becky Jerams was bold enough not only to include sex in the novel, but to include explicit M/M sex. I APPLAUD YOU!
I didn’t know exactly what I was expecting from this book, but this was not it! And that’s a good thing, oh, such a good thing. I will admit that it took me a bit to actually understand where I stood in the story, not being familiar at all with the british school system, it took me a while. It was also a challenge to familiarize myself with all the british slur and that kind of stuff, but I got there ;-) .
The writing is pretty impressive, it really surprised me how easily I ended up going through the 500+ pages of this book.
I really liked most of the characters. Scotty was pretty amazing, in all of his imperfections. I loved that he was who he was and that he was sure and confided in his own skin. And even if I wanted to bludge his head with something for most of the time, I do understand why he did what he did, and why he kept all the secrets. Ollie got on my nerves sometimes, mostly because she fluctuated too much between being too much of a grown-up and too much of a kid, and I had a really hard time pegging her as a 17 yo. She was a great friend to Scotty though, and I appreciated how their friendship was built.
I absolutely loved Vincent and I was swooning for the guy most of the time. His relationship with Scotty was kind of perfect and I really loved that he didn’t really care about what people thought. While with his best-friend, Alexis, I had a similar problem as with Ollie: I liked her, but she got on my nerves sometimes… her reaction to what her interpretation of the truth was was awful, she didn’t even think about things before she started to bully Scotty, it was just not right at all.
Now for the bully, Taylor, it really took me surprise the real reason why he did what he did, and even after I knew it, and I kind of understood it, his cold reactions and violent behaviour while they were alone still baffled me a bit. I did like his ending, and I’m kind of curious to read his story :) .
I really liked the plot and all its elements, but I do think that the book could have been shortened. As much as I liked seeing Scotty and Vincent’s relationship blossom, I do think it could have come a little faster. The same with their fallout, it was bound to happen, and it was terrible – my heart was hurting all that time – but it could have come and been resolved faster.
I obviously liked the ending, though the fact that Scotty and Vincent not only forgave, but became friends with Taylor kind of put me off. I understand the forgiving part, and I applaud it, but hanging out with the guy that bullied you for over a year… I don’t know…
Also, I applaud that Becky Jerams was bold enough not only to include sex in the novel, but to include explicit M/M sex. I APPLAUD YOU!
December 9, 2017
Dear author, please, please, DON'T use CAPS all the time. I had the feeling that Olive (but also the others) KEPT SHOUTING AT ME. Drove me NUTS.
May 19, 2016
A Joyfully Jay review.
4.75 stars
I’m going to start this review out by mentioning that this book is 500+ pages – it’s a long novel – but, I have to say that it hooked me from the first paragraph and kept me interested from start to finish!
The story is told from Scotty’s POV. Scotty is one of the smartest students on campus. Despite “hanging out” in the athletic closet waiting for his best friend Olive to rescue him, Scotty is out and proud. A total nerd, he spends his spare time playing games with the Dungeon Adventure Club, surrounded by others (nerds) like him. His only fear is walking between buildings and being confronted by Taylor Raven and his cronies who have made it their life’s mission to bully Scotty. In an attempt to go out of his way to avoid Taylor and his crew, Scotty walks right into the school psychopath, Vincent Hunter.
Vincent has some anger control issues. After an incident where Vincent broke another student’s nose, pretty much everyone gives him a wide berth. A musician, he spends most of his time practicing with Alexis, his best friend, bandmate, and former girlfriend. When he starts stepping in and protecting Scotty, Scotty gets his hopes up that maybe someone like Vincent could like a nerd like him…except Vincent is straight, isn’t he? The romance between these two was sweet and sexy all rolled into one!
Read Wendy’s review in its entirety here.
4.75 stars
I’m going to start this review out by mentioning that this book is 500+ pages – it’s a long novel – but, I have to say that it hooked me from the first paragraph and kept me interested from start to finish!
The story is told from Scotty’s POV. Scotty is one of the smartest students on campus. Despite “hanging out” in the athletic closet waiting for his best friend Olive to rescue him, Scotty is out and proud. A total nerd, he spends his spare time playing games with the Dungeon Adventure Club, surrounded by others (nerds) like him. His only fear is walking between buildings and being confronted by Taylor Raven and his cronies who have made it their life’s mission to bully Scotty. In an attempt to go out of his way to avoid Taylor and his crew, Scotty walks right into the school psychopath, Vincent Hunter.
Vincent has some anger control issues. After an incident where Vincent broke another student’s nose, pretty much everyone gives him a wide berth. A musician, he spends most of his time practicing with Alexis, his best friend, bandmate, and former girlfriend. When he starts stepping in and protecting Scotty, Scotty gets his hopes up that maybe someone like Vincent could like a nerd like him…except Vincent is straight, isn’t he? The romance between these two was sweet and sexy all rolled into one!
Read Wendy’s review in its entirety here.
March 30, 2017
Loved it!
A wonderful, heartwarming - and at times heart wrenching story of friendship and love.
Have a box of tissues handy, just in case!
A wonderful, heartwarming - and at times heart wrenching story of friendship and love.
Have a box of tissues handy, just in case!
May 5, 2017
Another from my backlog. I read this nearly a year ago and I remember enjoying it quite a lot, but I just read it again and I’m happy to report that it stands up to a second read. Though I did have trouble keeping the story straight in my head because I read TT Kove’s More Than Words around the same time and they have some similar plot points.
Anyway... Reasons is about Scotty, a proud, gay nerd and the time he seduced the two hottest boys at school. Not really, but kind of. There was quite a bit going on in Scotty’s life. There was his best friend, Olive, who was hard to digest at first, but she meant well. She was kind of pushy and demanding, expecting total, absolute disclosure on every aspect of Scotty’s life. Even though Scotty didn’t really seem to mind, I don’t think it’s all that healthy for anyone’s friendship to have such a thing as a defining characteristic.
Then there was Scotty’s bully, Taylor. He was terrible and even though his home life was just as horrible, he was such a dick that you didn’t really want to make allowances for it. However, at a certain point, you just couldn’t help feeling bad for someone that was so confused and desperate and alone as he was. For a good portion of the book, Taylor. his girlfriend, Patricia, and their dumb as bricks henchmen, the Baker twins, came as a packaged deal and as you can probably guess, only compounded Scotty’s daily misery.
Rounding out the main characters are the school’s resident psychopath, Vincent, and his bandmate, Alexis. Past incidents marked Vincent as aggressive, rude, and disruptive. Honestly though, he was mostly misunderstood, but he didn’t really advance his cause with all of his brooding and aloofness. Alexis on the other hand was abrasive and bitter. Even towards Vincent who she cared about, but she had a counterproductive and injurious way of showing it.
Through his interactions with this motley crew, Scotty’s second to last year was turning out to be rather bad for his heart, but amazingly did only minute damage to his confidence and sense of self. The story’s told in first-person, so we ride along with Scotty through all his happiness and heartbreaks.
One of the reasons I get tripped up by YA (and interestingly enough a lot of manga) is that the kids are just living these amazing, off the wall lives and adult supervision is as scarce as proper lubrication in fanfiction. There’s no way a child can be assaulted or experience a breakdown/panic attack at school and the administration not tell the parents. Like, how does that even work? It always pulls me out of the story when things like that happen.
However, Reasons was such a carnival that I was barely out of the story before the next thing pulled me back in. How all the players tied in together and the dynamic between them was incredible and fun and interesting and sad and all the things that a pseudo-coming of age story should be about.
When I got to the end, reading on my Kindle app, it showed that there was a continuation! I was all for it and didn’t even stop for snacks before moving on to it.
There’s one thing I didn’t like about the story, but I’m going to save that for my thoughts about the second book. See you then.
Anyway... Reasons is about Scotty, a proud, gay nerd and the time he seduced the two hottest boys at school. Not really, but kind of. There was quite a bit going on in Scotty’s life. There was his best friend, Olive, who was hard to digest at first, but she meant well. She was kind of pushy and demanding, expecting total, absolute disclosure on every aspect of Scotty’s life. Even though Scotty didn’t really seem to mind, I don’t think it’s all that healthy for anyone’s friendship to have such a thing as a defining characteristic.
Then there was Scotty’s bully, Taylor. He was terrible and even though his home life was just as horrible, he was such a dick that you didn’t really want to make allowances for it. However, at a certain point, you just couldn’t help feeling bad for someone that was so confused and desperate and alone as he was. For a good portion of the book, Taylor. his girlfriend, Patricia, and their dumb as bricks henchmen, the Baker twins, came as a packaged deal and as you can probably guess, only compounded Scotty’s daily misery.
Rounding out the main characters are the school’s resident psychopath, Vincent, and his bandmate, Alexis. Past incidents marked Vincent as aggressive, rude, and disruptive. Honestly though, he was mostly misunderstood, but he didn’t really advance his cause with all of his brooding and aloofness. Alexis on the other hand was abrasive and bitter. Even towards Vincent who she cared about, but she had a counterproductive and injurious way of showing it.
Through his interactions with this motley crew, Scotty’s second to last year was turning out to be rather bad for his heart, but amazingly did only minute damage to his confidence and sense of self. The story’s told in first-person, so we ride along with Scotty through all his happiness and heartbreaks.
One of the reasons I get tripped up by YA (and interestingly enough a lot of manga) is that the kids are just living these amazing, off the wall lives and adult supervision is as scarce as proper lubrication in fanfiction. There’s no way a child can be assaulted or experience a breakdown/panic attack at school and the administration not tell the parents. Like, how does that even work? It always pulls me out of the story when things like that happen.
However, Reasons was such a carnival that I was barely out of the story before the next thing pulled me back in. How all the players tied in together and the dynamic between them was incredible and fun and interesting and sad and all the things that a pseudo-coming of age story should be about.
When I got to the end, reading on my Kindle app, it showed that there was a continuation! I was all for it and didn’t even stop for snacks before moving on to it.
There’s one thing I didn’t like about the story, but I’m going to save that for my thoughts about the second book. See you then.
January 10, 2016
Overall Rating: 8/10 (4/5 stars)
Plot: 9/10
Characters: 8/10
Writing: 7/10
Originality: 8/10
I was slightly wary of this book, because the summary looks a bit predictable. However, I was mostly wrong! There were parts of this book that I could not stop reading. I also love LGBT representation in all forms, and I think Jerams does a good job of showing both sides of acceptance. The plot is definitely more complex than I expected, with twists and turns at every corner, and of course the romance is extremely sweet. Though sometimes the dialogue is a bit cheesy and unnatural, this novel definitely is enjoyable, entertaining, and meaningful.
Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me is written in a very distinct style, meaning that there are plot twists and cliffhangers found at the end of almost every chapter. Some books would overdo this terribly and throw random plot elements in for the sake of pacing, making for an exhausting read. However, the style suits this novel very well, and I loved it. After reading a book at around the same time that just dragged incredibly, I liked the fact that this novel is extremely plot-driven. The plot is able to flow, making for an easy and mostly light read, but it’s not linear either. The development and complexity of the conflicts in this novel is certainly on a similar level of achievement as some of my favorite bestselling authors. There are many problems occurring at once, and at one point even I didn’t know how Scotty was going to be able to solve all of them. This fast-paced novel kept me entertained the entire way through.
This novel is also not solely a romance. Though there are many heartwarming parts, there are also scenes in which I was on the edge of my seat, heart racing. I think this is a wonderful accomplishment in a contemporary novel, because most similar novels lack suspense due to the genre’s soft nature. Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me breaks those rules, which is refreshing. The novel also includes some deeper-meaning, thought-provoking ideas about bullies and their victims, suggesting that every situation is more complicated than it may seem on the surface. My only critique would be that a few scenes and twists are slightly predictable, and even cheesy at times–but the big moments in the novel more than make up for the more simple aspects.
For the most part I really enjoyed the characters in this novel. I feel they are diverse both in demographic and personality. The cast of characters is a nice amount: enough people to make the story entertaining, but also small enough so that the reader can still form a proper emotional attachment to each. Supporting characters such as Taylor and Alexis are definitely three-dimensional, and I loved the care that Jerams took to explain and develop their backstories. Vincent’s backstory, though one of the harder and more emotional scenes to read in the novel, in particular shapes him as a person, and certainly becomes meaningful when the final climax occurs.
I will admit that I was not really a fan of Olive’s character. Though I like the idea of Olive in general–I love strong female characters in books, and Olive is certainly a no-nonsense intelligent character–I felt that her dialogue and personality was the most unnatural of the group. I felt similarly about Patricia, like she was just too much of an evil and snotty character to be believable. However, these small flaws are even further dwarfed by Scotty’s narrative, which I loved. His voice comes through so nicely, and he is an extremely three-dimensional character. He is flawed, making him realistic, but he is also definitely someone all readers can root for. Overall, it is clear that the characters in Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me are well thought-out, and readers will enjoy getting to watch them develop and grow.
The writing of this novel contains both extremely prominent strengths and just a few obvious weaknesses. As I’ve been saying throughout the review, some of the dialogue stumbles along awkwardly, and cheesy cliches are present at some points in the novel. However, I was extremely pleased by the balance of description and action in the novel. The word choice is rich, and I found my eyes darting all across the page during the action scenes, incredibly anxious to see a resolution. The pacing of this novel is fabulous, and I attribute a lot of that to Jerams’ natural writing skills. I cannot wait to read more of her future work.
Originality was where I expected Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me’s true weakness to lie, but I was pleasantly surprised. Though there are some predictable aspects of this book, there are many parts that I did not see coming. More significantly, the uniqueness of this novel lies in its transformation from a simple romance into something more insightful. This novel is not only enjoyable, but will leave readers thinking, which I believe is always a book’s final and most important goal.
Overall: Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me by Becky Jerams is an enjoyable, heartwarming read that is also complex and filled with emotions. Readers who enjoy contemporary fiction that is both pleasant to read and meaningful will want to pick up this fast-paced novel.
www.goodbadanduglybooks.net
Plot: 9/10
Characters: 8/10
Writing: 7/10
Originality: 8/10
I was slightly wary of this book, because the summary looks a bit predictable. However, I was mostly wrong! There were parts of this book that I could not stop reading. I also love LGBT representation in all forms, and I think Jerams does a good job of showing both sides of acceptance. The plot is definitely more complex than I expected, with twists and turns at every corner, and of course the romance is extremely sweet. Though sometimes the dialogue is a bit cheesy and unnatural, this novel definitely is enjoyable, entertaining, and meaningful.
Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me is written in a very distinct style, meaning that there are plot twists and cliffhangers found at the end of almost every chapter. Some books would overdo this terribly and throw random plot elements in for the sake of pacing, making for an exhausting read. However, the style suits this novel very well, and I loved it. After reading a book at around the same time that just dragged incredibly, I liked the fact that this novel is extremely plot-driven. The plot is able to flow, making for an easy and mostly light read, but it’s not linear either. The development and complexity of the conflicts in this novel is certainly on a similar level of achievement as some of my favorite bestselling authors. There are many problems occurring at once, and at one point even I didn’t know how Scotty was going to be able to solve all of them. This fast-paced novel kept me entertained the entire way through.
This novel is also not solely a romance. Though there are many heartwarming parts, there are also scenes in which I was on the edge of my seat, heart racing. I think this is a wonderful accomplishment in a contemporary novel, because most similar novels lack suspense due to the genre’s soft nature. Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me breaks those rules, which is refreshing. The novel also includes some deeper-meaning, thought-provoking ideas about bullies and their victims, suggesting that every situation is more complicated than it may seem on the surface. My only critique would be that a few scenes and twists are slightly predictable, and even cheesy at times–but the big moments in the novel more than make up for the more simple aspects.
For the most part I really enjoyed the characters in this novel. I feel they are diverse both in demographic and personality. The cast of characters is a nice amount: enough people to make the story entertaining, but also small enough so that the reader can still form a proper emotional attachment to each. Supporting characters such as Taylor and Alexis are definitely three-dimensional, and I loved the care that Jerams took to explain and develop their backstories. Vincent’s backstory, though one of the harder and more emotional scenes to read in the novel, in particular shapes him as a person, and certainly becomes meaningful when the final climax occurs.
I will admit that I was not really a fan of Olive’s character. Though I like the idea of Olive in general–I love strong female characters in books, and Olive is certainly a no-nonsense intelligent character–I felt that her dialogue and personality was the most unnatural of the group. I felt similarly about Patricia, like she was just too much of an evil and snotty character to be believable. However, these small flaws are even further dwarfed by Scotty’s narrative, which I loved. His voice comes through so nicely, and he is an extremely three-dimensional character. He is flawed, making him realistic, but he is also definitely someone all readers can root for. Overall, it is clear that the characters in Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me are well thought-out, and readers will enjoy getting to watch them develop and grow.
The writing of this novel contains both extremely prominent strengths and just a few obvious weaknesses. As I’ve been saying throughout the review, some of the dialogue stumbles along awkwardly, and cheesy cliches are present at some points in the novel. However, I was extremely pleased by the balance of description and action in the novel. The word choice is rich, and I found my eyes darting all across the page during the action scenes, incredibly anxious to see a resolution. The pacing of this novel is fabulous, and I attribute a lot of that to Jerams’ natural writing skills. I cannot wait to read more of her future work.
Originality was where I expected Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me’s true weakness to lie, but I was pleasantly surprised. Though there are some predictable aspects of this book, there are many parts that I did not see coming. More significantly, the uniqueness of this novel lies in its transformation from a simple romance into something more insightful. This novel is not only enjoyable, but will leave readers thinking, which I believe is always a book’s final and most important goal.
Overall: Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me by Becky Jerams is an enjoyable, heartwarming read that is also complex and filled with emotions. Readers who enjoy contemporary fiction that is both pleasant to read and meaningful will want to pick up this fast-paced novel.
www.goodbadanduglybooks.net
February 22, 2017
"I was the pale, scrawny, homosexual nerd. The easy target. I should have been feeling sorry for myself and wishing I was anyone else at that moment in time. But instead, I smiled at my own reflection."
How not appreciate a book when the main character is so strong despite all his small flaws, so cheerful despite all the sadness in his heart, corageous yes sometimes terrified? Because this is what Scotty is: an adorable, caring and good natured boy (sometimes even too god natured) obliged to face each day his painful past while trying to go on with the present. He's always so cheerful and sweet that it would be easy to think he lives in a little happy bubble. But as anyone knows, sooner or later we are doomed to make a mistake due to our decisions, and this mistake will surely have consequences. This is what Scotty must deal with, and of course it's all but easy.
I was able to perceive all his uncertaintes, desires, pains, feelings... the feelings of such a pure person that I just wanted to hug him and give him all my support. It was impossible not to empathize with him, not to share his emotions, almost living them on my own skin.
There were moments when I was screaming in delight, moved by all the sweetness that two people in love can share. It didn't matter if I'm usually not into stories focused on romance, because in this case I was cheering for them even more than the characters themselves. I was almost envious of that deep, delicate feeling growing page after page.
The greatness of this work was however intertwining these gleeful events with others filled with feelings of betrayal, uncertaintes, rage, envy, dark secrets of the past still menacing the present. Moments that left me almost on the verge of tears.
And nonetheless, if there is something that Scotty unfortunately discovered and that I'll carry with me from this moment on, is that you can't erase your past or forgot what you have been, but you can try change your present self and become a better person to be proud of when you are older and you think about your life.
"Maybe we couldn't go back and change the past. But we could change the present. And I was refusing to let any more of my story end in hatred and anger. It was time to fix everything in my life and it had to start here."
September 12, 2016
I must say, for a debut novel...author Becky Jerams did a fantastic job! This story perfectly captures the teen angst, school cliques and the pain of going through that time of life when you don't fit in to the expectations of others, especially from the point of view of a gay teen. While there are a few things that were slightly annoying (to be expected in most books that are set in an upper teenage environment), and the story could probably have been trimmed a bit as it felt longer than it really needed to be, overall it was a really good read.
Scotty is a great character. He and his friends are probably the ones I would have been hanging out with in school had they been there, which made it very easy for me to identify with them as a group and to empathize with Scotty for what he had to go through. I adored Vincent. Even with everything he's gone through with his family, he pushes on through and is a stronger person for it. He does what he wants and doesn't worry about what other people think. At first glance, you'd never think he and Scotty would fit--until you actually read their story.
As far as some of the other characters go, Olive did get on my nerves a bit-sometimes I just wanted to duct tape her mouth shut. She could be somewhat overbearing, but her continuing support of Scotty and their close friendship helped me tolerate her through the book. Taylor...I went from liking to loathing to absolutely detesting and then just got to the point where I became indifferent. I did feel bad for him in the end though, and hope that we might get a story for him in the future.
There's no shortage of teenage angst and drama, ranging from the typical to the downright nasty, and the secrets being kept added to the angst factor. Some of it felt a little drawn out, and in those places I did put the book down for a few hours here and there to give myself some down time before picking up with the story again. I did have to look up information about the British schooling system as the terms were unfamiliar since here in the US our system is different, once I did that it became a bit easier to understand.
Even though it took me a bit longer to get through this than I expected, it was still a really good story and is one that I will definitely re-read in the future. I'm looking forward to the sequel, and hope that we get more Scotty and Vincent as well as something for Taylor. 4.5 stars for Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me, and I'd recommend this to M/M romance fans who enjoy stories in the mature YA age range. While most of the intimate portions of the story take place off-page, there is one scene near the end that is a bit more descriptive, though still tastefully done and not graphic, and the story does contain adult language...so while this could be read by those 16+ (assume the maturity level is there), it may be better suited for readers 18+ on a general level.
Scotty is a great character. He and his friends are probably the ones I would have been hanging out with in school had they been there, which made it very easy for me to identify with them as a group and to empathize with Scotty for what he had to go through. I adored Vincent. Even with everything he's gone through with his family, he pushes on through and is a stronger person for it. He does what he wants and doesn't worry about what other people think. At first glance, you'd never think he and Scotty would fit--until you actually read their story.
As far as some of the other characters go, Olive did get on my nerves a bit-sometimes I just wanted to duct tape her mouth shut. She could be somewhat overbearing, but her continuing support of Scotty and their close friendship helped me tolerate her through the book. Taylor...I went from liking to loathing to absolutely detesting and then just got to the point where I became indifferent. I did feel bad for him in the end though, and hope that we might get a story for him in the future.
There's no shortage of teenage angst and drama, ranging from the typical to the downright nasty, and the secrets being kept added to the angst factor. Some of it felt a little drawn out, and in those places I did put the book down for a few hours here and there to give myself some down time before picking up with the story again. I did have to look up information about the British schooling system as the terms were unfamiliar since here in the US our system is different, once I did that it became a bit easier to understand.
Even though it took me a bit longer to get through this than I expected, it was still a really good story and is one that I will definitely re-read in the future. I'm looking forward to the sequel, and hope that we get more Scotty and Vincent as well as something for Taylor. 4.5 stars for Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me, and I'd recommend this to M/M romance fans who enjoy stories in the mature YA age range. While most of the intimate portions of the story take place off-page, there is one scene near the end that is a bit more descriptive, though still tastefully done and not graphic, and the story does contain adult language...so while this could be read by those 16+ (assume the maturity level is there), it may be better suited for readers 18+ on a general level.
January 13, 2016
The beautiful author Becky Jerams asked me if I could read and review her book – Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me – and I happily agreed.
I will start with my overall thoughts, and they basically boil down to me being a pile of happy mush. This is an incredibly cute Young Adult romance which borders on New Adult because of the content. I am giving this 4.5/5 stars.
I haven’t read many stories that revolve around GLBT characters – mainly because not a lot exists yet – so this was refreshing and interesting to read. The story revolves around Scotty – a nerdy teenage boy who is excessively bullied. INSANELY BULLIED. It is not really a story of self-discovery; Scotty knows who he is and what he wants. He is fierce and vulnerable at the same time and I can’t even adequately describe just how much I want to hug this fictional kid. This is a love story. A tormented, delicious love story.
The writing was incredibly easy to read – I think I read the entire story in two sittings. It switches between present and past tense. If done incorrectly this method of storytelling can be jarring, but Jerams does it in a way that it adds so much more to the story. It gives character insight that just would not have had the same impact if it was all told in present tense. Without giving away too many spoiler-y things, it provides a history between Scotty and his bully Taylor which pretty much broke my heart.
One of my favourite things about the story is that it was unafraid to explore sex. For some reason, sex still seems to be a fairly taboo topic in YA books these days. It’s not that the sex scenes are excessive or gratuitous here; they are honest and believable. I remember thinking, “Finally! An author that gets that sex is usually part of the teenage experience and isn’t flossing over it.” Huge round of applause required.
If there is one critique I have, it is that some of the secondary characters are really one-dimensional with their personalities. For instance, the bully’s sidekicks are hulking meatheads that don’t have one thought between them, and his girlfriend is the trope-ish beautiful, haughty bitch. This didn’t overly bother me though because the story isn’t about them.
I also need to make a special mention of Scotty’s best friend Olly. I can’t tell if I love her or hate her but she is a big bag of crazy awesomeness. I think that if it wasn’t obvious how much she loves Scotty then I would have found her irritating, but she is the best sort of friend he could have.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read your story Becky. It was beautiful. Vincent and Scotty = OTP.
I will start with my overall thoughts, and they basically boil down to me being a pile of happy mush. This is an incredibly cute Young Adult romance which borders on New Adult because of the content. I am giving this 4.5/5 stars.
I haven’t read many stories that revolve around GLBT characters – mainly because not a lot exists yet – so this was refreshing and interesting to read. The story revolves around Scotty – a nerdy teenage boy who is excessively bullied. INSANELY BULLIED. It is not really a story of self-discovery; Scotty knows who he is and what he wants. He is fierce and vulnerable at the same time and I can’t even adequately describe just how much I want to hug this fictional kid. This is a love story. A tormented, delicious love story.
The writing was incredibly easy to read – I think I read the entire story in two sittings. It switches between present and past tense. If done incorrectly this method of storytelling can be jarring, but Jerams does it in a way that it adds so much more to the story. It gives character insight that just would not have had the same impact if it was all told in present tense. Without giving away too many spoiler-y things, it provides a history between Scotty and his bully Taylor which pretty much broke my heart.
One of my favourite things about the story is that it was unafraid to explore sex. For some reason, sex still seems to be a fairly taboo topic in YA books these days. It’s not that the sex scenes are excessive or gratuitous here; they are honest and believable. I remember thinking, “Finally! An author that gets that sex is usually part of the teenage experience and isn’t flossing over it.” Huge round of applause required.
If there is one critique I have, it is that some of the secondary characters are really one-dimensional with their personalities. For instance, the bully’s sidekicks are hulking meatheads that don’t have one thought between them, and his girlfriend is the trope-ish beautiful, haughty bitch. This didn’t overly bother me though because the story isn’t about them.
I also need to make a special mention of Scotty’s best friend Olly. I can’t tell if I love her or hate her but she is a big bag of crazy awesomeness. I think that if it wasn’t obvious how much she loves Scotty then I would have found her irritating, but she is the best sort of friend he could have.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read your story Becky. It was beautiful. Vincent and Scotty = OTP.
December 15, 2015
Reasons To Read Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me
The plot was very interesting! When I first heard about this book, I immediately added it to my TBR. It's very enjoyable and a bit of a light read. It wasn't hard to get into the book that I found myself reading it in one sitting!
The characters were easy to understand and relate to, not to mention diverse! I enjoyed reading about them! Scotty was very relatable and I love that he's open about himself, even though he's bit of an introvert. Olive was the typical BFF, she's very supportive and lovable! She's also really smart and definitely kicks ass! Vincent came off pretty mysterious at first, and the kind of bad boy type that screams "Don't even look at me or I'll kill you" but on the inside, he's actually very sweet and caring. He's also a great friend! Alexis annoyed me for most of the story's duration but I learned to enjoy her character towards the end. Taylor though, he's a real dick. Good thing he managed to change his ways. I loved that every character had somehow found their own happiness and resolutions at the end of the story. No loose ends.
Adorable, cheesy and absolutely perfect for your fluffy cravings! I have seriously lost count on how many times this book made me smile and swoon and laugh and cry and everything else. This book was a mix of everything and they're all balanced out.
Excellent writing style! Becky Jerams' style of writing was absolutely excellent. I loved the way she wrote the book, even though it's comprised of many chapters, I still found myself craving for more. The pacing of the story was absolutely brilliant, as well! I seriously love it.
Do I recommend it? HELL YES! It's got amazing friendships, romance, and LGBT-friendly!
The plot was very interesting! When I first heard about this book, I immediately added it to my TBR. It's very enjoyable and a bit of a light read. It wasn't hard to get into the book that I found myself reading it in one sitting!
The characters were easy to understand and relate to, not to mention diverse! I enjoyed reading about them! Scotty was very relatable and I love that he's open about himself, even though he's bit of an introvert. Olive was the typical BFF, she's very supportive and lovable! She's also really smart and definitely kicks ass! Vincent came off pretty mysterious at first, and the kind of bad boy type that screams "Don't even look at me or I'll kill you" but on the inside, he's actually very sweet and caring. He's also a great friend! Alexis annoyed me for most of the story's duration but I learned to enjoy her character towards the end. Taylor though, he's a real dick. Good thing he managed to change his ways. I loved that every character had somehow found their own happiness and resolutions at the end of the story. No loose ends.
Adorable, cheesy and absolutely perfect for your fluffy cravings! I have seriously lost count on how many times this book made me smile and swoon and laugh and cry and everything else. This book was a mix of everything and they're all balanced out.
Excellent writing style! Becky Jerams' style of writing was absolutely excellent. I loved the way she wrote the book, even though it's comprised of many chapters, I still found myself craving for more. The pacing of the story was absolutely brilliant, as well! I seriously love it.
Do I recommend it? HELL YES! It's got amazing friendships, romance, and LGBT-friendly!
April 8, 2017
Wow... just wow. I am in love with how amazing this story turned out!! Especially with the character development that emerged as the story progressed. Each character had their own personality (which is sometimes hard to find in a book) and a relatable past that left me squirming in my seat. I was constantly on the edge of my seat, leaning foreword in anticipation and awe, almost unable to set the book down ( or the iPad I read it from ^-^) unless I was interrupted. And the setting! Oh the setting was marvelous! I could image every moment and scene in my mind and it was as if I was there, getting through every crazy event that was thrown towards Scotty and Vincent. I also very much enjoyed the language and tone used by Becky throughout the novel, her clever words and style made me smile constantly. These splendid characters that had been created and brought to life in the story had me on an emotional roller coaster that I never wanted to get off, even as the end drew closer. And I didn't want the end to come!! It was so good and I was sad that the wonderful journey would come to a stop. However, the way that it ended was perfect and I couldn't have been more please and amazed by the outcome! It left nothing unsolved and closed/tied off ever lose end into a perfect bow of appreciation. I'm excited for the next story to see what the next Becky-made adventure will bring. I recommend this to well... EVERYONE!! You have to read it!! If not, you are missing out on some good quality book. It's rare to find those now a days and this is it!!! So, thank you Becky, for writing such an incredible piece to please all the readers. You should be very proud of the outcome of this story!! Thanks!!!! X
Love,
BlueEffervescence <3
Love,
BlueEffervescence <3
June 29, 2016
This could have been quite a decent, cute little YA story IF it were slimmed down to about half the length.
There's just not anywhere near enough story to justify the word count of this. Seriously.
As it stands, all the good in it (and there is some) is swamped by the rambling, long-winded and heavy handed way it's written. Every least tiny event is trumped up into an overly-dramatic disaster, flogged long beyond death with angst. There's no surprises because our smart, sensitive and incredibly insightful narrator, Scotty, shares the thoughts and feelings of all the other characters with us so we're solidly kept well ahead of the plot, he also hyper-analyses all things seemingly irrelevant so that we know to expect their importance later on.
And I don't even particularly wanna get started on the dialogue!
Ya know, a sharp script for these characters would have went a long way to injecting life into this story, given me something I'd want to buy into. What we have here, though, are unbelievable, cardboard-cutout characters who all fit far too snugly inside their little cliche pigeon holes.
This is a novella watered down with word-vomit and it took up much more of my time than it needed to.
Result: I'm kinda peed off.
There's just not anywhere near enough story to justify the word count of this. Seriously.
As it stands, all the good in it (and there is some) is swamped by the rambling, long-winded and heavy handed way it's written. Every least tiny event is trumped up into an overly-dramatic disaster, flogged long beyond death with angst. There's no surprises because our smart, sensitive and incredibly insightful narrator, Scotty, shares the thoughts and feelings of all the other characters with us so we're solidly kept well ahead of the plot, he also hyper-analyses all things seemingly irrelevant so that we know to expect their importance later on.
And I don't even particularly wanna get started on the dialogue!
Ya know, a sharp script for these characters would have went a long way to injecting life into this story, given me something I'd want to buy into. What we have here, though, are unbelievable, cardboard-cutout characters who all fit far too snugly inside their little cliche pigeon holes.
This is a novella watered down with word-vomit and it took up much more of my time than it needed to.
Result: I'm kinda peed off.
February 7, 2017
I wasn't sure about dropping this one, but I just can't seem to go on. It was okay at the beginning, but this book felt way too much like the stereotypical fan fiction that I read almost a thousand times, so I lost interest pretty fast. It doesn't help that it's long. Too long for what it tells, really. It's not badly written just... boring, I guess. It's cute if it's your first time with m/m romance and you aren't familiar with fan fictions, otherwise it's mostly tiring and cliché.
October 29, 2015
This book is awesome. I hardly read books because they don't catch my attention but the moment I read this book it totally caught my attention and I managed to finish at book with 53 chapters in 3 days(which is surprising because I don't usually even read books!!)
March 6, 2016
"Я думал, что я у тебя первый, а это оказалось не так! Ах, Скотти, как ты мог, ты разбил мне сердце"! Ну его на фиг, это мексиканское мыло с его психованными бывшими, ранимыми рок звездами и истеричными друзьями.
March 14, 2016
4 stars
I just ♡ this story.
the struggles the bullying the happy times finding love
and losing it finding a second chance at love, friendships.
August 8, 2017
So cute !
i will read the next one for sure !
i will read the next one for sure !
October 3, 2016
Title: Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me
Series:
Author: Becky Jerams
Publisher: Becky Jerams
Reviewer: Mollien
Release Date: October 12, 2015
Genre(s): College/High School Male/Male Romance
Pages: 508 pages
Heat Level: # 1 flames out of 5
Story Rating: # 5 stars out of 5
Blurb:
Review:
Let me start off by saying that this book is about the Havensdale College in England. For all of us living in the United States this is a High School, not a college or university. I really enjoyed this story and recommend it as a young adult book even though it is about gay males, it explores those hard teenage years when young people are trying to figure themselves out. This was a well thought out and well written story that was easy to read. The plot is about a young man Scotty Williams an openly gay teenager who is trying to survive his last year and a half of school before he can start university and leave behind Taylor Raven. Taylor is the school's tennis star and his mission in life besides tennis is bullying Scotty. When the school’s bad boy, Vincent, realizes that someone is tormenting Scotty he makes it his mission to protect the younger student who he has had a crush on. The chemistry between Scotty and Vincent is tender and beautiful. This is a rather long story, but it reads quickly. I could not stop reading it. That is until my kindle landed on my face while reading in bed. The ending is full of surprises. I loved all of the characters in this story. Maybe Becky Jerams will consider a series revolving around this group of friends.
SCORES on a scale of 1-5 Stars rate each of the Following 5
Categories
PLOT: 5 Stars
CHEMISTRY: 5 Stars
PACING: 5 Stars
ENDING: 5 Stars
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: 5 Stars
Review Copy of Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me provided by the Becky Jerams for an honest Review. Reviewed by Mollien from Alpha Book Club
Series:
Author: Becky Jerams
Publisher: Becky Jerams
Reviewer: Mollien
Release Date: October 12, 2015
Genre(s): College/High School Male/Male Romance
Pages: 508 pages
Heat Level: # 1 flames out of 5
Story Rating: # 5 stars out of 5
Blurb:
Scotty Williams is the nerdiest 17-year-old at UK-based Havensdale College - and proud of it. However being a nerd can have its downsides, particularly when you're constantly being targeted by the school bully Taylor Raven and his cronies. As Scotty tries to navigate his final college years with the aid of his best friend Olive, he also finds himself on the radar of the mysterious and intimidating Vincent Hunter, toughest guy in the Sixth Form. Is Vincent really as bad as he seems? Will Scotty's darkest secret ever be revealed? Can he ever just finish his last few college years in peace? But most importantly... will any guy ever find the reasons to love a nerd like him?
The Wattpad hit "Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me" by Becky Jerams comes to Kindle for the first time in a new and improved edition. With over 2.4 million reads and counting, the first draft has resonated with readers across the world and been compared to authors such as John Green and David Levithan. Recommended for fans of teen drama and unconventional romance.
Review:
Let me start off by saying that this book is about the Havensdale College in England. For all of us living in the United States this is a High School, not a college or university. I really enjoyed this story and recommend it as a young adult book even though it is about gay males, it explores those hard teenage years when young people are trying to figure themselves out. This was a well thought out and well written story that was easy to read. The plot is about a young man Scotty Williams an openly gay teenager who is trying to survive his last year and a half of school before he can start university and leave behind Taylor Raven. Taylor is the school's tennis star and his mission in life besides tennis is bullying Scotty. When the school’s bad boy, Vincent, realizes that someone is tormenting Scotty he makes it his mission to protect the younger student who he has had a crush on. The chemistry between Scotty and Vincent is tender and beautiful. This is a rather long story, but it reads quickly. I could not stop reading it. That is until my kindle landed on my face while reading in bed. The ending is full of surprises. I loved all of the characters in this story. Maybe Becky Jerams will consider a series revolving around this group of friends.
SCORES on a scale of 1-5 Stars rate each of the Following 5
Categories
PLOT: 5 Stars
CHEMISTRY: 5 Stars
PACING: 5 Stars
ENDING: 5 Stars
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: 5 Stars
Review Copy of Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me provided by the Becky Jerams for an honest Review. Reviewed by Mollien from Alpha Book Club
February 17, 2018
Amazing debut book! This might be the best YA I've ever read -- the writing is flawless, the characters are wonderfully complex, and the relationships...holy crap, all the FEELS in the relationships! Beautiful job, keep writing!
December 10, 2015
This review was originally posted on [www.125pages.com]
Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me made my heart grow three sizes that day. This was such a smart and real YA read. The tale of Scotty, an out and proud teen with an accepting mother and a small core group of friends, actually resembled real life and didn't contain a large amount of typical YA tropes. The world built was very real and the characters well defined. The pacing had some issues, but they were minor. For example at times a few weeks would have passed since the previous chapter and I had to figure that out from comments made, so it was not a natural progression. However the story and characters more than made up for these slight issues. I loved that the characters were so realized; each had a well defined back story and played true to their created personas. It is also rare for a YA novel to depict actual sex between teens, most of the time it is glossed over so I appreciated that Becky Jerams put in real moments. Not all will be okay with this especially as it is M/M, but to me it was an integral part of the story and was done tastefully and with heart. The only real issue I had with Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me is the British schooling system. The book kept talking about them being in college at 17 then going to university and all the different years and forms which we do not have here in the states, so at times I struggled to figure out how old these kids were. But that is a cultural thing and not a book issue, just like when a book uses the metric system and my brain has to remember then calculate. This is a debut novel that originated on Wattpad and garnered over two million hits, prompting Jerams to publish via Amazon, and I'm very glad she did. She is currently working on a sequel that I can't wait to read.
Favorite lines - "Then I saw you that day and I swear to God, I thought you were the most adorable thing I ever saw in my life. You were like… the one person in the whole school I didn’t want to punch.” “Steady on,” I said. “That’s a pretty heavy statement to make if you don’t really mean it.”
Biggest cliché - "You are my best friend, but you didn't tell me something so now I hate you."
Have you read Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me, or added it to your TBR?
Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me made my heart grow three sizes that day. This was such a smart and real YA read. The tale of Scotty, an out and proud teen with an accepting mother and a small core group of friends, actually resembled real life and didn't contain a large amount of typical YA tropes. The world built was very real and the characters well defined. The pacing had some issues, but they were minor. For example at times a few weeks would have passed since the previous chapter and I had to figure that out from comments made, so it was not a natural progression. However the story and characters more than made up for these slight issues. I loved that the characters were so realized; each had a well defined back story and played true to their created personas. It is also rare for a YA novel to depict actual sex between teens, most of the time it is glossed over so I appreciated that Becky Jerams put in real moments. Not all will be okay with this especially as it is M/M, but to me it was an integral part of the story and was done tastefully and with heart. The only real issue I had with Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me is the British schooling system. The book kept talking about them being in college at 17 then going to university and all the different years and forms which we do not have here in the states, so at times I struggled to figure out how old these kids were. But that is a cultural thing and not a book issue, just like when a book uses the metric system and my brain has to remember then calculate. This is a debut novel that originated on Wattpad and garnered over two million hits, prompting Jerams to publish via Amazon, and I'm very glad she did. She is currently working on a sequel that I can't wait to read.Favorite lines - "Then I saw you that day and I swear to God, I thought you were the most adorable thing I ever saw in my life. You were like… the one person in the whole school I didn’t want to punch.” “Steady on,” I said. “That’s a pretty heavy statement to make if you don’t really mean it.”
Biggest cliché - "You are my best friend, but you didn't tell me something so now I hate you."
Have you read Reasons To Love A Nerd Like Me, or added it to your TBR?
July 13, 2016
I’m a big fan of YA, and I often like the associated tropes in a good young adult contemporary romance. This book hits all the high points for me: Opposites attract, a bullied kid who’s stronger than he knows, a bad boy with a heart of gold, and best friends who meddle just the right amount. There’s a collection of quirky, interesting side characters, a Really Big Secret, and a happily-for-now ending. There are dozens of reasons to love this book and its nerdy hero.
Virtually anything I say about the plot might spoil the fun of discovery. Everything is told through Scotty’s eyes, which could easily lead to the narrative being entirely slanted in his favor. Yet because of who he is—someone who cares deeply about other people—it never feels like he sees himself as blameless. He shows a lot of growth over the course of the story. Through the crushing weight of his secret, the torment at the hands of the only other person who knows, and the inevitable explosion when everyone discovers the truth, he eventually learns both to forgive and to make things right. He’s everything a good teenage narrator should be.
Some readers may not connect to this story for a number of reasons. It’s not a traditional romance, but it does have a love story. I’m a fan of books which straddle that line, but some readers do prefer clearer genre lines. It’s also long, which again, was not a problem for me but might put some readers off. There’s a part at the end involving one of the adults which is a bit over-the-top and probably isn’t realistic—it’s only there to provide motivation to revive the romance, and even so, there’s still more drama to come. Speaking of which, there’s a lot of drama and a lot of people not talking to each other or poorly explaining themselves. That’s part of the charm, and without it there would be no story, but some people might think it’s a bit much.
I fell hard for Scotty right from page one, and I couldn’t put the book down. The writing is superb and flawless in style, and the story flows well. I loved all the clues about how the reveal of Scotty’s secret would happen, but I didn’t find it predictable. All in all, this was a well-written, engaging story which delivers a full range of emotions.
For superior writing, a stellar cast of characters, and a story which left me wanting more, this gets 5 stars.
Virtually anything I say about the plot might spoil the fun of discovery. Everything is told through Scotty’s eyes, which could easily lead to the narrative being entirely slanted in his favor. Yet because of who he is—someone who cares deeply about other people—it never feels like he sees himself as blameless. He shows a lot of growth over the course of the story. Through the crushing weight of his secret, the torment at the hands of the only other person who knows, and the inevitable explosion when everyone discovers the truth, he eventually learns both to forgive and to make things right. He’s everything a good teenage narrator should be.
Some readers may not connect to this story for a number of reasons. It’s not a traditional romance, but it does have a love story. I’m a fan of books which straddle that line, but some readers do prefer clearer genre lines. It’s also long, which again, was not a problem for me but might put some readers off. There’s a part at the end involving one of the adults which is a bit over-the-top and probably isn’t realistic—it’s only there to provide motivation to revive the romance, and even so, there’s still more drama to come. Speaking of which, there’s a lot of drama and a lot of people not talking to each other or poorly explaining themselves. That’s part of the charm, and without it there would be no story, but some people might think it’s a bit much.
I fell hard for Scotty right from page one, and I couldn’t put the book down. The writing is superb and flawless in style, and the story flows well. I loved all the clues about how the reveal of Scotty’s secret would happen, but I didn’t find it predictable. All in all, this was a well-written, engaging story which delivers a full range of emotions.
For superior writing, a stellar cast of characters, and a story which left me wanting more, this gets 5 stars.
April 21, 2016
Reasons to Love a Nerd Like Me by Becky Jerams
4 stars
M/M YA Romance
Triggers: Bullying, Abuse
I was given this book for an honest review by Inked Rainbow Reads.
This is a sweet YA story. There is so much drama that you can't help but laugh and remember high school. Despite them calling their school college, I still felt that they were high schoolers in maturity. Scotty and Olive and the fearsome twosome - they would die for each other and protect each other with such a fierceness that you don't think anything will ever change their relationship.
Then you have the dynamic between Scotty and his nemesis, Taylor. I really disliked Taylor and his evil ways. However, throughout the story, you're able to see Taylor evolve in to something other than the mean, immature, moronic teen that he started as. I liked that Jerams showed a very clear progression of Taylor maturing. That being said, in the end, the reader was able to know Taylor really well and I appreciated that his story wasn't left behind. Yes, it was secondary, but without it, this story would not have been as good as it was.
Vincent is another enigma in this story. He is dangerous, mysterious, sad, broody and the all around high school bad boy. He's a guitar player, singer, friend and confidant. However, he is also still, just in high school and thus prone to stupidity just like everyone else. His sidekick is somewhat scary and I picture her more as a goth than what she's described as. She's also scary and a little possessive, but has a very fierce devotion to Vincent, just like Olive and Scotty's relationship.
Throughout the story, I was constantly thinking, "this is it, the secret is going to come out now" or "come on Scotty! Grow a pair!!!". It was frustrating, sweet, sad and emotional, but in the end, it was just the story that was meant to be told. I really enjoyed it. It was a coming of age, accepting who you are, leaning to love and all the other things that come with growing up and going through high school.
4 stars
M/M YA Romance
Triggers: Bullying, Abuse
I was given this book for an honest review by Inked Rainbow Reads.
This is a sweet YA story. There is so much drama that you can't help but laugh and remember high school. Despite them calling their school college, I still felt that they were high schoolers in maturity. Scotty and Olive and the fearsome twosome - they would die for each other and protect each other with such a fierceness that you don't think anything will ever change their relationship.
Then you have the dynamic between Scotty and his nemesis, Taylor. I really disliked Taylor and his evil ways. However, throughout the story, you're able to see Taylor evolve in to something other than the mean, immature, moronic teen that he started as. I liked that Jerams showed a very clear progression of Taylor maturing. That being said, in the end, the reader was able to know Taylor really well and I appreciated that his story wasn't left behind. Yes, it was secondary, but without it, this story would not have been as good as it was.
Vincent is another enigma in this story. He is dangerous, mysterious, sad, broody and the all around high school bad boy. He's a guitar player, singer, friend and confidant. However, he is also still, just in high school and thus prone to stupidity just like everyone else. His sidekick is somewhat scary and I picture her more as a goth than what she's described as. She's also scary and a little possessive, but has a very fierce devotion to Vincent, just like Olive and Scotty's relationship.
Throughout the story, I was constantly thinking, "this is it, the secret is going to come out now" or "come on Scotty! Grow a pair!!!". It was frustrating, sweet, sad and emotional, but in the end, it was just the story that was meant to be told. I really enjoyed it. It was a coming of age, accepting who you are, leaning to love and all the other things that come with growing up and going through high school.
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