What do you think?
Rate this book
The OTP #1
Style
Kyle Blake likes plans. So far, they’re pretty simple: Finish her senior year of high school, head off to a good college, find a cute boyfriend, graduate, get a good job, get married, the whole heterosexual shebang. Nothing is going to stand in the way of that plan. Not even Stella Lewis.
Stella Lewis also has a plan: Finish her senior year as cheer captain, go to college, finally let herself flirt with (and maybe even date) a girl for the first time and go from there.
Fate has other plans for Kyle and Stella when they’re paired up in their AP English class and something between them ignites. It’s confusing and overwhelming and neither of them know what to do about it. One thing they do know is that their connection can’t be ignored. The timing just isn’t right.
But is there ever a good time for falling in love?
Stella Lewis also has a plan: Finish her senior year as cheer captain, go to college, finally let herself flirt with (and maybe even date) a girl for the first time and go from there.
Fate has other plans for Kyle and Stella when they’re paired up in their AP English class and something between them ignites. It’s confusing and overwhelming and neither of them know what to do about it. One thing they do know is that their connection can’t be ignored. The timing just isn’t right.
But is there ever a good time for falling in love?
258 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 31, 2016
87 people are currently reading
4671 people want to read
About the author
Chelsea M. Cameron
114 books4,880 followersChelsea M. Cameron is a New York Times/USA Today/Internationally Best Selling author from Maine who now lives and works in Boston. She's a red velvet cake enthusiast, obsessive tea drinker, former cheerleader, and world's worst video gamer. When not writing, she enjoys watching infomercials, eating brunch in bed, tweeting, and playing fetch with her cat, Sassenach. She has a degree in journalism from the University of Maine, Orono that she promptly abandoned to write about the people in her own head. More often than not, these people turn out to be just as weird as she is.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 377 reviews
March 9, 2018
This is the cutest and fluffiest popular-girl-falls-in-love-with-nerd-girl thing I’ve ever read or ever will read.
➽Stella – a popular girl who puts on bitch act and my favorite character
➽Kyle – a glasses-wearing cute nerd who I also love
The thing that stood out to me about this book, in hindsight, was probably the lack of coming out angst. I feel like a lot of stories about queer girls like this might’ve been full-out angst over how to come out, and that can be really well done, don’t get me wrong. But I love that this book a) does the coming out scenes in a way that feels authentic to the characters and the situation of coming out, b) avoids violently outing anyone [listen, too many of my favorite lgbtq reads do this] and c) doesn’t make coming out the focus of the book. I feel like so many reads focus too much on this and unintentionally turn great romances into stories about The Struggle Of Being Gay, but I also desperately need more realistic coming out stories. This one is both.
I honestly don’t have a ton to say about this novella other than it was a really cute and easy read, but I will say a few random thoughts I had in my brain! First of all, I loved the supportive friendships and subversion of girl hate. Stella and Kyle’s best friends become friends too and they’re both basically angels and I love them. The writing is a lot more quality than in
I also love the banter. I fucking love good banter. There should’ve been more. But still, A+ humor, am I right?
[THIS IS THE MOST RELATABLE SENTENCE I’VE EVER SEEN IN A BOOK]
This book is solidly in that NA / YA transitional gap that I’ve seen a lot recently, so there is [not particularly explicit] sex and a few scenes featuring masturbation. I actually really appreciated this, it’s really rare to see girls masturbate in literature at all and I’m down for Breaking The Double Standard. Unfortunately, I think this was simulataneously my small negative thought on this book? On an objective level, I love the normalization of queer girl sexuality, but on a subjective level, I am not as into sex as a n y o n e in this novel and I honestly spent like a quarter of my time being like ????? but you know what, I acknowledge this is a me problem. Overall, this was a really short and sweet read.
Blog | Goodreads | Twitter | Youtube
➽Stella – a popular girl who puts on bitch act and my favorite character
➽Kyle – a glasses-wearing cute nerd who I also love
The thing that stood out to me about this book, in hindsight, was probably the lack of coming out angst. I feel like a lot of stories about queer girls like this might’ve been full-out angst over how to come out, and that can be really well done, don’t get me wrong. But I love that this book a) does the coming out scenes in a way that feels authentic to the characters and the situation of coming out, b) avoids violently outing anyone [listen, too many of my favorite lgbtq reads do this] and c) doesn’t make coming out the focus of the book. I feel like so many reads focus too much on this and unintentionally turn great romances into stories about The Struggle Of Being Gay, but I also desperately need more realistic coming out stories. This one is both.
“I think I just assumed everyone looked at girls that way. Because girls are beautiful and pretty and why wouldn’t you want them? Took me a little while to realize that wasn’t the case.”
I honestly don’t have a ton to say about this novella other than it was a really cute and easy read, but I will say a few random thoughts I had in my brain! First of all, I loved the supportive friendships and subversion of girl hate. Stella and Kyle’s best friends become friends too and they’re both basically angels and I love them. The writing is a lot more quality than in
I also love the banter. I fucking love good banter. There should’ve been more. But still, A+ humor, am I right?
“There are never enough shows with lesbians,” I said. “Aren’t there any? I never really noticed.” Oh, sweet gayby. I kept forgetting that she was so new to this.
[THIS IS THE MOST RELATABLE SENTENCE I’VE EVER SEEN IN A BOOK]
This book is solidly in that NA / YA transitional gap that I’ve seen a lot recently, so there is [not particularly explicit] sex and a few scenes featuring masturbation. I actually really appreciated this, it’s really rare to see girls masturbate in literature at all and I’m down for Breaking The Double Standard. Unfortunately, I think this was simulataneously my small negative thought on this book? On an objective level, I love the normalization of queer girl sexuality, but on a subjective level, I am not as into sex as a n y o n e in this novel and I honestly spent like a quarter of my time being like ????? but you know what, I acknowledge this is a me problem. Overall, this was a really short and sweet read.
Blog | Goodreads | Twitter | Youtube
January 27, 2018
There are so many elements wrong with this book that I just didn't enjoy it.
The basic premise is that two seniors in high school, a nerd and a cheerleader, fall for each other and that makes them really happy. One has known she's lesbian all along. For the other, it's a surprise.
On the positive, I will say that this is a happy, low drama, where everything goes right book. Also, Kyle, the nerd character, has a physical disability and the two best friends depicted have ethnic diversity. I'm glad more authors are writing f/f relationships and more power to them.
That said, there are some problems.
Editorially speaking, there are a decent number of missing words, wrong tense, etc. but the main issue is that it's often hard to know which character is speaking for two reasons:
1) The author usually doesn't tag who the speaker is (i.e. "Kyle said", "Stella replied.") so we have to keep track of who is saying what like a ping pong match and
2) Actions of a character are often on the same line/paragraph of a different person speaking so it sometimes gets confusing as to who is doing or saying what.
It also doesn't help that the speaking styles and points of view between Kyle and Stella aren't different enough to distinguish them from each other, either.
Then there's the issue that, once the girls realize they're both attracted to each other and act on it, there's a relationship on speed effect. Seriously, it's we're together one week, next week we tell friends and family, and the next, the whole school. Especially when one character didn't even realize she could be attracted to girls to wholly embracing it, slapping a label on herself, and telling the world without issue...well, that's a head scratcher. It's just all too fast. Insta-love is held at bay *some* but it's still too fast because the girls seem more focused on getting each other's clothes off than getting to know each other.
That's the other thing, yeah girls have a libido but these girls go from "she's kind of cute" to wanting to have sex with each other in 0.2 seconds and they think about it constantly and flirt shamelessly. There's no hesitation, shyness, anxiety, build up, nothing. And, yes, there's a sex scene that for me felt uncomfortable because, even though they're eighteen, Kyle and Stella act so much younger throughout the book there was a certain ick factor to it.
Kyle also drops the f-bomb liberally and it just seemed out of character.
They also start calling each other "babe" and "baby" all the time before they're even really together.
It's just weird.
So, no. I didn't enjoy this one. There are many YA novels out there that I'd recommend first by other authors: Siera Maley, Emily O'Beirne, Kelley York, Charlotte Reagan, Michelle Teichman, Zoe Reed, T.C. Anderson, Georgette Kaplan
2.5 stars
The basic premise is that two seniors in high school, a nerd and a cheerleader, fall for each other and that makes them really happy. One has known she's lesbian all along. For the other, it's a surprise.
On the positive, I will say that this is a happy, low drama, where everything goes right book. Also, Kyle, the nerd character, has a physical disability and the two best friends depicted have ethnic diversity. I'm glad more authors are writing f/f relationships and more power to them.
That said, there are some problems.
Editorially speaking, there are a decent number of missing words, wrong tense, etc. but the main issue is that it's often hard to know which character is speaking for two reasons:
1) The author usually doesn't tag who the speaker is (i.e. "Kyle said", "Stella replied.") so we have to keep track of who is saying what like a ping pong match and
2) Actions of a character are often on the same line/paragraph of a different person speaking so it sometimes gets confusing as to who is doing or saying what.
It also doesn't help that the speaking styles and points of view between Kyle and Stella aren't different enough to distinguish them from each other, either.
Then there's the issue that, once the girls realize they're both attracted to each other and act on it, there's a relationship on speed effect. Seriously, it's we're together one week, next week we tell friends and family, and the next, the whole school. Especially when one character didn't even realize she could be attracted to girls to wholly embracing it, slapping a label on herself, and telling the world without issue...well, that's a head scratcher. It's just all too fast. Insta-love is held at bay *some* but it's still too fast because the girls seem more focused on getting each other's clothes off than getting to know each other.
That's the other thing, yeah girls have a libido but these girls go from "she's kind of cute" to wanting to have sex with each other in 0.2 seconds and they think about it constantly and flirt shamelessly. There's no hesitation, shyness, anxiety, build up, nothing. And, yes, there's a sex scene that for me felt uncomfortable because, even though they're eighteen, Kyle and Stella act so much younger throughout the book there was a certain ick factor to it.
Kyle also drops the f-bomb liberally and it just seemed out of character.
They also start calling each other "babe" and "baby" all the time before they're even really together.
It's just weird.
So, no. I didn't enjoy this one. There are many YA novels out there that I'd recommend first by other authors: Siera Maley, Emily O'Beirne, Kelley York, Charlotte Reagan, Michelle Teichman, Zoe Reed, T.C. Anderson, Georgette Kaplan
2.5 stars
July 10, 2016
*3.5/5 stars
This is the kind of tooth-rotting lesbian fluff that I have been asking for. Sometimes it is a bit silly and over the top, but it was such an easy read and Kyle and Stella are so cute I frequently felt myself grinning while reading this one. (I'll probably write a longer review later but I just had to get out at least these feelings right now).
This is the kind of tooth-rotting lesbian fluff that I have been asking for. Sometimes it is a bit silly and over the top, but it was such an easy read and Kyle and Stella are so cute I frequently felt myself grinning while reading this one. (I'll probably write a longer review later but I just had to get out at least these feelings right now).
January 2, 2018
“I think I just assumed everyone looked at girls that way. Because girls are beautiful and pretty and why wouldn’t you want them? Took me a little while to realize that wasn’t the case.”
So so so so cute and my first finished #sapphicathon read!! This is a quick and super adorable romance between two high school seniors: a cocky cheerleader, Stella, and a nerdy girl, Kyle. While a bit cliché at times, I really enjoyed the way their rivalry developed slowly into friendship and a deeper emotional connection.
A few minor complaints: the girls' voices did sort of blend together at times—there were a few chapters where I had to keep going back to check who was narrating. The overuse of the word “bitch” also bothered me, and the way one of the girls complained that women are “more complicated” than men.
Still, it's a sweet story, and I had a lot of fun reading it.
June 6, 2018
Style is a contemporary f/f romance following two lesbians during their last year of high school. It's 100% gay fluff and full of clichés, but that was exactly what I was looking for, and it didn't feel like a story I had already read anyway. Not only because it's f/f and there aren't as many f/f books as there should be, but exactly because it's both gay and as fluffy as it can get - and we almost never have that.
Style is a coming out novel.
That's a genre I almost never reach for, it's always so tragic. Yes, there's usually a happy ending, at least in the ones that were published in the last few years, but the characters go through bullying, threats and sometimes even sexual assault before getting acceptance.
Style avoids all the sad tropes that are common in this genre. In here, you'll find no bullying, no people outed against their will, no deep miscommunication, no cheating, no terrible parents, and not even the dramatic break-up that seems to be the prepackaged ending of every single romance novel.
Style is unique because it uses all the clichés of the typical high school romance, but for lesbians, and it's a story as happy as the ones straight people get. This meant that it's a very low-conflict book, but I didn't care at all.
Stella and Kyle are the cutest couple ever (yes, the title of this book is their OTP name; it's that cheesy and I love it for that). They are the typical cheerleader/nerd pairing, except gayer, and with some more depth. I loved seeing Kyle's journey in discovering her sexuality, and how Stella was able to realize she didn't need to push everyone away all the time, but what I truly loved was their dynamic as a couple. The lighthouse scene was beautiful and I'm not even a romantic person.
(about that: there was some amatonormativity[¹] sometimes, but it was nowhere near as bad as it could have been.)
Also, it's a sex-positive book - there are both a explicit-for-YA-standards sex scene and talk of female masturbation.
Style wasn't perfect by any means - the writing wasn't always the best and the two first-person PoVs sounded and read the same, so I was often confused and didn't always understand who was narrating - but it is exactly the cute cliché romance it's supposed to be and fulfills that role well.
[¹] the assumption that everyone wants or needs romantic love and that everyone wants or needs to be in a romantic relationship.
Style is a coming out novel.
That's a genre I almost never reach for, it's always so tragic. Yes, there's usually a happy ending, at least in the ones that were published in the last few years, but the characters go through bullying, threats and sometimes even sexual assault before getting acceptance.
Style avoids all the sad tropes that are common in this genre. In here, you'll find no bullying, no people outed against their will, no deep miscommunication, no cheating, no terrible parents, and not even the dramatic break-up that seems to be the prepackaged ending of every single romance novel.
Style is unique because it uses all the clichés of the typical high school romance, but for lesbians, and it's a story as happy as the ones straight people get. This meant that it's a very low-conflict book, but I didn't care at all.
Stella and Kyle are the cutest couple ever (yes, the title of this book is their OTP name; it's that cheesy and I love it for that). They are the typical cheerleader/nerd pairing, except gayer, and with some more depth. I loved seeing Kyle's journey in discovering her sexuality, and how Stella was able to realize she didn't need to push everyone away all the time, but what I truly loved was their dynamic as a couple. The lighthouse scene was beautiful and I'm not even a romantic person.
(about that: there was some amatonormativity[¹] sometimes, but it was nowhere near as bad as it could have been.)
Also, it's a sex-positive book - there are both a explicit-for-YA-standards sex scene and talk of female masturbation.
Style wasn't perfect by any means - the writing wasn't always the best and the two first-person PoVs sounded and read the same, so I was often confused and didn't always understand who was narrating - but it is exactly the cute cliché romance it's supposed to be and fulfills that role well.
[¹] the assumption that everyone wants or needs romantic love and that everyone wants or needs to be in a romantic relationship.
September 9, 2017
This book was so cute, nerdy and funny. I liked both Stella and Kyle and was rooting so bad for them from the very beginning. The story got too silly and a bit cringey at times but I honestly didn't mind cause I was up for some f/f fluff anyway. *heart eyes* I also loved their families and the dynamics between them - I live for that stuff. The only problem I had was that I sometimes had to go back to check whose POV I was reading because both Kyle and Stella had extremely similar voices but that again might've been my problem and not something author did wrong. Anyway, 10/10 would recommend.
March 17, 2025
This is a sweet and compulsively readable YA romance. Kyle and Stella are seemingly complete opposites, and they barely know each other before they’re paired up in AP English class. Stella has a compelling backstory, one that I can’t reveal without it being a major spoiler, but as a cheerleader, she wears a mask that keeps people from knowing who she really is to protect herself. Everyone thinks she’s cold hearted and stuck up, and she wants to keep it that way. The only person who manages to break through her tough exterior is the sweet and nerdy Kyle.
This is a sweet romance, almost too sweet at times. Considering the subject matter, I was expecting Kyle and Stella to experience a little more adversity in coming out to their families and friends. There is barely even a climactic scene, which is required in basically every romance ever written.
Despite this, I absolutely adored this novel. I would have given in a full five stars, but the writing got to me. It was occasionally immature, which worked for the story, BUT my real problem was with the way that dialogue was written. Paragraph breaks didn’t match up with the correct person speaking, and that paired with fewer dialogue tags had me confused about who was saying what most of the time, and I had to reread conversations to figure it out. Even after rereading I couldn’t figure it out sometimes. This pulled me out of the story. I’m not sure why the editor didn’t catch this, or if this was a printing error.
4 stars.
This is a sweet romance, almost too sweet at times. Considering the subject matter, I was expecting Kyle and Stella to experience a little more adversity in coming out to their families and friends. There is barely even a climactic scene, which is required in basically every romance ever written.
Despite this, I absolutely adored this novel. I would have given in a full five stars, but the writing got to me. It was occasionally immature, which worked for the story, BUT my real problem was with the way that dialogue was written. Paragraph breaks didn’t match up with the correct person speaking, and that paired with fewer dialogue tags had me confused about who was saying what most of the time, and I had to reread conversations to figure it out. Even after rereading I couldn’t figure it out sometimes. This pulled me out of the story. I’m not sure why the editor didn’t catch this, or if this was a printing error.
4 stars.
June 25, 2016
I'm torn because on the one hand I know I definitely would've given up on it if it weren't f/f, (for me, the writing was painfully simplistic and two dimensional) but on the other I'm glad such a light and happy lesbian romance exists.
January 5, 2020
4 stars
This is a story I’ve heard time and time again. In fact the troupe is pretty common, a nerd and someone popular fall for each other. Despite this fact, I still quite enjoyed Style for its simplicity. At its core it’s a coming of age story, but done right. No one is pushed to come out, many people are accepting, and the girls are discovering the wonders of being in love. It’s practically sickeningly sweet.
It reminded me of my own feelings towards my first crush. When you’re that young, everything consumes you. Things are blown out of proportion and made into a huge life-threatening deal when in reality it’s minor. Love can be all consuming, especially when you’re young. Did a great job portraying that
As much as I enjoyed the story, the writing did have me confused at times. It’s written in first person, but it jumped between their point of views so often I kept getting lost about which character was speaking.
At the end of the day if you want a sweet coming out story then I would recommend this one.
January 18, 2017
This is a very sweet and light YA contemporary novel about two lesbians falling in love. The mood of the story is light and optimistic, Style is a good choice for pick-me-up story.
The book has dual perspective so we get meet both Stella, lesbian-in-a-closet cheerleader and secretly-lovely-person, and Kyle, cute ow-wow-I-guess-I'm-lesbian nerd and she has a disability. They meet and then we get to enjoy classic high school tropes done right. (+ uncharacteristically for YA explicit sex scenes, probably because the protagonists are both 18.) Also kudos to families and friends of the protagonists.
I definitely recommend everyone to read the book. The writing is easy to follow, the story is major romance-centered and nicely crafted. Lovely story about lovely sapphic ladies.
The book has dual perspective so we get meet both Stella, lesbian-in-a-closet cheerleader and secretly-lovely-person, and Kyle, cute ow-wow-I-guess-I'm-lesbian nerd and she has a disability. They meet and then we get to enjoy classic high school tropes done right. (+ uncharacteristically for YA explicit sex scenes, probably because the protagonists are both 18.) Also kudos to families and friends of the protagonists.
I definitely recommend everyone to read the book. The writing is easy to follow, the story is major romance-centered and nicely crafted. Lovely story about lovely sapphic ladies.
June 18, 2019
Cute little book, full of teenage angst but nothing too deep. The MCs are relatable. I liked that one of them is disabled, and the way it fits in the story, and how two of the characters (that we know of) are not white, and that while they’re not main characters, they’re still very important. It’s a pretty drama-free novel, which doesn’t mean it skirts around sensitive issues, but the author has chosen to handle them in a way that doesn’t take away from the mostly shiny feel of the book.
May 29, 2017
So that was cute. Hell yes.
Was it a good story ? I'd say I read better books with a f/f relationship, but they probably weren't as cute as this one.
I liked Stella the most, she's a really strong person who takes shit from no one, and she's not afraid nor ashamed of who she is. She's unapologetic.
Kyle is more unsure, she thought she was straight her whole life until she started hanging out with Stella and realized that everything she thought was true about her was in fact a lie.
I liked the relationship between them, it was adorable, even though I think it kinda went too fast: just after they made out, Kyle started calling Stella babe even though they weren't in a relationship; they started spending all their time together and wanted to have sex not even a week after their first kiss; and they said 'I love you' something like 3 weeks after they started their 'relationship'. I'm not saying it's bad if it happens in real life, only that it felt kinda rushed in the book.
I was glad the families/friends were so supportive, BUT if I have to read one more time 'I knew you were gay for a long time' I'm going to punch someone I swear. Let me get this clear : you never know, not until someone tells you, you just don't. Stop assuming someone else's sexuality. It's none of your concern. And stop pressuring people into telling you about their sexuality. Just don't do it.
One of my main problems was the overuse of the word 'bitch' to describe someone. Don't say 'she's a stone cold bitch' or 'she's such a bitch' or "what a bitch" or whatever. It's just not acceptable.
The next point I'm gonna talk about is sex, I put it under 'spoiler' so you don't feel like you have to read what I think about masturbation in this book - yes that's what I'm gonna talk about because it's important.
So basically, it was a fluffy read and I would recommend to everyone who needs to read about two lesbians falling in love and being happy.
3.75
Was it a good story ? I'd say I read better books with a f/f relationship, but they probably weren't as cute as this one.
I liked Stella the most, she's a really strong person who takes shit from no one, and she's not afraid nor ashamed of who she is. She's unapologetic.
Kyle is more unsure, she thought she was straight her whole life until she started hanging out with Stella and realized that everything she thought was true about her was in fact a lie.
I liked the relationship between them, it was adorable, even though I think it kinda went too fast: just after they made out, Kyle started calling Stella babe even though they weren't in a relationship; they started spending all their time together and wanted to have sex not even a week after their first kiss; and they said 'I love you' something like 3 weeks after they started their 'relationship'. I'm not saying it's bad if it happens in real life, only that it felt kinda rushed in the book.
I was glad the families/friends were so supportive, BUT if I have to read one more time 'I knew you were gay for a long time' I'm going to punch someone I swear. Let me get this clear : you never know, not until someone tells you, you just don't. Stop assuming someone else's sexuality. It's none of your concern. And stop pressuring people into telling you about their sexuality. Just don't do it.
One of my main problems was the overuse of the word 'bitch' to describe someone. Don't say 'she's a stone cold bitch' or 'she's such a bitch' or "what a bitch" or whatever. It's just not acceptable.
The next point I'm gonna talk about is sex, I put it under 'spoiler' so you don't feel like you have to read what I think about masturbation in this book - yes that's what I'm gonna talk about because it's important.
So basically, it was a fluffy read and I would recommend to everyone who needs to read about two lesbians falling in love and being happy.
3.75
January 12, 2018
“Style” presents a high-school coming-of-age story as the thrilling, frightening, and ultimately fantastic love story everyone wishes they had, or could have. It’s just delightful, and is narrated wonderfully by Sophie Daniels.
MCs Stella and Klye are both incredibly likable characters, and I was glad that their story was sweet rather than an adventure in teenage angst. Both are 18yo seniors, and are thrown together in AP English (hence the book title, “Style”, I guess). Stella has a well-deserved and well-earned reputation as an ice-queen bitch, but what no one knows is that she wears that reputation as a shell of armor. She can’t wait to go to college and find a girlfriend. Kyle hasn’t felt an inclination to date boys, and figures she’ll get around to finding someone once she gets to college.
They find each other. The book alternates in first-person POV, so we get to know each character through their own thoughts, and by how each character sees the other and reacts to what the other girl says and does. Kyle is initially surprised at her attraction to Stella, but quickly accepts and embraces her realization that she’s a lesbian.
As a work of fiction, we can accept and appreciate that families and friends are remarkably ok with both girls coming out; if only real life were so accommodating for us all. As their affection grows, it’s easy to keep smiling as they find places to “make out” and try to understand and label their growing relationship. The banter is very fun, and there’s lots of humor in “Style”.
I normally really want an HEA with my romances, and often feel disappointed with an HFN. With “Style”, and the age of girls who are about to embark on the beginning of their adult lives, the HFN is very appropriate, and I embraced the ending. I don’t read lots of YA/NA, but if more were written and narrated as well as “Style”, I’d be all over the categories! 5* - very highly recommended!
MCs Stella and Klye are both incredibly likable characters, and I was glad that their story was sweet rather than an adventure in teenage angst. Both are 18yo seniors, and are thrown together in AP English (hence the book title, “Style”, I guess). Stella has a well-deserved and well-earned reputation as an ice-queen bitch, but what no one knows is that she wears that reputation as a shell of armor. She can’t wait to go to college and find a girlfriend. Kyle hasn’t felt an inclination to date boys, and figures she’ll get around to finding someone once she gets to college.
They find each other. The book alternates in first-person POV, so we get to know each character through their own thoughts, and by how each character sees the other and reacts to what the other girl says and does. Kyle is initially surprised at her attraction to Stella, but quickly accepts and embraces her realization that she’s a lesbian.
As a work of fiction, we can accept and appreciate that families and friends are remarkably ok with both girls coming out; if only real life were so accommodating for us all. As their affection grows, it’s easy to keep smiling as they find places to “make out” and try to understand and label their growing relationship. The banter is very fun, and there’s lots of humor in “Style”.
”Chips & berries cancel each other out. It’s basic food science!”
I normally really want an HEA with my romances, and often feel disappointed with an HFN. With “Style”, and the age of girls who are about to embark on the beginning of their adult lives, the HFN is very appropriate, and I embraced the ending. I don’t read lots of YA/NA, but if more were written and narrated as well as “Style”, I’d be all over the categories! 5* - very highly recommended!
May 24, 2018
I enjoyed this book better than i expected it. There was no drama or angst or anything like that. And it didnt bore me at all. Kyle and Stella are a cute couple. Stella knew she was gay but didnt want to out herself until college. Kyle thought she was straight until she had to do her AP English assignment with Stella and got to know her. And things started from there.
I feel like the book is really positive regarding to gay people. Everyone that close to both main characters kind of already knew that they are gay and happily accepted them. Other students, just didnt give a damn. So yeah positive. No angst, no drama, no things that want to make you to pull your hair out. So yeah, this is the kind of book that you read after you read those kind of book that made you bang your head against the wall or something, i think.
It is a fun read to me. And i enjoyed it.
I feel like the book is really positive regarding to gay people. Everyone that close to both main characters kind of already knew that they are gay and happily accepted them. Other students, just didnt give a damn. So yeah positive. No angst, no drama, no things that want to make you to pull your hair out. So yeah, this is the kind of book that you read after you read those kind of book that made you bang your head against the wall or something, i think.
It is a fun read to me. And i enjoyed it.
December 31, 2017
and this makes it one hundred books in two thousand and seventeen i'd like to dedicate this to my six month long slump and all my haters who said i would never make it in this industry if i deleted all my goodreads friends and stopped reading books WHO'S THE LOSER NOW
also this book okay PROS:
•lesbians
•in love
•lesbians in love
•happy ending for lesbians in love
•best friends & family who support them through & through
CONS:
•there's no buildup & the tension is kinda forced
•it's enemies to lovers
•writing made me cringe JUST A TEENY BIT
•75% of the plotline was them just making out show me the romance but don't let it be their entire personalities!!!!
also this book okay PROS:
•lesbians
•in love
•lesbians in love
•happy ending for lesbians in love
•best friends & family who support them through & through
CONS:
•there's no buildup & the tension is kinda forced
•it's enemies to lovers
•writing made me cringe JUST A TEENY BIT
•75% of the plotline was them just making out show me the romance but don't let it be their entire personalities!!!!
July 4, 2018
Full review originally posted on my blog:
Word Wonders
CW: Emetophobia, masturbation, on-page sex, mentions of self-harm.
This book was exactly what I needed when I needed it. I’ve had the ebook for a couple months now I think -since I read the Violet Hills novellas- waiting for the right moment to pick it up. Last week (at the time I’m writing this review) I was going through a rough time and couldn’t deal with any heavy books, no fantasy, no tough topics, no book that needs too many brain cells so I went through my ebook collection and picked this one up. It was SO ADORABLE. The kind of adorable that’s a little unrealistic but still warms your heart.
The writing is quite simple, I prefered it in the Violet Hills novellas (which were published later so it makes sense) but it was still good and easy to read here as well, portraying two teen girls’ voices quite perfectly. Style is told in dual POV from both Kyle and Stella’s perspectives and here’s the things, besides Kyle’s excessive cursing (which I loved by the way) their voices were way too similar, almost identical, I kept getting confused and a lot of the time I needed to go back to the start of a chapter or part to read the name again. Which not only hindered my reading experience a little but also made the characters feel underevelopped.
Another piece of criticism I have (or two, whichever you wanna look at it) is that there was too much use of cr*zy, as well as a mention of self-harm in dialogue that could potentially be triggering to people. It’s not necessarily taken as a joke but it was completely unnecessary to the story.
This is solely romance based, a BEYOND CUTE hate to love, cheerleader meets nerd that made me swoon more times than one. That being said, there isn’t any kind of plot once you take away the girls’ relationship, which I wasn’t bothered by because like I said, I just needed something fluffy to get my mind off things and Style delivered. It’s the kind of very cheesy, sometimes silly and very sweet romance that isn’t to everyone’s taste but gets the job of giving you a little happiness done.
One thing I liked and that I think is worth mentioning is how freely and openly this book discusses both masturbations and sex (pretty explicit, I might add) which we don’t often see in YA. It’s not only done through the narrative but also through conversations between the two girls which shows that there’s nothing to be ashamed of.
Kyle is a nerdy girl with helicopter parents who up until the start of the book thought she was straight, the straightest that ever was, the straighest that will ever be. HA NO. She’s very gay. I thought that her “figuring out” she’s gay was a bit rushed and glossed over but then again, maybe this was a case of when you know you know. She’s smart, caring and one hell of a stubborn girl. One character trait I couldn’t help but relate to. AND THE LITTLE NICE GESTURES SHE DOES FOR STELLA? I sobbed. And grinned. And flailed. I love how eventhough her parents get on her nerves a lot of the time she doesn’t resent them and knows they just want what’s best for her.
Stella is the cheerleader bitch with a huge heart, a barricated heart that’s waiting for someone to look beyond the bitchy walls and fences she put up. We soon realise that she too has a very dorky nerdy side and that being mean has been her defense mechanism for so long that she just can’t help it sometimes, it comes on its own. This one is a lesbian as well, and although closeted, she’s known for a while and just doesn’t think it’s worth it to come out in her very small town. Here again, her dad is a constent presence in her life and I also adored her Relationship with her older brother who is also somewhat her best friend.
The girls have a lot of chemistry, both their snarky and cheesy banter were entertaining to read, and a lot of the time endearing as well. I loved how they were both there for each other, helping each other with their coming outs as well as their futures. I really wish there was a lot more talk about college decisions and life outside their romance but this is the kind of sappy, happy queer story you just need sometimes.
CW: Emetophobia, masturbation, on-page sex, mentions of self-harm.
This book was exactly what I needed when I needed it. I’ve had the ebook for a couple months now I think -since I read the Violet Hills novellas- waiting for the right moment to pick it up. Last week (at the time I’m writing this review) I was going through a rough time and couldn’t deal with any heavy books, no fantasy, no tough topics, no book that needs too many brain cells so I went through my ebook collection and picked this one up. It was SO ADORABLE. The kind of adorable that’s a little unrealistic but still warms your heart.
The writing is quite simple, I prefered it in the Violet Hills novellas (which were published later so it makes sense) but it was still good and easy to read here as well, portraying two teen girls’ voices quite perfectly. Style is told in dual POV from both Kyle and Stella’s perspectives and here’s the things, besides Kyle’s excessive cursing (which I loved by the way) their voices were way too similar, almost identical, I kept getting confused and a lot of the time I needed to go back to the start of a chapter or part to read the name again. Which not only hindered my reading experience a little but also made the characters feel underevelopped.
Another piece of criticism I have (or two, whichever you wanna look at it) is that there was too much use of cr*zy, as well as a mention of self-harm in dialogue that could potentially be triggering to people. It’s not necessarily taken as a joke but it was completely unnecessary to the story.
This is solely romance based, a BEYOND CUTE hate to love, cheerleader meets nerd that made me swoon more times than one. That being said, there isn’t any kind of plot once you take away the girls’ relationship, which I wasn’t bothered by because like I said, I just needed something fluffy to get my mind off things and Style delivered. It’s the kind of very cheesy, sometimes silly and very sweet romance that isn’t to everyone’s taste but gets the job of giving you a little happiness done.
One thing I liked and that I think is worth mentioning is how freely and openly this book discusses both masturbations and sex (pretty explicit, I might add) which we don’t often see in YA. It’s not only done through the narrative but also through conversations between the two girls which shows that there’s nothing to be ashamed of.
Kyle is a nerdy girl with helicopter parents who up until the start of the book thought she was straight, the straightest that ever was, the straighest that will ever be. HA NO. She’s very gay. I thought that her “figuring out” she’s gay was a bit rushed and glossed over but then again, maybe this was a case of when you know you know. She’s smart, caring and one hell of a stubborn girl. One character trait I couldn’t help but relate to. AND THE LITTLE NICE GESTURES SHE DOES FOR STELLA? I sobbed. And grinned. And flailed. I love how eventhough her parents get on her nerves a lot of the time she doesn’t resent them and knows they just want what’s best for her.
Stella is the cheerleader bitch with a huge heart, a barricated heart that’s waiting for someone to look beyond the bitchy walls and fences she put up. We soon realise that she too has a very dorky nerdy side and that being mean has been her defense mechanism for so long that she just can’t help it sometimes, it comes on its own. This one is a lesbian as well, and although closeted, she’s known for a while and just doesn’t think it’s worth it to come out in her very small town. Here again, her dad is a constent presence in her life and I also adored her Relationship with her older brother who is also somewhat her best friend.
The girls have a lot of chemistry, both their snarky and cheesy banter were entertaining to read, and a lot of the time endearing as well. I loved how they were both there for each other, helping each other with their coming outs as well as their futures. I really wish there was a lot more talk about college decisions and life outside their romance but this is the kind of sappy, happy queer story you just need sometimes.
June 21, 2020
o clichê sáfico que eu precisava para continuar vivendo!! sério, eu me senti tão bem lendo esse livro, se eu chorei foi de emoção e felicidade por finalmente ter achado um romance fofo entre duas garotas se amando. esse livro me fez tão bem vocês não tem noção, meu coração ficou tão quentinho com a história das minhas duas bebezinhas, stella lewis e kyle blake. simplesmente TUDO pra mim 😔💖 obrigada por tudo chelsea! 🙏✊
February 26, 2017
I am torn. On one hand, this was cliche and cringey, the characters weren't fleshed out enough (I could barely distinguish between the two POVs), the writing was bland - but on the other hand, it was a f/f romance. The story itself was just okay but I really appreciated the lesbian representation.
December 21, 2017
4.5 / 5 heart-warming stars
Ok guys, so, I went into this book with low expectiations because >contemporary< (I'm not a big fan of them. I like them from time to time, but.. fantasy all the way.)
Anyway, the point is how absolutely positive this book is. I breathed fresh air throughout the whole book, like fucking finally! This, however, doesn't mean that problems are not addressed to: it's a contemporary, fully immersed in our still problematic world, so of course the big issue of homophobia is faced at some point in this book but.. people who throw insults and slurs are always far in the background, grandly ignored by our MCs who don't give a holy fuck and keep being awesomely gay together. Their families love them, their best friends love them.
What I'm saying is: this book tells a love story, plain and simple. Maybe some people will go like "oh there's a bit of Too Much Happy Ending" but, frankly, who the hell cares. We need positive books regarding the LGBTQAI+ people, we need books (or movie/series) that normalize the LGBTQAI+ people because, guess what, we are normal. Hell, it shouldn't even have to be stated that we are normal but, you know, we live in a still fucked up world.
So welcome to these fluffy, tender, funny love stories. Welcome to the normal lives plots or the great adventures in fantasy with no fucks whatsoever given to one's sexuality or gender. Sexuality or Gender are important to be happy with ourselves, they're part of our many sides (we can use labels or not, it's OUR choice) but characters, and consequentely real life people, should not be diminished because of them by society, or restricted to stereotypes.
Our stories should not be reduced to few, poor plotlines, ever.
As for the book itself: loved Stella (which by the way is basically me with blonde hair, and much more flexibility - she's a cheerleader, I'm a piece of wood - but her past is much similar to mine). Loved Kyle, cute nerd she is with a disability that does. not. define. her. Loved how both PoVs are so different and recognizeable. The love story warmed my heart and made me laugh.
Side note #1: I just completed my first reading challenge here on GR, and if this is the last book I manage to read this year I would be utterly satisfied.
Side note#2: Aknowledgement of the Author:
Ok guys, so, I went into this book with low expectiations because >contemporary< (I'm not a big fan of them. I like them from time to time, but.. fantasy all the way.)
Anyway, the point is how absolutely positive this book is. I breathed fresh air throughout the whole book, like fucking finally! This, however, doesn't mean that problems are not addressed to: it's a contemporary, fully immersed in our still problematic world, so of course the big issue of homophobia is faced at some point in this book but.. people who throw insults and slurs are always far in the background, grandly ignored by our MCs who don't give a holy fuck and keep being awesomely gay together. Their families love them, their best friends love them.
What I'm saying is: this book tells a love story, plain and simple. Maybe some people will go like "oh there's a bit of Too Much Happy Ending" but, frankly, who the hell cares. We need positive books regarding the LGBTQAI+ people, we need books (or movie/series) that normalize the LGBTQAI+ people because, guess what, we are normal. Hell, it shouldn't even have to be stated that we are normal but, you know, we live in a still fucked up world.
So welcome to these fluffy, tender, funny love stories. Welcome to the normal lives plots or the great adventures in fantasy with no fucks whatsoever given to one's sexuality or gender. Sexuality or Gender are important to be happy with ourselves, they're part of our many sides (we can use labels or not, it's OUR choice) but characters, and consequentely real life people, should not be diminished because of them by society, or restricted to stereotypes.
Our stories should not be reduced to few, poor plotlines, ever.
As for the book itself: loved Stella (which by the way is basically me with blonde hair, and much more flexibility - she's a cheerleader, I'm a piece of wood - but her past is much similar to mine). Loved Kyle, cute nerd she is with a disability that does. not. define. her. Loved how both PoVs are so different and recognizeable. The love story warmed my heart and made me laugh.
Side note #1: I just completed my first reading challenge here on GR, and if this is the last book I manage to read this year I would be utterly satisfied.
Side note#2: Aknowledgement of the Author:
I wrote this book for the girl who thought she was straight for 29 years. I wrote it for the girl who couldn't seem to find the right boy. The girl who was so deep in denial, she was drowning in it. the girls who, at last, figured out her own truth.
[...] One last thing: if you are struggling with your own sexuality/gender, I want to say one thing. You are not alone. You are NEVER alone.
dnf
August 5, 2016This is a book for girls, about girls loving girls, written by a girl. And yet, the word 'bitch' is being thrown around every two sentences (I'm not exaggerating), said by girls to describe other girls, even by one of the MCs in reference to her future love interest. In which world is this considered okay?
Also, the writing is just plain bad. The premise is ridiculous (I'm starting to notice this girl bc she's so pretty even tho she's a BITCH, no reason for it other than my creator just felt like writing a book about girls loving girls. Honestly, it's a little insulting.) Or maybe I'm just too old for high shool love stories. It's all very twilighty.
The cover is pretty though.
Also, the writing is just plain bad. The premise is ridiculous (I'm starting to notice this girl bc she's so pretty even tho she's a BITCH, no reason for it other than my creator just felt like writing a book about girls loving girls. Honestly, it's a little insulting.) Or maybe I'm just too old for high shool love stories. It's all very twilighty.
The cover is pretty though.
November 9, 2020
3.5 Stars - Enjoyable ff/YA first love romance
Started on Audible but didn't get it finished before they shut down Audible Escape on 11/1, grrrr. I bought the book so I could finish reading it. It was $4.99. It it had been $9.99 I probably would not have bothered.
This was an enjoyable high school romance. Both girls are 18 but act younger. There is basically zero angst once they acknowledge they have feelings. Everyone excepts them; their parents, their friends - its all good.
Once thing I didn't notice until I was reading it for myself was they way its formatted makes it really hard to tell who is talking. The book is in alternating 1st person POV, ie. one chapter as Stella and one as Kyle. They voices and thoughts are very similar and beside the formatting issue I often forgot who's POV I was reading at any given time. Hat's off to the narrator for keeping it all straight.
Started on Audible but didn't get it finished before they shut down Audible Escape on 11/1, grrrr. I bought the book so I could finish reading it. It was $4.99. It it had been $9.99 I probably would not have bothered.
This was an enjoyable high school romance. Both girls are 18 but act younger. There is basically zero angst once they acknowledge they have feelings. Everyone excepts them; their parents, their friends - its all good.
Once thing I didn't notice until I was reading it for myself was they way its formatted makes it really hard to tell who is talking. The book is in alternating 1st person POV, ie. one chapter as Stella and one as Kyle. They voices and thoughts are very similar and beside the formatting issue I often forgot who's POV I was reading at any given time. Hat's off to the narrator for keeping it all straight.
February 10, 2017
I was so disappointed. I was expecting more from this, the idea was nice and cute and had potential but it lack to deliver.
The writing was kind of flat and there were so many times were I had to check who was supposed to be narrating because both characters had the same voice and that annoyed me a little.
I hated how many times they said baby and babe and others things that made me roll my eyes so much. Plus, when they came out to their friends and family, all of them just happen to already know and it annoyed me as well and I was like ??? ok¿
There were other things that I didn't like but I guess those are the main ones.
If it wasn't for the fact that I was a f|f book I would have dnf this so fast. Overall I didn't enjoy it, and it make me sad because I really wanted to.
The writing was kind of flat and there were so many times were I had to check who was supposed to be narrating because both characters had the same voice and that annoyed me a little.
I hated how many times they said baby and babe and others things that made me roll my eyes so much. Plus, when they came out to their friends and family, all of them just happen to already know and it annoyed me as well and I was like ??? ok¿
There were other things that I didn't like but I guess those are the main ones.
If it wasn't for the fact that I was a f|f book I would have dnf this so fast. Overall I didn't enjoy it, and it make me sad because I really wanted to.
January 18, 2018
It was pretty mediocre in terms of books. Super enjoyable. Adorable romance. But, nothing that stood out to me. It was similar to most contemporaries where I cringed at the dialogue and needed a few tweaks. I did love Kyle and Stella though, with their own individual developments throughout the book.
The message behind this book is important as well and the authors note at the end shows how important important representation is.
Full review to come possibly.
The message behind this book is important as well and the authors note at the end shows how important important representation is.
Full review to come possibly.
June 1, 2017
I STILL HAVE NO CLUE WHY THIS BOOK IS CALLED STYLE BUT IDC BECAUSE I LOVED IT SO MUCH?!?! LIKE KYLE AND STELLA RE TRULY THE CUTEST I SWEAR I AM JUST THE HEART EYES EMOJI RIGHT NOW
October 18, 2016
People were right when they said Stella was like ice. An iceberg was a little more accurate. There was something below the surface that no one had seen before. I didn’t know what made me want to figure her out, but I did. I wanted it a lot.3.5 stars rounded up. Kyle and Stella are in their senior year of high school. They have seen each other over the years but never really talked or anything like that, in fact, Kyle (and pretty much everyone in their school) doesn't think very nicely of Stella, something the latter encourages with her behavior. After they're paired up for a project, they begin to develop feelings for one another, which are confusing for Kyle, considering herself straight, and inconvenient for Stella, who knows she's gay but didn't expect to do anything about it until college.
And it's a pretty simple coming of age/coming out story. As predictable as you'd expect and with very little drama, and I think that's fine. Not every coming out story needs to be negative or overly dramatic.
There wasn't a lot of character development (and speaking of characters, Kate walks with a limp, which I thought was nice to include), and sometimes it was hard for me to differentiate between their voices (it's told in the first person, from both POVs and it would also alternate between them in the same chapter), but I found the story cute and sweet and had me smiling throughout most of the book. Maybe I was just in the right mood for it!
June 3, 2021
i was wondering throughout the whole book why it’s titled Style and only after finishing it did i realize tht it’s just their ship name (stella + kyle) lol
June 19, 2020
tw: internalised homophobia at least in the beginning
so i was here for the gay fluff. because that was truly wonderful.
besides that it was really more of a mediocre book.
it’s all very much based on cliches. the characters (the nerd/the jock dynamic, one character being an “ice-cold bitch” so that no one can hurt her feelings), the story. and i mean these tropes can be done well, sure, but here it just felt very boring and overdone.
the writing style, too, was just not it. i can best describe it as “write as you speak” i think and while this doesn’t need to be bad, again, in this instance it just was. descriptions like cute and pretty were used so much for each other that it became repetitive pretty quickly.
it all would have been fine if it was possible to distinguish between stella and kyle. that just wasn’t the case. if you write two pov’s you have to make sure that their voices are different enough. sometimes i would just find myself not knowing who was speaking for minutes, i was just waiting for a name to drop so i could finally put the name on the perspective again.
this seems to happen a lot in these (read: cliche) books because maybe it’s relatable for a lot of people, but i was just bothered by the sheer amount of bashing other people. i mean, bash all you want when they deserve, when they do something wrong, but some acting above everyone else because apparently “stella was the only one who actually knew what she was talking about [in their english assignment]”. i mean, c’mon. you really are not better than your classmates just because you’ve actually read the book.
what i actually did like: the characters tried to have open and nonjudgmental conversations (at least when they actually sat down to talk and didn’t avoid a conversation by making out). simultaneously, both characters were very open about their attraction to one another, expressing sexual thoughts and owning their sexuality without feeling ashamed of it (besides the internalised homophobia in the beginning).
all in all, it was cute, but god, were they annoying.
2.5/5
so i was here for the gay fluff. because that was truly wonderful.
besides that it was really more of a mediocre book.
it’s all very much based on cliches. the characters (the nerd/the jock dynamic, one character being an “ice-cold bitch” so that no one can hurt her feelings), the story. and i mean these tropes can be done well, sure, but here it just felt very boring and overdone.
the writing style, too, was just not it. i can best describe it as “write as you speak” i think and while this doesn’t need to be bad, again, in this instance it just was. descriptions like cute and pretty were used so much for each other that it became repetitive pretty quickly.
it all would have been fine if it was possible to distinguish between stella and kyle. that just wasn’t the case. if you write two pov’s you have to make sure that their voices are different enough. sometimes i would just find myself not knowing who was speaking for minutes, i was just waiting for a name to drop so i could finally put the name on the perspective again.
this seems to happen a lot in these (read: cliche) books because maybe it’s relatable for a lot of people, but i was just bothered by the sheer amount of bashing other people. i mean, bash all you want when they deserve, when they do something wrong, but some acting above everyone else because apparently “stella was the only one who actually knew what she was talking about [in their english assignment]”. i mean, c’mon. you really are not better than your classmates just because you’ve actually read the book.
what i actually did like: the characters tried to have open and nonjudgmental conversations (at least when they actually sat down to talk and didn’t avoid a conversation by making out). simultaneously, both characters were very open about their attraction to one another, expressing sexual thoughts and owning their sexuality without feeling ashamed of it (besides the internalised homophobia in the beginning).
all in all, it was cute, but god, were they annoying.
2.5/5
June 18, 2023
Simple and light read with minimal/no angst.
3+ ⭐️
3+ ⭐️
November 8, 2016
I'm torn on my rating. I was sure to give this a 4 but then changed it because I want to thank the author for writing this book. I'm familiar with her works, especially Taylor and Hunter (My favorite mistake). I'm really surprised when I saw you wrote an F/F book. (Review not on this GR account) =p
The story is pretty much light and easy read, no major drama. So, if you're looking for some coming out with angsty stories line this is not for you.
Everyone is very supportive of Kyle and Stella, especially their families and friends.
I wanted to read more of them and I feel that the ending is a bit rushed but thank God for the Epilogue. :)
I think Babe is freaking hot as an endearment.
“If you think about it, we’re even luckier because not everyone gets a gay child. You’re rare. Like a diamond"
Wow! Coming from Kyle's Mom. This is golden.
3.75-4 stars.
The story is pretty much light and easy read, no major drama. So, if you're looking for some coming out with angsty stories line this is not for you.
Everyone is very supportive of Kyle and Stella, especially their families and friends.
I wanted to read more of them and I feel that the ending is a bit rushed but thank God for the Epilogue. :)
I think Babe is freaking hot as an endearment.
“If you think about it, we’re even luckier because not everyone gets a gay child. You’re rare. Like a diamond"
Wow! Coming from Kyle's Mom. This is golden.
3.75-4 stars.
July 8, 2016
This book is super adorable and diverse! We need more cute, happy f/f stories like this one <3
Displaying 1 - 30 of 377 reviews