She Drives Me Crazy

by Kelly Quindlen, Piper Goodeve (Narrator)

High school nemeses fall in love in this queer YA rom com perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Casey McQuiston.

After losing spectacularly to her ex-girlfriend in their first game since their break up, Scottie Zajac gets into a fender bender with the worst possible person: her nemesis, the incredibly beautiful and incredibly mean Irene Abraham. Things only get worse when their nosey, do-gooder moms get involved and the girls are forced to carpool together until Irene’s car gets out of the shop.

Their bumpy start the only gets bumpier the more time they spend together. But when an opportunity presents itself for Scottie to get back at her toxic ex (and climb her school’s social ladder at the same time), she bribes Irene into playing along. Hijinks, heartbreak, and gay fake-dating scheme for the ages. From author Kelly Quindlen comes a new laugh-out-loud romp through the ups and downs of teen romance.

Genres: Romance, LGBT, Lesbian, Young Adult, Queer, Contemporary, Enemies To Lovers

8 pages, Audiobook

First published April 20, 2021

About the author

Kelly Quindlen is the bestselling author of the young adult novels She Drives Me Crazy (winner of the Volunteer State Book Award; Goodreads Choice Awards nominee), Late to the Party, Her Name in the Sky, and the forthcoming This Must Be the Place (May 2026). Her books have been featured in The New York Times, Business Insider, Vulture, and Paste.
Kelly enjoys speaking to high school GSAs, PFLAG groups, and all manner of LGBTQ+ organizations. She lives in Atlanta with her fiancée and their saucy cat, Peach Marie.

Reviews

[daph pink ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a cute, heartwarming, plain old fun novel that's relatable, down to earth, a fun peak with just the right bit of geekiness, and possibly one of the finest LGBT, fake dating + enemies to lovers book.

Highly recommended 💕✨

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

↠ 5 stars

The sapphic enemies-to-lovers and fake dating sports rom-com the world deserves. In this quintessential YA contemporary, two arch rivals strike a bargain, after a fender bender presents them both with an unexpected opportunity. Scottie wants payback. Her girlfriend dumped her right before transferring schools and she has to play against her basketball team every weekend. Enter Irene, captain of the cheerleading team, and Scottie’s salvation. Irene wants nothing more than to be taken seriously by the people in her life, but needs money to pay for the damage inflicted on her car, and Scottie’s offering. The catch: Irene has to date Scottie publicly for four months, and no sooner. It might not be the perfect situation, but stranger things have happened, and with these two at the wheel, who knows what will result.

Kelly Quindlen has done it again folks, and I’m beginning to wonder why I am even surprised at this point. This whole book was just a love letter to the queer community through the form of an 80’s style romantic comedy and I am here for it. The exploration of forgiveness and moving on from first love is such a force for good in this novel. Tie that in with queer characters that simply exist in their own space and you get to the bottom of why I adored this, and the authors previous work, Late to the Party. Both have such different vibes, but are amazing illustrations of the kind of books I’d love to see more of within the YA contemporary genre. Specifically queer stories. She Drives me Crazy gives a raw and honest look into high school relationships and a loss of self worth that sometimes accompanies giving all of yourself to another person. Scottie’s emotional journey is one that I think a lot of people will be able to relate to, and I’m so glad time was taken to thoroughly examine every side of it. While this book does serve playful banter with a side of sapphic angst, there are some more deeper moments that make it the perfect kind of nod to the 80’s romantic comedy. In fact, this gave me such a strong Dirty Dancing meets Say Anything vibe, which the author definitely intended to come across while reading. It’s got an epic soundtrack, funny background characters, and the classic big romantic gesture that is a part of any of these films. This book really is the whole package. Snarky and humorous, with the best execution of the fake dating trope I have read in a long time. Maybe it’s the fact that this whole book revolved around two enemies inconveniently falling in love and becoming a lesbian power couple, but it's unrelated that it’s also one of the best contemporaries I have read this year. What else is there to say other than big romantic gestures are clearly superior and will be making a comeback after this book releases. I will it to be so.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Trigger warnings: homophobia, homophobic language, alcohol consumption (underage)

[Federico DN · Rating 4 out of 5]

Swish!

Scottie Zajac is an insecure basketball player trying to get back with her ex-girlfriend after their recent breakup. Irene Abraham is a very popular cheerleader desperately trying to win athlete of the year to get into college. When they accidentally car crash in the school parking lot, they find themselves forced to carpool for a while, until Scottie has a wild idea that could greatly benefit both. The only catch is, they’ll need to try to forget the fact that they hate each others guts.

This was a very nice sapphic Romance. Although with some questionable attitudes, Scottie and Irene were very nice, very flawed individuals. Sadly all the situations felt kind of artificial, at least until the middle; but after coming clean it all became more natural, and they started to grow on me. I found myself enjoying and liking a lot more all the secondary characters. Danielle, Kevin, Honey-Belle, Gunther, Thora and the adorably unpredictable little Daphne. On the other hand, hated Tally, and Charlotte. I think a bit more laugh out loud moments and an occasional different pov besides Scottie's could have worked wonders. Still, some very heartwarming moments, and a few tear jerking ones as well, with an intensive nonstop slow burn. A powerful message on the importance of communication and respecting the healing process. In all, a highly enjoyable read. Enemies to lovers, fake dating, LGTB, YA and a lot of movie references. Almost fav.

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PERSONAL NOTE :
[2021] [288p] [Romance] [LGTB] [3.5] [Almost Recommendable] [“Yayyy, happy carpool day!” Honey-Belle trills, clapping her hands. She is impossibly chipper. Her DNA is probably made of cupcakes.] [Irene rolls away and turns off the light. “Goodnight. Touch me and you die.”] [TBW: John Tucker Must Die; Can't Buy Me Love; She's The Man; Hocus Pocus; Say Anything; Love & Basketball; Sixteen Candles; Mean Girls ☑ ; Dirty Dancing ☑]
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¡Swish!

Scottie Zajac es una insegura jugadora de basquetbol tratando de reconciliarse con su ex-novia después de una reciente separación. Irene Abraham es una muy popular porrista tratando desesperadamente de ganar atleta del año para entrar en la universidad. Cuando accidentalmente chocan autos en el aparcamiento de la escuela, se encuentran forzadas a compartir auto por un tiempo, hasta que Scottie tiene una loca idea que podría beneficiarlas a ambas enormemente. El único obstáculo es que, necesitarán obviar el hecho de que se odian profundamente.

Este fue un muy bonito Romance sáfico. Aunque con algunas actitudes cuestionables, Scottie e Irene fueron muy lindas, muy fallidas personas. Lamentablemente todas las situaciones se sintieron algo artificial, al menos hasta la mitad; luego de quedar todo en blanco se volvió más natural, y empezaron a crecer en mí. Me hallé disfrutando y queriendo mucho más todos los personajes secundarios. Danielle, Kevin, Honey-Belle, Gunther, Thora y la adorablemente impredecible pequeña Daphne. Por otro lado, odié a Tally, y Charlotte. Creo que más momentos hilarantes y una ocasional diferente perspectiva además de la de Scottie podría haber hecho maravillas. Aun así, varios momentos terriblemente entrañables, y algunos lagrimeantes también, con un intensivo lento ardor de principio a fin. Un poderoso mensaje sobre la importancia de la comunicación y el respeto por el proceso de sanación. Dentro de todo, una altamente disfrutable lectura. Enemigos a amantes, cita falsa, LGTB, Joven Adulsto y un montón de referencias sobre películas. Casi favorito.

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NOTA PERSONAL :
[2021] [288p] [Romance] [LGTB] [3.5] [Casi Recomendable] [“Heyyy, ¡que la pasen bien compartiendo auto!” Honey-Belle grita, aplaudiendo sus manos. Es imposiblemente alegre. Su DNA probablemente debe estar hecho de pastelitos.] [Irene se da vuelta y apaga la luz. “Buenas noches. Si me tocás y te mato.”] [TBW: John Tucker Must Die; Can't Buy Me Love; She's The Man; Hocus Pocus; Say Anything; Love & Basketball; Sixteen Candles; Mean Girls ☑ ; Dirty Dancing ☑]
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[may ➹]

I could probably come up with something coherent to say about this but all I’m thinking right now is “sports sapphics!!!!!”

[theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

She Drives Me Crazy is a little bit ridiculous in the best way possible. Quindlen expertly balances creating three dimensional characters and exploring the impact of toxic relationships with all the campy trappings of a 90’s rom com. With a fake dating scheme for the ages between two sworn enemies, the only one bed trope and a Christmas town setting, She Drives Me Crazy is the most unapologetically fun book I’ve read in ages.

My first ever Kelly Quindlen book is a success! I’d heard that the strength in Quindlen’s books lay in her characters and this could not be more accurate. She Drives Me Crazy is a masterclass on creating messy, hurt and angry characters; characters that aren’t in a good place and act accordingly and then giving them space to heal and develop in the most natural way. Scottie, our main character, isn’t always likeable. In fact, she can be a downright bitch at times. She makes mistakes, lashes out and hurts people but she has an amazing support network who want what’s best for her and help her begin to find herself again and heal from the aftermath of a toxic relationship. Additionally, her behaviour is not excused just because she was hurting and I loved seeing her accept responsibility for her actions.

Now, this could all make the book sound heavy and not exactly like rom com material but that’s where the brilliance of She Drives Me Crazy lies. Scottie’s difficult and messy character development and relationships are juxtaposed over the most lighthearted and fun setting and tropes, creating a perfect balance. Set in a small town named for its year long Christmas emporium, this book is merry and over the top and so much fun! This really shines through the side characters, particularly Honey Belle who I adored! She’s just sugary sweet and soft and exactly what you’d expect from a family running a Christmas emporium. The characters of this book were all so loveable and I particularly loved Danielle, Scottie’s best friend, and Scottie’s family. They weren’t always perfect and had some of their own issues but I loved seeing their relationships with Scottie and the way they all came through for and supported each other. I could speak about how cleverly written the characters and relationships were in this book endlessly but I’ll let you experience that for yourself!

And this finally brings us to Irene, our love interest. I absolutely adored her character and found her so easy to relate to and sympathise with. I loved the way this book, and particularly Irene, handled assumptions and stereotypes surrounding the popular mean girl cheerleader figure and turned them on their head, creating a character with depth and nuance. This also played into a great conversation about the lack of recognition cheerleaders receive, and how they’re not regarded as ‘real’ athletes. Scottie and Irene’s relationship was so fun to read, although not always easy in the beginning as these girls knew exactly how to hurt each other. I also appreciated the development of their relationship once things began getting real, and the acknowledgement that Scottie wasn’t in a good place at this time.

The writing of this book was incredible. I read this in two sittings and absolutely flew through it – in fact, it could have been one sitting if I hadn't started it so late at night. The story and Scottie’s voice just immediately gripped me and I couldn’t put it down. With a fast pace, great dialogue and just so much fun, reading She Drives Me Crazy was a joy.

Unfortunately, I did have a couple of concerns with this book. Primarily, the fake relationship itself, and its rules. I wasn’t completely comfortable with the idea that Scottie essentially was paying Irene to date her, and that this wasn’t really addressed again once they developed real feelings. I also felt that Scottie, in her desperation to get back at her ex, pressured Irene to accept (and therefore come out to everyone) which wasn’t entirely fair, though it was ultimately Irene’s decision and she did not make it lightly. I would also say that they spent quite a long time being enemies and I’d have liked to spend more time developing their relationship once they developed feelings. I’d have also appreciated the word ‘lesbian’ being used as both of our main characters were written as lesbians and there is an unfortunate lack of the word ‘lesbian’ in YA.

She Drives Me Crazy is cheesy and campy and angsty in the absolute best way possible. With brilliant character development and dynamics, an exploration of heartbreak, the effects of a toxic relationship and the importance of looking past preconceptions, Kelly Quindlen has created a story that will resonate with lots of teens, especially queer ones. The characters of She Drives Me Crazy are messy and flawed which just makes them all the more real. With nods to classic rom coms and expert trope usage, this book is perfect for anyone looking for some good teen fun, a lovely sapphic romance and expertly written characters.

check out my reading vlog for kelly quindlen's books here!

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*eARC received in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley. Thank you Kelly Quindlen for making sure I got a copy, this has not affected my review.*

[Chelsea (chelseadolling reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Y'all. This was messy, queer, fake-dating, enemies-to-lovers PERFECTION. I enjoyed this so much!!!!

CW: bullying, homophobia

[Gabby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was sooooooo cute. This had some of my favorite tropes in romance like fake dating and hate to love and it's gay!!!!!! It was a very cute audiobook and I finished it in one day. I adore the characters in this book so much.

[tappkalina · Rating 4 out of 5]

May 3, 2021

Kelly Quindlen is excellent in making me fall in love with her characters. Her previous book's - Late to the Party - main caharacter was in love with her friend group, too, just like Scottie, just like me through them.
Irene, Honey-Belle and Danielle were amazing. I adore every one of them.
Plus Honey-Belle is the coolest name out there, and based on her personality, she is literally my dream girl.

Three things I didn't like:
- the first chapter. it is a perfect example of telling instead of showing
- that Scottie blackmailed Irene - they tried to make me believe Irene agreed to it, but she had only two options: fake-date Scottie, or give up cheerleading. And come on, Simon vs. is my all time favorite book, I know a few things about subtle blackmailing.
- we were told Tally, the ex-girlfriend was toxic, but we were never shown why Scottie loved her in the first place, or how exactly was she toxic


Jul 01, 2020

I thought 2020 is THAT year for us gays, but it seems like from now on every year will be THAT year.
The amount of sapphic books that will come out gives me life.

[aashna · Rating 1 out of 5]

i didn't love this as much as i wanted to. scottie was irritating in that everytime she made progress with irene she would go back to thinking about tally? i appreciated the whole arc about her getting over her ex but it was unnecessary and came way too late in the novel. i hated charlotte being the mean sapphic ex with irene. i also didn't love how irene's heritage was treated because her being indian had like. nothing to do with her character. except for a line about how her grandparents are from kerala and she struggled to be a desi cheerleader (and this wasn't even the case, as we saw with scottie's and mrs. abraham's conversation). the ending was cute but the timing of the book was off and left me wanting more. also would it kill kelly quindlen to say lesbian 😭

[Nash (all too unwell) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buddy read with Naomi❤️

⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars!

This book was so cute I can't even function anymore! Irene and Scottie have stolen my heart<3

She drives me crazy is the story of Irene and Scottie, high school rivals. Both hate each other.
Scottie just broke up with her girlfriend Tally and lost spectacularly to her in the basketball game. And she is now extremely embarrassed. And there is only one solution to show her ex that she is okay. No not only okay but better and moved on.

And there is only one way for that

When Irene and Scottie are forced to carpool, Scottie comes up with a plan to benefit both.
Fake date each other.
This will not only help Scottie get over Tally, but help Irene get some money
They absolutely hate each other, so there is no danger of falling for real
How difficult could it be?
there is a huge danger bcz they both are super cute and sweet


“Because before you can worry about who’s in your passenger seat, you have to learn to drive yourself.”

The Writing was super fun to read! I loved how the author carried the plot and it had all of my favorite tropes!
Fake dating, enemies to lovers, one-bed trope and sports romance ahhhhhhhhhh🥰🥰


Characters

Scottie was TBH, kinda irritating. I found her extremely rude most of the time especially when she shouted at Irene multiple times. She is flawed yes, but this just makes her obnoxious.
The one aspect I really liked was the healing thing. Watching her get over Tally was fun and the way she handled stuff was good!💕

Irene

“Hi,” she says, her voice level and cool. “This bitch’s name is Irene.”

I LOVE IRENE SO MUCH I CAN'T EVEN THINK STRAIGHT😭💕(pun intended)

Irene is such a cool person. She's smart funny brave and headstrong. She won't take shit from anyone. Though she may appear all strong and evil, she is actually a cinnamon roll.🥺

She's so sweet and extremelyyyyyy cuteee<333




Final thoughts

I LOVED IT! I think this would be perfect fro anyone looking for a good sapphic romanceee<33

|Blog|Pintrest|



My rating system:
5⭐ - I loved it soo much! New favorite
4⭐ - It was really good! But something was missing
3⭐ - It was nice..but had more potential
2⭐ - I did not like it at all!... It could have been soo much better
1⭐ - Nope. Just No. I hate it

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

the enemies to lovers, fake dating to make an ex jealous, mean girls, grand gestures... it read like a campy queer 80s romcom and im here for it

[Fish · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. "She Drives Me Crazy" is a YA-coming-of-age novel, about our main character Scottie, in her senior year of high school. Suffering from heartbreak after her ex-girlfriend Tally breaks up with her and moves schools, Scottie becomes dead-set on finding any way to make her jealous. In a stroke of luck, the most popular cheerleader in school, Irene, agrees to pretend to date her. The only problem is that they can't stand each other. My initial thoughts on this book were super positive. I was so excited and drawn in by the cover art and the description. I mean it's a book about cheerleaders, fake dating, and enemies to lovers. I could not wait to start reading, Except, most times I found the story very hard to enjoy because of how out-of-touch the writing of these high schoolers was. It felt like what teens in movies are written like, except at least 20 percent more dramatic. That being said, I did enjoy the relationship. It was sweet and cute. I love Irene and her clever retorts and how smart and mindful she was as a person. I was mostly disappointed by the general lack of sports. I was expecting basketball and cheering to play a more important role than it ended up being, I kept waiting for some exciting gameplay. There was only a chapter or two of actual cheering and basketball. The relationship with Scottie and her siblings bothered me as well and struck me as unrealistic. They never really fight or yell at each other. It just doesn't feel like actual siblings whenever they interact. And the youngest, who's in middle school was depicted as sweet, caring, and innocent, even though she's 13. It's a cute read, but some parts stopped me from being able to enjoy it to its full extent. I enjoyed the diversity in the book, but one thing that kept nagging at me is how they never say the word lesbian, they always say gay, now this isn't bringing the book down any stars or anything, but lesbian is not a dirty word, and the fact that it was not used, even though this is a wlw book, where neither of them expresses interest in men, slightly annoys me.

[Diane Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

**'Words bounce and will do anything that you as a writer needs or wants them to do because the innocence of telling a YA story sometimes comes across as pleasurable..'

3.5stars!
A nice YA story and an encouraging recommended read.

[Lex Kent · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.50 Stars. Now this is a real enemies to lovers, sapphic, YA, romance. This would have been on my list of favorite books of 2022, except that this was released in 2021. I’m still finding my way around Audible (it’s a horrible site to navigate) but I somehow found this on a member’s sale, so I was really excited to grab it and happy to listen to it after the exhaustion of the Christmas Holiday hit me. That is the nice thing about audiobooks, when you are too worn out to read, at least you can still listen to a good story, and this was a really good one. Anyway, I was just complaining about the mislabeling of a YA romance that claimed to be ‘enemies to lovers’ when the characters were so far from being enemies that they didn’t even know their first names… so to have a book like this that was true to the trope of being arch enemies, to falling in love, made me very happy.

The narration of the audiobook by Piper Goodeve, was great. I felt like I watched a movie when I was done. All the characters came alive and felt like they had their own voices. It didn’t feel like anyone was just slightly different, instead I could easily tell which character was talking from their unique voice and this is a large cast since it takes place at high school, parties, and with families. Minus one dad character voice that was pretty over the top, I think this is one of the more impressive audiobook narrations I’ve heard before so I would easily recommend it.

The writing was great. It was smart and witty. The characters didn’t feel immature or too adult for high school students. They made real mistakes that drove me nuts, other times they broke my heart, and then they finally put a smile on my face. It was everything I wanted in a really good YA romance, and I absolutely recommend it. I’m very glad I got the audiobook because I know this is one of the rare stories that will go into my reread pile, or I should say relisten to pile.

[casey · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was 2013 wattpad fanfic level writing but i also finished it in one sitting.. much like i would a bad wattpad fanfic in 2013 so now what!

[kaz.brekkers.future.wife · Rating 4 out of 5]

If lesbianism was a thing, this book would be the perfect model. ;P

But the real question is dun Dun DUNNNNN...Why did I love it?

When there is a rom-com, there are three important aspects to consider.

One: the romance (duh)
two: the comedy (double duhs)
three: the plot

And this book hit the nail with the hammer (please don't judge me I'm bad with idioms)

ugh...sapphic. Okay, i may be biased. I loved this completely because it was WLW, but can you blame me. Another reason why I also loved the romance is that it wasn't rushed or artificial. Our main baddie, Scottie, was dealing with a lot, and being with Irene didn't immediately solve the problem because she had an ass and rocking tits. No, Scottie needed healing time and Irene gave her just that. It felt like that. real and somber and slow. Just what I like!!


Hey Siri...how many times did I laugh while reading the book:
I'm sorry, the data is out of my reach.
Exactly, I laughed so many times. too many times even. And boys say women aren't funny.

and the plot...umm hello! Girls fake dating. Sign me tf up, say no more, speak less. I'm here to watch gays be gays. And not to mention the drama with *cough*the exes. Specifically, one ex who I'd like to shove in a meat grinder (fuck you charlotte, you gay homophobe)


-------------------------
I love Irene! I love Scottie! I love Lesbians! That is all
Review To Come


__________________________
everything is ten times better when it's sapphic.

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

AHHHHHHHHHH! No se si quiero ser Scottie para estar con Irene o Irene para estar con Scottie o ya mejor las 3 JAJAJAJAJJQJAJA
JOYA PARA LA COMUNIDAD SAFICA. ES UN LIBRO MUY HONESTO, CON MUCHA TENSION Y MUY HOMOSEXUAL.

[not my high · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wszyscy razem: 🎶SHE DRIVES ME CRAZY OH-OH🎶

Czytałam ją jakiś czas temu zanim dojrzałam do tego, żeby nazywać się lesbijką i może właśnie dlatego tak bardzo potrzebowałam rereadu. Jej treść, vibe, bohaterowie powędrowali prosto do mojego serca. Jedna z bardziej naturalnych relacji enemies-to-lovers o jakich czytałam.

*po rereadzie uważam, że zasługuje na 5 gwiazdek, bo jedyne co obniża moją ocenę to słaba korekta i, miejscami, tłumaczenie*

[Larissa Cambusano · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 ⭐️ banter, enemies to lovers, sapphic, basketball player x cheerleader, fake dating.. all a big yes. took me a second to like scottie which is why this wasn’t a full 4 star for me. being in her head angered me sometimes. but irene I loved right away!!!! by the end tho.. they were both amazing. the two romantic gestures absolutely made it for me.

“because before you can worry about who’s in your passenger seat you have to learn to drive yourself”

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

i adored this fluffy, tropey, adorably heartwarming 80s-inspired romcom!!

i've never cared much about sports stories (unless it's a league of their own or something), but sapphic enemies-to-lovers fake dating between basketball star and cheerleader?? yes please.

one of the book's strengths is its well-rounded cast of characters. scottie's angst is relatable, and her love interest irene is amazingly powerful. i loved watching their dynamic shift as scottie learns there's more to irene than her popular cheerleader mean girl image. their relationship is sweet and ridiculously romantic. and it becomes remarkably healthy, especially considering the fact that it stems from fake dating drama!!

best friends danielle and honey belle are great supporting personalities, too. and i was amazed by the warmth of scottie's loving, supportive family. having sisters must be an amazing thing.

anyway. scottie initiates the fake dating drama in the hope of evoking jealousy from her ex, tally (who happens to be on the rival basketball team). i expected this to turn into a straightforward romance between scottie and irene, but i was impressed by the nuance.

scottie has to confront the fact that she's not over tally, despite the toxicity of the relationship and developing feelings for irene. finding closure while treating all parties with respect is ridiculously challenging. kudos to her character for being able to take a step back to heal. that shit is real.

People break our hearts, but they create more room in them first, and that room makes it possible for us to become more ourselves.

above all, she drives me crazy feels like a fluffy tribute to 80s and 90s romcoms, and it's a blast. the ending warmed my heart. dramatic romantic gestures aren't a solid foundation for a relationship, but damn, they can be an adorable addition.

[cameron · Rating 3 out of 5]

it’s a lesbian (jock!!!!!) book written by a lesbian and i am so happy it exists and i truly believe that so many other people will love it and you should check it out and support it!!!!!! i do not love high school rom coms so it was really just personal taste and i knew that going in. i didnt love scottie but she did get better as the book went on. and ohhh boy did the portrayal of an emotionally abusive relationship HIT !!!! and irene supremacy tbh i love her

[— nova · Rating 5 out of 5]

me: “i don’t like enemies to lovers”
sapphic book with a basketball player and cheerleader falling in love: *is enemies to lovers*
me: “i love enemies to lovers”

✨ 4.5/5 stars ✨

[edie-may ౨ৎ · Rating 2 out of 5]

‎ ‎ ‎ ── 2.25 stars .ᐟ ౨ৎ⋆˚｡⋆


‎‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ❛ “I hate you,” I say. Then I
‎‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ kiss her and kiss her and kiss her. ❜


‎ ‎ ‎ ⌗ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎started: nov 2, 2025 ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎⌝
‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎⌞ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎finished: nov 13, 2025 ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ✮


‎ ‎ ‎ ⤿ age rating: 12+
‎ ‎ ‎ ⤿ spice level: 0/5
‎ ‎ ‎ ⤿ content warnings:
‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ⋆ mild homophobia
‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ⋆ strong language
‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ⋆ violence


‎ ‎ buddy read with the wonderful amy ‪‪ᰔ
‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ⤷ find their review here !!


‎ ‎ ‎ spoiler-free review!


‎ ‎ ‎ ♡ tl;dr: i seem to be the only one that didn’t like this book. premise was interesting, execution was poor. tropes weren’t troping and i wasn’t invested. scottie was insufferable and irene deserved better.


‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ────୨ৎ────

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎sofia - clairo
‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ 01:58 ━━━━━●──── 03:08
‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎ ‎ ‎ ⇆ㅤ ㅤ◁ㅤ ❚❚ ㅤ▷ ㅤㅤ↻

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ────୨ৎ────


‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ 🏀┆ main tropes:

‎ ‎ ‎ ➪ basketball player x cheerleader
‎ ‎ ‎ ➪ enemies to lovers (?)
‎ ‎ ‎ ➪ fake dating
‎ ‎ ‎ ➪ one bed
‎ ‎ ‎ ➪ queer
‎ ‎ ‎ ➪ small town


‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ──〝 honey, i don’t want it to fade, 〞


‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ 📣┆ review:

‎ ‎ ‎ i just want to offer a sincere apology up to every one of my GR friends that gave this book 3+ stars, because i simply could not do it. i also want to offer a sincere thank you to amy because our yapping is actually what made this book bearable.

‎ ‎ ‎ the concept of this was super cute, and i was actually really excited to read it, but the execution just wasn’t good. firstly, i was under the impression that the fake dating trope operated on developed mutual benefits, not bribery and borderline manipulation. secondly, this is another one of those books labelled ‘enemies-to-lovers’ when really it’s just a one-sided hatred with hateful comments thrown in. for example:
‎ ‎ ⤷ ‘The scar in her eyebrow visibly shows. I’d like to thank the person who put it there.’
‎ ‎ what an odd thing to say when you do not know somebody at all. i have never had this thought cross my mind when speaking to somebody i dislike because i make a habit of practicing a little act known as human decency.

‎ ‎ ‎ in general, i was just not invested in these characters, or their relationships, at all. maybe it’s because i started off on the wrong foot with our fmc, but i only really enjoyed around 20% of the entire book, and that just isn’t good enough for me.


‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ──〝 there’s things that i know could get in the way, 〞


‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ 🚘┆ writing style:

‎ ‎ ‎ nothing overly wrong with this kind of writing style, except it felt very pretentious at times.
‎ ‎ ⤷ ‘Before you can worry about who’s in your passenger seat, you have to learn to drive yourself.’
‎ ‎ i’m sorry, it was not that type of book. i’m sure this was supposed to make me feel empowered but i felt completely apathetic, and to me, that is a glaring red flag as someone who rates on emotion and feeling.


‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ──〝 i don’t want to say goodbye, 〞


‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ 💥┆ characters:
‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ⋆ this section may contain one minor spoiler.

‎ ‎ ‎ ➪ scottie zajac
‎ ‎ ‎ try not to be an insufferable melon challenge, go! seriously, i could not mesh with this girl at all, which is really sad considering that the toxic ex was the most relatable thing about her for me (other than the glaringly obvious queer factor). she has the personality of freaking sandpaper. and why am i supposed to be celebrating her ability to finally do the right thing (a.k.a. the bare minimum) after multiple instances where she just does the wrong thing and hurts people? what am i, the patriarchy?

‎ ‎ ‎ ➪ irene abraham
‎ ‎ ‎ irene, wake up!! wake up!!! seriously, this girl can do so much better. she’s funny, cute, and most importantly, not a manipulative wench! she is a better woman than me because i would’ve dropkicked scottie the second she manipulated me into outing my sexuality to the entire school (yeah, that’s actually what happened). scottie was filling a grand total of zero (0) stadiums and had the audacity to treat my girl irene the way she did. the only reason this book gets 2 stars is because of irene abraham.


‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ──〝 i think that we could do it if we tried. 〞


┆ ⤿ 🎄 ⌗ pre-read:
‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ⋆ prediction: 3.50★ ✗

‎ ‎ ‎ ⤿ currently reading a really dark nonfiction book, so i am in desperate need of a cute queer romance to balance out the vibes. buddy reading this with my sweet amy!! ౨ৎ


જ⁀➴ ₊˚⊹ ✮

[Maisha Farzana · Rating 1 out of 5]

THIS BOOK DROVE ME CRAZY

[Sunny Lu · Rating 5 out of 5]

No like the way I was sobbing crying shaking..

[Lena · Rating 1 out of 5]

The thing I love most in the world after my incredibly mean cat is fake dating but I'm also a picky bitch so I want GOOD fake dating.


And good fake dating begins with a plausible reason why 2 people pretend to be in a relationship with each other.

Paying some random girl 1,000 dollar to make your ex-girlfriend jealous is not a plausible reason.
It's ridiculous.
I mean, what 17-year-old even has so much money to basically just throw away???

I'm 24 and the only human being I would spend that kind of money on is ✨myself✨



So yeah, the reason why Scotty and Irene decide to fake date is already shit, but you know what else is shit?
How they do that.

They are fake dating for 6 MONTHS and don't even kiss. I kid you not, 6 Months, and we barely get any handholding let alone any sexual tension between them. How this convinced people that they are together is really beyond me...



For fuck's sake, Irene has more PDA with Honeybell than with her suppost to be girlfriend!

Oh yeah, for those of you that didn't suffer through this book:
Honeybell is the ACTUAL name of the best friend character and of-fucking-course she has to be the sweetest most cliché character ever created, like... wow who would have guessed that?



Well to be fair, Honeybell is far from the worst in here and most of the character are predictable as hell. Maybe predictable is the wrong word though, it's just that the writing feels so very Wattpad-y that it's messing with me because it feels like I've read most of it a million times already.

I also love how everyone agrees that Tally (Scotty's Ex, who they are trying to make jealous) is the villain and toxic, while Scotty is the poor innocent one.

Let me tell you: Scotty fucking sucks.

She is judgmental as hell, and some of the stuff she pulled is definitely toxic as well. Her "payback" for example is some serious Regina George shit.



I get that the author was trying to portray how hard getting out of an extremely toxic relationship can be (2 toxic relationships actually – as both Scotty and Irene had had bad relationships in the past), but it just wasn't done very well and together with the cringy writing:
I honestly couldn't care less.

[alaska · Rating 5 out of 5]

note to self: if you want a girlfriend, bump into a cute girl's car...

[jazmin ✿ · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Because before you can worry about who’s in your passenger seat, you have to learn to drive yourself.”

⇢The Plot
I think this book was really your typical heartwarming YA novel, complete with the tropes and cliches we all know and love. It was super light and funny, but with a good balance of angst and character growth, which made it really enjoyable.

Basically, this was a fun and quick read, but it doesn’t get 5 stars because it was lacking in the depth that I need to rate a book 5 stars. I’m definitely not complaining about how light this book was because I adore happy books, but some scenes seemed unrealistically positive, especially considering one of the characters was an LGBTQ+ “popular” cheerleader who came out during the novel. But at the same time, I’m all for seeing sapphic characters happy so that depth could have come from somewhere else- not necessarily from a bad reaction to her coming out.

One thing I also loved about the plot was the way that teens were portrayed. Honestly I don’t really notice when teens are portrayed in a meh or okay way (as in it would have to be really bad for me to notice) but I really felt like this book captured so many of the stressful aspects of going to school and thinking about how the rest of your life is gonna go, along with the other parts of being a teenager in the modern world. Of course, there were still some cliche parts, but that’s to be expected.

⇢Scottie and Irene
I really loved these characters. I’d say they represented (for lack of a better way of saying this) the high school experience really well, and I think their relationship is one of the healthiest I’ve ever read about. They were also super relatable and I love how much they both grew throughout the book.

“You would think, based on the fact that I’ve watched the Say Anything … boom box scene a million times, that I wouldn’t have bumblebees in my stomach when my cheerleader girlfriend reenacts it for me in the school parking lot.
You would be wrong.”




⇢Side Characters
Also I’m obsessed with Danielle and Kevin and Honey-Belle and Gunther I love when there are side character romances. And the way they supported their friends was so heartwarming <3

. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ : – ⭒ ❦ ⭒ – : ✧ : -˚̣⋅ .

MY SPOTIFY ❦

MY LINKTREE ❦

[ribbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS BOOK LIVES UP TO THE HYPE AH

fake dating, sports romance, pining, enemies to lovers, one bed trope, AND ITS SAPPHIC

go read this book