What do you think?
Rate this book
The Girl Next Door: A Sweet Queer Rom-Com About Fake Dating, Exes, and Real Love
Film club nerd Cleo Ferrara’s senior year was like a storyboard waiting to be filmed. She knew the scenes, the players, and the eventual happy ending. Attend film school with her boyfriend, Daniel Sheridan. Become a film-making power couple. Take Hollywood by storm. Cut. Print. Fade to black.?
But in a plot twist Cleo never saw coming, Daniel dumps her for Kiki Pearson, the head cheerleader. This would be the point in the movie where the Sad Girl Music plays while the protagonist looks longingly out her window, but when Cleo looks out hers, she sees Marianne Lacerda, her former best friend…and a new storyboard unfolds.
Marianne is also nursing a heartache. When Daniel was dumping Cleo for Kiki, Kiki was dumping Marianne for Daniel. So instead of watching their exes parade around school, Cleo and Marianne start fake dating each other to ignite a little chaos in this bizarre love square. But any movie buff knows that when you introduce fake dating in Act I, it’s going to get real by Act III. With friendship, the future, and love on the line, can Cleo script a happy ending for herself—or will she get her heart broken again?
But in a plot twist Cleo never saw coming, Daniel dumps her for Kiki Pearson, the head cheerleader. This would be the point in the movie where the Sad Girl Music plays while the protagonist looks longingly out her window, but when Cleo looks out hers, she sees Marianne Lacerda, her former best friend…and a new storyboard unfolds.
Marianne is also nursing a heartache. When Daniel was dumping Cleo for Kiki, Kiki was dumping Marianne for Daniel. So instead of watching their exes parade around school, Cleo and Marianne start fake dating each other to ignite a little chaos in this bizarre love square. But any movie buff knows that when you introduce fake dating in Act I, it’s going to get real by Act III. With friendship, the future, and love on the line, can Cleo script a happy ending for herself—or will she get her heart broken again?
368 pages, Hardcover
First published May 30, 2023
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 128 reviews
Want to Read
February 7, 2024when i was younger i'd read only adult romance and now i'm clinging to what's left of my teenagehood...lol. looking to read lots more ya sapphic romance this year.
August 25, 2023
3.5 Stars
“The Girl Next Door” by Cecilia Vinesse is a queer YA contemporary romance.
I found this to be mostly sweet but with some storytelling that isn’t my jam.
Cleo is starting her senior year and she has plans. However, her plans are railroaded over the summer when her boyfriend cheats on her and breaks up with her. Her boyfriend, Daniel, is her partner in writing and directing horror movies and they are supposed to be working towards going to NYU together. Kiki, the girl Daniel cheated with and is now dating, also cheated on her girlfriend. Her girlfriend, Marianne, is Cleo’s next-door neighbor and former best friend.
Sounds convoluted right? Well, it is a lot but it didn’t take too long to figure everything out. This story has a pretty large cast of characters. And kudos to Vinesse, they all sounded different and I was abley to tell everyone apart.
Cleo and Marianne are mistaken to be a couple by Kiki and decide to go along with her assumption. They want to win back their respective partners and hope to make them jealous. What I didn’t care for was that the four of them spent so much time together. Cleo and Daniel and Kiki and Marianne were best friends before they started dating and I couldn’t believe Cleo and Marianne would want to be around the other two given the fact that they cheated. But there are double dates and all of them hanging out at in the film department multiple times.
I really wanted more time with Cleo and Marianne to see how they go from being former best friends to fake dating to having actual feelings. While there was some of that, there wasn’t nearly enough. They were sweet with each other and I liked their scenes together. I just wanted more of them. There was way too much “group time” and especially Daniel. Cleo spends the same amount, if not more, time with Daniel than she does Marianne and it got on my nerves.
There were some things I liked about this as well. Marianne suffers from anxiety and I liked how it was represented. I liked her arc probably the most, even if we didn’t get her point of view. I also liked how this sounds young adult. I read quite a bit of YA and a lot of the times it doesn’t really feel young adult, except for the ages. I also liked how much queerness was in the group of friends and how it was just accepted. There wasn’t any homophobia or anything like that.
I received an ARC from HarperCollins Children’s Books (Quill Tree Books) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
“The Girl Next Door” by Cecilia Vinesse is a queer YA contemporary romance.
I found this to be mostly sweet but with some storytelling that isn’t my jam.
Cleo is starting her senior year and she has plans. However, her plans are railroaded over the summer when her boyfriend cheats on her and breaks up with her. Her boyfriend, Daniel, is her partner in writing and directing horror movies and they are supposed to be working towards going to NYU together. Kiki, the girl Daniel cheated with and is now dating, also cheated on her girlfriend. Her girlfriend, Marianne, is Cleo’s next-door neighbor and former best friend.
Sounds convoluted right? Well, it is a lot but it didn’t take too long to figure everything out. This story has a pretty large cast of characters. And kudos to Vinesse, they all sounded different and I was abley to tell everyone apart.
Cleo and Marianne are mistaken to be a couple by Kiki and decide to go along with her assumption. They want to win back their respective partners and hope to make them jealous. What I didn’t care for was that the four of them spent so much time together. Cleo and Daniel and Kiki and Marianne were best friends before they started dating and I couldn’t believe Cleo and Marianne would want to be around the other two given the fact that they cheated. But there are double dates and all of them hanging out at in the film department multiple times.
I really wanted more time with Cleo and Marianne to see how they go from being former best friends to fake dating to having actual feelings. While there was some of that, there wasn’t nearly enough. They were sweet with each other and I liked their scenes together. I just wanted more of them. There was way too much “group time” and especially Daniel. Cleo spends the same amount, if not more, time with Daniel than she does Marianne and it got on my nerves.
There were some things I liked about this as well. Marianne suffers from anxiety and I liked how it was represented. I liked her arc probably the most, even if we didn’t get her point of view. I also liked how this sounds young adult. I read quite a bit of YA and a lot of the times it doesn’t really feel young adult, except for the ages. I also liked how much queerness was in the group of friends and how it was just accepted. There wasn’t any homophobia or anything like that.
I received an ARC from HarperCollins Children’s Books (Quill Tree Books) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
July 10, 2023
4 1/2 Stars
“So what do you do?” I ask, “When that happens?”
Her eyes lock with mine, and I can feel the strength inside of her. It’s the center of the earth. It’s a gravitational pull. “I look outside,” she says, “to find the light from your window.”
The Girl Next Door is the story of Cleo who grows up next door to her addolesent best friend Marianne. They are best friends until they hit high school, where Cleo becomes a movie/theater nerd, and Marianne becomes a star swimmer and part of the “popular” crowd. Cleo’s boyfriend is Daniel another movie/theater buff person, and Marianne’s girlfriend is Kiki the head cheerleader. Over the Summer Daniel and Kiki are in a stage production together and decide they want to be with each other, and Daniel breaks up with Cleo, and Kiki breaks up with Marianne.
Cleo and Marianne decide to seek revenge on their Ex’s by becoming pretend girlfriends. The basis of the book is how they do this, what happens and how the relationships are resolved. At least on the outside that’s what this books is about.
As you read, and the writing is often times beautiful, you realize all the things that have been happening to Cleo and Marianne since they were young, how they always looked out for each other. How Marianne had anxiety attacks and Cleo was always there for her, how Cleo has a dark cloud over her because people want to celebrate her birthday (right before Christmas) which is also the day her Mother died giving birth to her, and she blames herself. Marianne is the only one who really understands.
The fake dating slowly becomes more because it was always more to begin with.
The book is told from Cleo’s point of view, and much of the book is Cleo inside her head….not wanting to believe what she sees from Marianne, not understanding why she cares about her when she thinks Marianne still loves Kiki. (who was not only Marianne’s girlfriend but her high school best friend). Cleo is constantly questioning and rejecting all her feelings.
The girls back stories are told in bits and pieces while the book plays out in real life……. and in Cleo’s head.
Surrounded by some interesting side characters this book was a real surprise to me. It is a slow burn, beautifully written love story and so much more than I was expecting.
“So what do you do?” I ask, “When that happens?”
Her eyes lock with mine, and I can feel the strength inside of her. It’s the center of the earth. It’s a gravitational pull. “I look outside,” she says, “to find the light from your window.”
The Girl Next Door is the story of Cleo who grows up next door to her addolesent best friend Marianne. They are best friends until they hit high school, where Cleo becomes a movie/theater nerd, and Marianne becomes a star swimmer and part of the “popular” crowd. Cleo’s boyfriend is Daniel another movie/theater buff person, and Marianne’s girlfriend is Kiki the head cheerleader. Over the Summer Daniel and Kiki are in a stage production together and decide they want to be with each other, and Daniel breaks up with Cleo, and Kiki breaks up with Marianne.
Cleo and Marianne decide to seek revenge on their Ex’s by becoming pretend girlfriends. The basis of the book is how they do this, what happens and how the relationships are resolved. At least on the outside that’s what this books is about.
As you read, and the writing is often times beautiful, you realize all the things that have been happening to Cleo and Marianne since they were young, how they always looked out for each other. How Marianne had anxiety attacks and Cleo was always there for her, how Cleo has a dark cloud over her because people want to celebrate her birthday (right before Christmas) which is also the day her Mother died giving birth to her, and she blames herself. Marianne is the only one who really understands.
The fake dating slowly becomes more because it was always more to begin with.
The book is told from Cleo’s point of view, and much of the book is Cleo inside her head….not wanting to believe what she sees from Marianne, not understanding why she cares about her when she thinks Marianne still loves Kiki. (who was not only Marianne’s girlfriend but her high school best friend). Cleo is constantly questioning and rejecting all her feelings.
The girls back stories are told in bits and pieces while the book plays out in real life……. and in Cleo’s head.
Surrounded by some interesting side characters this book was a real surprise to me. It is a slow burn, beautifully written love story and so much more than I was expecting.
September 30, 2022
I received an ARC from Edelweiss
TW: cheating (pre-story), mentioned death of parent (birth complications)
3.7
I was a bit worried when I picked this up, because it seemed like the kind of book that was going to rely on a theme and then really wear it thin. However, The Girl Next Door uses its theme well and actually crafts a really nice arc and romance at the same time!
The fake dating in this is one of my favorite kinds- former childhood best friends with a wedge between them. The mutual history and their shared interests and longterm care for each other is really sweet, and makes you want to root for them immediately. These characters have the tension of two people who don't talk and maybe have resentments, but they still start off from a place of love that they have to explore.
My only complaints really are that the writing felt too repetitive, and that while the romance had good pacing and details, Cleo's arc was not. I did care about Cleo and I wanted to see her grow, but she mostly just had her major issue inserted into story 3 of 4 times while she shuffled back and forth in her progression, until she was finally allowed, at the end, to move forward.
TW: cheating (pre-story), mentioned death of parent (birth complications)
3.7
I was a bit worried when I picked this up, because it seemed like the kind of book that was going to rely on a theme and then really wear it thin. However, The Girl Next Door uses its theme well and actually crafts a really nice arc and romance at the same time!
The fake dating in this is one of my favorite kinds- former childhood best friends with a wedge between them. The mutual history and their shared interests and longterm care for each other is really sweet, and makes you want to root for them immediately. These characters have the tension of two people who don't talk and maybe have resentments, but they still start off from a place of love that they have to explore.
My only complaints really are that the writing felt too repetitive, and that while the romance had good pacing and details, Cleo's arc was not. I did care about Cleo and I wanted to see her grow, but she mostly just had her major issue inserted into story 3 of 4 times while she shuffled back and forth in her progression, until she was finally allowed, at the end, to move forward.
May 26, 2023
[I received a digital arc for an honest review]
The Girl Next Door is a sapphic YA Contemporary by Cecilia Vinesse.
It follows Cleo Ferrara as she navigates her senior year of high school after getting cheated on and dumped by her best friend turned boyfriend. He cheated on her with her neighbor and former friend, Marianne's girlfriend. They both decide to pretend to date each other to try to get their relationships back. She quickly realizes even if he wanted to, she wouldn't want to get back with her ex and tries to focus on her screenplay and getting into NYU. The longer she pretends with Marianne , the more real her feelings actually become. But when her plans for the future fall apart, she pushes everyone away and will have to work hard to mend all the relationships in her life.
"You're my neighbor, and I've known you forever, and look at me, a walking cliché, falling in love with the girl next -"
I really ended up enjoying this. Cleo is fantastic with her obsession with Horror movie's, her bisexuality, and her relationship with her dad. (OMG her dad was absolutely precious) Seriously no complaints, she's a strong narrator and acts like a teenager but not in an obnoxious way. She messes up and avoids her problems a bit, but I mean who doesn't lol I loved her fake turned real relationship with Marianne. Both girls are layered and more than the face they show their peers. I loved the drama and the quirky members of the Film crew. Cleo's best friend Chris, popular secret nerd Kiki, and even lame Daniel , each added to my enjoyment of the book.
Overall, The Girl Next Door by Cecilia Vinesse is a sapphic YA contemporary with great Bisexual Rep, mental health rep, a fake relationship, friendship, baked goods, homecoming, film club, first kisses, and an ending with a bright future.
Favorite Quotes:
That no matter where I go or what I do in my life, movies will always be there to sing their songs and rock me back to sleep. They're the dances I can't forget and the moments I can never lose. They're ghosts, they're memories , they're never endings that are never final, because whenever you reach them, you can always pause - and swim right back to the start.
"You have fairy tales living inside of you, Cleo, and I promised myself a long time ago I would never let anything destroy them."
The Girl Next Door is a sapphic YA Contemporary by Cecilia Vinesse.
It follows Cleo Ferrara as she navigates her senior year of high school after getting cheated on and dumped by her best friend turned boyfriend. He cheated on her with her neighbor and former friend, Marianne's girlfriend. They both decide to pretend to date each other to try to get their relationships back. She quickly realizes even if he wanted to, she wouldn't want to get back with her ex and tries to focus on her screenplay and getting into NYU. The longer she pretends with Marianne , the more real her feelings actually become. But when her plans for the future fall apart, she pushes everyone away and will have to work hard to mend all the relationships in her life.
"You're my neighbor, and I've known you forever, and look at me, a walking cliché, falling in love with the girl next -"
I really ended up enjoying this. Cleo is fantastic with her obsession with Horror movie's, her bisexuality, and her relationship with her dad. (OMG her dad was absolutely precious) Seriously no complaints, she's a strong narrator and acts like a teenager but not in an obnoxious way. She messes up and avoids her problems a bit, but I mean who doesn't lol I loved her fake turned real relationship with Marianne. Both girls are layered and more than the face they show their peers. I loved the drama and the quirky members of the Film crew. Cleo's best friend Chris, popular secret nerd Kiki, and even lame Daniel , each added to my enjoyment of the book.
Overall, The Girl Next Door by Cecilia Vinesse is a sapphic YA contemporary with great Bisexual Rep, mental health rep, a fake relationship, friendship, baked goods, homecoming, film club, first kisses, and an ending with a bright future.
Favorite Quotes:
That no matter where I go or what I do in my life, movies will always be there to sing their songs and rock me back to sleep. They're the dances I can't forget and the moments I can never lose. They're ghosts, they're memories , they're never endings that are never final, because whenever you reach them, you can always pause - and swim right back to the start.
"You have fairy tales living inside of you, Cleo, and I promised myself a long time ago I would never let anything destroy them."
June 12, 2025
Every now and then I treat myself to a YA, because I missed these books so much when I was a YA myself. Some are just really fun for adults too. I usually don't pick books with less than 4 stars , but I picked this one because the plot seemed nice.
There were some really good and enjoyable parts in this book, but I had to go through a lot of bad to get to the good. The love story was very small, because film stuff claimed the most of the story. Especially horror movie crap. Not my cup of tea.
I have this rule to decide to quit the book before I'm 50% in. If I continue reading after this point, I have to read it all, otherwise it would be a waste of the time I already spend. I have thought several times of quiting, very seriously even after about 25%. But because of the good parts I kept going.
About 50% into the book, it seemed like I was finally getting to the part where Cleo and Marianne would get together. That made me continue reading.
Marianne and Cleo start kind of fake dating to hurt their exes, Daniel and Kiki, but the story is too much about those exes if you ask me. Especially this Daniel guy is taking up waaay too much space. I didn't feel the difference between friendship or love between Cleo and Marianne. Neither between Cleo and Daniel and Marianne and Kiki. It was hard to hold up with the stage their relationships were in.
But halfway in, the story got better and concentrated more on Cleo and Marianne. There was less Daniel and Kiki and less film annoyance. Finaly more good than bad. 2,75 ⭐️
There were some really good and enjoyable parts in this book, but I had to go through a lot of bad to get to the good. The love story was very small, because film stuff claimed the most of the story. Especially horror movie crap. Not my cup of tea.
I have this rule to decide to quit the book before I'm 50% in. If I continue reading after this point, I have to read it all, otherwise it would be a waste of the time I already spend. I have thought several times of quiting, very seriously even after about 25%. But because of the good parts I kept going.
About 50% into the book, it seemed like I was finally getting to the part where Cleo and Marianne would get together. That made me continue reading.
Marianne and Cleo start kind of fake dating to hurt their exes, Daniel and Kiki, but the story is too much about those exes if you ask me. Especially this Daniel guy is taking up waaay too much space. I didn't feel the difference between friendship or love between Cleo and Marianne. Neither between Cleo and Daniel and Marianne and Kiki. It was hard to hold up with the stage their relationships were in.
But halfway in, the story got better and concentrated more on Cleo and Marianne. There was less Daniel and Kiki and less film annoyance. Finaly more good than bad. 2,75 ⭐️
July 29, 2023
Blah blah boring boring snore I hated this book. When I read the description, I thought, “Oh, a cheating storyline! The exes must be out of the picture because cheating is for sure an unforgivable act!” I was wrong. Ex picking up drunk ex from a party because he was shitfaced, and bringing him to the girl that he cheated on you with’s house, only to find your current girlfriend (your ex’s new girlfriend’s EX) in her bed! A clusterfuck. The author also loves to take us on double dates with the exes! That is so fucking weird! You would not catch me DEAD!
But I digress. Let’s start at the beginning.
The Girl Next Door was written by an elder millennial, attempting to capture GenZ highschoolers, and doing it so poorly. The lingo and borderline excessive use of technology and dependence on phones, coupled with age-old stereotypes of high school cliques was annoying and overdone. Students in sports will be deemed “uncool” if seen talking with art students. The horror!
I am always hesitant to read YA written by millennials that grew up in a different age of technology than we did, because they have such a warped view on how teenagers actually use it and how teenagers act. It’s kind of like the author has never spoken to a teenager in real life and just watched movies and shows written by adults.
The story was painfully predictable.
“Let’s fake date so we can make our exes jealous so they want to get back together with us!”
“Sure, that’s never been done before. Also, it will totally work! We definitely won’t fall in love and then have a third act breakup because of MISCOMMUNICATION!!!!”
Just to provide some context to people who’ve never read this and hopefully don’t read it because this book was ass:
Cleo and Maryanne are neighbors. They were best friends as kids, then fell off when they got to high school. Cleo starts dating Daniel. Marianne starts dating Kiki. The summer before their senior year, Kiki and Daniel cheat on their girlfriends with each other and start dating. Cleo and Maryanne concoct a plan to fake date to win back their exes. The exes (Kiki and Daniel) just want to keep on pretending like they haven’t seriously wounded their exes (Cleo and Maryanne) and just want to be friends again. Maryanne seriously wants Kiki back, and the gross “I was struggling with my mental health and I pushed her away which caused her to cheat on me” excuse is used, but it’s never challenged and never made clear that the actions of the cheater are decided by the cheater. And that’s just a theme in the book. The underlying, “It’s my fault that she cheated.” is just put in the open. That’s gross as fuck and HARMFUL.
(Rant does not apply to abusive relationships. Abusers can suffer and live in pain. I don’t care.)
The dynamic between exes and friends and new partners is WEIRD!!!!!! Like Chris is the cousin of Maryanne and Chris comes in with Kiki (the girl who CHEATED ON HIS COUSIN) to bring pizza to the film lab???? Where is the solidarity???? It’s like girl rule #1 that you, as a friend, do not fuck with your friend’s exes. ESPECIALLY your girlfriend’s ex!!!!!!! I hate this book!!!!! People are too comfortable being friends with pieces of shit!!!!
In addition, Kiki and Maryanne are just friends that hug and have inside jokes and hug and touch and talk about how much they miss each other around their new partners? It is weird. Granted, Maryanne and Cleo are doing this fake dating thing blah blah whatever but it doesn’t make sense to me. It’s like never awkward and there’s no tension and the author is trying to make everyone hold hands around the campfire and sing songs and that is not the case, especially in HIGH SCHOOL GIRL!!!!!!!! High schoolers are PETTY AS FUCK!!!!!
New partners are not supposed to like the ex, let alone the ex that cheated on their girlfriend. It’s just weird. As a partner, as a trusted, reliable person in your friend/partner/family member’s life, you do. not. fuck with their ex. You avoid them like the plague. “They were never mean to me so I still like them” FUCK THAT, this isn’t Fleetwood Mac. We’re not all dating and fucking each other and hanging with each other and writing songs (screenplays) about each other.
I gotta go. This book was overdone with mushy writing that tried way too hard to be deep. I should’ve DNF’d but I am a stubborn asshole. It is not the sweet queer romance it sets out to be. Skip this one.
But I digress. Let’s start at the beginning.
The Girl Next Door was written by an elder millennial, attempting to capture GenZ highschoolers, and doing it so poorly. The lingo and borderline excessive use of technology and dependence on phones, coupled with age-old stereotypes of high school cliques was annoying and overdone. Students in sports will be deemed “uncool” if seen talking with art students. The horror!
I am always hesitant to read YA written by millennials that grew up in a different age of technology than we did, because they have such a warped view on how teenagers actually use it and how teenagers act. It’s kind of like the author has never spoken to a teenager in real life and just watched movies and shows written by adults.
The story was painfully predictable.
“Let’s fake date so we can make our exes jealous so they want to get back together with us!”
“Sure, that’s never been done before. Also, it will totally work! We definitely won’t fall in love and then have a third act breakup because of MISCOMMUNICATION!!!!”
Just to provide some context to people who’ve never read this and hopefully don’t read it because this book was ass:
Cleo and Maryanne are neighbors. They were best friends as kids, then fell off when they got to high school. Cleo starts dating Daniel. Marianne starts dating Kiki. The summer before their senior year, Kiki and Daniel cheat on their girlfriends with each other and start dating. Cleo and Maryanne concoct a plan to fake date to win back their exes. The exes (Kiki and Daniel) just want to keep on pretending like they haven’t seriously wounded their exes (Cleo and Maryanne) and just want to be friends again. Maryanne seriously wants Kiki back, and the gross “I was struggling with my mental health and I pushed her away which caused her to cheat on me” excuse is used, but it’s never challenged and never made clear that the actions of the cheater are decided by the cheater. And that’s just a theme in the book. The underlying, “It’s my fault that she cheated.” is just put in the open. That’s gross as fuck and HARMFUL.
(Rant does not apply to abusive relationships. Abusers can suffer and live in pain. I don’t care.)
The dynamic between exes and friends and new partners is WEIRD!!!!!! Like Chris is the cousin of Maryanne and Chris comes in with Kiki (the girl who CHEATED ON HIS COUSIN) to bring pizza to the film lab???? Where is the solidarity???? It’s like girl rule #1 that you, as a friend, do not fuck with your friend’s exes. ESPECIALLY your girlfriend’s ex!!!!!!! I hate this book!!!!! People are too comfortable being friends with pieces of shit!!!!
In addition, Kiki and Maryanne are just friends that hug and have inside jokes and hug and touch and talk about how much they miss each other around their new partners? It is weird. Granted, Maryanne and Cleo are doing this fake dating thing blah blah whatever but it doesn’t make sense to me. It’s like never awkward and there’s no tension and the author is trying to make everyone hold hands around the campfire and sing songs and that is not the case, especially in HIGH SCHOOL GIRL!!!!!!!! High schoolers are PETTY AS FUCK!!!!!
New partners are not supposed to like the ex, let alone the ex that cheated on their girlfriend. It’s just weird. As a partner, as a trusted, reliable person in your friend/partner/family member’s life, you do. not. fuck with their ex. You avoid them like the plague. “They were never mean to me so I still like them” FUCK THAT, this isn’t Fleetwood Mac. We’re not all dating and fucking each other and hanging with each other and writing songs (screenplays) about each other.
I gotta go. This book was overdone with mushy writing that tried way too hard to be deep. I should’ve DNF’d but I am a stubborn asshole. It is not the sweet queer romance it sets out to be. Skip this one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 6, 2023
Ahhhhh this gorgeously writtten, bittersweet, laser-sharp YA rom-com just blew me away. I mean, obviously, I'm a sucker for the fake dating trope in any circumstances, but these two heroines, filmmaker Cleo and athlete Marianne, are just so swoonily *perfect* for each other that by the time I hit the halfway point in the novel, I was already preemptively mourning the Bleak Moment I could see coming ahead. And oh, that Bleak Moment did break me...but then the ending put me back together again. I ADORED every moment of it! And I love these two girls and their whole community so much.
I also loved that, even though this whole fake dating scenario starts after Cleo's boyfriend dumps her for Marianne's girlfriend, neither the ex-boyfriend or the ex-girlfriend are 2-dimensional characters. They're both utterly realistic teens who screw up and make mistakes and also have really lovable and sympathetic characteristics, too. They're all 17, figuring out their way in the world, and while it sucks that that happened to Cleo and Marianne in the beginning, I loved that none of these characters were all good or all bad, and I loved the warmth of the community as it ends up sorting itself out across Cleo's final year of high school.
And I looooooved that final scene, full of warmth and happiness and joyful potential!
This and Talia Hibbert's Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute are my two very favorite YA novels I've read in the last several years. Just: SO very good! <3
I also loved that, even though this whole fake dating scenario starts after Cleo's boyfriend dumps her for Marianne's girlfriend, neither the ex-boyfriend or the ex-girlfriend are 2-dimensional characters. They're both utterly realistic teens who screw up and make mistakes and also have really lovable and sympathetic characteristics, too. They're all 17, figuring out their way in the world, and while it sucks that that happened to Cleo and Marianne in the beginning, I loved that none of these characters were all good or all bad, and I loved the warmth of the community as it ends up sorting itself out across Cleo's final year of high school.
And I looooooved that final scene, full of warmth and happiness and joyful potential!
This and Talia Hibbert's Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute are my two very favorite YA novels I've read in the last several years. Just: SO very good! <3
April 18, 2023
I like that the characters felt like realistic teenagers. The plot was average and by around sixty percent into it, I was ready for it to be over.
March 10, 2026
3.25 ⭐
February 9, 2023
My heart cannot handle how much I loved this sweet coming-of-age and wonderfully queer romance.
Cleo Ferrara is your classic high school film club nerd, with a classic high school film club boyfriend - until Daniel breaks up with her for the school's head cheerleader, Kiki Pearson. And, as it turns out, Kiki Pearson has broken up with her girlfriend, Marianne Lacerda, who just so happens to be Cleo's nextdoor neighbor and ex-best-friend. After a falling out in middle school, they haven't really had much to do with each other... until circumstance throws them back together. After all, what better way to get back at their exes, than by fake dating each other?
This is a classic friends to enemies to lovers romance, and I am 100% here for it. I loved the high school theatre student backdrop. And all of the classic horror references! So good! It's almost impossible to provide a critical, well-thought-out review for this book, because it was so enjoyable.
I think what I love the most about this book is not just that it's a queer romance, but how warmly it embraces its queerness. There is not even a hint of homophobia in these pages, and though it is important to acknowledge the struggles of coming of age where it relates to queerness, sometimes it is just so refreshing to exist in a story where it is not only okay to be queer but celebrated by everyone.
What more can I say? This book was a 5/5 for me. It's impossible to read this book and not leave off feeling hopeful. If you need a warm hug in the form of a book, this is it. I will 100% be purchasing a copy of this book for my library. Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advanced reader copy of this book!
Cleo Ferrara is your classic high school film club nerd, with a classic high school film club boyfriend - until Daniel breaks up with her for the school's head cheerleader, Kiki Pearson. And, as it turns out, Kiki Pearson has broken up with her girlfriend, Marianne Lacerda, who just so happens to be Cleo's nextdoor neighbor and ex-best-friend. After a falling out in middle school, they haven't really had much to do with each other... until circumstance throws them back together. After all, what better way to get back at their exes, than by fake dating each other?
This is a classic friends to enemies to lovers romance, and I am 100% here for it. I loved the high school theatre student backdrop. And all of the classic horror references! So good! It's almost impossible to provide a critical, well-thought-out review for this book, because it was so enjoyable.
I think what I love the most about this book is not just that it's a queer romance, but how warmly it embraces its queerness. There is not even a hint of homophobia in these pages, and though it is important to acknowledge the struggles of coming of age where it relates to queerness, sometimes it is just so refreshing to exist in a story where it is not only okay to be queer but celebrated by everyone.
What more can I say? This book was a 5/5 for me. It's impossible to read this book and not leave off feeling hopeful. If you need a warm hug in the form of a book, this is it. I will 100% be purchasing a copy of this book for my library. Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advanced reader copy of this book!
July 4, 2024
I will forever be trapped in this book slump.
Okay. Couple issues with this book. But honestly, the main one was that there was that I didn’t feel annny chemistry between Marianne and Cleo. Nothing. Cleo was annoying and selfish and stereotypical. Marianne had no personality besides being hot and swim-y and having OCD/anxiety.
I didn’t really care when they got together and even the last minute fight just felt flat, I wasn’t even sure what they were fighting about. Then all of the sudden they’re telling each other they love each other?? Since when?
Oh and don’t forget Cleo likes horror movies. Well actually, you can, cause it tells you like every SINGLE PAGE.
Anywazles. I had high hopes for this one, and they were dashed.
Also, it feels crazy to forgive the person you were madly in love with for cheating on you so quickly but maybe that’s just me.
Okay. Couple issues with this book. But honestly, the main one was that there was that I didn’t feel annny chemistry between Marianne and Cleo. Nothing. Cleo was annoying and selfish and stereotypical. Marianne had no personality besides being hot and swim-y and having OCD/anxiety.
I didn’t really care when they got together and even the last minute fight just felt flat, I wasn’t even sure what they were fighting about. Then all of the sudden they’re telling each other they love each other?? Since when?
Oh and don’t forget Cleo likes horror movies. Well actually, you can, cause it tells you like every SINGLE PAGE.
Anywazles. I had high hopes for this one, and they were dashed.
Also, it feels crazy to forgive the person you were madly in love with for cheating on you so quickly but maybe that’s just me.
April 23, 2024
This was such a great read, I loved watching these characters in this situation!
August 2, 2024
I HAVE A QUIBBLE!
It's a small quibble. But it's a valid quibble.
The "girl" in this book does NOT live "next door."
She is the MC's backfence neighbor. The MC describes being able to see the Girl swimming in their backyard pool many times, and the very first scene is of the MC walking across their yards and around the Girl's house to get to the Girl's driveway.
"Next Door" means the house "next to" yours.
Also, the houses themselves aren't central enough to this book to be the image on the cover.
WHY wasn't something soap opera-relevant on the cover, and/or referenced in the title? The soap opera was a way more pivotal context to the story.
I have said my piece.
Here's what I said in my professional reviewer role:
Cleo was devastated when her boyfriend dumped her to start dating the most popular girl at school. Cleo and Daniel were supposed to build careers out of making movies together - after getting into NYU to study film, of course. Instead, they must navigate senior year as co-directors of the school’s signature project – the school soap opera. In the midst of her heartbreak, Cleo reconnects with her backyard neighbor, Marianne, who was also dumped – by the person Daniel is dating now. Cleo and Marianne decide to fake-date, and hijinks ensue. This tropey romance is laced with specific details. Cleo is fixated on horror movies, and film in general. Marianne’s Brazilian-American heritage is important to her character. Readers will enjoy watching a diverse supporting cast create a literal soap opera show as the central plot develops. Ultimately, Cleo learns important lessons about herself and her dreams. Recommended for high school and public libraries.
So yeah, I liked it. Some of my best friends are horror movie experts. I liked reading about the process of filming a soap opera*. There are girls kissing each other. I enjoyed reading this book.
*So very adjacent to theatre. Which makes me wonder why it wasn't just a theatre group. Maybe they thought Theatre is becoming dated? And wanted to do something on film? Which makes me sad, as a former Theatre major. But I guess I'm getting old.
It's a small quibble. But it's a valid quibble.
The "girl" in this book does NOT live "next door."
She is the MC's backfence neighbor. The MC describes being able to see the Girl swimming in their backyard pool many times, and the very first scene is of the MC walking across their yards and around the Girl's house to get to the Girl's driveway.
"Next Door" means the house "next to" yours.
Also, the houses themselves aren't central enough to this book to be the image on the cover.
WHY wasn't something soap opera-relevant on the cover, and/or referenced in the title? The soap opera was a way more pivotal context to the story.
I have said my piece.
Here's what I said in my professional reviewer role:
Cleo was devastated when her boyfriend dumped her to start dating the most popular girl at school. Cleo and Daniel were supposed to build careers out of making movies together - after getting into NYU to study film, of course. Instead, they must navigate senior year as co-directors of the school’s signature project – the school soap opera. In the midst of her heartbreak, Cleo reconnects with her backyard neighbor, Marianne, who was also dumped – by the person Daniel is dating now. Cleo and Marianne decide to fake-date, and hijinks ensue. This tropey romance is laced with specific details. Cleo is fixated on horror movies, and film in general. Marianne’s Brazilian-American heritage is important to her character. Readers will enjoy watching a diverse supporting cast create a literal soap opera show as the central plot develops. Ultimately, Cleo learns important lessons about herself and her dreams. Recommended for high school and public libraries.
So yeah, I liked it. Some of my best friends are horror movie experts. I liked reading about the process of filming a soap opera*. There are girls kissing each other. I enjoyed reading this book.
*So very adjacent to theatre. Which makes me wonder why it wasn't just a theatre group. Maybe they thought Theatre is becoming dated? And wanted to do something on film? Which makes me sad, as a former Theatre major. But I guess I'm getting old.
Did Not Finish
June 3, 2024DNF
February 18, 2025
3.75 stars. LGBTQIA+ romance/realistic fiction book set in a high school. I read to evaluate it for my media center.
May 28, 2025
4,25/5
I love it.You can hate it,you can leave every bad review you want but my rating will never change ,even if this becomes the most hated book ,they are very dear to me
I love it.You can hate it,you can leave every bad review you want but my rating will never change ,even if this becomes the most hated book ,they are very dear to me
June 22, 2023
this was so booooooring fake dating my beloathed dnf @ 50%
i see ex-best-friends-to-lovers and i forget everything else
i see ex-best-friends-to-lovers and i forget everything else
April 24, 2023
This ARC was provided to me by NetGalley and HarperCollins Children’s Books and Quill Tree Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions in this blog post are my own.
The Girl Next Door is a coming-of-age story of neighbors Cleo and Marianne, long-time friends who drifted apart over the years. Cleo is a film lover who loves the idea of getting into NYU film school to persue a career in film, particularly horror films; and Marianne is a full-time swimmer whose whole focus is the water. Both are forced to simultaneously deal with both of their partners cheating with each other which causes them to get closer. They’re both heartbroken, but they find comfort in each other and rekindle their friendship. But that leads to something more, a spark of an idea to pretend to date to see if their exes will get jealous and want to get back together with them, respectively.
But we all know fake-dating is never just “fake-dating” which this trope will always be so predictable to me, although it was cute, just really over-done to me. At a high school level to me their actions were just really petty, especially when it came to potentially hurting each other in the end, which happened and I saw coming.
Overall, it was cute and I appreciated the authors inclusion of bisexual characters without other characters telling them “you have to pick a side.” There was even a character, Austin, who I’m assuming was nonbinary who used they/them pronouns throughout the book. All of the characters’ sexual orientations were praised and there was a “no questions asked” type of vibe to this book that made me like it overall.
I originally gave this five stars immediately after finishing it, but now that I’m looking back at it, I can’t justify that rating considering how I felt about it. I would say probably 3.5 stars, maybe pushing 4. It was cute, but it didn’t live up to my original expectations.
The Girl Next Door is a coming-of-age story of neighbors Cleo and Marianne, long-time friends who drifted apart over the years. Cleo is a film lover who loves the idea of getting into NYU film school to persue a career in film, particularly horror films; and Marianne is a full-time swimmer whose whole focus is the water. Both are forced to simultaneously deal with both of their partners cheating with each other which causes them to get closer. They’re both heartbroken, but they find comfort in each other and rekindle their friendship. But that leads to something more, a spark of an idea to pretend to date to see if their exes will get jealous and want to get back together with them, respectively.
But we all know fake-dating is never just “fake-dating” which this trope will always be so predictable to me, although it was cute, just really over-done to me. At a high school level to me their actions were just really petty, especially when it came to potentially hurting each other in the end, which happened and I saw coming.
Overall, it was cute and I appreciated the authors inclusion of bisexual characters without other characters telling them “you have to pick a side.” There was even a character, Austin, who I’m assuming was nonbinary who used they/them pronouns throughout the book. All of the characters’ sexual orientations were praised and there was a “no questions asked” type of vibe to this book that made me like it overall.
I originally gave this five stars immediately after finishing it, but now that I’m looking back at it, I can’t justify that rating considering how I felt about it. I would say probably 3.5 stars, maybe pushing 4. It was cute, but it didn’t live up to my original expectations.
May 7, 2026
I don’t know if the main characters were supposed to have more chemistry with their ex’s than each other but THANK GOD we got a biography and a fun fact of every film ever made to fill in the gaps of where the tension was supposed to be
July 21, 2023
“The Girl Next Door” is a solid YA romance that includes many popular tropes with a sapphic twist! This is similar to “Heartstopper” in that way of taking simple stories and making them queer. There were many things I liked in this and some things I wasn’t as fond as.
The relationships were all so complicated in this book and I just felt like? That got quite annoying quite quick. Despite that I did mostly enjoy this. There were plenty of sweet moments between our main pair that will have you cheering for them. This is a very sweet coming of age story overall full of fluff, angst, and general girl next door love.
The relationships were all so complicated in this book and I just felt like? That got quite annoying quite quick. Despite that I did mostly enjoy this. There were plenty of sweet moments between our main pair that will have you cheering for them. This is a very sweet coming of age story overall full of fluff, angst, and general girl next door love.
June 15, 2023
I'm a SUCKER for fake dating. Like anything with fake dating, GIMME. And this book, didn't disappoint. There's angst, unexpected love. Literally all the goodies. The Girl Next Door is the PERFECT coming of age sapphic novel. Also, as a theatre kid, I love the throw in of Film, and the importance of it in Cleo's life. It helped me as a reader connect with the character even more! Over all I loved this book and would give it a 3/5
July 3, 2023
I saved this book for my last Pride month read. What a dumb move. Vinesse's magnificent storytelling abilities really shine in this YA queer rom com. Its one of those books I wish I could have read as a teen. Here's hoping it gets a film adaption.
HarperCollins Children's Books, Quill Tree Books, and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.
HarperCollins Children's Books, Quill Tree Books, and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.
January 28, 2024
"You have a lot of talents, Cleo," Marianne says, "but disappearing into the background? That's not one of them."
i never review so this is new to me but i did love Marianne and Cleo (Chris too) but it was veryyyy slow in the beginning but i enjoyed it in the end. i do wish the author kept up the pace it was near the end during the whole book but it was a good read tbh. i love the tropes in the book. i liked the humor between the characters and the references to horror movies and just references to stuff in general. i relate sm to Marianne and to Cleo a lot also. i wish i could annotate stuff but its a library book LMFAO so i cant. i NEED the entire screenplay of slumber party😭 it seemed so good omfg. Cleo's overthinking and thoughts in general are so me. i love the different relationships with cleo and her friends and with her dad, annie and diego so much <3 i do wonder if cleo ever finished filming her screenplay, im not sure if she said.quotes i liked and my reactions while reading:
(probably gonna be long and include spoilers!!!)
"Technically, it's about twenty degrees too hot for a denim jacket, but just having it around my shoulders makes me feel like I'm wearing a necessary suit of armor. I am protected by every angle, impossible to destroy."
"Yes I am aware that most people would not find watching this kind of stuff "soothing," but my love affair with horror began years ago and hasn't let me down since."
real she gets me so much she's so me omg"Ironically enough it started because I used to be terrified of the dark."
ME TOO OMG"...Especially for a couple of queer girls who, let's face it, have been killed off in so many Hollywood movies.."
EXACTLY 😒"Cleo Ferrara," she says, reaching into her backpack and pulling out a flower? "Will you go to homecoming with me?"
STOPDPHFDJ IWSDHJDHJDHJDJ AWWHWHWHHDH😭😭I have always prided myself on my tolerance for freaky shit.
truthI think thats part of the reason I love horror so much. Because it lets you practice facing the freaky shit and surviving it, throwing your head back and laughing in the face of it. But this? I cannot laugh at this.
SAME WITH HORROR BUT SAY YES GIRL????Obviously she knows I'm bi since I came out to her in seventh grade after I watched beetlejuice and realized I was a smidge too obsessed with Winona Ryder.
why are me and her the same person?? i came out in 7th grade too bye omg and thats so real abt winona, me too."Well, would you take a look at this?" Chris says cheerfully. "It's the belles of the ball, the gals from next door, the hottest new couple in Tinseltown."
LMFAOOO THEY'RE SO FUNNY PLS (also i had to type all that out bc i actually have the physical book im TIRED LOL)
"That's right, darling." Marianne scoots forward and pinches his cheek, "And it's my gorgeous cousin, aficionado of food poisoning, my most reliable chauffeur."
I cackle, and Chris glares at us. "Your parents should have built a taller fence."I am, a lot of the time, more interested in fictional worlds than the real ones around me.
me too girl dw"My image of Marianne shifts and refocuses. I always thought she belonged in the center of a crowd, but maybe she doesn't. Maybe she belongs here, in the mist and the mountains. She belongs by the side of the ocean too, barefoot as the waves paddle to shore, her face tipped to the sky like a sunflower."
i love her mind. they're so cute so far ahh"I missed you," I say, the words spilling out by accident. I immediately course-correct. "I mean, we missed you. At Dazed."
AHHHHAHSHDHHBHDGHJH GUYSSSSSS HELLOOOOO
She sinks back against the red vinyl, lips curving with movie star confidence. "You did, huh?"
"Yes, but don't get too cocky about it. We form attachments easily...""Because I need to decide on an ending for my screenplay, which I know, I know, is ridiculous. I should bite the bullet and pick one of the many versions I've already written. But I blame Daniel. Normally, I'd call him, and he'd talk me through all of this, but I cant. for-- you know-- reasons."
SO. CALL. ME. SJDHKJBSJKDJHJ
"So call me.We've been neighbors almost my whole life, but I havent felt this aware of her in years. I've been stumbling around a darkened room, and my hand just touched the light switch.
i love how she did it with Marianne instead of Daniel awh
I open NYC portal and upload the screenplay, and when she counts to three, I do it. I submit my application.
the fact kiki doesn't like star wars and says the prequels are better because of Natalie Portman's costumes says a lot abt a girl..... smh. daniel gets it, the empire strikes back is one of the best ones i'd say."You should've stayed behind with Kiki," I point out. "Saved her from the perils of her own shoes."
AHAHSDHDJWSHDI JEALOUSYYYY HMMM
"And leave Daniel to flirt with you?" She snorts. "No thanks."This should be everything we both wanted. We should be giving eachother a round of applause.
well 😊☝️I'm a black cat hissing beneath the moon.
real"You're the one who agreed to this double date in the first place. Aren't you here so you can sweep Kiki off her feet? Doesn't Daniel flirting with me mean everything is going according to plan?"
THE CONFESSION!!!!
"No," Marianne says. "It means he's going to break your heart again."
"Since when do you care about my heart? I say, frustrated.
"Since always!" Marianne says just as the flashlight flickers out."It's okay,".... "I'd punch anything that came for you."
cleo is so cute stop
The moon appears again, and something electric sparks on Mariannes face. A laugh, barely restrained. "Would you, now?"
"Anytime, anywhere, I say. "Whenever you needed me to."Her breath, my breath. Her hands, my hands. We are plunging underwater, and I'm not even fighting it. We are sinking down, down, down as far as we can go, to a place where I might never need air again.
FUCEKJDFHJDJ THEY ALMOST KISSEDHDJHDJHDDHJHDH I LOVE MY SAPPHICS SM UGHHHI try with all my might to be this hard-ass who can get over a broken heart without blinking, the girl who looks after her dad so he doesn't have to look after her, the girl who can handle blood, guts and gore by the bucketful. But maybe, deep down, I'm playing an elaborate game of pretend. Maybe I'm holding out hope for the type of happy ending I scoff at. The type I know doesn't really exist.
she gets me so bad
CRYING marianne is so cute"...Especially you. You were so creative and confident. You were never afraid of being loud or talking back to someone who was acting like an asshole. I was in awe."
☹️💜
"You were in awe of me?" I shake my head. "But Marianne, it was the other way around. Maybe you're not loud but you're funny and thoughtful and the smartest person I know. You're a natural leader even when you don't try to be. I wasn't shocked when people like Kiki started flocking towards you. I wondered why it had taken so long for everyone to see you."
they're giving "one freebie makeout". they want each other so bad omfg i love them.There's nothing but me and this room. Me and this house that can't remind me of Mom because I have no memories of her in the first place. Instead, this house is Mom to me. She's the nicks on the bannisters and the wild roses that bloom in her garden. She's the posters of Guys and Dolls and Cabaret that paper my room and the faint scuff marks on the hardwood floor from where she used to practice pirouettes. She's the ghost I never want to get rid of, embedded in every corner and curtains in every stain and doorknob.
awh, poor cleo :"(("Hey, everyone! I love Cleo! I'm going to ask her to marry me despite the fact I'm super-duper gay!"
LMAOO I LOVE CHRIS SO MUCH
i won't recount the entire scene bc i'm way too lazy... but page 245 and 246!! Chris telling Cleo, Marianne loves her and how they both made him believe in love again while he's drunk. stop it im sooooo in love with all of these characters i cant stop smiling omgBut I crack apart so easily when it comes to her? How am I this helpless and untethered, this magnetized to her and her thunderstorm eyes?
god i love these two silly little gays so muchWith him, theres no edge to leap from, theres nothing to lose. But with Marianne, my every seam is showing. Just sitting next to her is enough to give me vertigo.
😭😭💜"Do you know what I always used to think?" she asks. "Whenever I looked out my window and saw you? I thought - there you were, lovely in this distant tower, and if you ever needed, I would cross the land and save you."
OH MY GOD. STFUUDHUEHDWSHD AWHHHAHSXDGH"And yeah, I know you act toug, but I also know there's a lot more to it than that. You have fairy tales living inside of you, Cleo, and I promised myself a long time ago I would never let anything destroy them."
cries so hard"I talk a lot about wanting to leave home, but the idea of losing it for good? I can't handle that. Then Daniel told me Kiki was done with him, and I started thinking about losing you, too. I know it sounds ridiculous, but I-I missed you. Even when you were in DC for a total of, what, four days? I mean, that's absurd right? You're my neighbor, and I've known you forever, and look at me, a walking cliché, falling in live with the girl next-" Marianne leans over and presses her mouth to mine.
AHAHSDJHJBSDJBHCJHJWIJHD OMGGJGGJHHGHHJWe both know we'll have to go back out there eventually, but for now, she slides her arms around me, and we're back underwater, back in that endless blue. Drowning but in the best way possible.
chapter 24 is my fav now i love it so much omgShe writes hi on the back of my hand when i call quiet on set; I wind mt pinkie around hers in return.
AWWHHH my cuties
DIES bc marianne called her "meu bem," my darling.You see, Chris, when I was born, I destroyed both of my parents lives, so I really have to make it up to the universe somehow. I have to prove I'm more than the shadow of death I caused. I have to do the things my mom never could and make art that will last long than me. So it doesn't drain me of life the way it once did to my mom.
babes :(
THE JEALOUSY IN CHAP 28 OMFG AND DANIEL KNOWING MY MOUTH DROPPED BRO I KNEW THIS MAN HAD TO KNOW WHEN SHE DROPPED THAT LINE FROM THE SHOW I JUST KNEW IT OMGI look over at Marianne, who's looking over at me.We could fight this, I think, willing her to feel what I feel. Prove to him that you and I, we're real. No matter how it started out, we are so real now.
Wherever you are, whatever you do, horror will find a way to capture you.
"I know what it's like to hold on to an idea of what your life should be," Dad says, "but sometimes, I think it's better to wonder." "The wonder is my favorite part."
i needed to hear that"A few years ago, she told me the story of the day you two met. She was new in town, and she was bored and lonely, and you showed up in her yard because you wanted to jump in the pool. You asked to hold her hand while you did it, and Marianne said the water never seemed so blue. Don't you get it? Even back then, you made each other's lives magic."
<333"And thats when i realize: I've written dozens of love stories over the course of my life- and most of them, starred me and Marianne."
AHHHHHHHSGDHGHS
"You know you're beautiful," she says, "and you know you're a total weirdo, and you also know that I'm in love with you, okay? You know I want to be your girlfriend and dance with you at prom for real. I want to argue with you about what music we listen to on the way to school, and I want to sneak out of my house in the middle of the night so I can wrap you in a blanket and kiss you on the lawn until you cant even breathe. There? I said it all out loud. Are you happy now?
oh to be called daylight itself
"I'm happy, meu bem." Marianne, my anxious, dazzling, and smart best friend. Marianne, meu bem, my darling, my love. "I'm very much in love with you, too," I say.
She's James Dean bathed in vintage cinematography. She is daylight itself.
━━━━━━━━━━━━ ☆━━━━━━━━━━━
April 10, 2023
Cleo Ferrara and next door neighbor Marianne Lacerda use to be best friends but have drifted apart. As they are starting their senior year of high school in North Carolina and their hearts are a bit broken. Cleo’s boyfriend and fellow film nerd dumps her for Kiki, who also dumps Marianne to be with him. With their ex’s together Marianne is missing the friendship she had with Kiki. And thinks by being involved with someone else that will let them be friends again. And just like that a fake dating scenario is born. Hanging out together brings back their old friendship and memories of their childhood antics.
This is a sweet book with lots of feelings. Cleo is obsessed with horror films and wants to go to film school. There are a lot referenced in the book. Cleo’s mother also died shortly after her birth and she is raised by a single father. Her feelings about that are tender and deep. Cleo has her own issues with anxiety that she is managing and the general changes of growing up and getting ready to move toward adult hood.
I really like the characters are all really nice (okay Daniel is a bit full of himself). But there is no homophobia, parents and school are supportive. These are teens finding love and a path to their futures. The time frame covering the entire senior year is perfect for a YA & teens romance. Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children’s Books, Quill Tree Books for the ARC and I’m leaving a voluntary review. (4.5 Stars)
This is a sweet book with lots of feelings. Cleo is obsessed with horror films and wants to go to film school. There are a lot referenced in the book. Cleo’s mother also died shortly after her birth and she is raised by a single father. Her feelings about that are tender and deep. Cleo has her own issues with anxiety that she is managing and the general changes of growing up and getting ready to move toward adult hood.
I really like the characters are all really nice (okay Daniel is a bit full of himself). But there is no homophobia, parents and school are supportive. These are teens finding love and a path to their futures. The time frame covering the entire senior year is perfect for a YA & teens romance. Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children’s Books, Quill Tree Books for the ARC and I’m leaving a voluntary review. (4.5 Stars)
June 26, 2023
Thank you!! This definitely filled my queer romance and fake dating trope needs!
Cleo and Marianne used to be besties until they drifted apart. Marianne started dating Kiki, a cheerleader, and got swept into the popular crowd while Cleo started dating Daniel, a film nerd like herself. Last summer, they both endured a heartbreak when their significant others starting dating each other! They hadn’t talked in years until Cleo needed a ride on the first day of school. Now, things feel semi normal again, but neither are over their exes. That’s when Marianne asks Cleo to homecoming, devising a fake dating plan that she’s sure will win back their exes. But what happens when Cleo realizes that Daniel isn’t the one she wants to be spending all her time with? Marianne begins to take over her thoughts, but does she feel the same?
This isn’t just a story about two girls falling in love. It’s also about acceptance, finding yourself and learning that maybe the worst things imaginable aren’t that bad. I related to Cleo and felt her ups and downs. I loved the side characters as well, Chris especially. Everyone needs a bff like Chris. I also loved how being gay or bi or straight were just things-no one made it into a big deal. Those are my favorite kind of stories.
This was witty, funny and captivating. I consider myself a bit of a bisexual horror film nerd as well and this checked all the boxes for me!
April 17, 2023
Correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems like the people in this book drop and pick up friends like nobody’s business.
So, let’s get this straight real quick… no spoilers, just getting my bearings…
Cleo and Marianne used to be besties. Cleo later makes friends with the film students, like Daniel. Marianne drops Cleo and becomes besties with Kiki… Cleo and Daniel fall into a friendship easily, becoming inseparable. They start dating, and so do Marianne and Kiki… but throughout all of this, Chris, Marianne’s cousin is also Cleo’s best friend? And then, Daniel cheats with Kiki and the two of them get together, leaving Cleo and Marianne to pick up the pieces.
I’m confused… but that aside, let’s get into the review.
I did enjoy this book. I thought it was cute. Aside from the cheating, which is gross, I liked Daniel and Cleo the most in this book because they had the best chemistry, but unfortunately, cheating is unforgivable. I wish that I felt that same connection with Cleo and Marianne, who decide to pretend to date one another in order to protect their little teenage hearts.
This is a fun coming of age, slice of life read. I wish that the characters were more dimensional. This book just felt very safe… it doesn’t do anything that other ya hate to love, fake date to make your ex jealous books do. I would recommend it though. It’s cute.
So, let’s get this straight real quick… no spoilers, just getting my bearings…
Cleo and Marianne used to be besties. Cleo later makes friends with the film students, like Daniel. Marianne drops Cleo and becomes besties with Kiki… Cleo and Daniel fall into a friendship easily, becoming inseparable. They start dating, and so do Marianne and Kiki… but throughout all of this, Chris, Marianne’s cousin is also Cleo’s best friend? And then, Daniel cheats with Kiki and the two of them get together, leaving Cleo and Marianne to pick up the pieces.
I’m confused… but that aside, let’s get into the review.
I did enjoy this book. I thought it was cute. Aside from the cheating, which is gross, I liked Daniel and Cleo the most in this book because they had the best chemistry, but unfortunately, cheating is unforgivable. I wish that I felt that same connection with Cleo and Marianne, who decide to pretend to date one another in order to protect their little teenage hearts.
This is a fun coming of age, slice of life read. I wish that the characters were more dimensional. This book just felt very safe… it doesn’t do anything that other ya hate to love, fake date to make your ex jealous books do. I would recommend it though. It’s cute.
June 21, 2023
I was provided an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I would summarize this but I've read this 5 days ago and can barely think of names and/or anything specific that happens sooooo...
This wasn't bad, but it also wasn't good. I was just a bit bored, it read like something I've read many many times before. It just melted into the mass, it was just another girl next door story, I didn't feel like it brought anything new. The characters felt a bit flat and I was entertained for a moment but I forgot everything about it the second it ended.
I also listened to this and did not like the narrator, the voice sounded robotic and overall off and I just hate when narrators read "ugh" as "hug" without an h. The h in Ugh is not silent, it has to come from your soul. And the mc did say and thought ugh a lot sooo.
Basically, this wasn't for me but if you're looking for a sapphic yet classic girl next door story with a dash of fake-dating, you might like this.
I would summarize this but I've read this 5 days ago and can barely think of names and/or anything specific that happens sooooo...
This wasn't bad, but it also wasn't good. I was just a bit bored, it read like something I've read many many times before. It just melted into the mass, it was just another girl next door story, I didn't feel like it brought anything new. The characters felt a bit flat and I was entertained for a moment but I forgot everything about it the second it ended.
I also listened to this and did not like the narrator, the voice sounded robotic and overall off and I just hate when narrators read "ugh" as "hug" without an h. The h in Ugh is not silent, it has to come from your soul. And the mc did say and thought ugh a lot sooo.
Basically, this wasn't for me but if you're looking for a sapphic yet classic girl next door story with a dash of fake-dating, you might like this.
October 25, 2023
This was actually pretty great. The romance was very cute, the diversity never felt forced or phoned-in (for once, it didn't feel like an author was ticking off boxes on a diversity checklist), there were some very funny moments and some very heartfelt ones. I really enjoyed this.
November 24, 2023
4.5 stars rounded up, full RTC
Displaying 1 - 30 of 128 reviews