This is the kind of book I really wish I could have had when I was a teenager. It's wholesome and grounded and realistic, and I kind of want to snuggle it to my chest.

Finn and Willa are the kind of girls who get chosen by their teachers to go on an interschool leadership camp, and once there get elected by their classmates to lead their groups. They feel like real, nuanced people, and a lot more relatable to this former nerd than your average YA protagonist. I loved getting to know them, from their own perspective and from one another's. Finn looks at Willa and sees a serious girl who's devoted to her family and her studies, wants to win, can be terrifying when she wants to be and has hot long legs. Willa looks at Finn and sees someone talented and idealistic and amazingly kind with cute freckles. Like, those are the qualities that attract them to each other. As I said above, so wholesome.

The relationship they build in snatches of time lying on the grass, hiking in the bush and inspiring each other to be the best leaders they can be is warm and comforting to read about.

"Listen, I'm perfectly happy to help you out with difficult concepts. Like that time I explained anaerobic respiration to you, but I do not have the time or the energy to explain really basic stuff. Especially when the meaning is in the actual word. Bisexuality. Hear that? Bi." An issue I've had with a lot of wlw fiction, including previous Emily O'Beirne books, is the way characters dance around the word 'bisexual'. The constant repetition of things like "It's complicated", I don't like labels", "I like who I like", "I can be into girls too", gets demoralising for the bisexual reader, since we so rarely get to see our identity actually acknowledged on page. So this passage had me pretty much jumping for joy! It's exactly what I wanted. Thank you.

I also loved the Australian setting. So many YA stories are set in America, it was super refreshing to read a story that actually felt like my own high school experience, where I could recognise the snacks and the scenery and the way everyone talked to each other.

Loved it. I'm so glad this book exists.

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review) ( )