Unnecessary Drama by Nina Kenwood

This book was a delight! Brooke is so excited to finally be moving away from her childhood home and starting a new adventure in university. She is horrified to find out one of her new roommates is her enemy from high school. A classic storyline but this take on it felt fresh and fun. I absolutely loved how relatable and charming Brooke was, her tumbling thoughts and feelings were so relatable.

She does ramble a bit and is bursting with anxieties, so I can see how some might find this one a bit much, but I found her endearing and the overall story quite entertaining. There were many laugh out loud parts, and really lovely growth moments as well.

The audio was fantastic! I flew through it - highly recommend it to brighten your mood. Can’t wait to find more books by this author. Thank you to @macmillan.audio for the opportunity to listen to this one! It’s out on August 8th!

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This audiobook was really cute and very enjoyable. Brooke and Jesse have a past that left Brooke with some not so kind feelings for Jesse. Now they have ended up sharing an apartment with one other girl. Brooke has some anxiety issues that were on display in the book. It is a clean romance with lots of witty banter. I loved the way Jesse was protective of Brooke (as much as she would allow).

There is a fake relationship trope in this book also. I think those awkward moments were very touching and really got me wanting to push them towards the real thing.

The narration by Maddy Withington was awesome and the reason I bumped this up to 4 stars. The Australian accent was very pleasant to listen to and the volume stayed consistent throughout (yeah!). I highly recommend this audiobook!

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the gifted copy.

Unnecessary Drama is an adorable coming of age story that tows the line between romance and literary fiction. Brooke was a realistic representation of what its like to live with anxiety and how difficult it can be to try to date as an anxious person. I really appreciated the romance and and how much chemistry Jesse and Brooke had. Overall this was a solid, heartfelt, funny read that represents an often ignored part of the young adult experience (university). I'm so glad I picked this up!

Book Title: Unnecessary Drama
Author: Nina Kenwood
Genre: Romantic Comedy
Release Day: August 8, 2023
Format: Audio Book
Rating: Storyline 5⭐️ Narration 5⭐️

Synopsis: From the award-winning author of It Sounded Better in My Head comes a deliciously entertaining enemies-to-lovers romantic comedy about two high school nemeses who end up sharing a house together their first year of college

Eighteen-year-old Brooke is the kind of friend who not only remembers everyone’s birthdays, but also organizes the group present, pays for it, and politely chases others for their share. She’s the helper, the doer, the maker-of spreadsheets. She’s the responsible one who always follows the rules―and she plans to keep it that way during her first year of college.

Her student housing only has one "no unnecessary drama." Which means no fights, tension, or romance between roommates. When one of them turns out to be Jesse, her high-school nemesis, Brooke is determined she can handle it. They’ll simply silently endure living together and stay out of each other’s way. But it turns out Jesse isn’t so easy to ignore.

With Unnecessary Drama , Nina Kenwood perfectly captures the experience of leaving home for the first time, dealing with the unexpected complications of life, and somehow finding exactly what you need.

My Thoughts: I absolutely loved this romantic comedy. It was fun of embarrassing moments we have all had that became laughable moments. I laughed out loud a few times and couldn't stop listening to this. I was rooting for Brooke and Jesse as soon as this loveable but awkward plot line started. It was pleasantly sweet and full of everything I expected from a RomCom. This is a perfect read/listen to get you out of a reading slump or if you need a pick me up.

The narration by Maddy Withington was exceptional. I absolutely loved her voice changes and felt her expressions with every awkward to laughable laughable moment. I will definitely be looking up more audio books from her.

Thank you to MacmillanAudio and NetGalley for this advanced listening copy for my honest review.

such a wonderful read! 4 strong stars!

i was on the fence about what i would feel about this book but i was pleasantly surprised! such strong writing and great detailing of anxiety. it felt familiar and accurate and i applaud lenwood for that.

anyone who knows me, knows that i’m not the biggest fan of enemies to lovers (mostly because authors often make these characters cruel) but i didn’t find that here and mixed with forced proximity, it’s just a recipe for a win.

the narration was soooo wonderful too! i was thrilled the australian accent and how emotive the narrator was. it made the anxiety described in the book even better.

thoroughly loved this one. written with such understanding for that new adult voice, i’d recommend!

thank you netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review.

*Audiobook*

When Brooke moves into a house for college with two roommates, she expects there to be a huge learning curve: How will they split chores? Who will cook? How will they get along? What she doesn’t expect is one of her roommates to be her ex-friend turned nemesis, Jesse. Brooke and Jesse agree to be cordial but avoid each other as much as possible, yet neither seem to want to avoid each other. Brooke realizes that the Jesse she befriended—and had feelings for—all those years ago might have been there all along.

This story is so freaking cute. It’s not groundbreaking by any means, but for a romance, I really enjoyed it. It’s labeled enemies-to-lovers, but I don’t think that’s an accurate description. Jesse embarrassed Brooke in high school and she’s held a grudge ever since, but Jesse harbored no hard feelings. It makes their transition to a relationship way less frustrating because I can’t stand when the guy is a douche for 70% of the book and then the girl falls in love with him out of nowhere. Jesse is a sweet, helpful character throughout the entire story, and their slow progression to lovers is realistic and wholesome. I can relate a lot to Brooke. Going with the flow is my worst nightmare, so I felt all of her anxiety moving into a house with two roommates and navigating having feelings for someone she wasn’t sure that she could fully trust. Thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Nina Kenwood for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Such a fun book. This was a book with lots of fun tropes brought in to a closed door romance. I appreciated the flaws in both of our main characters and thought that their interest and hesitation was very realistic and of course the shenanigans they get into were fun too. This book was a great mix of rom and com!

Two former friends are unexpectedly thrown back together when they both end up renting a room in a houseshare. One of their new house rules is no "unnecessary drama", but that's easier said than done when they (sort of?) hate each other. This was a fun, cute audiobook! I would classify this as a coming-of-age story. We see Brooke grow and come into herself during her first year away at college. She has to navigate not only living away from family for the first time but school and her newfound relationships. As an anxious person myself (lol), I really related to her and a lot of what she's going through. I loved seeing her budding romance with Jesse and how he was the calm to her storm.

I loved this books so much! Very rarely have I ever related to a character so much. The main character Brooke is filled with anxieties — she's constantly overthinking and holding herself responsible for everything and everyone around her. Maybe it's because I related to her so much that I loved this book as much as I did. Regardless, I enjoyed the dynamics between these characters, the friendships and the relationships. It was funny and sweet and I highly recommend it!

Thank you Netgalley for providing a digital ARC.

Unnecessary Drama is really a sweet, relatable and realistic read. Coming from someone who lives in lists and anxiety i found myself relating to Brooke in a lot of ways. The anxiety spirals were very realistic and relatable. I loved loved loved the setting and enemies to friends to lovers that was shown throughout.

It deals with a lot of New adult issues that arises from handling your first ALONE ER trip to dating, living outside of the family home for the first time etc.

The narration was done extremely well and was very emotional and kept me hooked from start to finish!

Some of the parts of the books had me CRINGING though and seemed a bit far fetched but other than that it was an enjoyable read!

Cute book. I like the redemption that this story takes. Good YA listen. Roommates, past lives, fake romance. This story has it all.

Quick and easy read. Sweet story. Great characters.
I had a smile on my face the whole time listening to this book. Maddy Withington did a great job narrating.
I thought the characters were all relatable and real. Main character Brooke's inner dialogue was funny.
I enjoyed every part of this. A great read that is easy to get into. I liked that there was a clear storyline that had a beginning, middle, and end. The focus remained on Brooke and Jesse and the progression of their relationship, although predictable, was believable. I sometimes dislike when the main love interests have a love-hate relationship, but think Brooke and Jesse's made sense and was explained really well. I also thought their personalities were perfectly fitting for their age.
This was my first Nina Kenwood book, but I enjoyed it so much that I am picking up her other novel. 5-stars for great characters and the entertainment factor.

Thank you Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Young Listeners and NetGalley for the arc.

Moving away from home to attend her first year of college has Brooke’s anxiety on full alert. What will it be like in this new environment, with new housemates she doesn’t know yet? Good thing she has her rules and super organizational skills to help her through. At least this is the case until her final roommate shows up, her high school friend turned nemesis, Jesse.

Overall I found this to be a cute, quick romance that was fun to read. I enjoyed most of the characters and liked seeing the interactions between Brooke and Jesse. There was nothing earth shattering about this romance, but it fit with the tried and true enemies to lovers storyline. Brooke’s over the top anxiety got to me at times, but besides that this was a good romance. If you are looking for a light hearted, humorous YA romance, I would recommend giving this one a try!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book!

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

This was a cute lighthearted YA romcom. I enjoyed Brook’s and Jesse’s story. Very cute! The characters worked very well together. This is well written.

Brooke has just moved to Melbourne to begin her first year at University. When looking for a place to move, she struggled to find an apartment, so finally took her parents up on a friend of a friends space where another girl, Harper, has been living. As she moves in Brooke and Harper get along, but then the third roommate arrives, and to Brooke's surprise, it is Jesse her high-school "nemesis". Brooke has to figure out how to live with this guy she dislikes so much, while not putting off her new roommate/friend Harper. In doing so her and Jesse are forced to revisit past traumas, and work through some of their issues.

In working through her issues, I can see some people finding Brooke's inner dialogue to be "over-the-top" but I relate al too well to her internal thought spirals and anxiety. I appreciate the comedic tone that Brooke's thoughts take, and let me laugh at the absurdity of the spirals that I have for sure experienced myself. The book turns out to be a very cute YA RomCom.

The audiobook, was easy and enjoyable to listen to, and I loved the Australian accents from the narrator. I will certainly recommend this as a feel-good listen for the summer.

The plot>> the characters>> the setting>> THIS WHOLE BOOK!!!!

Thank you soooooo much netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advanced review copy if this book💗
"I voluntarily read and reviewed the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

TW: alcoholic parent, alcoholic sibling, ovarian cyst rupture/hospital scenes, anxiety and panic attacks.

3.5, rounded up.

It's Brooke's first year of University, and she's ready to leave her old life behind. When she moves into a shared house, she's surprised to learn that one of her roommates is her sworn enemy from high school. Brooke and Jesse were friends... until they weren't.

Brooke is determined to make the living arrangement work. The house rules are simple: no pets, no dating a housemate, and no unnecessary drama.

But Jesse isn't as easy to ignore as Brooke thought. After an event brings the two closer together, the romantic tension grows.

The characters were well-crafted and realistic, which I always appreciate. Brooke is the type of person who takes care of others before she takes care of herself, which plenty of readers can relate to.

Some of the scenes with interpersonal conflict were a stretch because they could have been solved by communicating. It got a little frustrating when Brooke kept brushing Jesse off when he wanted to discuss the event from high school.

Tl;dr: Unnecessary Drama contains cute moments, fake dating, and lovable characters. I'd love to read Nina Kenwood's other book!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing an e-ARC (audiobook) in exchange for an honest review!

I enjoyed the reading of this book; Maddy Withington did a great job in capturing the character.

As far as the story goes, it was a solid 4 stars. The background of the two MCs was well developed and intertwined well with their first year as college students. You could definitely recognize the quirks of the FMC right off the bat and, while I didn't find her very relatable, she was still a solid character. I found the MMC to be a bit less fleshed out but he was still likable.

Brooke is always the one who takes care of everyone. She is always put together and in control. This story follows Brooke as she starts to lose control and it is a blast to watch.

Brooke starts a new school and she moves into a house with two housemates. What Brooke does not know is one of her house mates is someone from high school that she can not stand. Jesse and her used to be best friends and then Jesse became her nemesis. Throughout the story you learn what caused the tension between them and it was so easy to transport yourself to the high school drama.

I liked all of the characters in this book but Brooke was my favorite. Watching her downward spiral was sad, cringy, and entertaining.

Everything was a little bit too cliche but I still enjoyed this. This is an enemies-to-lovers story that is done very well.

Thank you to Macmillan for the audio ARC! This was such an easy listen and I had a blast. The narrator was great!

I’m not usually a romance person but I devoured this. It was easy to get lost in this.

It was so cute and happy. Brooke was a (mostly) likeable main character and her planning, caretaking, and anxiety were so relatable for me. Her little anxiety spirals were so realistic! I could really see myself in her - which I loved.

The relationships were nice - I love seeing good friendships and good sibling relationships! The side characters felt developed and it was easy to keep track of them and their separate personalities. The main relationship was cute and I liked their dynamic. I think the ending was solid!

I really liked seeing the development between the main cast. I loved watching Brooke make friends and build a support network. I liked seeing her come into herself. I loved her relationship with Jesse (though some parts made me want to shake them!!). And the way she interacts with her family was really nice too. I really loved the way the author captured the reality of loving other people - they will do things that make you nervous, things you hate, things that suck for you - but you'll do the same to them and you'll love each other anyway.

Some parts of this gave me the WORST secondhand embarrassment omfg. And some parts were a little too cheesy or over the top for me - but I had a really good time with this book! A solid 4.25. Definitely a book I'll reread when I'm feeling down and need some comfort!