This was my first Serena Kaylor book, and it took me completely by surprise and solidified that I’d keep my eye out for Kaylor’s work in the future. The book follows protagonist Marlowe Meadows after being dumped suddenly by her ex-boyfriend, Josh. In an attempt to win back his affections and improve her romantic abilities, Marlowe employs the help of her English classmate, Ashton Hayes, but things, as expected, don’t go quite according to plan.

I thought the romance between Ash and Marlowe to be incredibly convincing, practically jumping off the page with their chemistry, and the slow-burn of it all only made it extra special. Their attraction and pull towards one another felt natural, and I really appreciated how Kaylor made Ash so respectful and kind, in comparison to other potential partners in Marlowe’s life. I think it’s important to highlight that individuals deserve to be treated with love and care (and nothing less) when they’re romantically involved with someone, especially in a YA novel so many young people are going to read. So bravo to Kaylor for that!

This felt like a love letter to romance novel lovers because of all the conversations about it, so if you’re a romance novel enthusiast, this is for you! There’s some wonderful queer representation with multiple characters in here that I really cherished seeing. There is also some autistic representation, but I am not sure how accurate that is. Overall, this is a great romance novel with fantastic chemistry and a good plot to pull you through to the end.

thank you to netgalley for providing me with this arc in exchange for an honest review

3.75 stars - I had such a fun time reading!
spoiler free!

genre: YA romance
age rating: 13+
spice: none

tropes
good girl, bad boy
boy is actually a sweetheart once you know him
'i've secretly liked you for years'
NO THIRD ACT BREAK UP
I literally can't think of any others

girly's name is marlow meadows and her sister is bluebell 😭

let's talk about the main issue I had

marlowe has autism. that's not where the problem lies. it was displayed as a 'quirky' trait and the author never expanded on it. it had so much potential to be great because of the little bit of expansion we got, but it just wasn't. I completely forgot she even had autism until it was sprung on randomly.

"'Autism, amirite?'"
it wasn't completely awful, I think it could've been written better or not been in the story at all

what I did like
the writing was very fast-paced and fun to follow! the plot is also such a fun idea and a lot of the conflicts and flaws are well-written. it's just a cute YA novel

marlowe meadows
i'M nOt LiKe OThEr GiRlS

"I wasn't very popular. I was weird Marlowe. Marlowe who was too honest, too literal...'"
you can imagine the rest.

for the most part, she was a sweet character and I enjoyed my time with her. she is flawed, and her flaws are written well! sometimes I wish more stuff was expanded on, though. she has a lot of character development in the short amount of time we have with her :)

ashton hayes
he's in a band and reads romance novels. he's so sweet and I love him so, so much. he's also HOT as they say every 5 pages.

"'There's nothing broken about you."

marlowe's grandmother
if the author wasn't high while writing marlowe's grandmother's ghost, I'm very concerned. I'm pretty sure this was just supposed to be a fun quirk about the story but in reality, I'm terrified. it lasted like one chapter and was never brought up again.

"the door flings open and crashes into the wall. my framed national honor society certificate flies off and into my dirty laundry basket. I sigh. 'thanks meemaw.'"

overall
this was a cute book and I had a good time. if you're looking for a fun book to read, this is the one for you! don't read the synopsis, it's much more fun to go in relatively blind!

quotes (there's a lot so buckle up!)

"Chocolate wants us to be happy. How can we not adore a food that cares so much about our well-being?"

"I want every scrap he's willing to share until I have enough clues to piece together the entirety of him."

"'That's okay," he says and the lack of judgment feels like a hand in the dark."

"'But I see him now. I know him. I want him, and I want there to be no doubt in his mind or anybody else's.'"

I don't want to lose the books or teasing or weird adventures. I can't lose him."

"I want him to know me, and I want the people I love to know him."

"'And I know that every moment with you feels more important than the one before. I want them all. Every laugh, every chaotic thought that runs through your brain, and every facial expression you have-even the one you make where you try to pretend I'm not hilarious. They all just make me want you more.'"


pre-read:
got approved for the arc! I’m so excited to read this!

I really enjoyed this! I read it more or less in one sitting, so I can confirm that it's engaging. The characters are well developed and multidimensional, and the autism rep is done really well. And Ash is BABY. A broody, mysterious bad boy who wears all black, plays in a band, and loves romance novels? Just. Wow. The way he cares about Marlowe (and pines for her) is truly precious. The relationship development was well paced and included just the right amount of drama and conflict for a truly satisfying payoff in the end. I love when a slow burn is done well (i.e. not frustrating, things are actually burning (slowly) from relatively early on). I actually tend to avoid slow burns because they're so often paced in a way that makes me want to tear out my hair, but this one is great!!

Thank you to Net Galley and Wednesday Books for the opportunity to read this early in exchange for my honest review.

This book was ok. I felt like there was a lot of potential for a super cute YA Romance between two misfits, but ultimately it did not live up to my expectations.

What I liked about the book:
1. I loved that the FMC was autistic and she totally owned it. Here is one of my favorite excerpts:

"There it is again, rearing up like a scarlet A that brands me as different. I appreciate him trying to be thoughtful, but I would also like everyone to mind their own business and just let me navigate things myself. Unless it’s something surprising or overwhelming, in which case I would like a heads-up.

But also not, if that makes sense?

I want it both ways, and for them to read my mind so we can avoid these conversations. Or maybe a different brain. Or maybe for everyone else to have a brain like mine."

- Love it. Totally makes sense.

2. I loved how much Marlowe loved math! As a fellow woman in STEM, I love seeing other women who have genuine love for these fields. My little nerd heart flutters!

"Math is elegant, beautiful in its complexity, and it doesn’t matter if you take a million different approaches, there’s a finite answer. No gray zone or wiggle room."

-YES! Oh, the beauty of math 😊

3. I enjoyed how Marlowe found herself and her need to make herself happy instead of trying to live to make someone else happy through the use of romance novels. Frequently, romance novels are written off as either silly little stories at their most innocent or porn at their most crude, however, there are many romance novels and ideas within novels that highlight the independence of women and finding your own worth. Throughout this book, we saw Marlowe go from being a side character to the main character in her own life as she read more and more of these romance books. I was happy to see this represented as a key point to the story.

4. I loved the support from Marlowe’s mother and Sloane when she realized that her ex wasn’t really great.

From Sloane, we got this gem:

"Nobody is inherently bad at love. Sure, people have different communication styles and love languages, and we might not all be on the same page at all times. Those challenges can require work, sometimes professional work, but your instincts aren’t wrong just because they’re not his instincts. And anybody who would make you think or feel that way is not someone worth fighting for."

- PREACH!!!

What I wasn’t a fan of:
1. Overall, something was missing. I didn’t feel any chemistry between the MCs, and everyone was a real surface level character, besides maybe her friend Odette. The main point of a YA romance should be the chemistry between the MCs and a stellar group of side characters, but we didn’t get that in this one. They were all fine, but nothing spectacular.

2. While Ash wasn’t super convincing as having pined for Marlowe, he did deserve a lot better than a wrap up in the last five minutes of the book. I felt the ending was rushed and thus not super satisfactory. Yes, we got our HEA, but I felt he deserved more, especially given the fact that he was never chosen first by anyone in his life. It should have been her big gesture (like she wanted), instead of him (yet again) trying to earn someone’s affection.

3. I'm kind of over the whole contract thing in YA romances. I understand it creates a give-and-take relationship and a business-like formality to the interactions between the characters (so the *gasp* LOVE, comes out of nowhere) but is a contract necessary?

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books, and Serena Kaylor for the opportunity to read this book. The thoughts and opinions expressed above are honest and my own.

This book was amazing !! I absolutely loved this authors style of writing and also really enjoyed the Autism representation. I did not want this story to end and I found myself really sucked Marlowe’s character and she really felt like a friend while I was reading this. Will definitely be keeping an eye out for any other new releases from this author and I’ll definitely be recommending this as well.

Oh my goodness, this was a wonderful book! I adored all of the characters and the interactions between them - the true friendship, the growth of the romantic relationship... Without a doubt, I will be reading this story again because it was just that good! I will immediately be picking up Serena Kaylor's other books because of this one.

“I am an entire galaxy and I need nothing or nobody to orbit”

Marlowe is just a normal high school student. Her recent breakup with her popular football-playing sweetheart, Josh, has left her feeling out of control. She is trying to figure out how it all went so wrong. It’s at this time that she assigned a partner, Ash, in English who is moody and always wears black. They strike up an unusual deal to benefit each other.
This story made my heart happy. The way that they portrayed Marlowe as autistic, but that in no way defines her. I love that. I love that Ash is this gothic rock kid who works at a romance bookstore. It was just all around adorable. Fake dating is one of my favourite tropes and it’s done very well in this book. I normally prefer smut, dark romance, and horror. This was way out of my wheelhouse. However, I was so pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. I got thoroughly attached the characters. This is one I might actually read again (which is rare for me). It just made me smile.

Thank you netgalley and Wednesday Books for the e-ARC!

I devoured this. I love Serena’s stories so much. Good characters that you see develop throughout the story. This is a YA book but it didn’t feel immature. I found Marlowe very relatable. This was just a good time but also deep and heartfelt at the same time. Ash got to share his love of romance/local bookstore with Marlowe. They were so adorable. This isn’t even out yet and I CANNOT wait until Serena’s next masterpiece.

Special thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s press for this digital ARC.

1 Sentence Summary: When Marlowe’s boyfriend dumps her because she isn’t romantic enough, she’s determined to prove that she can be good at love, that she’s more than the weird math-obsessed girl everyone sees her as; so when she’s paired up for a school project with Ashton, who dresses in all black, wears eyeliner, and writes love songs, Marlowe proposes a deal: Ash will help her write some love letters and in return she will help with his band’s marketing.

My Thoughts: THIS BOOK MADE ME BELIEVE IN LOVE AGAIN!!! It was seriously so freaking cute I was dying, and made me wish I had my own romantic relationship.

The characters and relationships were phenomenal. I love Marlowe! And I love Ash! And I love them together! And I love all of their friends, too! And Marlowe’s family, especially her relationship with her younger sister! Okay, that was way too many exclamation marks, but there was so much great character development in this.

Also, Marlowe has autism and the representation of it was so well done. It was an important part of her identity and was talked about throughout the book, but it wasn’t the whole point of the book, which is what I feel like sometimes happens in books with neurodivergent characters; like, the authors forget that their character is a <I>person</I>, not just Character With Autism. People with autism deserve to have fun & cute romcoms written about them without their autism being the whole focus of the story! Anyway, suffice it to say I loved Marlowe’s character, and Serena Kaylor is autistic herself and wrote Marlowe so well.

Another thing: I’m obsessed with Ash!!! He’s like my emo, eyeliner-wearing, nails-painted, singing-in-a-band child and I want to protect him from the world. Also, despite all the traits I just listed seeming very stereotypical, Ash’s character did not feel stereotypical at all. And I loved so much how Ash was bisexual (or at least had dated both girls and boys) and it wasn’t a <I>thing</I>. He never had to say anything, no one else ever said anything, it was just him, and accepted. :’)

Anyway, I do wish we had gotten some more interactions with the other band members, but I loved Marlowe’s friends, Poppy and Odette, and I loved how everyone was bonding over romance novels haha.

Highly recommend reading this! It was so sweet with such lovable characters who make you want to keep reading. (And I mean that literally: last night I got in bed and was like, I’m just gonna read a few chapters before I go to sleep. But then I couldn’t stop reading and stayed up way too late and ended up finishing the entire book because it was too good LOL.)

Recommend to: People who enjoy super cute YA romances with neurodivergent representation.

(Warnings: swearing; underage drinking; divorce)

This was such a fun read. While I did not enjoy the high school angst of not fitting in and standing out, it did bring back so many memories of those crushes and first loves you thought you couldn’t ever survive without. The characters are sweet, and relatable. While I loved them all, I didn’t always love their choices and behaviors. Definitely hit home, highly recommend

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This was so cute and I enjoyed it so much

Pov: you just had your hopes crushed by the book you had your eye on for the longest time.

It's not really a bad book so much as it is juvenile. I thought we moved past girls trying to win back dumb exes, 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭 𝘴𝘪𝘴.

I LOVED the author's debut - Long Story Short, so imagine my surprise when her new book absolutely tarnished the excitement. I may be being a little harsh but in my defence, I was SO hyped for this.

The ending irked me for it was too rushed when for the last 95% she was still chasing pavements after said dumb ex.

The plot has so much potential for the cutest YA romance with the swooniest possible goth/sunshine trope and all the romance learning the protagonist did but it was not matched.

But I'll give credit where it's due, I liked the support Marlowe had from her friends but Ashton deserves better imo than a too neatly packed ending within five pages. And so does Marlowe, girl needs to take some time for herself.

- ~ -

3.87 / 5✩

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘚𝘵. 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯'𝘴 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯.

This was such a cute YA romance! I am not the biggest fan of slow burn, but I thought this book did it well! I really enjoyed how the characters were written! I also really liked the contrast of Marlowe and Ash. Ash was my favorite! He is in a band, like hello! I also liked seeing him swoon over Marlowe, our girl deserved that! I am excited to check out more books from the author in the future!

Thank you to Netgalley and others for giving me an ARC of this book!

Marlowe is neurodivergent, and for someone who struggles with social cues and expressing feelings, she was doing pretty good. She had the most popular boy in school as her boyfriend, and she was part of the “in” crowd. That is…until her boyfriend breaks up with her and her routine for the past two years is upended.

I thought this was such a cute romance. Marlowe is all about numbers and mushrooms, she’s analytical and her ex complained she wasn’t romantic enough. Yes, she had the golden-haired, perfect Southern boy, jock as her boyfriend but then she gets paired up with the dark-haired boy, Ash, who is in a band and has a lip ring. Her world is turned upside down and I loved seeing it happen! I love the opposites attract trope especially between a boy with a bad rep and a smart girl. But the thing is – Marlowe can’t let go of her routine, she wants Josh back and tries to learn to be more romantic to win him back. Marlowe and Ash help each other out but they fall in love with each other in the process.

There are some really great side characters in this story. I love her two best friends who are as unique as she is but I love how they had her back no matter what. Marlowe wanted Josh back, and even if they hated the idea, they tried to help her make it happen. They gave her space to make her mistakes and learn from them without judging her and that was so cool. I also enjoyed learning about Marlowe’s family dynamics too, which play a part in how she feels about relationships.

My Final Thoughts:

This was such a cute, slow burn, teenage romance that has great side characters, a main character who has growth, and even a grand gesture! The romance progression is so good with Ash helping her get Josh back, to Marlowe realizing she didn’t want Josh back at all but Ash instead. I enjoyed this one and I’m looking forward to reading more from this author.

I stopped after chapter 3 (11%). The writing/prose itself felt like it leaned “new adult” rather than YA, except the characters are in high school, so it’s likely more appropriate for upper levels of high school. Seems like a solid 3-4 stars for the target with 5 for the right readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC.

The Calculation of You and Me is the story of Marlowe, a girl who is determined to win back her ex at any cost. When she is dumped for not being romantic enough, Marlowe tries to think of answers. Being paired for a class project with new student Ash completely throws her out of her routine, but she soon realizes that Ash understands romance. As Ash begrudgingly teaches Marlowe about romance, Marlowe starts to re-examine her past relationship.

I absolutely loved this book! The Calculation of You and Me is filled with so many great tropes and fantastic moments. Serena Kaylor creates such a realistic and lovable character in Marlowe. I loved how Ash and Marlowe connected and became so close. They had some lovely “fieldwork” dates including laser tag, a fall festival, and sharing book recs. Marlowe also has loving friends and family who are always there for her.

Kaylor’s writing is laugh out loud funny, with lots of quick wit and banter. I loved the autistic and bi rep in this book. I also loved the realizations Marlowe has about what it means to be in love vs feeling comfortable with someone in knowing what to expect. Josh (Marlowe’s ex) was the actual worst and without giving away spoilers, the ending was very satisfying. If you romanced Sebastian in Stardew Valley, check this out!

Readers who enjoy lovable characters, neurodivergent rep, classic romance tropes, and hilarious dialogue should read The Calculation of You and Me.

Thank you to Serena Kaylor, Wednesday Books, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For publisher: My review will be posted on Goodreads, Instagram, Storygraph, Amazon, Barnes & Noble etc.

There are ways in which leaning into Marlowe's neurodivergence didn't work for me, but mainly because I think her need to fix what only she believes is broken is more universal than she's acknowledging. But. Love love love Ash. So much.

Thank you so much to the author, St. Martins Press and Wednesday books for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Since I’m on a never-ending search for good rom-com books, this book, which felt very Pretty in Pink meets Better Than the Movies, was something that I figured would be up my alley. It felt very reminiscent of romance movies and books I enjoyed when I was younger, and I liked that this book brought back those feelings and managed to be a light-hearted, quick read. Both main characters, Marlowe and Ash, were easy to root for individually and as a couple. The development of their relationship felt very natural, and their banter/dialogue was enjoyable to read. It also helped that they were fleshed out characters and had a fair share of cute moments together. I also liked that they—and even the side characters—managed to feel like authentic current teenagers without veering into cringeworthy territory, which is a balance that most romance books are unable to find.

On the downside, the book did seem to introduce more plot points than it had time to address, which took up so much time the ending wound up feeling slightly rushed. It would have been nice to see some of those elements, such as the love songs Ash had written, be addressed later in the story rather than forgotten entirely. In other areas, however, things not being wrapped up, specifically Ash’s relationship with his parents, added a nice sense of realism to the story, since I feel like many other books would have tried to quickly resolve this through a conversation off-page for the sake of a neat ending.

Overall, this book managed to be a lighthearted, enjoyable read, and while it may not be something I remember long-term, I would definitely recommend it, especially to anyone looking for a cute, quick rom-com.

~Rating: ★ ★ ★ ✰ ✰ .25~

Enjoyed following Marlowe on this journey of finding self-worth while supported by friends and family. Especially loved all the representation! 'The Calculation of You and Me' has a great inclusive cast of neurodivergent and LGBTQIA+ characters.

After being dumped by the most popular guy in her school, who tries to blame her for the failure of their two-year relationship ending, Marlowe just wants to understand her supposed short-comings and fix them, so that everything can go back to normal in her world. The most patient and understanding best friends in the universe support her and try to cheer her up, even when they know her ex is wrong, and even if they think her plan isn't the best.

When Marlowe and Ash are assigned to an English project together she gets the idea that surly, emo, song-writing, lead singer Ash can help her write love letters to her ex, in order to win him back. Enter the slow-burn, bickering-to-friends to maybe more... Ash won't write the letters for Marlowe, but he is willing to tutor her in romance, including field trips and recommending romance novels. It is an absolute delight to follow their PG, YA romance unfold, and to watch those who love her support her ever-so-slow realization that maybe Josh never deserved her, and Ash sure does.

First and foremost, a big thank you to Serena Kaylor, St. Martin’s Press/ Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing me this ARC which allowed me the opportunity to provide this unbiased review.

The Calculation of You and Me is my first book by Serena Kaylor. It’s a cute, inclusive rom-com about a girl being dumped my her long term boyfriend, her deal with a talented quiet goth boy to help her win back her ex, and the realization that she has fallen for the goth boy instead. It’s a typical “attempt” to win a boy romance by enlisting another boy who ends up being the better match. It’s a little Pretty in Pink and Better than the Movies and I just adore it.

Josh is the arrogant, self-loving jock ex-boyfriend that Marlowe doesn’t realize has been manipulating her. Marlowe is on the autism spectrum and is self-conscious and unsure about herself. Ash is the guy you like more and more as you get to know him. Marlowe’s friends are great supporting characters. They are unique, quirky, unwavering loyal, encouraging and supports Marlowe figure things out in her own time and on her own terms.

I thinks it’s cute that Marlowe keeps giving Ash middle names (Octavius, Napoleon, Augustus, and Rasputin).

TROPES/ THEMES: second chance romance, love and social cliques, strangers to lovers, contract/deals/exchanges, teacher-student, LGBTQ+, autism, nerdy/geeky, musician, he falls first, grand gestures, rom-com

Read on for characters…

CHARACTERS (more or less in order of appearance):
Joshua Shepherd Stallings: broke up with Marlowe before summer break
Marlowe Meadows: divorced parents, Methodist mother, likes math
Blue: Marlowe’s baby half sister
Odette Norman: Marlowe’s friend
Poppy: Marlowe’s friend
Bunny Thompson: Marlowe and Blue’s mother
Darleen Bridgers: husband is Carl, daughter is Tiffany
Derrick Watts: Josh’s best friend
Ms. Chris: AP English teacher
Tiffany Bridgers: Odette’s assigned AP English partner, openly admits to liking Josh
Ashton Hayes: Marlowe’s volunteer AP English partner, goth musician, formed a band, singer and guitarist
Beth: Josh’s English partner, softball player
Stu: Marlowe’s stepdad
Ryan Michaels: Marlowe’s flirt target
Sloane: owner of cafe in Three Little Words
Hazel: lead guitarist, attends Saint Mary’s
Spencer: drummer
Mateo Acosta: plays the bass, River Haven’s biggest flirt, previously dated Tiffany
Julian: plays the keyboard