This is a coming of age novel but it's so.... simple. I know I shouldn't have expected grand things but still, I felt a huge amount of disappointment.

The story is: two friends, who just graduated, who want to have one memorable weekend before thinking of all the college buzz, create the bucket list on what they want to do to make it memorable enough. And that's pretty much it. Spoiler: there's nothing that interesting on that list, so don't get your hopes up.

The writing is good! It's just the story that lacks spice.

Cadence and Cooper are the best of friends, but Cady has a massive crush on Cooper, who they both agree is likely gay. They live in a small New England town and make a pact to complete ten zany things on a weekend bucket list quest before graduation. On this list are facing fears and getting tattoos and...along the way they collect a carny drifter named Eli. Eli is a lithe young man who essentially quits his job, and is rendered homeless in the process, to follow his new best friends on this quest.

While they share some beers on the beach, and skinny dipping in the brutal Atlantic, Cooper is able to kiss both Eli and Cady--and realizes that he's maybe bisexual. This weekend of experimentation has rough results, though. Cady is frustrated that Cooper and Eli seem to connect, and Eli is blithely unaware that his new pals aren't the staying type. The story is told from all three points of view, and this final summer before college is a giant turning point for Cady and Cooper's friendship. Cady's family is struggling with her addict brother coming back from yet another stint in rehab, and Cady's anger with her home life bring even bigger problems.

Cooper and Eli connect, but not in the way Cady feared. They work on building a friendship and it's beautiful and special. Eli needs help, and Cooper's family becomes invested. It's also important that Cady comes to terms with her family troubles and allows her brother the space to rebuild his relationships. There was a lot of hurt there and Cady's a master at avoiding confrontation. Cooper isn't about to let her just walk away from his life without giving their friendship a fight.

For a YA romance this isn't traditional. Eli, Cooper and Cady build a bond that isn't conventional, and it takes them some time to sort it out. The weekend they share is the beginning of the book, but the relationships they build map out their future, which seems sound. Aside from some lusty thoughts and a bit of kissing, there isn't any steam. I really liked how naively introspective these kids are. Their lives are opening up in all new ways, and they have appropriate levels of angst. Eli, having had so little love in his life, is so loving himself. He's hurt by Cady and Cooper, but his capacity for forgiveness is vast, and Cooper is a rock when Eli needs him to be. Cooper's fledgling assertiveness added stability in a situation that was tenuous. These are all adolescents, and they make impetuous choices. So that felt realistic. I liked the kids and how they drove a new path, one that wasn't dependent on their respective sexualities, but on their capacity to love each other without bounds.

Good day! Before anything else, I would like to extend my deepest, sincerest gratitude for sending me a digital review copy of this book (via NetGalley). Thank you very much for the opportunity!

Unfortunately, I am sad to say that I have lost interest in this particular title, and consequently, I have decided against finishing it. Forcing myself to finish a book I am disinterested in (solely for the sake of finishing it) can only negatively impact the entirety of my reading experience, which, in turn, could result in me writing an unfairly negative review. That is a circumstance I hope to avoid. With that said, I believe that the best course of action is for me to simply not read it and to refrain from publicly posting any feedback regarding this book.

I hope you understand where I'm coming from. Again, thank you for the lovely opportunity!

At the heart of this story is friendship. It takes place at the end of Senior year in high school and our young protagonists have the titular bucket list to complete:

1. Go skinny-dipping
2. Stay out all night
3. Face a fear
4. Sleep under the stars
5. Take a road trip
6. Get drunk
7. Have a first kiss
8. Run naked on the beach
9. Sneak into a movie
10. Spend twenty-four hours with no electronics
11. Get pierced and tattooed
12. Say thank you to someone

You might think this list alone tells you a lot about who these characters are, but you should give this book a chance.

I should have held of requesting this before I read more reviews.

I expected a happy coming of age queer book and that’s not what I got.

Instead I got a love triangle, over dramatic book that’s just not for me.

I’m sure there are some teens who will actually enjoy this but unfortunately I couldn’t!

It's an excellent premise but not very well executed. I got through it all, but it was hard and I really didn't enjoy it.

Cady and Cooper are best friends and quintessential rule followers. With graduation just a few days away, they decide that their mission is to use this one epic weekend to move past all the "what-ifs" they've avoided. It's time to get drunk, go skinny dipping, experience their first kisses, and so much more. But friendship, romance, and adventure don't necessarily go hand in hand. When a handsome stranger joins them on their quest, life becomes more confusing than they ever imagined.

This book was just OK. I managed to finish it, but I didn't connect with it as I usually do books of this type.

I loved this book. Such a fun journey and road trip. A great YA read about friends, life and relationships. There are so many well written characters that feel so genuine, it’s hard to put this book down.

This one was weird. I loved the idea of a happy polyamorous relationship and the sexuality confusion. The characters felt weirdly innocent and two dimensional though. At times the writing felt juvenile.

I loved this book! The full review will be posted soon at kaitgoodwin.com/books! Thank you very much for this wonderful opportunity to connect books to their readers!

*~~*ARC kindly provided to me for an honest review *~~*

- Review to come

Review originally posted on my blog with added content on Mikku-chan / A world full of words

Honestly, I had high hopes for the book as it came highly recommended and it sounded great but...it just wasn't for me. I DNF'd it and I don't want to really rate since it might be 'it's not you, it's me' but... look this site requires a rating.

Not a review
Sadly this book wasn't for me - I found myself struggling to get through it to the end, so I stopped about halfway.
It's nothing about the book - it's wholly personal. I just moved away after graduation and have been missing my friends to bits, and reading about such a strong friendship is just bringing the missing thoughts back.

I did like the first half! The three characters were unique and intriguing and I loved how honest they were. One thing that bothered me was that Cooper was saying he was gay rather than bi just so he could spend time with Cady without anyone questioning anything - at least that's how it was presented in the first few chapters.

DNf at 54% - its hitting the wrong emotions at the wrong time, sorry!

I did hear lovely things about it though :)

Cady and Cooper were at this big crossroad in their lives. Graduation was in three days, and soon these BFFs would be leaving each other to attend separate colleges. Cady wanted to know once and for all if a romance was possible with Cooper, and the weekend bucket list was born. However, along the way, a third party, Eli, became entangled in this plot, and things got a little complicated.

I won't lie. I was expecting a cute friends-to-more romance with some fun hijinks. That is not what I got reading The Weekend Bucket List. This was a story which explored platonic love, and was about how friendship can be underrated by many when it comes to types of love.

This book had a lot of great characters. I enjoyed Cady and Cooper. They had a great dynamic together. I also liked Eli a lot. He was very sweet, and I wanted him to find his people and his "home". He experienced a lot of let downs and betrayals, and it was time for the universe to send something great his way. I also want to say, that Cooper won the parent lottery. His mom and dad were pretty fabulous, and the heart to heart Cooper and his dad had about his sexuality may have brought a tear to my eye.

Don't get me wrong. I am a fan of friendships, and the ending was full of all sorts of good friendship feels. However, I really wanted some romance. Overall, the book was entertaining, and had some really fun moments, as well as some really thoughtful moments, I just wanted a different kind of HEA.

I got an ARC of this book.

A few of the reviewers I trust implicitly had totally different feelings on this book, so I wasn't sure if I should read it or not. I gave it a shot and I can see why there were such mixed feelings.

The biggest issue I can see is that this book sounds like it will have some M/M romance in it. Instead this novel focuses on friendship and how important that is. This struck a chord with me. I was (and am) deeply in love with my best friend. She is the perfect match for me. I describe her as my soul mate, have since we were 15/16. This book tried to give legitimacy to relationships like ours. It also addressed weird areas of jealousy that can develop. Cady and Cooper clearly have a deep friendship and there is maybe more, but neither of them really wants to risk the friendship. That is a huge thing. The fact that they have issues admitting it and then have jealousy when they try and handle everything felt so real to me and so close to home. My best friend is now married to a wonderful woman that I adore, but that doesn't mean there was never jealousy or envy that came up. I admitted to my best friend the day before her wedding that I was envious of what she had with her soon to be wife. We cried and hugged, we moved on. Thankfully her wife understood, because she has the same relationship with her best friend. See how this book could fit so perfectly in my life. I wish I had had this book before I agonized over my feelings last summer!

There were big hunks of the book that felt rushed and not well developed. Towards the end of the book, Cady's brother becomes more of a focus. I felt like that wasn't fully explored. There was so much that was left out of that plot line that it dragged down the ending for me and made it less believable. 

I do wish that there was more romance, but the fact that a YA novel (or any media really) allowed for a friendship to be the main focus and be the choice that is actually right was amazing. It is so hard to find a story or a movie that values friendship as much as this book does. That is a huge bonus for me, but I still felt like this novel was lacking something. I think an epilogue where Eli gets his GED or where he is filling out college applications or something that gives me a more secure future for Eli would have helped. He was a minor character, mostly used for his body through the whole book. He never felt truly real. He started to get fleshed out, but all that mattered was how Cady and Cooper felt around him. So giving him an ending that gave him more autonomy I think would have helped the ending and made the book a bit stronger, especially if that ending hinted at that he had a crush on someone who wasn't Cady and Cooper.

I was so excited to be approved for an eARC or The Weekend Bucket List. I really thought I would enjoy this but I was bored.

This book carries wonderful messages of friendship and I found it refreshing to read a book mostly about friendship. However, I didn't like the characters too much and didn't care for the story that much either.

It's been a terrible senior year for Cady now he brother has been taken away because of drugs. Together with her best friend Cooper, she's always been the opposite of her twin and is now about to start college without having had any wild experiences. That's how their bucket list starts, and thanks to that they meet Eli, a handsome young man who seems to fit in perfectly in their duo. But his presence also makes things change and force them to deal with their impending separation for college.

This book was deep. A little too much for me, actually. I did like how Mia Kerick never seemed to think: this is not for YA. And I'm not talking about erotic scenes (there are none) or language. Just that YA books don't usually explore topics in such a realistic manner, in my opinion. But to be honest, that's also the safe ground I look when I get a YA book. Especially when the topic is two A-grade students going on a weekend of dares, I really don't want to reflect on stuff.

The second thing that made this not for me was exactly how introspective the book tended to be. There were many things happening but the characters kept going on stream-of-conscience mode. Not my thing, either. And much less what I was ready for when I read the summary, saw the cover, etc.

But you do notice all I said aren't flaws but just characteristics I wasn't into reading at the moment. At the same time I was thinking, "Not for me", I kept reading because I was amazed at the quality Mia Kerick offers in The Weekend Bucket List.

I must say this is a great book for actual teenagers to read. And probably those who work with them, as well. I can also see how the topics here present would give excellent discussions in a book club.

You should notice this story has LGBT characters. I admire a lot how Kerick approaches the bisexuality theme and also the coming-out topic. I won't spoil going further but do read this if you're interested. It'll be worthy of your time. It's not dramatic, but it's not simple either. Actually, I'd love to read a book of hers focusing on some LGBT theme, those have been in need of new ways to be explored.

Summing, I didn't have fun reading this book. As I said, it's not for me and nor I was into reading this type of story, but I'm sure this is a five-star to someone.

Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

I was sent this as an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

I loved the concept of this book when I read the synopsis and was so excited going into it. While I did enjoy the book, I found it to be too long. It could have ended by part 2 in my opinion. The story is the perfect fluff read but it could have used some more romance. I think a big part of my mediocre opinion of this book is that Cady was such a frustrating character. She can never be happy unless things happen her way or she gets the guy. Eli was my favorite character of the entire book! He was just so willing to do anything for these 2 strangers he met and never wanted to hurt either or! Cooper was so timid and would cower under Cady, which was frustrating because he deserved so much more respect. His confusion of his sexuality is a storyline that I enjoyed and found to be true to what bisexual people have to deal with. Overall, I gave this book a 3 out of 5 stars and would recommend it for a light fluffy contemporary!