There are a lot of things I could talk about here & explain why I didn't enjoy them, like some of the plot-lines or the writing style. But I want to focus on something more important, which is the bisexual rep in the book.

It's not good.

It's not good because Sinter figuring out his sexuality at the age of 25 is framed as Sinter always knowing about it & just being in denial - and that's like a punch to the stomach to all of us in the community who figured ourselves out later in life. Sure, that happens, but there are so many less covered in the media reasons for that to happen!

It's not good because Sinter is constantly pressured to come out. We don't owe anyone our coming out. We literally do not have to do it if we don't feel safe enough. It doesn't mean we belong in the community any less than the out members.

It's not good because Sinter only truly accepts his bisexuality after having sex with a man, as if being bisexual is only about the physical act. As if people who haven't had sex yet, can't be bi or gay. As if we have to prove ourselves in this way.

Basically, it's just hurtful & I regret I had to read the book.

Ringle's exploration of sexuality is done in a very meaningful way. With an interesting plot and great characters, All The Better Part of Me is an equally interesting and insightful read.

At times, the pacing seemed a little out of kilter, but the characters of Andy and Sinter more than made up for it and the plot itself kept me reading until the last page.

I loved Ringle's ability to wind together the different storylines from each geographical location and to show the intricacies of love and life in a way that was both humorous and natural.

Thank you to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

DNF at 50%

I wanted to like this book so badly because it had a ton of potential. There were definitely some aspects I still enjoyed, but overall, I think there was something about both the characterization and the writing style that didn't click with me. At times it read more like fanfiction - which is not a bad thing by any means, but it did surprise me in a book that's marketed as NA, especially because the writing style made the characters feel younger than they actually were. Their conversations were so awkward to read, and not in the giddy, romcom kind of way.

It wasn't a bad read, necessarily. Unfortunately, I found myself getting bored really quickly, even skipping through parts of the book looking for something interesting to happen. When I wasn't bored, I was experiencing secondhand embarrassment because of Sinter and Andy's misguided attempts at flirting, which might have been cute for YA but seemed out of place for two 25 year olds. I was so excited for this book but I think the execution just wasn't there.

The main character, Sinter, is shown to be in denial of his attraction to Andy from the very beginning, dismissing their flirty texts (which included way more ha's and heh's than I've ever seen in a single conversation) as "just bestie things." The frustrating part for me was the alternating flashbacks showing how Sinter suspected he wasn't straight back in high school, but continues to be in denial well into his 20s. Of course, this is most likely a valid representation of what some LGBTQ+ people go through, but I feel like it does more harm than good by insinuating that people who are only starting to question their sexuality in their 20s actually knew way beforehand and are in denial anyways.

I'm glad that more books are being written with bisexual main characters, especially in their 20s, but I think next time I'll be reading an own voices book instead.

Thanks netgalley for a free arc for an honest opinion.

This was an easy read but unfortunately there wasn't much depth in my opinion. I think there will be a lot of people that do like this book more than me but I feel like it fell a little flat. I just wanted more from the characters.

I wanted to love this book so much more than it did. If it had been a story just about Sinter and his developing understanding of both his sexuality and his relationship with his best friend, Andy, I would probably be yelling from the mountaintops about how everyone needed to read it. Instead, we're given a b-plot that's unnecessary and doesn't serve the narrative, his best friend is sometimes a jerk about Sinter not being "out", and using trauma to get two characters together in the end is just an exhausting trope in LGBTQ books and I wish it would stop.

The moments where the story is singularly about Sinter's self-acceptance and his exploration of his deepening feelings with Andy were so beautiful and I wanted so badly for the book to have more of that. I did appreciate the diversity the book offered - a gay Latinx main character, a transgender side character, a bisexual main character, to name a few - and had this book been more about identity, there would have been so many good things to work with. Instead, this book fell flat for me. I enjoyed parts, but not the whole.

I received this Arc in exchange for a review from netgalley.

This is a fun and enjoyable queer read that will be great for New adult and YA readers alike. The musical references where a highlight for me and loved the playlist included.

Although I like bits of this book, sadly this wasn't for me. I felt that the characters needed a bit more development. I do, however, think other readers will love it.

I think this book very much could have been written with more nuance if it were written by a queer author (which I do not believe the author is). The fact that Andy and Sinter's main relationship issue is that Sinter does not feel comfortable coming out, the handling of a trans character, the way that Sinter's homophobic parents feel very "How not to behave" instead of feeling like real characters. There are things as a queer person that I could find fault with if I though too hard.

However, I absolutely loved Sinter as a character. Even if parts of him felt a little on the caricature side of being a queer person, I still did relate to his self discovery. (I also did not realize that I was queer until I was in my 20's). I found myself rooting for Sinter the whole time.

I also found this book very easy to read, despite the sometime hard subject matter. The plot sometimes tipped a little too into "Lifetime movie" where just bad thing after bad thing seemed to be happening. But I never particularly found any of it unenjoyable.

I would have liked a little bit more from the characters in this one, but over all I really enjoyed All the Better Part of Me!

Sadly, this book wasn't really for me. I think I thought this was going to be a cute NA LGBT romance with a lot of fluff - at least that's the impression I got from reading the blurb here on Netgalley. What I got was something different; namely drama, which I don't really care for. I wish this book would have focused more on Sinter's and Andy's relationship and would have skipped a lot of the aforementioned drama.

However, I did like SInter as a character and in terms of bisexual representation, it was pretty good!

I am 100% sure other reads will enjoy this book; drama is my pet peeve and too much of it can make me lose interest in a book, which is what happened here, sadly.

**ARC provided by Netgalley and publisher in exchange for review**

As a reader, sometimes we dive into a book with high expectations formed from a pretty cover and excellent blurb. Occasionally, our expectations are met and exceeded. Typically though, we build up the anticipation and possibilities of the story too high for the author to ever meet so the book falls flat and we’re left feeling bereft. Unfortunately, that’s what happened to me with All The Better Part Of Me.

I dug into this novel with high hopes of having great bi-representation. I was excited for an epic love story, but what I got Instead was something lack-luster. There’s hardly any build up in the relationship between the two main characters and it left me wanting more. Sure, they had a friendship prior to getting together, but it almost seemed as though the interest in the male protagonist’s friend came on suddenly and without much depth behind it. There was no meat to their background, just a sprinkling of potatoes.

In the end, I was left wanting. I have no doubt that there are people out there that will adore this book; they’ll find it as lovely as the cover. As for me, I’ll have to give it 2.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for providing me with this ARC in exchange for this honest review.

Dnf at 43%. I feel almost apologetic for this, but not quite, as NetGalley can appreciate my having to read and review ARCs in continuous stream and not slogging through something that isn't quite capturing and holding my attention.

That being said, there's a nice, simple fluidity about the author's style of writing. Unfortunately, the something deeper I'm craving isn't there, and the earnest tension I'm craving is nuanced and not really explored.

I don't think this book is for me, but if it manages to keep you hooked after 43% then I'm sure it will be rewarding by the end. Maybe.

The writing was really good and I could totally see what the author was doing here. If for some reason this book captures your attention give it a go. There's a reason why I requested it.

Unfortunately, though the elements of the story were well put together it just wasn't for me. Possibly more to do with where I'm at, than any fault of the actual story or the author.

Would definitely recommend to others.

(4.5 Stars) Sinter and Andy Such a delight to read...and omg bi pride all over this cover. Check out my video review —> https://youtu.be/N5l7FwPhfEQ

**2.5 stars

Ok. I am having a difficult time with this. I got to a point that I was ready to stop reading and give up, but I pushed through and am kinda glad I did? I have very mixed feelings about this book.

Let's start at the beginning. Sinter is an actor currently in London and his best friend Andy is in Seattle. They haven't seen each other in seven years, but text every day and have grown up together. Andy is gay and Sinter is discovering that he may be bi-curious/bi-sexual and that he may have feelings for Andy. But--as the reader--I have no clue what brought this on. It kinda is just there all of a sudden and he begins these flirtations with his best friend over text and then eventually comes out to Andy. And with Sinter's visa coming up he decides to move back to the States--move in with his best friend--and give it a chance between them.

But there's also Fiona, the director of the current movie he is filming who he has attraction and mild flirtations with. They end up having sex before he jets off to explore things with his best friend. She's heartbroken and he feels bad, but really what can he do?

Andy and Sinter pretty much get started in the exploration part of their friends-with-benefits arrangement right away and I was disappointed. The only interactions we got between them were the many texts and they weren't meaty. We get some history of the two of them, but not enough to really solidify a bond of such friendship and certainly not enough to make a connection like this believable. I wanted more of their history and I wish we could have gotten more page time of them reconnecting and building a new relationship.

Add on top of that Sinter's parents being religious homophobes (really, anti anything "normal") and his need to have a relationship with them and you'd think there was enough to really flesh out a solid story. But then......

I knew it. As soon as Fiona asked to talk to Sinter and I HATED IT. She was pregnant. I almost stopped reading then. There was already enough angst with Sinter discovering his sexuality and love for his best friend, being scared of coming out, and his relationship with his parents. But then you add a pregnancy and unrequited love on Fiona's part. The only thing that saved this was the fact that Fiona wanted to put the baby up for adoption and Sinter wanted to keep the baby and they worked it out. Butt I just felt like it was unnecessary.

THEN I didn't really like how Andy reacted or really, how anyone reacted to the pregnancy news. Andy came around in the end, but still. And again, this story almost seemed like it was Sinter-centric and there was very little Andy and Sinter relationship development. I don't know if it's because they have history, but I didn't really get a chance to want them together before shit was hitting the fan.

AND THEN, as if they hadn't gone through enough, Sinter decides to fight for Andy and then Andy gets in a car accident while Sinter is meeting his daughter and getting her from London. There was just sooo much going on that I felt was so unnecessary.

BUT, I have to say towards the end I was getting major feels. I don't know if it was because all the baby stuff was hitting way to close to home for me or if it really was sweet, but that got me. And the end with Andy and Sinter was super sweet and I did tear up, but at the end of the day, I wish the story was kept simpler and really just focused on character development and the development of Sinter and Andy's relationship.

So, I didn't hate it, but I didn't really love it either. I smiled, I teared up, and I got a little bit of an ache in my chest towards the end, but it took too long to get there and there were just too many unnecessary situations for me.

I voluntarily read and reviewed and advanced copy of this book, received through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I started reading All the Better Part of Me with very high expectations. The colours of the cover, the summary, the fact that -finally- we seem to be getting more novels about bisexuality. I was ecstatic. And the book delivered for approximately the first third of the novel. After that, let's call it like this for the sake of avoiding spoilers, came "the surprise".

The first part of the book was great. I was very excited about it. Sinter is this adorable theater geek who -kind of- looks like a rebel and has all the emotional baggage that make this book so compelling. His relationship with his parents is strained at best, but the relationship with Andy, even if most of it is seen through messages in this part, is CUTE with capital letters. I. was invested in that couple from the very first line. Sinter is a really endearing character, he can be awkward, he can make. mistakes, but the author narrates it in a very compelling way, reflecting the constant feel of confusion Sinter feels over Andy and Fiona, the director of his first big acting role.

What I call the second part of the book, or the other two thirds, comes after "the surprise" Sinter finds out about when he decides to go back to the USA and work out what his relationship with Andy is going. "The surprise" makes Sinter reconsider everything he had wanted until that moment and has a big impact in his life, affecting his relationship with many people, including Andy. While the writing style was still good and engaging, I couldn't enjoy the book as much as before from this part. To me, "the surprise" was an excessively dramatic element and maybe a tad too cliché. I would have preferred if Sinter was made to examine his life choices because of another reason instead of this one, it just felt unnecessary. Also, something else I wasn't thrilled at all was Andy's pressure on Sinter to come out AND something that, once again for the sake of avoiding spoilers, I'm calling "the incident". Another unnecessarily dramatic cliché.

Overall, 'All the better part of me' is a cute and fun YA novel in some aspects, not so good in others. Many of the conventional elements from the YA genre (questioning your sexuality, falling for your best friend, pursuing your dreams) are there, even some of them fell flat. If the summary seems interest, it's worth giving it a chance, it's an enjoyable light read with an endearing main character.

I liked this story but it didn’t live up to my expectations to love it. The blurb and the letter written by the publisher excited me and I couldn’t wait to start. But when I did, I quickly realized this wasn’t as appealing as I’d hoped. I hate to admit this but I read a few chapters and stopped for a few days and then went back and read a chapter and stopped. Somewhere around the time Sinter came back to the US, I decided to DNF. And then I pushed a little farther and Sinter’s BFF, Andy, snagged me. Before I knew it, I was not only engaged by Andy, but I started to like Sinter, at least enough to keep going.

Life happens even when we are deeply immersed in a story, and I’m sure I’m not alone in saying that sometimes outside forces in real life heavily influence my mood, which in turn heavily influences my enjoyment of a book. In this case, waiting awhile helped me. And after Sinter was given exciting, or rather shocking, news from Fiona, his English girlfriend, I started to read in earnest. Andy was a wonderful character: a strong friend, a kind lover, a brilliant developer, and a source of many of my tears. No spoilers, but I will say that he does indeed provide tear fodder in both a positive and a negative way. But I loved him even more by the last page.

Sinter? I struggled with Sinter. From his total cluelessness about Andy’s feelings to his free love with Fiona, to his decision to let Andy go to Toyoko, there were so many instances in which I wanted to smack him, I can’t even list them all. But there were positives, including his decision about being a family man. Again, no spoilers, but what happened, and how he managed it, changed my opinion of him. He didn’t fall apart when his world teeter-tottered, and he faced major decisions with grief, good grace, and humor.

The author’s writing style is polished, the main characters interesting, and the host of secondary characters, from friends to family, were diverse and supportive. I advise readers to keep going if, like me, the early chapters don’t grab you. Overall, I can now say I liked the story, and after all my false starts, I enjoyed how it played out. It’s a good story for those who enjoy friends to lovers, sexuality awakening, long-distance lovers, and for those who enjoy a sprinkle of UK in their books.

My main conundrum with this one was the two disparate narratives (the pregnancy and the coming out) which never quite married up. It felt a bit like two novels mashed together and it didn't always gel as well as it could. For a book marketed as being explicitly about bisexuality (hence the cover!) I was disappointed in the weight given to the pregnancy storyline. I felt also that this book suffered from the same problem that many books about mlm written by women has, which is the potential fetishisation of mlm. I'm not sure there is a way around that beyond being aware of it.

Aside from those queries, I found it enjoyable. The narrative voice was always consistent and engaging, and Ringle is a highly competent writer. The book was a quick read in the best ways; the prose flowed and it never jarred, which is a compliment indeed. I think if perhaps it had been marketed as less of a book about bisexuality and more about one man's life experience outside of but including his sexuality, I would have got on with it better. It's a good book and I'm glad I read it.

So, despite the author's note at the start of this book, somehow the first half of this still came off as a straight woman writing her m/m fantasy love story. There was just something about it that didn't feel wholly right. I did like Sinter and Andy, and eventually their story felt more real, but Andy remained a one-dimensional character throughout. There was no depth to him, there was no personality there. He was kind of just THERE, super quick to accept that Sinter liked him despite never having outwardly shown an interest in guys before, he was extremely okay with sleeping with his lifelong best friend without commitments, and he was totally on board with raising a kid he didn't really want. It just felt as though everything was about Sinter and what Sinter wanted and needed out of life and how Andy just kind of molded into that.

Which, like, yeah, he was a great boyfriend, I suppose. But I also just wanted to see something real there. I wanted some actual emotion between the two of them rather than just Sinter suggesting something and Andy immediately being on board.

I loved Fiona and Sebastian and low key wish we could have gotten more of them because they were grand and I need them to live happily ever after. I liked Fiona and Sinter's relationship and the fact that he actually wanted to keep the baby while she didn't. I feel like that's not something we really see a lot of in these kinds of situations; a man wanting to be a father and a woman not. I really loved that.

Overall, it was a decent enough love story, and I think the baby definitely made it more interesting, because before that, the whole first half of the story was rather bland and meh. But baby Verona made everything a tad bit better.

A really sweet friends to lovers book. Poor Sinter is going through a lot, and you just want the best for him.

I liked this book. It took me a few days longer to read than usual for me (for this length of book), I think because I wasn't particularly drawn back to it with any urgency as I have been with others recently.

Don't get me wrong, it is a nice read. It is everything I thought it would be - a m/m romance, struggles with questioning sexuality, family, friends, coming out, homophobia, unaccepting parents. At one point near to halfway I did think, this is too nice (other than Sinter's mum and dad being unsupportive), I can't see where it is going! But then an event occurs which in hindsight I should've seen coming, but I didn't so it came as a good twist at just the right moment. The plot picks up pace from there on with another event which again moves things on for the characters involved.

It is the first book I've read with a bisexual main character so that for me was very interesting to see how he was portrayed and his interactions with both men and women. It is also my first New Adult read, straying away a little from my usual Young Adult titles. I can see a distinctive difference between YA and NA that I wasn't sure would be there, but I liked it! It is still young, fun characters but with more “grown-up” issues without being middle aged humdrum.

Whilst addressing some important issues this book is a light, nice read. Ideal Summer reading, to take on holiday or just spend a couple of days relaxing with.

*I received an e-arc of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*