ain character Elliot is a senior. He is bullied and a loner. He does have a twin sister, Eleanor, but she is taking college classes and doesn’t see her much. When his lab partner changes to new-student Jordan, Jordan attempts to befriend Elliot. Elliot is hesitant at first, but eventually realizes he likes Jordan's company. And, the more and more time he spends with Jordan, the more he wonders if he like-likes Jordan.

What I really liked about this book was Elliot's character. He was sarcastic, witty, and liked to cook. (I really like when cooking is apart of a book.) I also enjoyed reading his though process of figuring out his sexual orientation. It seemed realistic. I also like how he tried to defer bullies from bullying others so no one feels how he does. Although that isn’t his responsibility, I appreciated him wanted to protect others. And I loved the ending!

The only have to qualms with this book. One was how Jordan told Elliot he would convince Elliot he was gay. I think the author intended that to be flirty, but that seemed pushy to me. I also did NOT like at all was how Morgan, Nate, and Cole’s bullying was “taken care” of by Holly. I thought that what she did was also bullying.

Overall, I would recommend this book. The good outweighs my qualms.

I really wanted to love this one. The concept was cute and definitely something I would enjoy, and I'm always here for LGBT stories. That being said, the way the bullying was handled really threw me off, and I wasnt particularly fond of the way Elliot came to acknowledge his sexuality. There was also sometimes too much mundane details which kind of bogged down those sections and made it slower. I definitely think other people would like this book, and I hope the author continues to write more! This one just didnt hit me the right way.

The main characters are cute together and I did enjoy their relationship as it progressed. I WANTED to love this but it was very problematic with how it dealt with certain things.

The publisher kindly offered me a reader copy via NetGalley. Yet, this is an honest review of the book expressing my unbiased opinion.

First of all, I just want to say that I really, really wanted to love this book. YA LGBTQIA+ contemporary is where my heart lies. I did enjoy this book, but at times, it was problematic.

Let's start with the positive! I loved the two main characters and the side characters quite a lot. I also enjoyed the voice/prose. The two main characters had a lovely chemistry, and you root for them from the very beginning. There was also asexual representation, which was done well, in my opinion.

However, there were a few problematic areas. *minor spoilers to explain those areas* The MC went from a guy who had never explored his sexuality before to being gay because of his attraction to the love interest, Jordan. We never really saw Elliot actually explore his identity. He kept repeating, "I'm not gay", to being gay--without considering if he's actually bisexual or pansexual. Once Elliott admits he's gay, then Jordan picks him up and squeals out of joy. I felt very awkward reading that. At the end of the story, when Elliott talks to his parents, it turns out they had put a bet on his sexuality, which made me--personally--cringe.

There was also extreme bullying in form of verbal insults and physical abuse as well as homophobia. There were no content warnings, and these matters didn't get resolved at the end, either. The plot involved horrific outing of Elliott's sexuality. If there were content warnings, I'd have been prepared and maybe it wouldn't bother me as much, but when I started reading, I thought it would be a heartwarming fun LGBTQIA YA book. Suffice to say, it is not.

Overall, the main couple is very cute together, and I did enjoy their relationship as it developed. But the story has problems, and as a queer person, I urge for content warnings.

3 stars – ⭐⭐⭐

Author: Mora Montgomery
Publisher: Wattpad Books

I was given the opportunity to read an ARC of Lab Partners by NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Lab Partners by Mora Montgomery tells the story of Elliot Goldman. He is a high school senior with a twin sister in college (she graduated early) and two loving, though somewhat absent parents. He is a loner who is bullied mercilessly by three boys at his school.

Then, one day Jordan Hughes walks into his life. Everything changes after that. He has a friend, a confidant, and maybe something more. This book explores tough topics like bullying, depression, and discovering one’s sexual identity and orientation. Told from Elliot’s perspective, we get a first-hand look at the effects of all of these things on a young adult, and how he thinks about and processes everything going on in his life.

Lab Partners was a good book with a sweet story but was not without its flaws. Sometimes, the writing style felt a bit stilted and the descriptions of mundane tasks overly detailed. For example, there is an entire scene of the details of making pasta, even filling the water in the pot. This just seemed unnecessarily long.

However, the overarching story and the plot were good. The characters were well-developed, and the ending was satisfying. Because of this, I give the book 4 stars (though it would be more akin to 3.5 stars, honestly). I would recommend this book to any young adult, especially those dealing with bullying or with issues regarding their own sexuality.

I think that this book was trying to do a lot of great things. It was dealing with bullying, with depression, with LGBTQ issues surrounding identity, anxiety about finishing high school. It seems like a great premise and Eli is a really sweet and fun main character to read about. I do think that a lot of the resolutions in this book felt a little predictable and Eli's shift from thinking "I'm not gay" to accepting Jordan's assertions that he is felt a little off. The writing felt a little stilted and awkward at times, particularly in the dialogue (I’m sorry I snapped. My head is killing me and it’s making me more irritable than normal). I don't know many teen boys that say that their headache is making them more irritable. A decent read, but didn't blow my mind.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of "Lab Partners" in exchange for an honest review. "Lab Partners" is a short, cute and fairly enjoyable book. It is about a boy named Elliott who struggles with being bullied at school. He is a good kid and attracts the bullies attention in order to spare some other kids from being bullied. Everything is pretty much standard for him, no real friends outside of school. But then he meets his new lab partner Jordan who is also new to the school. Jordan is determined to be Elliott's friend. Soon Jordan lets Elliott know that he is gay and into Elliott. He tells Elliott that he will "convince him that he is gay too". Well he sure does. Before you know it they are kissing and a couple. That ramps up the bullying quite a bit and Elliott takes a lot of physical abuse. I wanted to give the book a higher rating at first because I did enjoy it, however there are some problematic areas that just keep bugging me. I hate that Jordan had to 'convince' Elliott he was gay. I hate even more that Elliott decides so quickly that Jordan is correct. This just doesn't feel real to me because Elliott is supposedly a boy who has never questioned his sexuality before. He thinks "I'm not gay, right?" a few times but really he comes to the realization and to peace with it very quickly. Also the bullying resolved itself in a very typical and cookie cutter manner. The characters are fine on the surface but just not developed too deeply. I love LGBTQ books because representation matters and we should find these books as easily available as ones feature hetero relationships. However there are better books out there. Still this wasn't terrible and I'm sure many readers will enjoy it.

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3121116980?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Review: Thank you to the publishing team and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!

This book was a super cute and easy to follow contemporary. I loved following the story of Jordan and Elliot If you love the classic "Wattpad" book, it is perfect for you. The romance was charming and I was rooting for the characters the entire time. I felt there were some plot holes and places where the description went on for too long, but besides that Montgomery's writing style was pleasant and a fun read. I enjoyed the story and felt like topics like depression and the struggles of coming out were displayed well. Overall, a read I would recommend to anyone looking for a fun contemporary, coming-of-age read!

This was so good!
I loved the story and the characters were sweet and relatable and fun. I especially loved the AroAce representation :) The book not only addressed the fluidity of sexuality and discovering yourself, but also dealt with bullying, alcoholism, depression, and abuse. Elliott was a great main character, he stood up for others and was bullied for it, he was true to himself and just trying his best to make it through high school. I was so happy when he found Jordan and he had someone to lean on.
The pacing was well done, the characters were fleshed out, and I had a great time reading this!

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review.

TW: homophobia, bullying, depression

POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD

Elliott Goldman's life isn't easy. He lives in a small town, his twin sister is smarter than him and already in college, while he's in senior year, his parents work a lot, he feels lonely, he's bullied at school and he can't wait to start over in college, if he can choose one. His life changes when he's partnered with the new kid, Jordan, who is sweet, caring and understanding. And one day Jordan kisses him, pushing Elliott to question his feelings and sexuality, while trying to survive the last school year.

What I liked:
-The characters. Elliott is complex, Jordan is cute and the sort of hero and turning point of his life, Holiday is weird and sarcastic.
-The story, It was simple, quick and cute, addressing majior issues like bullying, homophobia, but without developing them too much.

What I didn't like:

-The writing style. Especially in first chapters it was like reading a shopping list. ""I was able to pull out a large pot for the pasta and a smaller one with a matching lid for the sauce. I held the larger pot in the sink and turned on the water. The pot grew heavier under the running faucet."
I honesly cringed while reading bits like that. In the beginning it was too descriptive, stalling the whole story.

-Ironically Jordan. I liked him as character, overall, but I didn't like the way he pushed Elliott, "convincing him" to be gay. I hated reading that part, because Elliott needed time and space and Jordan forced him to think, to decide. I had the feeling that, having more experience in coming out and being gay, Jordan felt entitled to maneuver Elliott, at least a bit.

Holiday. While I appreciated her revenge on Elliott's bullies, it was cruel and unnecessary humiliating them revealing Morgan's alcoholic father and his abusive life and Nate's family's history and to forcing Cole to be outed in front of everyone, basically fighting fire with fire. I find it tacky and I'd prefer if she only denounced the aggression and revealed Morgan's infidelity and Nate's weed.

The school and Elliott's parents.
I hated reading how the school and the teachers didn't intervene while it was clear that Elliott was being bullied. The nurse knew, the Mrs Reed knew and none did anything. It made me really angry and upset.
Besides Elliott's parents knew about the bullying and let him decide for himself. Ridiculous.
As a parent could stand still while his/her son or daughter were bullied. I found it unbelievable.

- Bullying and homophobia. I wish they would be better developed and not in the "I'm threatening the school to show the video to the police in order that it could decide to finally intervene" way.

Except for this issues, I liked this book, It was a quick read and the story is sweet and romantic.
Its characters are interesting. Elliott is sweet, he likes cooking, he tries all the time to defend other people from the school bullies, attracting their attention to him (he did it the first time defending his sister) and his loneliness and depression is acutely shown in the book. His sister is busy with school, his parents with work, Holiday, his sister's friend weird and vengeful. Jordan is like a knight on the white horse and he turns his life upside down, pushing him away from his comfort zone, making feel safe, loved and understood. I like reading about their relationship.

4.5 stars

I am so pleasantly surprised by this novel. From the cover and synopsis, I assumed this would be a typical YA romance with LGBTQ+ representation, but it's so much more!

Eli is such a likable character. When readers meet him, he has already been the victim of extreme bullying during middle school and - so far - all of his high school career. It's frustrating to watch this bullying escalate from verbal abuse to physical assaults of varying degrees. The adults - teachers, administrators, and parents - all know it is happening, but they have put the onus on Eli to say when it's okay to act, which I found completely infuriating but also totally realistic. The way bullying is handled here, from the escalation to the repeated failures of adults who could act but choose not to, is messaged really effectively for young readers. While adults should be able to step in and not only see but correct these issues, sometimes, the expectation falls on the victim to do the frightening and often unsafe work of outing their own bullies and standing up to them alone. On a related note, I liked the way the conversation turned from bullying to hate crimes when this became explicit and relevant.

The relationship between Eli and Jordan is extremely adorable. Eli's coming out process - his questions, his uncertainty, his discovery of romantic love and related physical feelings, and ultimately his connection to Jordan - were all incredibly endearing. Also, the conversations around identity are handled well: especially between Ellie and Eli. The varying ways in which the parents support (or don't) their LGBTQ+ children are also authentically written and articulated.

This is more than just a YA romance. The messaging here about bullying, coming out, and identity in general is powerful and well constructed. I'll be recommending this one to students for the foreseeable future.

High School senior Elliott Goldman has been a victim of bullying since middle school. He doesn't have any friends and has gotten used to being an outcast. When he meets his new lab partner Jordan Hughes, they form an instant friendship. As they continue to spend more time together outside of school, their friendship slowly turns into something more, leaving Elliott to question everything about himself.

I really enjoyed this book. The author's easy to read writing style quickly drew me into the story. Elliott and Jordan were relatable and likable characters. Jordon was definitely my favorite character. He was so kind and supportive of Elliott. I wish that every kid struggling with bullying or coming out has someone like him in their lives. It was very easy to root for them as individuals and as a couple. One of my favorite parts of this book is the moment when Elliott realizes that there's hope. That he doesn't have to silently endure all the bullying and that it's okay to ask for help. It was a very powerful and encouraging message. I definitely recommend this book. It's a heartwarming coming-of-age story that deals with some very important topics.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

DNF 30% - I liked the premise of this book, a sweet and super cute m/m romance who meet via a school lab partnership. Feelings grow, there's self-discovery, etc. I didn't mind the characters themselves and there's a lot of potential here in terms of theme and plotting. What I struggled with is the writing itself and that is what, ultimately, led me to throw in the towel. Some of the sentence structure felt awkward and difficult to read. Additionally, some of the most mundane actions received overly long descriptions. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate passages with lovely, flowing imagery, but I don't need that when it comes to opening a locker or plugging in a phone. There are times when brevity is best and these expansive expositions on making pasta or the Rolling Stones greatly affected the novel's flow, disrupting the narrative and taking away from the moments that would have truly benefited from more vivid descriptions.

While it feels unfair to give this title a star-rating as I didn't finish it - it was the concept that initially sold me and there is a lot of potential here, hence the two-star rating.