I've always wanted to do one of those Ancestry DNA kits, just to see what I can discover. That is just what Abby decisdes to do because her friend does and she is shocked to discover that she has a full blood sister whom she didn't know existed. This sister is well known on instagram and soon the girls are trying to learn what happened.

I read Tweet Cute earlier in the year and find myself preferring that story more. Overall, I did enjoy this one.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for the advanced reading copy.

Oh my, You Have a Match is such a cute read! I had such high hopes for it after loving Tweet Cute and it didn't disappoint. It's a light-hearted read that packs a bit of an unexpected emotional punch at times as it explores themes like adoption, newly discovered siblings, genetics, romantic relationships including LGBTQ, family drama, and self-discovery. While I say it packs a punch at times, the book never is "heavy" and stays a relaxing, feel-good read-just the kind of thing to pick up when life drama gets in the way or you want to just settle in for a read that lets you just take it all in without deep thought.

I never went to summer camp and am an only child, so I can't really relate to those aspects of the book but it makes me wish that I could. I loved the Parent Trap movie (old version) when I was a kid, and this totally has that vibe but modern-day with DNA, Instagram, and LGBTQ characters (I loved Mickey). The characters are complex, flawed, human, the story is well-written, hilarious, lighthearted, and just plain cozy feeling kinda book.

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the DRC. All opinions are my own.

FINALLY, a YA book that isn’t about romance… don’t get me wrong, it has romance in it but that is not the central plot/theme of this book.
I absolutely adored the unique premise and the relationship between sisters throughout this book.

At 16 Abby and her friends all take DNA tests. Abby and Connie have a bet going on to see who is more Irish and Leo wants to learn more about his Filipino heritage as he was adopted. Abby isn’t expecting to find much when she opens the email containing her results. She is especially not expecting to find out that she has a full-blood 18-year-old sister living 30 minutes away…

I seriously loved everything about this book, every character was developed beautifully and the relationships that Abby had with everyone was amazing to see. Savvy and Abby were definitely my favorites and the epilogue was just perfection.
Highly recommend to anyone who wants a Parent Trap type book and also is lowkey sick of YA romance tropes (not saying I won’t still read them because I will but this was a nice refreshing take on a YA book)

You Have A Match is coming out next month and I can’t wait to see all the love it’s going to get! Thanks to @netgalley @stmartinspress for the ARC.

#Review This book was everything you’d hope for in a YA novel about summer camp. When I first started this one, I wasn’t sure if I’d like it, but the characters slowly won me over especially as Savvy entered the picture a little more. Adoption is a big focus on this book, and I thought @dilemmalord handled the topic beautifully. The focus on relationships of young teens and their parents was also done well. Can’t wait to see more books like this!

With only a few days left in the year, I didn’t think I would have time to finish another book before the last day of the month. But as I was planning my January and February “to be read” lists yesterday, I got a bit anxious over the insane number of books I have lined up for those 2 months, so in a moment of panic, I decided to get a head start on one of the January releases on my list. In anticipation that I would likely be reading whichever book I chose through the new year break, I wanted something potentially light-hearted and fun, a relaxing read that wouldn’t require me to do a whole lot of unpacking. Scanning my lists, I came across Emma Lord’s sophomore novel You Have a Match and after reading the summary, I knew this would likely fit what I was looking for. I’m usually not much of a YA or romance reader and though I was aware of this author’s much beloved debut novelTweet Cute (which was actually recommended to me a few times last year), I never got around to reading it, so going into this, her second book, I wasn’t too sure what to expect. It turns out this book was exactly what I needed at the moment – a cute, fun read that explores modern day sentiments (i.e. social media, adoption, LGBTQ relationships, complicated family dynamics, sibling rivalry, genetics and DNA testing, etc.) in a way that isn’t heavy-handed, which I definitely appreciated. Many reviews of the book mention the Parent Trap vibe of the story, which I completely agree with given the antics of the two sisters Abby and Savvy, though the story and characters also reminded me of other famous literary “sister” relationships such as Beezus and Ramona from the Beverly Cleary books (which I adored when I was a kid) and the Wakefield sisters from the Sweet Valley High series.

As for the summer camp setting, it definitely felt like a throwback to my childhood days of camping with schoolmates and Girl Scouts, something I haven’t done in decades, so it was fun to get to experience those memories again (even if it’s only briefly through a few short scenes). Reading this book actually made me nostalgic for those carefree days of youth, which isn’t a bad feeling to have right now, to be honest.

If you’re looking for a feel-good read with endearing characters and an engaging story, I would recommend picking this one up. I actually surprised myself by finishing this book in two sittings, with the unexpected result of now being able to add another book I enjoyed to my 2020 recap.

Received ARC from Wednesday Books via NetGalley

Thanks to Wednesday Books for the free review copy. All opinions are my own.

This book is about what happens when two teenagers discover they're sisters and end up at summer camp together. It's reminiscent of a modern day Parent Trap. I really enjoyed the summer camp setting for Abby and Savvy to get to know each other. There's something about being isolated together that creates a great story between two strangers who are unsure of what they want. There's also romance, friendship, and parental problems woven into the story. I liked how Abby had a lot to work through and her internal struggles were examined in depth in the story. I felt like she was a well-rounded and complete character. I did want a bit more from Savvy at times, but I felt like the ending worked for both of them.

Abby decides to join her friends in taking a DNA ancestry test. Expecting nothing out of the ordinary, except to find out if she's more Irish than one of her best friends, she's shocked when she receives a message from someone who's DNA results prove she's Abby's sister. Determined to figure out what led to their parents giving Savvy (Savannah) up at birth, Abby follows Savvy to summer camp.

I loved the premise of the novel and was intrigued to figure out the big secret as to what happened between Abby's parents and Savvy's adopted ones. The reveal was unpredictable and fitting for the novel, however, the build-up was slower than I liked. For the first half of the book, we see Abby getting ready to go to summer camp, and then she and Savvy bicker endlessly once they're both there. I thought both of their behaviors were weirdly contradictory to why they both went to summer camp.

I liked both Abby and Savvy as characters but wished they were more developed and that we could see them interact more. I think that having both the sister storyline and the friends to lovers trope was too much plot-wise. I believe that picking one of those relationships to center the novel would have led to greater character development.

<i>The ARC of this novel was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.<\i>

When Abby signs up to take a DNA test, she does it in solidarity with her friends, so she certainly isn’t expecting any surprises. Well, she gets one. She finds out that she is a younger sister. The younger sister of Instagram influencer Savannah “Savvy” Tully, to be exact.

Abby signs up for the summer camp where Savvy is a counselor so that the two can figure out why their parents gave Savvy up, but things get (if you can believe it) more complicated from there. Savvy is a stickler for rules, and Leo, Abby’s best friend (and crush who she super awkwardly almost kissed one Super Awkward Time), is a co-chef at the camp, which makes it harder to ignore her growing feelings for him. And Abby’s parents have a massive secret that threatens to change everyone’s lives.

YOU HAVE A MATCH by Emma Lord is a complicated, joyful, hilarious, and heartfelt sophomore novel from an author whose work I will definitely be picking up more often.

This was my first time reading Emma Lord, and I fully plan on reading TWEET CUTE at some point and picking up every subsequent release. The premise of the novel is so creative, given the rise of DNA testing over the last few years, as well as the rise of influencers. I think what most impressed me about this novel, however, is the sheer amount of <i>stuff<\i> that the author tackles in this book, and how she manages to balance it all quite gracefully. There’s the main plot, which is the discovery of the secret sister and finding out the why of it all, then there’s Abby’s budding relationship with Leo, her grades, the grief she is still confronting after the death of her grandfather, and other subplots still. Any less capable author would cause whiplash in her readers dealing with all this, but Lord is masterful with all of them.

Another aspect of this book that I absolutely adored were the characters, and also their relationships. Abby is a decidedly flawed human. She takes rules as suggestions, she’s a reckless daredevil, and she deflects like it’s nobody’s business. At the same time, there were so many things about her that I understood and loved and related to. Abby’s grief over the death of her Poppy, even a year after the fact, is still acute and profound, and as someone who lost my grandmother a little over a year ago, I understood it wholeheartedly, and seeing someone else’s grief was cathartic.

As I mentioned, Abby’s also a daredevil, and this is where Leo, her childhood friend and love interest, comes in. He’s her safety net. Abby jumps--or more likely falls from a tree after climbing it to try and get a picture of the sunset--and Leo is always there to catch her. I absolutely adore those kinds of protective relationships, and once these two are characterized, it is easy to understand their dynamic and see how they fit together so well. I love a doting leading man, okay? Change my mind.

At the same time, Savvy was an extremely well-developed character in her own right. I could easily see why she is the way that she is. Savvy knows that she’s adopted, just not the circumstances surrounding it, and I think that helps paint the picture for why she’s so particular about everything. All of her Instagram posts are perfect, her image precisely curated. As a textbook Type A person, I related to her need to adhere to rules and have complete control over her image. I got her aversion to risk (and also why she brings her dog everywhere--if only I could). I thoroughly enjoyed watching Abby and Savvy figure out how to fit into each other’s lives, and the way that this book is an ode to the powerful bond between sisters was incredibly touching and refreshing.

Additionally, the dialogue in this book was fantastically pithy and downright ROTFL levels of funny. Abby’s chaotic monologue had me laughing out loud in super awkward company, but it was totally worth it.

All this to say, Lord thrives with developing complex characters and the relationships between them. I kind of wish this book was coming out over the summer, because it’s so perfect for that time of year, but if that was the case, then we’d have to wait longer to read it, so really, how could I possibly complain?

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a delightful, Young Adult rom-com that will make you laugh, tear up, and get butterflies within the span of a few pages.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the opportunity to read the ARC of this book.

Super Duper cute! I loved Emma Lord’s TWEET CUTE and found YOU HAVE A MATCH to be equally fabulous. When Abby agrees to take a DNA test along with her BFFs Leo and Connie she never thought it would turn her world upside down. imagine if on a whim you send in your DNA to one of those ancestor websites and find out you have a secret sister. Not a cousin, not a half-sister, but a full blooded sister and even more unsettling she looks a lot like you. Abby is still reeling from the shock of it when her long-lost sister savanna reaches out to her. Savanna and Abby meet and decide they are going to team up investigate what secret their parents are keeping. Why did they give Savanna up for adoption all those years ago? OK now here is where you need to stretch the believability a little. So Abby is going to acquiesce and go to a SAT prep camp that her parents have been bothering her to go to. Savanna just so happens to be a junior counselor at this camp, but wait... it gets better! Leo, Abby‘s BFF/secret crush is the chef at this camp and has known Savanna for years. Abby didn’t put these pieces together because the camp has changed its name. not very likely, but so much fun!

Loved the summer camp setting of this book. It was fun watching Abby and Savanna get to know one another, even though they were so very opposite. The Romance in the Story was cute and understated. more than the romance I really loved the family dynamics in the story as well as watching Abby Bloom. as a parent it really made me think about expectations we put on our kids and how sometimes we just need to sit back and listen to they have to say (I’ve got much better about this through the years). Eva Kaminski narrated the audiobook, she gave the perfect feel and voice to the story. this was a fun feel-good story that put a smile on my face and gave me the warm fuzzies.

This book in emojis 🧬 📸 🌅 📱 🦌 🌳 🔦

*** Big thank you to Wednesday Books & Macmillan Audio for my gifted copy of this book. All opinions are my own. ***

Emma Lord’s next book better feature TikTok or I’m going to be severely disappointed. Just saying.

On to the actual book.

This was a super-stressful read. I kind of remember Tweet Cute being the same, but not quite as much. I think it’s because of how Abby handles difficult situations is very similar to my own. It probably isn’t the best way to handle things and I don’t like confronting my flaws. So, sometimes I was really uncomfortable while reading.

This had some real Parent Trap feels. THere’s sisters who didn’t know each other getting to know each other at a summer camp. Savvy and Abby are very different people who butt heads over their personality differences. Although this isn’t as light and humorous as The PArent Trap. The relationship between Abby and Savvy was probably my favorite part of the story.

Now that I think about it, Ms. Lord does good/complex friendships. She did it in Tweet Cute and again here. They feel very real and organic. Each person in the friend group has a different relationship with each other. I love when writers acknowledge that happens.

It’s a small thing, but I love the lesbian rep. It just exists. I think Tweet Cute had a similar thing. I know there are still bigots out there, but this feels a lot more like my high school and how my friends treated anyone gay in our school. It wasn’t a big deal or issue. I’m hoping that fiction being like this is representative of the world as a whole.

I’m still not in love with Emma Lord, but I’ve enjoyed both her books and am interested to see what she writes next.

I love loved Emma Lord's debut Tweet Cute so I had high hopes going into this one. WHICH was not a problem because I absolutely loved this!

Lord just has a way of writing teens in such a realistic way and I adored the story and setting and the characters.

I am so excited to see what she writes next!!

Thank you for an early copy.

For her sophomore novel YOU HAVE A MATCH, Emma Lord took everything that was great about TWEET CUTE and multiplied it. MATCH has so much heart and warmth and these immensely memorable, real and lovable characters. It made me wish I could travel back in time and go to summer camp with Abby, Savvy, Mickey, Finn and Leo. While the story definitely takes some cues from Parent Trap, it never felt predictable or reliant on the tropes from that story. Overall I just think Emma takes so much care to craft her characters and setting that it's no surprise how much they jump off the page and stick with you days later. I can't wait to see what she writes next!

* Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC. All opinions are my own.

This book was just fun. It made me smile, and during the pandemic that's something we need more of. This was a fresh YA novel that will appeal to a wide audience. It was something like a modern day Parent Trap without twins and where they plan on going to camp together. I especially appreciate how Lord has a variety of gender identities included in the book without making any sort of deal about it.

When a DNA test reveals that Abby has an older sister, her life turns a bit upside down. She didn't even want to take the test in the first place. After meeting her sister, Savannah, the two plan to go to the same summer camp where Savannah has gone for years. Of course more surprises are in store for everyone when they get to camp even before dealing with how their parents are involved.

Many parts of the story were predictable, but I didn't care. The characters that Lord created were fun and challenging, full of life. All of the teens were dealing with issues that were true to life - young crushes, friendships, misunderstandings, secrets, and complicated issues with parents. A wonderful new addition to the YA market.

Abby is shocked when the DNA test kit returns the news that she has a sister! Savannah (aka Savvy) is her polar opposite in so many ways- Abby tests the rules which Savvy enforces and she take pictures while Savvy poses. The two come together at camp where Abby's long term crush Leo is also working. These three find out that there's more to each other than they knew. It's a nice story of family secrets that turn out positively. The teens feel real and the plot is well constructed. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. This might be YA but I enjoyed it as a happy feel good read.

I am so sorry but I just think this book is so boring. “My life is basically a CW drama right now, is all.” That's the MC's words, and also exactly how I would describe this book. Exaggerated familial drama with many ridiculous details that make no sense. I get this is supposed to be a quick feel-good summer read but I don't think there's anything particularly unique in this book that could stand out from the others. It's just, really mediocre

A quick, sweet read. I love sisterhood and this book did not disappoint. While I do feel like there were some loose ends that didn't get wrapped up to my satisfaction, I overall enjoyed the book.

At the start of 2020, Emma Lord released the witty Tweet Cute, a Twitter rivals-to-lovers romcom, and now she is back with another book! You Have A Match is a modern take on The Parent Trap movie, and where Tweet Cute used Twitter, Instagram is the social media platform of choice this time. You Have A Match follows budding photographer Abby, who discovers she has an Instagram influencer sister that her parents have kept secret, and the two sisters plot to head to summer camp together to work things out. You can also expect a friends-to-lovers "will they, won't they?" subplot, plus a handful of silly pranks and schemes, and of course, that big family secret.

I think Lord really gets social media and writes about it well. A bit of knowledge about Instagram would give readers an advantage, but for those not familiar with the platform, it shouldn't make the book less enjoyable. It does explore how using the app affects people, and I think the message around responsible use of these types of social media platforms is a good one for teenage readers. It's not preachy, but I feel like there is a lesson to be learnt.

Lord's writing style is enjoyable and the voice is easy to get into, it's what made Tweet Cute one of my favourite reads of last year. Like in Tweet Cute, this will appeal to your senses as one of the characters named Leo loves to cook, so there is plenty to smell and taste. Once again, I think she hits what it's like to be a teenager really well. There are times where characters feel lost and confused, jealous, sad, and wanting to get back at their parents! I could definitely relate, and think lots of readers will have felt these emotions at some point. There is quite a bit of miscommunication between characters in the story which creates drama, and life would be so much easier if everyone just says what they mean, but when have feelings and emotions ever been easy to deal with at that age?

You Have A Match does have sensitive themes around family and brings up adoption, and I cannot comment on how well this topic is handled and represented as this is not something I've ever had to experience myself. Experiences can vary, the book can only show how its characters choose to feel and behave in their own unique situation. Saying this, the book never takes itself quite too seriously. It's emotional, and there are tough moments, but it's broken down into short chapters and there are lots of jokes, banter, silly scenes, and tender moments to break it all up. On the one hand you could argue that it doesn't take certain issues (adoption, family trauma etc) seriously enough, but on the other hand, you could argue this is a teen book also trying to be a coming of age comedy set at a summer camp. Sometimes I felt like the book was trying to tell two stories at once, so the secret sister plotline sometimes had to take a back seat where it should have been at the centre stage. It is still a positive book though, honestly reading this was a ray of sunshine after the year we just had! I would definitely check out anything else Emma Lord wants to write a book about, she's one to watch!

If you've enjoyed Emma Lord's previous work, then read this book. If you haven't read her books yet, then pick up this book. If you're a teenager or ever been a teenager, read this book!

Abby completes a DNA test in solidarity with her friend Leo, who is looking for his birth family. While Leo doesn't find a match, Abby does- with a full sister about whom she knew nothing. Savannah is a year and a half older than Abby and, at first glance, they couldn't be more different. They hatch a plan to attend the same camp that summer to get to know each other and try and figure out what happened (why was Savvy given up for adoption?). Turns out Leo is also at the camp.

This read like the YA novel that it is. It had a lot of themes and is a great book for discussion. The themes included adoption, DNA tests (would you take one? would you look for matches?), family, friendship, grief, family expectations, a little bit of romance, and what do you do when things don't go as planned? I would have been okay with a few less themes and getting to know the different characters a little better, but, overall, found this to be an engaging book.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and Wednesday Books for the gifted copy.

I loved Tweet Cute, and I was so excited when I found out Emma Lord had a new book releasing. You Have a Match is about a girl named Abby who, along with her bff Leo, takes a DNA test - but while Leo doesn't find out much, Abby finds out she has a full blooded sister that lives only a few miles from her! Abby is part excited about a sister, and part horrified that her parents had a child before her and she had no idea. Abby and Savvy meet and devise a plan to attend camp together to try to figure things out.

Along with this story line, Abby has a huge crush on the bff Leo - who also attends that same camp!

This is a super cute YA read that deals with the surprises that sometimes come with the popular DNA tests on the market, and crushing on your bff.

3.5 stars!

This book made me so nostalgic for summer camp and teen summers! This book was more than a YA romance, it was packed with family drama and lessons about friendship and growth. I found this book to be enjoyable, but nothing special or notable. If you’re looking for a fun read, that packs in a lot of different elements or just looking to relive your summer camp days, then definitely check this one out!