*ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My heart has bursted several times and I am in love with this book! Wow! It's exactly what I needed to read.

I don't know how to review this - and tbh I feel like this every time - but when a book has a special place in your heart because of how much you connected to it, it makes it that much more difficult.

I loved Darcy and Alexander on so many levels individually and as couple! The development of the relationship between them feels very natural and real. Definitely one my favorite YA couples.
This books covers internalized biphobia so thoroughly it was great to see in contemporary young adult.
Perfect on Paper is wonderfully queer, all of the characters were distinct and well-rounded.

Gosh, I wish there were many more pages! I cannot wait to reread this again!

I received a copy of this book from Wednesday Books and Netgalley.

This book is such a fun, comforting read. I wasn't expecting it to cover internalized biphobia so thoroughly but it was such a pleasant surprise. That's really the only spoiler I'm going to give for this delightful book, but I loved every page!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this novel early.

Warning light spoilers


This book is completely 100% a LGBTQ+ book.
But most of all this was a book for bisexuals with internalized biphobia.

And Oh my goodness I loved it for that.

To get a little personal, I'm a bisexual female in a relationship with a man. The internal struggle that Darcy feels in this novel hit me in a very strong way. I cried during a scene near the end. I have never felt so valided by something I was reading before.
Anyways...
As I said at the beginning this book is VERY Queer. It has a large assortment of characters across the LGBTQ+ board. And the best part. NONE of them felt forced or unnatural. Queer stories are filled with coming outs and transitions (And these are very important stories to tell!) But in this story, being Queer is already a big part of the characters identity. It was completely natural and just another part of who they are (like their hobbies or their hair color) and that was so refreshing.

I was so worried this book would be cliche. The premise of a person who has this big secret and then gets discovered by someone they don't like, and then gets blackmailed so their secret can be kept; it can feel over done. And sometimes the liar revealed section (and there always is one) of the story can feel very forced. But this book executed it perfectly.


All and all. This book was the perfect comfort read. And I would 100% read another book by this author (I didn't even mention that their prose was wonderful). And I will be reccomending this book to some friends when its released next year.

This is one of the best #LGBTQIA books I’ve read and an excellent YA novel. You know a book’s got you hooked when you actually care about the characters, when you’re rooting for them even when they do something stupid and when you stay up late reading because you just have to know what happens. This book was all of those things and more. Highly recommended. I received an #ARC in exchange for an honest review. #NetGalley

This book is for the bisexuals. It really has the kind of bisexual representation we need more of.

Darcy anonymously gives relationship advice to students who drop letters into Locker 89, and her business is successful, perhaps just a bit too successful. When she is caught one day opening the locker by Alexander Brougham, he asks her for help with winning his girlfriend back, only this proves to be a bit more complicated than the relationship advice Darcy normally gives…

As I said, this book truly is for the bisexuals. For the bisexuals who struggle with internalized biphobia, who get told they need to choose a gender or get weird looks when they tell someone they’re into someone of another gender when they’ve mostly been having feelings for people of the same gender. It even addresses how people from within the community can unknowingly perpetuate biphobic ideas, which is so important to talk about. But it also celebrates bisexuality, with a main character who is proud of her bisexuality and who finds solidarity within the Queer and Questioning Club at her school.

The development of the relationship between Darcy and Brougham feels very natural. Darcy misjudges him initially but eventually finds that she was wrong about him, although she still isn’t afraid to call him out when he says something she doesn’t like. Seeing them grow both as individuals and together was so incredibly lovely; it’s been quite a while since I read a book, especially in the contemporary genre, in which I enjoyed the romance so much.

Let’s not forget about all the other important relationships in this book though. Darcy’s relationships with the women in her life are very important to her, and it’s always nice to see a book where the main character has important relationships beyond their romantic one. Her sister Ainsley is transgender, but that just happens to be part of her just like her being a YouTuber and fashion lover is. Her relationship with her best friend Brooke is arguably the most important one, even though it is complicated by several things, but I really liked the way this was all handled.

If you’re looking for a lovely YA contemporary with amazing bisexual representation, a well-written romance, complex female friendship, and fun high school drama in the vein of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, I would highly recommend picking up this book in 2020!

Whenever someone needs relationship advice, they know where to get it. They slip a note along with an email address into locker 89 where they then receive an email giving them a more detailed explanation for their problem. If it doesn't go well, they get a refund but that doesn't happen much. Darcy's advice has a success rate of 95%!

The person behind locker 89 at school has always been a mystery until Alexander Brougham sees Darcy Phillips opening the locker and taking its contents out. To risk her secret being exposed, she reluctantly agrees to be Brougham's relationship coach to help him get his ex-girlfriend back.

The diversity of the characters was done very well. Darcy herself was bisexual and is in love with her best friend Brooke Nguyen, who is lesbian. Problem is, Brooke doesn't know that Darcy has a crush on her. The inclusion of the Queer and Questioning Club provided a safe place at school for students to share whatever they felt comfortable without being judged and I loved that about this book.

This book is close to being one of my top books. I love how the author started some chapters with a letter addressed to Darcy for Locker 89 and a response following it. I thought that letting the reader see how Darcy responded to the letters added to the character itself.

I've been waiting to read this book since I came across it and I'm so glad I got the chance to read it! The pages flew by and I finished the book in no time. I can't wait to read what else the author has written!

I'm in love with this author's writing style and will gladly read anything and everything she ever writes. Following Darcy was a blast from start to finish and I wish we could keep following these witty, funny, and relatable characters. Looking forward to re-reading it soon.

Highly recommended LGBTQIA YA Contemporary read. When this reaches retailers - run, don't walk!

Perfect on Paper is a wonderful, funny, and cute rom com! It's very engaging and well-paced, and I flew through it. It has an entertaining but also interesting premise, with a likable lead character who felt a bit different - Darcy is relatable and more emotionally intelligent than you often see in contemporary YA, but she was still flawed, had relationship issues of her own, and made mistakes. I really enjoyed her dynamic with Brougham and watching their relationship grow, though both he and their relationship could have used just a bit more development and depth. Similarly, the subplot with Brooke was a little flat, but I'm relieved it didn't become a love triangle. However, the representation in this book is amazing and refreshing - both casual and serious, plus very inclusive, and the discussion of biphobia was so important.

This was my first Gonzales novel and I'm so excited to have found such an amazing author to follow! The story follows Locker 89 and it's 95% success rate when it comes to love and dating advice! The magic behind Locker 89 is Darcy Phillips, a researcher of love, dating, relationship styles, and personalities. You would think with all of the head knowledge she's acquired, Darcy would be a pro with her own dating life and falling in love, but she's actually never dated anyone. Alexander Brougham is a brooding, quiet guy with a cute accent and a challenge for Locker 89. Things go way off plan for Darcy when Brougham finds out who is behind Locker 89 and it stirs up old hurts, new feelings, and a huge lesson that sometimes love isn't black and white and the researchers don't know it all. Gonzales has a super relatable writing style that helps you step into the pages and walk down the halls with Darcy. Her characters are very well developed and her flow and pace are brilliant! I loved the fact that her high schoolers were more mature than some YA characters, but they maintained that fresh feeling of first love. I requested and received an advanced reader copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Pippa, My Secret Book Spot

All right, let us all take a moment of silence to thank the gods for giving us the most talented author, Sophie Gonzales. I LOVED reading this book. Perfect on Paper has a wonderful BI rep, tackling issues that BI people constantly struggle with, and it has also helped me so much to be educated on these said things. I found the type of attachments presented in this book highly informative to me in the way that I was also able to identify myself in the things that were presented. Yes, It was an informative and an educational book but it has also done its job on the romance comedy department as it didn’t forget to flutter my heart. Darcy and Brougham’s dynamics was so good, I loved seeing these two together, they made me smile so much.

*spoilers*
Aside from the different reps we got from this book, issues revolving family, school, and friendships were also present which makes this so much more a perfect book for teenagers to be able to relate to. The part where Darcy was being manipulative towards Brooke’s life was handled well, that kind of behavior was problematic so I was glad that after everything, Darcy apologized and has seen it by herself how the actions that she has done was wrong and how the people were affected by it. This is why I would honest-to-god promote this book to every one of my friends because this book dealt with so many issues and helped me become more knowledgeable in a lot of aspects that I haven’t known before. After this book, I would gladly read anything Sophie Gonzales writes.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for providing me an ARC of this wonderful book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I didn't think I would like the romance in this book because Brougham was kind of irritating in the beginning, but in the end it was pretty cute. The climax of the book definitely made me really emotional and the characters were all pretty lovable, especially Ainsley and Finn. The pacing was good, the plot was creative, and all the character relationships and developments were well thought out and executed. Overall, it's a cute queer teen romcom.

I can't decide if this should be 3.5 or 4 stars so I'm going to give Perfect on Paper 4 stars.

Darcy Phillips has a secret. She runs the advice locker at her school. The idea is simple; anyone who wants relationship advice slips a letter and $10 into locker 89 and they'll get an email giving them solutions to their problem. Things get a bit more complicated when Alexander Brougham catches her retrieving letters one day he convinces her to help him win back his ex. Desperate to keep her secret Darcy agrees and the plot kicks off. There's plenty of shenanigans that ensue and while Darcy tries to use her powers of advice for good you'll see that's not always the case. When Darcy hurts her best friend she needs to figure out how to fix it, all while making sure her secret isn't exposed to the school.

I liked Darcy as a main character, she was witty and entertaining. The queer representation in this novel is great and Darcy herself is bisexual and trying to navigate that while running her advice locker. One thing I didn't like about the book was that the plot was really predictable. It seemed obvious how everything would play out and I could see everything that happened from a mile away. While this isn't the worst thing I do like to be surprised and a plot twist or two is always nice. The ending was happy and I thought it was wrapped up nicely. The plot was a fun high school romance story and I laughed along with the characters. I had a good time reading this and it was a quick read.

Overall, I enjoyed this and think others would too. It's a cute high school story with queer representation throughout in several characters that feel real and relatable. The storyline of Darcy giving anonymous advice was great and I would recommend this!

Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. As always, all opinions are my own.

I absolutely adored Perfect on Paper. It was one of my most anticipated reads of 2021, and I'm so grateful to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review it. I've never seen such an honest and validating representation of a bisexual character that openly discusses internalized biphobia, and it was very healing for me to read.

The more YA books I read, the more I wish they were available when I was a teen. I don’t remember having any conversations that revolved around the topics in this book. I’m so glad young readers are able to have these stories to generate conversations and most importantly, help individuals.

This story included strength, self realization, maturity and growth.

To start, this read like a typical high school story. The language was a tad choppy but it reminded me of the quick thoughts teenagers have. They were quick, short lived, and constantly moving. High school is ever-changing and most kids feel SO many things during this time of their lives.

My favorite parts of this book? The celebration of diversity and love.

I really learned a lot from Darcy, who identifies as bi. As our main character, she admits to having bi-phobia in thinking by being bi and having straight tendencies, she’s not truly queer. Her friends rallied around her to tell her, “yes, you’re queer and you don’t have to prove anything to anyone to be queer enough.”

It was such a positive affirmation that young kids need during high school. Shoot, I think some adults could use it now.

This book is so cute and I definitely recommend it.

CW: alcohol, drugs (marijuana), cheating, biphobia (external and internalized), toxic parents, divorce

High school relationship guru Darcy has it all figured out - how to get over a bad breakup, how to balance attachment styles, and even how to get a friend to see you as more than friends. She's the anonymous advice giver behind Locker 89, where students can drop $10 for an answer to their romantic woes. But when Alexander Brougham finds out Darcy's secret, he wants more than a single letter of help - he wants her coaching to win back his girlfriend Winona. And the plot only thickens from there...

When I read YA books, especially those involving romance, I like to see that the author is showing healthy relationships and honest communication rather than the toxic, all-consuming love we often see in the media. Gonzales does a great job on this front. Darcy is bisexual and dealing with the stigmas associated with bisexuality; we also get a lot of great queer representation from her friends in the Queer and Questioning Club. Darcy's actions don't always carry the best intentions, and Gonzales rightly calls her out for manipulating others rather than pretending that her actions are justified by love. Brougham is a more complicated character than meets the eye, and Gonzales thoroughly explores the effects of his parents' broken relationship on him. The book takes place at a wealthy school, so class issues also abound, but the book is grounded enough in reality to avoid feeling like an after school special. Overall, I enjoyed this book a lot - it was a fond trip back to high school, but filled with much more diversity than the books I remember reading back then.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for providing an ARC on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Perfect on Paper isn’t the simple enemies-to-lovers story it appears to be. It is more complex and touches on multiple themes including friendship, healthy relationships, and identity. Gonzales does a wonderful job of handling these multiple themes, with the highlight being exploring identity and acceptance that comes closer to the end of the book. Additionally, there is a range of representation in the novel that alone contributes to making this a worthwhile read.

Darcy is a developed main character who has a window into the relationships of her peers. While the transaction is supposed to be anonymous, it becomes clear this isn’t always the case. There are often bits of information that allow her to infer who the writer is, and this becomes problematic. Although she tries to stay objective in providing advice, it isn’t always easy when the relationships she reads about will impact her life. As much insight as she has about relationships, it starts to become clear that it can be difficult to navigate when they are your own—made much more complicated when it makes you question your identity. Ultimately, relationship theories are just a simplification of the world, and real life is much more complex.

I enjoyed Perfect on Paper and look forward to reading more by Gonzales.

High schooler Darcy Phillips has a secret: for the past few years, she's been the 'relationship expert' behind Locker 89, which she uses to run an anonymous advice service for fellow students. When popular, arrogant Alexander Brougham catches Darcy and enlists her to help win back his ex-girlfriend, she reluctantly agrees in order to ensure her secret stays under wraps. With her 95% success rate, it should be a piece of cake, right? Besides, she has a few other secrets she'd rather not have come to light. Of course, things rarely go as we envision them...

At the start, I was a bit worried I wasn't connecting with Darcy, but as the book went on, I quickly began to see bits of myself reflected in her. Such as the tendency to intellectualize instead of actually dealing with what we're feeling. She's written with authenticity and humanly flawed, which I prefer to see in YA rather than unrealistically idealized characters! At times, I strongly disagreed with and was frustrated by her actions, but I could also recall my own emotions/experience as a high schooler and know that I might have acted similarly in some of the situations. Another aspect I enjoyed was getting to experience the development of Darcy and Brougham's relationship through Darcy's eyes. It really emphasized how her perspective on him evolved over time, taking us on that emotional journey along with her.

In addition to being full of fun tropes and cute moments, I also appreciated how the book addressed some more serious topics. The writing style wasn't my favorite at times–for example, it felt overly descriptive or stiff at times, and I did find myself wishing for a bit more depth with some of the characters (like Brooke), the positive aspects outweighed that for me in the end. There were so many parts of the book that I could relate to with strained relationships with parents and being a child of divorce. I also truly appreciated that the LGBTQ community is so normalized in the book; (while still important) characters' identites were just part of the greater sum of who they are rather than being treated as their primary defining trait. It was so monumental to me to read something where biphobia (both external and internalized) is explicitly discussed on the page, as well as being something the main character deals with throughout the course of the book. Perfect on Paper is a book I wish I'd had when I was in high school and first beginning to navigate my own bisexuality.

Thank you St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

TW/CW: alcohol, drugs (marijuana), cheating, vomiting, biphobia (external and internalized), toxic parents, divorce

I absolutely ADORED this book! I was gushing from the minute Brougham entered the story!! I love how normalized the LGBTQ community was shown in the story, and I think this was the first time I picked up a book where a bisexual character was worried about being in a heterosexual relationship. I thought this was really important to bring up, because there are people who struggle with this. I love the growth of self-identity throughout the story, as well as themes of true friendship and family. Definitely an amazing read!!

This book exceeded every expectation I had. I loved Only Mostly Devestated, so I had high hopes for the newest book by Sophie Gonzales and I was so blown away by how much I loved it. The characters are very three dimensional and really give you a sense of who they are. They were also so diverse! It's really powerful to read a book with a spectrum of sexualities and gender identities. and is something so needed in the YA book community.

The plot is also hilarious. Full of hijinks and high school romps, it also has some really powerful discussions of things such as internalized biphobia. As a bisexual woman in a straight passing relationship, this really resonated with me as this concept of, "Am I queer enough?"

I think that this is a really positive and important, unique and fun read that is a welcome addition to the YA genre.

I must admit, I don't know if I had high expectations for this book. Not so much because of the plotline or the subject, but I do think I subconsciously lower my expectations whenever I read a young adult contemporary. Then I go on and wonder why every young adult contemporary I read surpasses my expectations by a mile. Maybe I need to get over my prejudices and just admit that I love them. The fact is, I inhaled this in one sitting. It started off exactly as I thought it would, but slowly grew on me. The more you get into the story, the more you realise it has a lot more to say than just the story of a teenage girl being blackmailed into becoming a personal agony aunt, which is pretty much the only thing the cover summary promises. I did not expect this to hit me hard and fast in the face about what it is like to be a queer teen in this day and age. I've read my fair share of LGBT books at this point, but I'm always surprised how each and every one of them peers into my soul and forces me to conquer my inner thoughts and feelings. The writing was not the strongest writing in the world, and was a bit too descriptive in some areas for my taste. Certain locations felt like the author had googled an image and was describing literally what they saw, leaving it very basic and surface-level. Other times, I felt like I had no room to imagine things on my own, with exact instructions on what people looked or acted like. I appreciate when authors give me something to go on, but allow me space to let me elaborate and make them my own. I think that’s the beauty of the author-reader relationship - the author gives the foundation, but the reader’s imagination makes it truly magical. The romance plot was predictable - inevitably they were going to get together, but they were definitely going to have some bumps along the way. This book is recommended to readers who love To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, and I would say this definitely has the same kind of vibes and plotline.

I wasn't that into Darcy at first. She seemed very one-dimensional and I found it difficult to see where she was coming from and why she thought the way she did. While she puts an incredible amount of thought and effort into each letter reply she writes, she jumps to conclusions and judges people awfully quickly in real life. Within the first few minutes into meeting Brougham, she thinks she has his whole backstory figured out, all of his relationship woes and how he interacts with other human beings. He's here asking for help, and she has an attitude about it and shoves him into the stereotypical box she's created that every teenage boy she knows fits into. But as the story goes on and we do get to know her a little better, I began to appreciate this aspect of her. Nobody is perfect, and it's about time that the literary world stops trying to write
main characters with perfect flaws - i.e. flaws that are basic and tolerable. I want more characters like Darcy, who I don't even like to begin with but slowly start to warm up to after they begin to identify these flaws within themselves. Halfway through the book, I felt like I was a part of Darcy and her feelings, like we were on more of an even ground as she became more likable as a human being. Her feelings are valid. Her actions are valid. Rather a bit flawed, and sometimes her reasoning behind things are selfish and immature, but she's a teenager for crying out loud. She's allowed - even encouraged - to make mistakes. It's the only way she can grow. On the other hand, she's super knowledgeable in giving her relationship advice. I was astounded and blown away at how mature and reasonable her responses sounded. It was admirable in how much work and effort she puts in behind the scenes to help these unknown strangers. Which is why it's a bit of a turnaround when it's revealed that she hasn't always done so without meddling for her own gain. But again, she's a teenager and we have to forgive her for the mistakes she's inevitably going to make, because it's just a part of growing up. This isn't to say that what she may have done is excusable, but redeemable. One day, none of it will matter.

I wasn't really into Darcy and Brougham's relationship at first either, but as I'm writing this, it's because I didn't feel like I knew either of them. When they first began to work together, every bit of dialogue felt fake and forced, and I couldn't understand how I was supposed to relate or feel sympathy for either of them. As the story progressed and I got to know them both better, this slowly went away. And then we find out that the foundation of their relationship was built upon a miscommunication and slight of word, and everything changes. I found myself second-guessing everything, just as Darcy did. Reading into things that I dismissed before, drawing up theories of my own as to what everything meant. I was taken aback by this turn of events, not really being a plot twist, but rather making everything a bit clearer. I liked this aspect a lot in the book, because it felt a bit like plot twists were coming after me in very quick succession. Nothing was safe from having a hidden meaning.

Brougham as his own character I felt a bit dull, and the same goes for Brooke. Both felt rather plain and boring, making it difficult to imagine why Darcy had become friends with them at all. Their backstories are explained a bit, but not really enough for me to care about them aside from their relationships to Darcy. I certainly couldn't see why Darcy was into Brooke at all, making it far more interesting to the story when she started to distance herself from any past feelings she had for her. And eventually, I just got right upset with Brooke. I understand her emotions and where she's coming from, I do, but I would have thought her years of friendship with Darcy would have had some credence to stop her from making everything crash and burn. When Darcy's secret identity finally was revealed, I struggled with whose side I was taking - Darcy's, who apologised profusely and came clean when she thought was appropriate, or Brooke, who took her anger and threw Darcy under the bus almost immediately, leading to far more consequences than I'm sure she intended and were necessary. At the end though, I do like how Darcy made amends to salvage their relationship through helping Brooke fix hers, and how they aren't necessarily BFFs again but working to rebuild their trust with one another.

I think the best part of this book is the discussion around bisexuality and biphobia. It's something that Darcy struggles with over the course of the story, knowing that her most recent crushes have all been girls, as another crush starts to build with a boy. Even having Brooke on the discriminatory side of things made the subject that much more real and accessible. The scene near the end of the book, while taking me by surprise, was a great discussion - even among queer youth - about bi erasure and the identity struggle one may have if they choose one gender over another. By the time it came around, I had forgotten that Ray and Darcy share this one important bit of identification, and clearly both struggle with it and society's depiction of it in similar ways. Because of this, I wish it had been brought into the story earlier as a way to bond them together. Up until then, they were very much pitted against one another as opposites, and it would have been nice to be reminded that they have more in common than they think. In a comment on the book's Goodreads page, the author makes a comment how this book is a subtweet to all of those people who think bisexuality is either this one thing or this one thing, how it cannot be both, despite literally being in the name. I thought that was brilliant. No matter what gender you are with, it doesn't negate your own identity, and certainly doesn't mean others get to label you for you based on what your relationships look like on the outside.

My general philosophy when it comes to books is that I’m all for characters and don’t even pretend to give a crap about the plot. This time, while I found the characters and writing on the weaker side, I preferred the discussions it brought up amongst the characters, and the general themes and comments on society that it makes as the strongest suit of the story. I’m also not a huge fan of pop culture references, and this book has a fair number. TikTok in particular is mentioned, and I’m not sure that existed even a year ago. Riverdale is mentioned, which came out when I was in university. And Darcy frequently mentions that her parents watched How I Met Your Mother when she was young, and I watched that when I was in high school. I think it might just be that these references make me feel old that I don’t like, but a warning in case you are the same. (Their teacher is 27. 27! I could date him. Ridiculous.) Anyway long story short, while some parts of the book struggle, other parts make up for it. Regardless, the bi rep and discussion about biphobia certainly is worth it. Sophie Gonzales wasn’t on my radar before, so I’m looking forward to checking out the rest of her books. But dear Sophie, what kind of name is Brougham???

(I know it’s a kind of car, I googled it. But I think that strengthens my point.)