I’m a huge enemies to lovers fan so I knew I had to read this. Love the rivalry between them and the sex positive writing in YA. Definitely will read more from these authors.

Enemies-to-lovers is not my fav and I had the same problem with this one. Being mean to and sabotaging each other isn’t chemistry. However, the writing was still good, and I love that their books are consistently sex-positive. This was my least favorite of their books so far, but I'll still be continuing to read what they release.

A huge thank you to Penguin Teen (#penguinteenpartner) for the ARC of this book!

This is a classic enemies to lovers trope in a high school setting with two over achievers. It’s funny, witty, and a quick read! I thought Alison and Ethan were pretty comical, and it reminded me a lot of Meet Me at Midnight, which I adored.

What I really liked about this book is that while it definitely follows the rivalry between Alison and Ethan, as well as Alison’s own personal journey through her senior year, it also has some important supporting characters. Each of them are also trying to “figure it out” at their various stages of life. We have some LGBTQ representation in Alison’s best friend Dylan, and an older sister who still doesn’t have her entire life figured out in her mid twenties living back at home.

I was so excited to read this because my favorite trope is "enemies to lovers" (hate to love, however you want to word it). I love when people can't stand each other and fall in love.

This book took me 26 days to read- this is pretty abnormal for me. Unfortunately. the first half just dragged and dragged and I struggled to want to pick it up. The second half I read in just a few days because I was excited to see where it would go. I can't pinpoint my struggles I had with the first half. The two main characters (Alison and Ethan) are high school seniors who always compete with each other to win at everything. I thought it sounded like a good concept, but felt like the first half of this book was the two of them competing, whining and judging each other (and others in their lives).

I was also a bit baffled that it took 2 seconds (not even) for them to hate each other fiercely and then their hands and lips are all over each other. I do love me some hate to love, but that was quick for even me!

While a super toxic relationship, to me, I still rooted for them to succeed. And I still gave this 3 stars because I read the second half really quick and it did suck me in with curiosity. I just wish I had liked the first half a little better.

Thank you to PenguinTeen for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to the publisher for giving me early access to this title. For some reason I found it very hard to connect with the MC's of this story but on a more personal level, and for that reason I don't feel it's fair to rate it. I appreciate the opportunity, but I do not want to bring down a book or it's rating due to a personal issue with the novel.

“I'm surprised this many people want to celebrate his birth. I would rather commemorate it the way one would a natural disaster or other unfortunate occurence -- somber social media posts, vows to stay strong on this dark day.”

What’s Not to Love explores the relationship between two HARDCORE rivals who have been involved in a cut throat rivalry since freshman year. Their goal? Win the coveted Valedictorian and get into Harvard.

There’s a lot of forced proximity when they are forced to work on a project that will make them spend lots of time together outside of the fact that they already have the exact same school schedule. Like I said. It’s extreme.

The antics really get crazy. There seemed to be nothing that the other wouldn’t do or say to get under the others skin and come out on top. Literally it was almost like they would have competed over who brushed their teeth the most efficiently.

I found it humorous and very entertaining. I was really adamant about my academics in high school but this was next level.

Enemies/rivals to lovers? Check.

Slow burn tension/chemistry and kissing scenes? Check.

Successfully built supporting characters? Check.

Exploring identity and self awareness? Check.

I wouldn’t have picked this up had it not been a Penguin ARC but that really would have been a shame. It’s extremely readable and well paced and I really was rooting for these characters...even when they were seriously being savage to one another 😂.

This made all the middle of the night nursing sessions bearable. If this seems like your cup of tea and you enjoy a spoonful of teenage angst.... I highly recommend it.

Alison Sanger and Ethan Malloy compete at EVERYTHING and will stop at nothing to one up and undercut each other at every opportunity. When told they must plan the upcoming reunion for a Harvard alum who dropped the ball, they are out to compete for who will get his recommendation to the prestigious university they both want desperately to attend. Will this competitive duo begin to see one another as more than rivals? Can that even work after being enemies for so long?

This cover is the cutest and it’s intense academic high school rivalry to will they/won’t they romance storyline was such fun to read! Married authors Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka fell in love in high school AP Bio which makes them the perfect team to write stories like this!

Look, y’all. My first Wibbroka book and I thought, “Yes! Finally reading what everyone else has been saying are a great YA contemporary pair!” And the thing is… Maybe I just went into this one with a lot of expectation. Perhaps I should have started with their first book. Alas, I did no such thing.

I thought I would love an enemies-to-lovers but this was just… a lot of competitiveness and egging on one another that I didn’t care for. Maybe because my high school experience was just so much different than Alison and Ethan’s that I felt completely disconnected. And quite honestly, I didn’t really care for Alison very much. She’s extremely judgmental and not a nice person. How in the world is she (or Ethan for that matter!) even alive after all their classes and what appears to be a lack of sleep on Alison’s part? I would have absolutely loved Ethan’s POV because we would have got his slow realization that he actually likes Alison and really, how adorable would that have been? Instead I’m stuck with a stuck-up Alison who is 100% confident in what she wants in life (that’s fine), but has serious qualms about her older sister and her life decisions when… Hello? Alison’s sister’s world was turned completely upside down.

I did, however, like the contrast between Alison knowing exactly what she wants juxtaposed against Ethan who didn’t really seem sure of much—except that he wants to be Alison’s rival and built his high school experience around that. I just… I don’t know. I’m really disappointed I didn’t like this because I flat out wanted to.

Does Alison become more understanding? Yes! And that’s fine but it felt so weird for her to judge everyone around her while she sat in her seemingly perfect bubble with extreme confidence. It was frustrating and to be quite honest, one of the reasons I finished this in a decent amount of time is I forced myself to do so and lightly skimmed some paragraphs. #sorrynotsorry

Now I feel turned off of these authors and it makes me sad. Maybe I’ll try one of their previous books as an audiobook or something.

Austin and Emily never fail to make us swoon, and this next book from them is no different! I’m a sucker for Enemies to lovers and this 100% delivered in this trope, I loved it so much! I find it hard to be sucked into YA contemporary as often as I used to as I grow older, but Emily and Austin always pull me in!

What's Not to Love by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka, Viking; 400 pages ($17.99) Ages 12 and up.

Co-authors Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka, who "met in high school and fell in love over a shared passion for Shakespeare," offer an entertaining novel of two high achievers falling for each other after years of intense academic rivalry in "What's Not to Love." (Previous works include "Time of Our Lives" and "If I'm Being Honest.")

Alison Sanger and Ethan Molloy have exhausted their teachers, their classmates and the principal with the furious intensity of their academic competition, in their AP classes and their extracurricular activities including the school newspaper. Now that they're seniors and both applying to Harvard, the rivalry has reached extreme proportions when the school principal assigns the two of them to organize the school's 10th reunion in place of the wealthy alumnus who was supposed to do it, throwing the two together on a task that requires cooperation.

Because the story is told from Alison's perspective, a fuller portrait emerges of her than of Ethan. She is the unplanned late-in-life daughter of elderly parents. She is 18, "going on 35," as her mother would say, so tightly wound she goes to school when she's sick as a dog with food poisoning. She has such a single-minded focus on her whiteboard, her demanding schedule and her life goals that she lacks insight into herself and empathy for others including her best friend, Dylan, and her much older sister, Jamie, who has moved back home after a breakup. When Jamie decides to start a band, Allison is annoyed the music will interfere with her studying; in a very telling scene she loses all interest in Teddy, the cute bass player, when he doesn't get her reference to "Teddy and the Rough Riders." In another scene, her classmates are all enjoying a bonfire at the beach while she staffs the s'more booth, all business and unable to relax.

Ah high school. It's so bizarre to think I graduated six years ago. I haven't walked the halls or gone to classes and yet this book pulled me right back in and I loved it. With this enemies to lovers story, two rivals do everything in their power to outdo the other leading to an intensely passionate relationship that I am IN LOVE WITH. 

Opening this book, we get to meet Alison, our protagonist, and her nemesis, Ethan, as they prepare to take an AP English test. Alison has food poisoning from dinner the night before that she got with her friend Dylan and her date, and forced herself to go to school while throwing up to take this test and beat Ethan. While I had healthy rivalries in high school (comparing scores and doing our best to "beat" the other person with better scores), it was never to this level. Alison and Ethan's rivalry is all consuming - everything they do is centered around it: school work, extra curriculars, hobbies, even learning how to drive is a competition for them. 

Meeting the two, I could see the passion behind their rivalry. They put in the effort at 110% just to say they won and everything between them is a competition. I was surprised with how extreme this was and how intense they got. Honestly, I should have expected their romance to be just as intense, but wow did I underestimate the passion between these two. 

The romance in this book was phenomenal. I could see it slowly developing over time, as each of them got sad when the other wouldn't play along, or the "hatred" in their eyes. As they slowly got closer to being more like friends, I could tell that something was waiting to snap and wow, did it snap. Their first kiss was an explosion of emotions and I literally was breathless reading it. Once I could catch my breath and understand what I just read, I was SCREAMING! I texted Alexa my reactions and it was a lot of screaming and agreeing with said screaming. Be sure to check out Alexa's review over at Writing the Universe - we agree on a LOT!

When I wasn't completely geeking out over their kiss and the chemistry between them, I was appreciating the growth that Alison and Ethan go through. Alison starts off pretty judgemental - she thinks she has all the answers and that things fit in their boxes. Her older sister, who moved home after quitting her job and being dumped by her fiance, is a deadbeat with no goals or aspirations. Her best friend Dylan is too blind to see how her ex-girlfriend Olivia treated her and doesn't allow herself to find better. And Ethan? He's a stuck up prick who loves nothing more than ruining her life. 

But as Alison grows and learns, she realizes the error of her ways. Not everyone finds themself in high school or even right out of it. There's no deadline on when you have to know what you want to do with your life and things are sometimes better when they change or come unexpectedly. It's such a great message and I really loved watching her go through that emotional journey and come to a more balanced and accepting opinion. 

Overall, this book is just top tier. The messages are wonderful, the romance is great, and the squeal factor is 10/10! I found myself falling in love with this book and I'm so excited to read the author's other books now. I feel like I've found a new favorite duo.

Disclaimer: I received a free eARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Alison Sanger and Ethan Malloy have been school rivals forever. During their senior year, they're forced to spend even more time together. As Alison maneuvers the last year of high school, Alison grapples with what it really meant to be a teenager and get into Harvard. Will she win over her rival with Ethan and get into Harvard / become valedictorian?

At first, or maybe more than half the book, I did not like Alison. She was judgy about everyone! BUT I think that's what Wibberly wanted. Alison is an over-achieving teenager with only her surroundings to really dictate her judgment. But overall it was a good book if you're looking for Teenage angst, rivalry to love, and family matters.

As a Bay Area native, it was apparent that they would travel to SF, but it was NOT apparent where they lived till towards the end (San Mateo). This is helpful to readers because it makes more sense about the school settings (some areas in the Bay are more affluent than others/have education systems better than others etc.).

I did appreciate some of the diversity in this book (LGBTQ+, POC) BUT HOWEVER given it is in the Bay Area I did not feel like it was enough and the one character that seems to have an existing role continuously throughout the book was a Latino drivers ed instructor. And I know that his role was to move this story along and had a good ending, but unfortunately, I felt on edge and nervous because what the driving instructor has continuously done was unprofessional and I felt that it painted the Latinx/e/a/o community as such (with already the high tensions of racism and microaggressions this community faces not only in the Bay but this country, I felt that the only added to the negative rhetoric).

The duo is back at it again and it could be a crime at how much I love their writing. Every book I read I can always relate to usually both characters and this was no exception. I love me an enemies to lovers academic setting and that is one of my fav tropes.

The rivalry on both parties or is it really? Alison's whole high school is centered around beating Ethan her rival whether it's being the ASG president or getting higher marks than Ethan or getting accepted to Harvard. When their rivalry goes a little too far, their principal assigns them to organize a 10-year reunion for their school. Soon, being put together more than they already are since they're in every class together forces them to work and stop fighting. What they end up finding is making the most of the time of high school. She doesn't like the unknown and working with Ethan and getting to re-learn her sister, Jamie who has to move back home and wondering is it okay to be the person who filled their high school with parties or late night studying?

What’s Not To Love
5/5⭐️ to What’s Not to Love by Emily Wibberley and Austin Seigemund-Broka! Thank you so much to Penguin Teen Canada and Viking Books for an egalley to review! The powerhouse writing duo that is Wibbroka have done it again, and have delivered what is perhaps my favourite book of theirs so far! This book follows fierce academic rivals Alison and Ethan in their senior year of high school as they are forced to work together to plan a 10-year HS reunion by their principal after their rivalry gets out of hand. This was the epitome of enemies to lovers, and it was so dang good! Their connection was palpable, as well as their emotions. I was so invested in their relationship, and they shared one of my all time favourite first kiss scenes! Their rivalry antics were so funny to read with how out of hand they got, and the banter 👌 Alison was an interesting character to read, and although she wasn’t conventionally likeable, I could respect her & her ambition. She is dedicated to the highest level of academic achievement, studying many hours a day, all with the goal of keeping a perfect GPA and getting into Harvard. Alison never apologizes for this, but over the course of the book she does consider if all this dedication & focus will give her the future she hopes for. I thought that the development of Alison & Ethan’s relationship was really well executed, bridging the gap cleverly between “I very much dislike you and will do anything to beat you” and “Im attracted to you and want to kiss your face”.
I highly, highly recommend picking this one up!!

Quick Stats
Overall: 4.5 stars
Characters: 5/5
Plot: 4/5
Setting: 5/5
Writing: 5/5

Well. Wibbroka have done it again.
In the past I have enjoyed their books, more and more with each new release, feeling rather neutrally towards Always Never Yours and thoroughly enjoying Time of Our Lives, and What’s Not to Love has cemented that pattern, because I ADORED THIS BOOK. Maybe I’m biased, because the rivalry between Ethan and Alison reminded me of the rivalry between me and my boyfriend years ago. I may or may not have ruined a project we were partners on, just to spite him. As Alison says… Mutually insured destruction.
I’m a sucker for rivals to lovers romances, and I’m a sucker for high school contemporaries, so this book was my drug of choice. I liked Alison and Ethan as individuals and as a couple, and I think they, by far, had the best chemistry of any Wibbroka couple yet.
I only have two complaints, and one is a minor spoiler.
Let’s start with the NON-spoilery complaint.
I don’t think either of the authors have a clue how drivers’ ed and getting your license works. I went through drivers’ ed two years ago, and my brother is going through the process of getting his license literally this week… and it is nothing like the book? There are actual classes with a book and homework and tests as well as a written exam. That just made me feel a little disconnected from the book in places, but it’s not really a big deal.

***SPOILERS***
The second complaint, again, not a big deal, is the whole “break up” for a couple chapters. I hate that trope with a passion. And I get it. It’s basically a necessity in YA Contemporary, you need to add tension, but it’s so cliche and always so stupid. I just really feel like the book would have been better without it.
***END SPOILERS***

That said, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I love Wibbroka’s writing style, and they are the masters of banter—and Ethan and Alison’s banter is next level. Everything in this book left me desperate for more. I also adore the cameos from previous couples in each book. Juniper and Fitz were perfect and it just gives me an instant rush of serotonin to see them again. I cannot wait to catch a glimpse of Alison and Ethan in whatever Emily Wibberly and Austin Siegemund-Broka come out with next.

Thank you PenguinTeen for an early eARC!

This book is Never Have I Ever and Candy Jar wrapped in one dorky enemies to lovers romance. I genuinely like this author duo's books but this one really blew it out of the water. Idk if it's the fact that I saw the comparison to NHIE in the description or what but I couldn't help but imagine Ethan and Allison as Ben and Devi. Most of the cast is white and there's no real parallel beyond the academic competitiveness and party related almost intimate moment that really line up. My brain could not picture anything else. But really that added to the experience imo.

This was such a cute story of high school rivalry turned into the most unlikely of relationships. I am all about the enemies to lovers trope, and this book played to that really well. I mean, talk about enemies. Seriously, it’s incredible to even think that Alison and Ethan could ever find each other with how much they actually despise one another. But, it was cute and fun and such an easy read. It was sort of refreshing to read and get away from the real world for a bit with this one.

At times, I found Alison to be a bit annoying. I wanted her to lighten up and enjoy life (seemingly like everyone else around her), but I know that would have negated a major premise of the book so I had to just deal with it. I loved the blasé attitude of Ethan and found it incredible he was able to be such a good student with the amount of fun and partying he has! Honestly, these two complimented each other so well. I also think that the side characters helped to compliment our main characters as well, including Alison’s sister Jaime and her best friend, Dylan.

Definitely give this one a go if you’re looking for a light-hearted read that will get your mind off of more heavy and pressing matters.

*Thank you to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for my honest review*

Honestly... there was a lot not to love. I’m so sorry that it seems like I have an unpopular opinion when it comes to this book, but I was not a fan.

So I was interested in reading it for the fact that it said that it is reminiscent of “Never Have I Ever” from Netflix, which was such an incredible show. And I definitely saw the similarities, BUT... NHIE has a cast of so many BIPOC and this book felt very white. Knocking off a show that is full of color and then white washing it felt so 1990’s. Beyond that, I was honestly bored from early on. I don’t know why I didn’t DNF.

The MC has a rivalry with the other “smart” kid at her school. They are constantly one upping each other in ways that felt both childish, petty, and incredibly tedious. I couldn’t tell you how the book ended, because I have already erased it from my memory.

I’m just sad, because I had high hopes for this and it felt very one note.... and that note fell flat.

Thank you so much PenguinTeen for sending me a free e-arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

This was adorable. This was packed with great banter and I was here for it! I really loved their competition. As well as their relationship in general! And oh my gosh Alison's parents were hilarious! They made me laugh out loud multiple times.

I really really loved Ethan. I will say, I do wish we got to know more about him and his past. Either way, he was probably one of my favorite characters.

Alison made some questionable choices at times. But, they made sense for her character. And she did end up fixing them so, I am glad about that! She was very intelligent (can't relate 😭). I do like the way she thought about her future and high school. That is mainly because my high school was not memorable at all. Do I regret that I didn't make it more memorable? I don't know. So, in ways, I related to Alison.

𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲: Banter, Competition, Writing, Family, Best Friends, Enemies to Lovers.

Thank you Penguin Teen and NetGalley for a gifted copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

The ultimate enemies to lovers romance set in high school! Maybe it's where I am in life but I am having a hard time with YA romance recently. While I could relate to the competitiveness and pressure of being a high school senior trying to get into his/her dream school, I thought the antics were a bit extreme in this one. Allison and Ethan were so determined to outdo/hate each other that I wasn't sold on their budding romance. I skimmed a lot of the first half because it was too much of the same. My favorite part of the book were Allison's parents.

Overall, it was a decent story but not my favorite.