Stars: 5 ⭐️
Steam: 1 🔥
Audiobook: N/A

This book was everything. I enjoyed it so much! The writing was incredible and the characters are so lovable!

This book was the perfect coming of age story that I needed as a teen. Being able to see these social situations through the eyes of someone with a different perspective is so necessary.

Watching Quinn grow and learn to love herself was beautiful. She is such a strong character. I loved seeing her burst through her comfort zone and become a strong young woman. It was amazing to see her find friends that truly loved her for who she is.

Carter is so dreamy! He’s so sweet to Quinn and I loved the scenes with his sister. I love that he helped Quinn feel comfortable in her skin and encouraged her to feel her emotions fully.

This book also had incredible side characters. From family to friends, the side characters added so much to the story without taking away from main character.

This book touches on a lot of racial issues that were written so well and in a way that, hopefully, will open many eyes in the future. It was amazing to see characters owning their mistakes and trying to make amends.

My favorite quote from the book was:

“I don’t think white people should say the friendly version of that word knowing that someone, somewhere is still using it as hate speech. Doesn’t seem fair to black people that every time they hear it, they have to figure out whether or not they’re being insulted.”

I felt like this quote did such an amazing job explaining something I always struggle to explain! These two sentences say so much!

✨ Thank you Joya for writing such a wonderful book 🥰

Audiobook: Although this was an audio arc I will not being rating the audio since it was a computer generated voice and does not reflect the official audio to come ♥️

I received an audiobook ARC from NetGalley & the publish in exchange for an honest review. Please note that this is an advanced copy and all quotes may change before time of publishing.

This was a great read! It explored so many things like racism, bullying, and the pressures teenagers face from their parents. I also loved that Quinn wasn't perfect and as she conquered some of her fears, she matured and became a strong person.

One of the fun parts of this book are Quinn's lists. She makes them for guys she likes, fears she has, and things she wants to accomplish. They change throughout the story and are a good gauge of how Quinn is evolving. One of the lists is used to blackmail Quinn at the beginning, but it has some positive outcomes when she's able to make real friends and have honest talks with her family.

Carter is such a sweet male lead. Quinn judges him at the beginning, but there's a lot she doesn't know about him. He's a good son and great older brother, he's smart and has a future planned, and he also encounters racism and knows how Quinn feels being surrounded by people who don't understand you. He may have made a mistake at some point, but I really liked him and definitely ship Quinn and him!

This is definitely a fun time and I'm looking forward to this being released in May!

I received an advanced copy of this audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry is being compared to To All the Boys I've Loved Before and while I understand it, I can't help but think that I enjoyed this book a lot more than the one it's compared to.

In this book, you'll follow Quinn, a girl who writes list just about everything in her journal. From all the days she ugly cried, to her to-do list before graduation but also all her fantasies about her friend who she's been in love with for a while now. So when her notebook goes missing, everything will change. Especially when someone contacts her trying to blackmail her, telling her she needs to do something from her list or else, everybody will learn her secrets, including her parents. Who is it, we don't know but Carter, the boy who misplaced the notebook by error is willing to help her even though they didn't seem to really get along.

Overall, I really liked this book. I loved the romance and the way it evolved, from the first signs of a new crush to the ending which made me happy and not just in the romance department. I'm glad I got to read this book in advance and I'll be interested to see if Joya Goffney publishes another book in the future.

(Thank you for letting me read and review an ARC)

This book follows Quinn who after working on a group project for school her prized journal ends up missing. Well turns out her journal ends up in the wrong hands and Quinn ends up getting blackmailed.

This book was so much fun! I loved following Quinn as she is trying to find her journal as well as figure out who is behind the social media account that is blackmailing her. It also deals with racism and commentary on other important topics. I think this book is very important for teens, especially teens of color to read.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sending me an audiobook arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry in exchange for an honest review.

There is so much I loved here, but only real complaint is that I wish it was longer.

On the outside, Quinn's life looks like its perfect. She and her friends are popular. The whole school knows that she got into her dream college. She is the picture perfect American teenager. Inside though, Quinn is a mess of the lies she tells herself and others and the dreams she won't let herself achieve. To cope, she makes lists of everything in her life. Until her journal goes missing.

Blackmailed into completing one of her near impossible lists, Quinn teams up with former crush turned enemy turned possible blackmailer, Carter, to try and complete it before her secrets are revealed to the world. Along the way she learns about her identity, her race and what it means to her, family, friendship, love, and self acceptance.

The narration is fun and quick and Quinn feels like an actual teenager which is always a treat. I liked the way the journal plotline played out and how Quinn develops throughout the story. I wish we'd spent more time with various characters that Quinn supposedly forms really strong friendships with by the end of the novel because she shares a handful of scenes with a few of them and then ends off the novel talking about how important those newfound friendships are to her which felt really off. The romance also progressed a little too quickly for my taste. The character Quinn has the most of an arch and the most on-page chemistry with is a platonic friend which while it's always delightful to read strong female friendships in YA, the romance was clearly supposed to be the focus here so it was odd that the book sets you up to be more invested in a platonic one.

This is an #OwnVoices story about Quinn who has to face her life of lies when a classmate loses her journal and a blackmailer threatens to expose her lists about everything from her sexual fantasies to her former friendships. Quinn’s story is a classic coming-of-age story but at the intersection of fighting parents, high academic expectations, casual racism from her white friends, a grandmother whose becoming increasingly forgetful, and a Black classmate who she’s attracted to but who makes her feel like she’s not Black enough.

I really enjoyed this story. I live and teach in the Austin area, and it was fun to see the references to the area, especially the shoutout to Leander, where I teach. I appreciated how much this story had going on that was well-balanced. The story only takes place over the course of a few days, but there were some genuine surprises in the plot, which was nice in a romance. Goffney did a great job of showing true, healthy friendship. The romance between Carter and Quinn was cute but not without its challenges along the way. I think my students would appreciate the balance of romance, suspense, and adventure. It’s a fun read that shows how dynamic Blackness is, and I would definitely recommend it!

I really loved this book. I was lucky enough to be chosen to listen to the audiobook arc!

Quinn loses her journal with all of her deepest darkest secrets in it. The story follows her around as she’s being blackmailed to accomplish things in her to do before she graduates.

It’s hard to find books with such dimensional characters with actual details that aren’t over doing it - not to mention realistic character growth. The style of writing also made the transition to listening as an audiobook absolutely seamless. I sat down and started this this morning and wasn’t able to put it down. I can’t wait until it’s released!

Great book. I especially enjoyed the characters. As teen journal-keeper, I related to the terror at having that journal become public.

This book was way deeper than expected. I was expecting to read about bullying and the woes of a girl who lost her journal.

In fact, the issue that is highlighted things that are so relevant and real it was refreshing to read this narrative.
The struggles of a black girl in a mostly white school, knowing when/how to speak up and stand up for yourself and your blackness. Quinn has many things to deal with besides navigating the scary world of race. such as grades, college, family, crushes, and bullies.

Quinn's way of dealing with this is by writing lists in her journal which is stolen and used to blackmail her. But the moral of the story is - everything happens for a reason and sometimes the worst thing can turn into the best things. Quinn has struggles and many " come to Jesus" moments but all in all, I think it made her better and enhanced her life.

I truly enjoyed being a part of Quinn's growth into a better person.

This was so cute! Normally YA isn’t my thing but I really enjoyed this. There was a lot of representation in this novel. I liked that it felt like a book about real teenagers at a real school. I like that the book went in-depth about the different struggles a Black teenager can face in high school.

Solid book!

4/5 stars

This book is a perfect YA book... it will be one of the best of 2021 for sure! I am so impressed by this debut book!

The plot surrounds a high school senior’s journal being stolen, and an anonymous bully blackmailing her. The story continues to explore deep themes like coming of age, racism, forgiveness & friendship. This book is all about overcoming deep fears and discovering who you want to be.

The characters are extremely likable. The storyline is typical, but not done in the same way you have seen before.

ARC provided by NetGalley.
I listenned to the audiobook version and other than the robotic voice (probably because it was an ARC), the story is beautiful and funny at some point.
It has black representation and it deals with family issues, friendship, bettrayal, high school gossips, bullying and racism.
Quinn's notebook list was something really personal to me, and i appreciated this story even more. Even with her struggles, we saw her grown, develepped frienships and inpower herself. The romance was really cute, kinda ennemies to lovers and I really enjoyed how it evolved.
i'm so glad i had the chance to listen to an advance copy, it was such a nice reading, it was education, very touching and moving.

Wow, this book was absolutely stunning. If you liked To All the Boys I've Loved Before, you need to read this one. Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry follows Quinn, a senior in high school, as she loses her journal with all her secrets inside, and consequently gets blackmailed. Along the way, there is romance, heartbreak, new friendships, and family drama. Although this is considered YA, there are a lot of adult themes/plot lines (i.e. racism) that adds depth, which is something I enjoy and appreciate in books usually considered "lighter" or less serious. The writing is amazing, keeping me wanting more until it was over. I'm gonna need Joya Goffney to write another book ASAP because I genuinely cannot get enough.

I just could not get into this book. I tried but was not successful. I don’t know if it was the authors writing style or the plot, but it wasn’t a book that I would enjoy reading throughout the whole thing.

Bittersweet YA romance novel with heavy emphasis on high school bullying.

Quinn is a quirky, ambitious high schooler with a unique obsession with making lists. That itself is super cute, but Quinn has a lot more character to offer. Especially when her journal with one of her embarrassing lists goes missing and now the whole school and the world of Instagram has seen it!! If this wasn't enough, the publisher blackmails our main character under the threat of publishing the entire journal.

I felt so bad for Quinn - and thought that she really had too much on her plate. A traumatizing event like this on top of bullying, being a Black girl in a predominantly white high school, parent and friendship problems and more. All relationships in her life seem to be complicated. I think this could have been a separate book, but here comes a key part: the enemies to lovers romance.

I liked this book a lot (I mean did you see the cover and the title?!) and totally fell for Quinn as a character. However, it felt like some of the difficult issues in her life weren't given enough attention.

*Thank you to the Publisher for a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As usual I want to start out by saying  I am not an own voices reviewer so please seek those out first!
Alright so I didn't really know what to expect with this book but I was very pleasantly surprised. I can't speak about how realistic this book was but in honor of the list all though this book I shall list the things I personally really liked that this book addressed.

1. A black girl in a mostly all white school
2. Family troubles
3. Bullying
4. An enemies to lovers romance
If any of those things are something that catch your attention then this is the book for you!

Book 262 towards my goal of 280! 4.5/5 stars for this YA Contemporary read! This book is so cute! I loved the characters, and the setting. This book is great for fans of To All the Boys I Loved Before! I really hope this book makes it to screen one day as well. Very well written. Highly recommend!

I was able to listen to Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry via NetGalley. While I was able to listen to this novel earlier than its publication it was also recorded with a synthetic voice so it left a little to be desired. That being said, I enjoyed the story! I appreciated the premise of Quinn's most personal thoughts coming out in true high school fashion via mean girls and social media. I appreciated the romance -- I'm a sucker for a good romantic connection. I enjoyed Quinn's evolution the most, how she confronts her struggles and how we slowly see what is at the heart of her different struggles. If I had a criticism it would be that there might be too many issues for Quinn to tackle -- parents fighting, relationship with an ailing grandmother, friendship struggles, lying, race, bullying, etc. I think all of these issues are meaningful and important, it just seemed like not enough book to do them all justice.

Since my galley used a synthetic voice I can't speak to the narration of the audiobook but I found the story very easy to listen to. I liked how there were little lists throughout since the lead Quinn loves making lists in her journal.

So the premise of this story is that Quinn accidentally loses her journal after a session for a group project. She keeps lists of everything in her journal from her favorite music to her deepest darkest secrets. The journal falls into the wrong hands and she ends up receiving texts blackmailing her to completing seven of her greatest fears or they will reveal all her secrets. The most important one she's harboring is the fact that she did not get into Columbia University and has been faking acceptance for months to please her parents. Desperate to get her journal back she teams up with Carter Bennet, the last known person to have had it. Carter and Quinn don't exactly get along despite being two of the fee Black people in their school thanks to some preconceived notions. Quinn comes from a wealthy and successful two-parent household and Carter comes from a single-parent household.

I think this will be a very relatable book for Black teen girls navigating predominantly white high schools. Speaking from experience there were times I felt like Quinn. And Black friends are amazing and do help you feel whole. Quinn has to confront dropping racist friends and being the Black but not too Black person. There's the wondering if you should speak up about certain things or just let them slide to keep the peace.

Her father has some self-hating tendencies and they both have to confront the pre-conceived notions he has of Black people outside of their social class. She hasn't really been around Black people outside of her family so it's a new experience.

So if you're interested or you know a teen who is interested in a coming of age story about a Black girl who is navigating college decisions, learning to speak out against racism, conquering her fears, and falling in love; this is one to pick up.