Thanks NetGalley for the preview!

This book had some really great parts. And the strong friendships were so important in the high school setting. But also some things that just didn’t sit right with me. Jay should have been more honest and safer with his intimate choices.

I’m sorry to say, but this book was not for me. It did not hold my interest and the writing style was a bit ick.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me an advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Yep, Jay has a gay agenda.

It’s an extremely organized vision board, a numbered list that details his hopes and dreams.

How that agenda evolves over time is at the big, ebullient heart of Austin author Jason June’s funny young adult rom-com “Jay’s Gay Agenda” (HarperTeen, $17.99). He launches the book Tuesday with a virtual event at BookPeople, in conversation with “Kate in Waiting” author Becky Albertalli, who also wrote the novel that inspired the “Love, Simon” feature film.

Jay is “totally accepted, but there's no out queer kids at his school,” Jason June explained in a Zoom interview. (He goes by Jason June — “a two-name first name like Mary-Kate without the hyphen or the Olsen twin,” as he notes on his website.) That all changes when Jay’s mother gets a promotion and the family moves from a small-town in Washington to big-city Seattle.

“I’d gone nearly eighteen years in an LGBTQuarantine, despite the stats throwing it in my face that there should be someone else around who identified as queer. But in just a few weeks, I’d be moving to a metropolitan mecca of gays, where I’d be virtually surrounded by people like me,” Jay thinks.

“All these relationship firsts are really heavily portrayed in media when it's about straight people,” Jason June said. “I wanted to have all these firsts really celebrated and heavily focused specifically for a gay character.”

Readers see the high school senior navigate lust, love and friendship. In Seattle, he makes fast friends with witty Max, who introduces him to classmates, takes him to parties and shepherds him to his first drag show. He’s attracted both to Tony and to Albert, and while one becomes a more serious relationship, both get their showcase moments.

“Jay’s Gay Agenda” is a sex-positive novel that depicts physical relationships in a healthy way instead of shaming teens for desire, Jason June said. He seamlessly weaves clear consent into all of Jay’s encounters.

“It's about being safe, it's about being consensual, and I want to end the stigma of saying sex without love is bad,” he said. “Sex without love can be a major way of discovering who you are and how you want to interact with people going forward.” 

He also makes it clear on the page what Jay does with his partners. That’s by design, he said, both to demystify and destigmatize. “I'm a firm believer that part of the shame spiral with sex is that we don't name certain things. ... I wanted to be clear with what was happening, but not be gratuitous with what was happening.”

“Jay’s Gay Agenda” is Jason June’s first book for young adults. It follows his “Mermicorn Island” chapter book series for Scholastic and two picture books, including “Porcupine Cupid,” which was recently featured in People magazine along with Jason June himself. He’d dabbled in writing middle-grade fantasy, penning manuscripts that didn’t quite gel.

So he decided to immerse himself in a different genre by reading young-adult contemporary novels, including Austin author Cynthia Leitich Smith’s “Hearts Unbroken,” Ibi Zoboi’s “Pride” and Mary H.K. Choi’s “Emergency Contact.”

“It was in reading that genre that I was like, ‘I'm focusing too much on the literal magic of fairies and wizards and those kinds of magic systems, and have totally forgotten that there's a magic of real life,'” he said.

“What I really like about a lot of young adult contemporary is that you can really feel that slice of the author's real life," he continued. "Even if it's not totally their story, there's a little touch of that emotional component. … That's when I started thinking about my own life, and I got back to the diary I used to keep as the only out gay kid in my rural high school in eastern Washington, just dreaming about all the things that I could finally do and all the relationship milestones I wanted to complete when I met another gay guy.

"I used that little seed to then become Jay.”

Cute, easy read, but ultimately pretty forgettable. This is the second of June's books I've read recently, and I have to admit I found the plot devices of cheating and dishonesty tiresome and unwelcome.

I had a hard time getting into this book. I had to DNF it because I lost interest. I tried pushing through, but I couldn't get into it. I did suggest my library to buy it and they did.

This book was just so good. I will be recommending this book in an upcoming Queer YA book recommendation episode.

A very solid 2.5 stars: nothing super special, but still a relatively enjoyable read. I will say that for actual young adults (ages 16-19) who are just coming into their own and either discovering their sexualities or have known their sexualities for a while but are looking for some good representation, this book is more of a 4-star rating!

Jay is a likable main character, and though he causes the majority of his own problems, he does get stuck in a series of unfortunate events that just keep getting worse and worse and digging him into a deeper hole. Lu is a fun side character, Albert is sweet, and Max is… a lot (not in a bad way).

However, while there are good messages to this story and it is sweet and wraps up nicely… some of it just happens too quickly for it to be super believable. The entirety of this book takes place over the course of a month, and at some points it feels realistic but at others it feels like we should be at least a few months into the school year.

Overall, a decent story for people who fit the YA age range, but not super enthralling for people who are a bit older (which is understandable, for a YA novel).

Much like many other books that I eventually LOVED, it took me quite a while to actually sit down and read this when it had graced my TBR pile many times but when I did, LORD AND TAYLOR (to borrow a phrase from the book that might make it in to my daily vernacular).

One of the best aspects of this book are the characters. Some were more vibrant than others (looking at you Max) and I really enjoyed getting to know the ones that we got to know. I sincerely hope that we get another book but from Albert's perspective because I simply fell in love with him, Jay's VSB rating notwithstanding. Also, I really identified with Jay's feeling of being alone and seemingly the only queer person within a 100 mile radius growing up. I'm still in that queer dead zone, but I've made some branches into areas of queer life that have helped me to grow and learn about myself which Jay experiences after moving to queer friendly Seattle.

There were genuine moments of euphoria; mostly involving Jay and Albert's growing infatuation which made the eventual and unavoidable "sh*t hitting the fan" moment hurt that much more. There were many lessons Jay needed to learn including being honest with himself, his intentions, and also with those he cares about and I enjoyed beginning the journey with him. I say 'beginning' because not everyone is perfect right away after owning up to their mistakes, but it's a great first step.

Lastly, as a librarian I would recommend this book for those looking for a book about learning about one's self, first love, navigating complicated relationships, but one caveat is that I'd only recommend this for older YA readers as it is very sex positive. But everyone is different and I hope others will enjoy it!

What a amazing book! I feel in love with this one. The story is spectacular, all the characters are super vivid. I recommend with my heart.

very well written and a good look into the main characters life and mind as well as the trans experience hope to see more from this author

Wow wow wow. This book was quite the entertaining read! I teach middle school so I cannot keep this book in my classroom. While it wasn’t sex focused, that was a big plot point. I think it would be perfect in the high school classroom. I know so many students struggle with the same issues Jay does, sex being one of those issues. I feel the author handled the topics with depth and sensitivity. Everyone loves a good hot mess, and that is Jay. Even when he royally screw’s things up, he’s ready to get back in and royally fix them. He’s unlikable, he’s lovable, he’s fabulous and unapologetically Jay. It was great to be on the ride with these characters!

This book really didn't work for me and I've spent some time trying to figure out why. I just think that the writing style did not flow for me, and I didn't find the teens believable. I'm not even sure why, it was just hard for me to connect with the characters or feel that they were well-rounded in my mind, and therefore it also was hard for me to see their motivations. I really struggled to get through this one, which is hard because it was one of my most anticipated of the year. I think this story would have worked better for me aged up.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I already know this one will be challenging for a lot of folx because of the cheating issues in the main storyline. However, I’m a big proponent of using literature as a way to start difficult conversations with teens, and I think this one’s a whopper. What constitutes cheating? Where is the line? Did the character(s) in this book handle things appropriately, or were there issues? What do healthy non-exclusive relationships look like, and how should partners appropriately communicate? Is losing your virginity really the big life milestone the MC makes it out to be?

So. Much. To talk about.

Just not for my 8th graders, sadly. Definitely a book for high school-plus, and I wouldn’t touch it as a book club option until maybe senior year if at all. It’d be a great choice for outside-the-classroom teen book clubs, especially for Genders and Sexualities Alliance-type groups.

This was cute but cringey at times. I think it was a little too real. Jay has a great voice, but can be a bit much. I can't remember the last time a YA novel went into so much detail about sex. I enjoyed reading but not the best thing I've read this year either.

This was a really fun and messy (in the best way) YA read. I wouldn't say that its a new favorite, but I had SO much fun following along with Jay finding love and I will absolutely read more from Jason June in the future. Cute cute cute!!

CW: homophobia

This book was very cute and overall an okay read. I felt that it was not my favourite of the YA genre but again I do not think it was geared to me. I do read a lot of YA but I felt this was for the younger end of teens maybe 13-14 rather than 15-17. Very cute would recommend.

Growing up in a rural small town, Jay Collier is the only LGBTQIA+ kid he knows. Even though he is out, Jay feels like an outcast. To cope he creates a “Gay Agenda” of everything he wants to do...his first being meet another gay kid. When his mom comes home and tells the family that she has been given a promotion and that they are moving to Seattle, Jay is, on one hand, ecstatic. On the other hand, he would be leaving his childhood best friend Lu behind at a time when she needs him the most. Despite his mixed feelings about moving, Jay arrives in Seattle ready to finally live out his gay agenda dreams. This begins to happen when Jay meets Max, a local gay classmate that promises to help Jay start checking off the idems on his agenda. And that is exactly what begins to happen when Jay meets Albert, a robotics nerd and all around great guy. Jay soon realizes that his agenda may have to be revised or completely thrown out if he wants to fit in his new surroundings. Jay’s Gay Agenda is one of those YA novels that is just feel good. Its fast-paced, character-driven plot makes this story a good recommendation for someone who likes an easy and fun read. This book would also appeal to readers who enjoy LGBTQIA themes and characters. The cast of diverse and interesting characters make this story enjoyable.

When Jay's family leaves his small hometown (where he's the only gay boy for miles around), he's determined to let loose and experience all romance he's missed his entire life. But his gay agenda may lead him astray when he decides to follow it rather than listen to his heart. For anyone who wants a gorgeous coming of age.

An interesting look on what it might be like for an out teen in a small town. I like that there was no struggle or angst when it came to Jay's being accepted. I also like how there was a good balance between focus on romantic and platonic relationships. Overall this is a cute and fast read.

3 out of 5 wine glasses.