This book was cute, but it didn't hold my attention all too well. I found parts of it way too unrealistic, and I struggled to connect with our main character, or the conflict.

I will admit that upon starting this, I hadn't realized that it was a sequel to 10 Blind Dates, which I have downloaded, but I haven't read. I don't feel like I missed much because of this, but it might've helped me understand the family dynamic a bit better.

My main problem with this would have to be how unrealistic it was. Olivia planned out her future so well, and took so many AP classes, but failed to fulfill a semester of PE? How does one miss out on a PE requirement, out of all things? And, I personally found it a bit alarming how closely the mother followed Olivia's life. It seemed like it was only there to add drama, which is something I hate in books.

I also wasn't a huge fan of the ending, it felt way too convenient. I can't say too much without spoilers, but everything fell into place so nicely.

This was a super cute book, but it wasn't right for me. Maybe if I hadn't read this directly after A Court of Silver Flames (which was absolutely amazing) I might've enjoyed this more. I can definitely see why this book would be loved!

Thanks to Netgalley and Ashley Elston for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

I thought the blurb sounded interesting, but I didn't realize it was a follow-up to 10 Blind Dates, which I haven't read. Perhaps that's the reason I had some issues with this book, which was a quick read overall. 

I liked Sophie, but I had a harder time with Olivia. I enjoyed the various narratives, but the dialogue felt a bit too young for college-age characters. The main plot focused on a mom keeping tabs on her 18-year old daughter while she's in a town where she has family and friends. It felt a bit over the top. 

Overall the writing is solid, and teens may very well enjoy this book.

I didn’t realize this book was a sequel of sorts; I really enjoyed 10 Blind Dates and was excited to be back with the same cast. That being said, I had some issues with this book. Overall, it was a quick and relatively enjoyable read, but I found it utterly absurd the entire story focused on a mom tracking her 18 year old daughter on her phone, in a town where she is already surrounded by family that can watch out for her. 

For being a smart girl, Olivia wasn’t nearly as likable to me as Sophie was as a lead. I did like that we got different narratives by the other cousins, but this one overall felt a bit juvenile for the fact they were all about to go to college. Also, what town do they live in that everyone gives monogrammed gifts at graduation parties?! I wish I grew up there...

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This summer I picked up 10 Blind Dates by Ashley Elston from the library for the sole reason that it looked like a cute story. I immediately fell in love, not only with the story, but the chemistry, characters, and family dynamics. I am so grateful for the opportunity to read and review that book's sister, 10 Truths and a Dare, about Sophie's cousin Olivia. As someone who will be graduating from high school in just a few months, this story really hit home for me. It was wonderful to spend more time with the Messina family and have a front seat to the youthful antics of the Fabulous Four before they head to college. I loved that I not only got to read from Olivia's perspective, but Wes, Charlie, and Sophie's as well. 10 Truths and a Dare was everything that I look for in a Young Adult book. While romance of course played a role, it was also about coming of age when everything seems to be going wrong, and finding people who will stick by your side no matter what. From the first page this story sucked me in; once I picked it up, I couldn't bring myself to put it back down! This series has become a favorite of mine and I can't wait to see what Ashley Elston writes next.

Olivia is looking forward to her high school graduation ceremony, where she is salutatorian and will give the welcome speech. When she finds out that she might not graduate because of her off-campus golf class, Olivia takes it into her own hands to fix it.

In true Mr. Hand fashion (Fast Times at Ridgemont High) the teacher decides that Olivia must make up all the time she wasted during the semester. During senior week: the dead week between high school and graduation, when all of her friends are throwing parties. Teens will enjoy this.

* I got this book for review from the publisher*
I really loved this book. I thought it was a prefect second book in this small series. i really loved how this book focused on the end of school but also the challenged that come with that. I loved how this book still had the big family at the heart of it. I also loved Oliva as a character and loved how we also got some other character POV Throught it. I also really loved the romance at the heart of it. I will kill for more books featuring this family. Such a fun read!

I liked this. It was light, fluffy, a bit predictable, but definitely enjoyable. I really loved Olivia's close family and how they all looked out for each other. 4/5 stars would recommend.

I loved being back with the Messina family! This was such a fun book with the way it was told. I loved how every chapter revolved around a grad party and I really enjoyed reading from the Fab Four’s perspective when they have Olivia’s phone. 
This book is wonderful because of:
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Family! I love books with big families. I feel like the dynamic is so realistic and very similar to my own family’s but ours is a tad smaller. 
🏌🏻Golf! While Olivia didn’t play, I love the golf tournament aspect. 
💕 Loved the romance in here, it was so cute! It was also more romance than just Olivia. We got more about Sophie & Wes and Charlie! 
🤣 This book was pretty funny at times. Especially when it came to Olivia’s mom. 

The only thing I didn’t like was that it bothered me how unrealistic it was. I feel like I can suspend my disbelief for a lot, but it seemed really odd that Olivia’s graduation could be taken away just for PE? I don’t think that would happen, but maybe it was just me 🤷🏻‍♀️

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I love Ashley Elston’s writing and I really hope we get more books with this hilarious and wonderful family!

10 Truths and a Dare is a quirky, fun, entertaining YA read! I truly enjoyed the antics of Olivia and the rest of her Fab Four, Sophie, Wes, and Charlie, and her crazy extended family. If you are looking for something a bit different then your average High School drama, with lots of little lies and funny situations that soon make things spin off the rails, this one will hit the spot! 4 Stars!

This book was dedicated to me! Well, not me specifically, but 2020 and 2021 grads, which includes me. Even though I’m not in the U.S., and we don’t have a week of grad parties, which sounds like a lot of fun. Or golf scholarships, as far as I know. 

10 Truths and a Dare is technically a companion novel to 10 Blind Dates, and takes place after it. There are multiple references to 10 Blind Dates which are probably fun if you’ve read it, but not at all essential to understanding the story or keeping up with the characters. Olivia, our main character, is salutatorian of her class, but her half credit of off-campus P.E. got messed up and her coach won’t sign her form; and without it she can’t graduate. Olivia’s parents are out of town, but Olivia’s mom has a tracker app on Olivia’s phone and is monitoring Olivia’s every move. If she finds out Olivia messed up P.E. Olivia’s extended family will know in the blink of an eye, and Olivia doesn’t want one missing P.E. form be how everyone remembers her graduation. Olivia needs to get that form signed without tipping off her mom that something is wrong; which isn’t easy when her coach tells her she has to spend the next four days at the golf course. Can she pull it off?

Having missed out on an epic grad experience myself (class of 2020, as I mentioned earlier), I liked reading about what it could be like. Scavenger hunts and cupcake parties sound like a lot more fun than the reality at my high school, but it was nice to imagine that I could have had something like this if there was no COVID-19. Seeing Olivia’s interactions with her massive extended family was fun, and I definitely gained more of an appreciation for golf as well. Ashley Elston’s strongest point is definitely her characters; they are easy to like and relate to. Even though 10 Truths and a Dare falls into the light-fluffy-contemporary-romance category, Ashley Elston did throw in a few deeper ideas about valuing people with different priorities and there being two sides to every story, which I appreciated. 

There were a couple of things that didn’t work so well for me too. I felt like some things were introduced that weren’t resolved well. I also don’t really think the ending matched well with the rest of the book; it felt a bit forced to me. 

Ashley Elston is definitely an author to keep an eye on. This was a nice light read.

Finally, thank you to Netgalley and Disney-Hyperion for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Mature content: one d*mn, several variations on sh*t. A minor adult character is gay and brought his boyfriend to meet his extended family, mentioned several times. A teenage couple sleep on a couch in the morning, fully clothed (nonsexual). Some kissing. 

Recommended age: 13+

I loved 10 BLIND DATES, the first book in this companion series, so much so I was thrilled when I found out about 10 TRUTHS AND DARE. This one follows Sophie's cousin Olivia a couple of weeks before her graduation from high school. When she finds out that she may not graduate because of a missed credit in P.E. she has to spend senior party week working at the local golf course. While her mom is away, she's set up a tracking app on Sophie's phone, though, so she leaves it with her cousins and best friends Sophie, Charlie, and Wes on a revolving basis and they answer as her. There's a lot of mayhem and mishaps in this book, similar to Sophie's story, and the Messina family is as loving and boisterous as ever. I think there was a little bit more magic in the first book (probably because it was set at Christmas!) and I wish we had gotten to spend as much time with the extended family in this book as we did the las, and also that the romance here was given a bit more time. The characters didn't feel as fully fleshed out, so if you missed the first I highly recommend checking it out before you head to this one. But I overall really enjoyed this one, too, and read it two sittings.

Academic focused girl from intense Italian family needs ½ PE credit to graduate with honors. So she rounds up her girl posse to hold onto her phone for a weekend (tracked by parents) while she volunteers at a gold tournament. Cute boy enters scene. Light, breezy summer read, suitable for teens looking for a gentle romance.

Olivia is the perfect student. But when it’s graduation week and it turns out she’s half a PE credit short of meeting graduation requirements she will do whatever it takes to make it up. BUT she doesn’t want her family to find out, so with the help of her cousins she comes up with a plan for her to volunteer at a golf tournament, while they hold on to her phone so her mom doesn’t see where she in on their tracking app. Clearly nothing can go wrong, right?&

I LOVED 10 Blind Dates, so when I saw there was a new book coming out with this incredible family, I was beyond excited. And this book did not disappoint. I LOVE this family and I would read all the books about them. In many ways this was your typical very cute and somewhat-cheesy teen contemporary, but with the BEST characters. I haven’t been a teenager in a long time, but I could see this being relatable to anyone in high school. I flew through this because I loved it so much. Keeping my fingers crossed that we will see more books about this family in the future!

Thank you to Disney-Hyperion and NetGalley for the advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. 10 Truths and a Dare will be released on May 4th.

10 Truths and a Dare is a second book in the author's writing. I liked this book, but for me the first book had a magic about it that this one just doesn't have. 10 Truths and a Dare is a solid book and readers will enjoy it, but for me it was missing the magic of the first.

First, I’d like to thank Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

It was so fun to get to read Olivia’s story and to get to follow more of Sophie and Wes. I’m hoping we’ll eventually get a story with Charlie as the main character! In this book, Olivia was ready for senior week filled with friends and parties. She was set to graduate as Salutatorian and was heading to LSU on a scholarship. All was perfect until she discovers she is short half of a PE credit and cannot graduate without it. She ends up having to work a good tournament in order to get the credit, but she knows nothing about golf. To make matters worse, she can’t tell her family. They would all be so disappointed, and she’s the responsible one. She feels she has the perfect plan when she realizes someone close to her cousins—the ones who try to make her life miserable—is a part of the tournament. Will he keep her secret? Will she be able to pull this off? Just when everything seems to be going great, everything starts going wrong. 

This was an adorably cute read, and I am really hoping for another book with these same characters. Thanks again to NetGalley for the arc.

10 Truths and a Dare is a companion title to 10 Blind Dates, but I felt this one was not quite as strong. I'm not a particularly sporty person, nor do I care at all about golf, so those elements of Olivia's story were more of a slog to get through than the fun party sections. 

As well, I thought 10 Blind Dates handled more compelling themes than 10 Truths and a Dare. There's not a particular requirement to feature heavy themes alongside light topics, but the ones present seemed to be more suited for a middle grade novel instead of upper YA, like not lying to parents and having integrity.

 I liked the side characters too, and the Messina family, but some of them were a little one note, like Leo. Their eventual relationship was rushed in my opinion and didn't go much of anywhere. Still, this was a fun and easy read that will be great for the coming spring and summer months.. I will be recommending this title for purchase at the library.

***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of 10 TRUTHS AND A DARE by Ashley Elston in exchange for my honest review.***

Soon-to-be salutatorian Olivia discovers she might not be graduating after learning she’s missing half a PE credit. Not wanting the adults in her family to know, she enlists the help of her cousins to swap phones, track down the teacher and complete the credits.

10 TRUTHS AND A DARE brought me back to freshman year in high school, second semester. My bio teacher gave me an F then went on sabbatical.  I tested poorly, but had done enough extra credit to bring my grade up to a B, hours of reports. I felt Olivia’s anxiety trying to track down the teacher, remembering my own angst which led to decades thinking I was stupid in science. Like Olivia, I had never failed/missed anything. Her stakes were higher, losing salutatorian and graduating late.

I’m a fan of Ashley Elston’s mysteries and thrillers but I’m new to her contemporaries. She created an interesting cast of characters, a huge, enmeshed Italian family each having unique and fleshed out personalities. Everyone was in everyone else’s business. Olivia’s mother tracked her like she was twelve, not as if she was off to college in three months. I loved the idea of cousins as best friends and longed to be part of Nonna’s clan.

Parts of 10 TRUTHS AND A DARE were a little cheesy, especially the ending, but that didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the book. 

Both tweens and teens will enjoy 10 TRUTHS AND A DARE.

This was a book that I Really enjoyed this read and I would recommend to others easily, I will be looking out for other titles by this author.

This was a light and fun read. I loved reading about the kids trading phones to try and trick Olivia’s mom. Her mom tracking her everywhere and texting s million times a day was totally over the top but, sadly, not unlikely! The scavenger hunt sounded so fun! The romance was gentle and sweet. I liked that, too.

This book was received as an ARC from Disney Publishing Worldwide - Disney-Hyperion in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

Such a dramatic take on a school tale that will leave you in shock and awe. I can relate to Olivia and her passion for success and I remember that young doing whatever it takes to graduate especially graduate with honors. I also know what it is like to have an overbearing loud family that is all up in your business that set you with high expectations and will feel extreme disappointment if you don't achieve what they set out for you. I had a smile wide across my face the entire time I read this book and our teen book club will appreciate a book like this especially for those that are going through the same thing.

We will consider adding this title to our YA collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.