I. Love. This. Book. I originally read it years ago on Wattpad when it was still being posted chapter by chapter and I loved reading this new, polished version just as much.

One thing I absolutely love about this book is the characters. Waverly is our main character and she is so awkward and relatable that I knew exactly why she was feeling the things she did throughout the book. Then we have our wonderful, brooding Blake who has family issues to work through while also making the reader fall head over heels for him. Then we have everyone else. Our amazing friend group reminded me so much of my own and made me want to give them all a hug. Aunt Rachel is so fabulous and made me want to move to a beach town to be a freelance artist for a living. And that's only scratching the surface of my favorite people from this book.

Also, I really enjoyed this plot. It was interesting, moved at a great pace, and had made sure we saw enough of each character to love them. My one complaint about it comes at the very end of the book. This is slightly spoilery so you've been warned. Once Waverly and Blake become a thing, we did ever have a problem come up in their relationship. There's a small issue, but there's nothing that makes them mad at each other, or makes them have to break up and get back together. I was hoping for that tension and it never came. I also would have liked to see more of Blake teaching Waverly how to swim because it just kinda disappeared around 3/4 of the way through the book, but I'll deal.

Overall though, I love this book. I've already pre-ordered it and plan to re-read it many times over. 4.5 stars!!!

Such a sweet read. I must say at first I wasn’t that captivated with the story but after the first 50 pages I was hooked. I loved it and I was so sad that it ended because I didn’t want to stop reading about the characters

This book was your typical cheesy teen romance that I definitely would’ve been obsessed over back in high school. But I still enjoyed it. It had great relatable and likable characters. The banter was surprisingly wickedly funny and I did enjoy the story.

If you are fans of Sarah Dessen and Jenny Han books this will be right up your alley.

A full review can be found on my goodreads page - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57917085

Float is an incredibly charming coming of age story revolving around a quirky, Alaskan teen named Waverley. I enjoyed reading about her summer away, living with her supportive, artistic aunt and cultivating relationships with her her lovable friends.

I love a good grumpy to sunshine trope and quickly flew through this novel while traveling.

It was wholesome, heartwarming and an all around delight to read. It felt sunny in the depths of winter and read like it was told by a hilarious yet endearingly awkward best friend. So in love with this writer’s irreverent style! My only note is that the ending felt rushed and I selfishly wanted it to continue.

I am grateful for the opportunity to have read this ARC in exchange for an honest review! Very much looking forward to the film adaptation.

I would like to thank Kate Marchant, Wattpad Books and Netgalley for providing an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange of an honest review. Waverly has spent every summer in the cold between her parents’ divorce “helping” them with their research. This summer her parents couldn’t figure out what to do . So she ended up from sweet cold Alaska to warm and sweaty Florida. Upon arriving to her aunt’s place in Florida she realizes she forgot her phone in Alaska. Waverly has decided that this summer she will be her and not what her parents want her to be. With the phone gone , all the past connections to her life are gone. It started off kind of sweet until her neighbour’s jerk son who holds a grudge against her for no reason enters the picture. A story filled with late night swim lessons, babysitting failures and surfing expeditions Float is an extraordinary, sweet story about finding yourself, letting go of the past and turning into the person you dreamed of being. Float was a sweet and funny read perfect for not only the summer but also any weather. I personally read it whilst it was snow storming outside. It’s one of those books you curl up with and lose track of time with. Upon finishing Float, I was disappointed for all the right reasons. I wanted a sequel another book in the same universe even. Kate Marchant holds that power in her words where she draws in you in with a refreshing story. Honestly her words alone with the right marketing, publishing and outreach would dominate the bestseller lists especially in the Young Adult genre. Kate Marchant originally shared her work on Wattpad. Which is a digital platform where stories can be shared chapter by chapter. Wattpad books a few years later decided to publish Float shortly after the movie adaptation was announced. Float which has not even be released yet (February 2022) already has a movie in the works. You can see her passion in writing and the hard work she put in her book. I cannot wait to see her future work/projects and the much-deserved success that will follow.

Float is a fun summer teen romance. Waverly, a lonely teen of divorced parents from Alaska, travels to Florida for some of her summer vacation to visit her artist aunt, Rachel.

While she's there, Waverly finds her place among a group of friends, tries to learn to swim, and develops a romance with the next-door neighbor's son, Blake, a dreamy lifeguard.

Here's the good in this book: it's incredibly readable and fun, and you're rooting for insecure Waverly to develop her sea legs and sense of self. Some of the side characters, like Rachel and friends Lena and Jesse and Alissa are well-developed and really interesting.

The bad: I felt like there are some gaps in the plotting here.
[SPOILERS]

At one point, Blake pointedly writes Waverly a note about how he's not going to try to kiss her again. OK, I say, here's the conflict. And then they do kiss without there being any mention of this by Blake.

Waverly and Blake's relationship just doesn't seem to form as much as just magically come into being. After one kiss she calls him her "boyfriend" and is "in love." It just feels off and not entirely believable.

There is also some stuff about Alaska that feels very written by someone who did no research on Alaska. At one point Waverly claims where she's from, it's a high of 32 in August. Erm, she's from Fairbanks, where a little Google search tells me there is a high of 67 in August. Maybe it's supposed to be a joke, but it didn't feel like it.

This isn't a bad book at all, and I truly did feel myself connected to the story. But the author's note tells you she began to write it at age 15, and it feels like some of those things that a 15-year-old would write needed more cleaning up for publication.

this was a quick, cute and wholesome summer read! i enjoyed it but at the same time it didn't impact me much and i have to confess i don't remember much about the storyline. overall, i would recommend it if you're in the mood for something simple to read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Wattpad Books for the ARC.

2 stars.

I know a lot of people enjoyed this, but unfortunately, this one was a miss for me.

The story follows Waverly who is staying with her Aunt for the summer. There she meets the boy-next-door, Blake. One of the main plot points is that Blake teaches her how to swim, and that is how their friendship develops, eventually turning romantic.

I wasn't the hugest fan of Waverly throughout the story as I felt like she was a bit flat and lacking in character. By the end of the book, there wasn't any real development to her character that stood out to me. Blake also wasn't exactly what I would call a good love interest. For about half the book we are lead to believe that he is hung up on his ex-girlfriend (the relationship ended at the beginning of the story) and the chemistry between him and Waverly just wasn't there in my opinion. I didn't like the side characters much either, and they weren't exactly the most memorable. Not bad, just meh.

The concept of the story was amazing, as I was immediately intrigued after reading the synopsis. However, I think that the way the concept was executed was unrealistic, and didn't exactly make sense.

I think that another one of the main things that threw me off was the writing style. It was a tad choppy, and while it was still readable it definitely made the experience less enjoyable.

Overall, I wouldn't say I necessarily recommend this book, but I think that you are looking for a palate cleanser this might be the book for you.

Release Date: February 22, 2022

Additional Information
Spice? No
Cheating? No (not between main characters)
OW/OM? Technically no
Happy Ending? Yes

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Condensed review to be posted to Indigo.ca.

Float by Kate Marchant follows Waverly, a girl from Alaska who has just flown to Florida for the summer to stay with her aunt. She's never really fit in at her private high school in Fairbanks, and never really been accepted for who she is by her parents, so she is very much expecting things to be the same in Florida. However, as she makes friends and grows closer to the boy next door, she finds that Holden, Florida is the first place she's ever felt like she belonged.

Everything about this book was adorable. She's gone to a small private school all her life where the atmosphere is super competitive and where she never really had any friends, so it is easy to see where her lack of self-confidence comes from. Waverly's self-esteem issues, anxiety, and past problems with feeling like she had no friends were definitely relatable, and seeing her confidence blossom over the course of the book is definitely rewarding. Many of her issues come from the fact that her parents are both famous climatologists and expect her to go down a similar path that she is both uninterested in and has never shown any aptitude for. My one real problem is that she doesn't know how to swim at the start of the book, and apparently finds that embarrassing enough to admit that she endangers herself over it not once but twice in the book, and I did find her constant talking about her height (she's almost 6 feet tall if I remember correctly) and her clumsiness to wear on me a little. Also, she had forgotten her phone in Alaska, which was just a little bit of an absurd situation that I found hard to take seriously. It would be one thing for her to have never needed a phone, but for her to have one and have just somehow forgotten it irked me a little.

The good thing about Waverly's inability to swim and determination to hide it is that it provides a catalyst for her to get closer to Blake, since he was the only one who realized the truth. Blake is currently working as a lifeguard, and his mother died from drowning when he was little, so he's determined to make sure that Waverly learns how to swim. Blake also has a lot of issues with his stepmother in terms of both of them misunderstanding the other, and he finds out his girlfriend is cheating on him at the start of the book, so he has a lot of issues, but at least manages to not be super angsty over it for the most part. I did genuinely like him, and he and Waverly were definitely super cute together. Blake's super protective of her (though not in a possessive way), and the two have a lot of cute banter and I absolutely loved reading about them.

The side characters were also all dynamic and lovable. Waverly's Aunt Rachel, an artist, is super fun and is really just trying vaguely to figure out how to be a guardian. Lena, Alissa, and Jesse, Waverly's friends, were all fun and Alissa was especially well fleshed out. I was also genuinely interested in the relationship between Blake and his stepmother, Chloe; both are doing their best but not really getting through to each other, and I just really love that subplot.

I enjoyed the beach setting much more than I thought I would, as I personally don't like going to the beach, so I wasn't expecting to enjoy reading about it. The fact that I ended up loving the beach town atmosphere in this book was definitely a surprise for me. Waverly also works in a bookstore,; it doesn't play much of a role plot-wise, but it's still definitely a plus.

One main problem that I had was that the plot definitely felt a bit forced and rushed in some places, the timing wasn't always super clear, and there was important information that was sometimes just skimmed over (such as completely omitting at one point Waverly actually learned how to swim), all of which made the pacing feel a little strange at times. While almost every individual part of the book was great, the way that it all fit together felt a little confusing sometimes.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I had a couple of issues where Waverly's character and with the pacing of the book, but beyond those it is a completely adorable beach read that I completely recommend to anybody looking for a cute YA romance.

This is a really sweet coming-of-age story for anyone who has ever doubted themselves-and for those of us who are intimately acquainted with the sensation of never being enough as we are.

High school student Waverly Lyons goes through wacky trials and tribulations that seem unrealistic, and yet all too familiar. The group of loved ones she finds along the way reminds readers that sometimes you need to know someone before you judge them-most of all ourselves.

This book was endearing and made me nostalgic for a high-school experience that I never had. But even so, I felt like there are so many people who can relate to Waverly, no matter how cringe-y the comparison may get. So many of us grow up feeling so misunderstood and longing for the connections that Waverly makes.

I do feel like for a book titled "Float," there wasn't a whole lot of it happening. There were swim scenes and one surfing scene, but all of that took a back-back seat to the "last high school summer" growth happening. I also felt like there were some scenes missing, as the characters seemed to hint that they had more bonding experiences than we as the reader are made aware of. The cover on this is so cute, I'd put it on my shelf for that alone.

- um yes I need to go to holden. a month in the cutest beach town ever? yes please. a summer job at a bookstore? sign me up

- my thoughts at page 60: OMG OKAY YES HOT NEIGHBOR LIFEGUARD BOY IS GOING TO TEACH HER HOW TO SWIM AND IT HAS TO BE SECRET OKAY I AM READY FOR THE ROMANCE TO START NOW

- the cast is so well developed! nobody felt surface level or one dimensional. I adore lena and jesse's dynamic, the depth behind the blake/alissa/ethan drama, everyone’s differing relationships with their parents, lena's fierce friendship, aunt rachel's quirks and energy, george and chloe's relationship, the tension and changes between chloe and blake, and of course little isabel!

- I get really frustrated when ya plots are based on a lie. once waverly lied and said that she could swim, the lies just kept adding up and they really didn't need to. her swim lessons with blake didn't really need to be secret. the whole time I expected it was all going to blow up in their faces at some point and it just. didn't. need. to.

- this had me laughing from start to finish. there are some seriously good one liners, and the banter between waverly and blake is so good

- float pleasantly surprised me! my expectations were kind of low since it's started as a wattpad book, but honestly this was really good! it was fun and flirty, beachy and surprisingly deep. I thoroughly enjoyed this sweet book ♥

- UM OK WHAT I JUST FOUND OUT THIS IS BEING MADE INTO A MOVIE!!? let’s GOOOOO

Waverly Lyons is in Holden Florida for summer break a far cry from her Alaskan upbringing with her sparing divorced scientist parents. Waverly is maneuvering a world that is foreign to her. Peers, a caring guardian who happens to be a her cool aunt and a lot of self discovery ensue. While I found this book to be very predictable I also found it an easy read and hard to put down. Sometimes you just need a feel good comfort book and this is the one. There is a lot of tangled hair and blushing but you can look past it for the cute love story.

Really great book and one that I would totally read in the summer. I loved the characters and the setting for the book!!

I thought FLOAT was very reminiscent to Sarah Dessen, Kasie West, and Morgan Matson books. This is a quintessential summer book.

You have Waverly, who is dealing with being in the middle of her parents divorce and then going from Alaska to Florida to spend time with her Aunt. While in Alaska she didn't have very many friends, read a lot, and didn't do very much except school stuff. But then in Florida she is introduced to hot boy next door and his inner circle of friends. Realizing how short summer is, she has to deal with the act of letting go and what she would do for love.

Thank you NetGalley and Wattpad books for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This book got me out of a reading slump. It was very cute and fast-paced and I could not put it down! If you’re looking for a summer romance definitely read this book!!

Float by Kate marchant is such a fun summer read! A truly all encompassing book for anyone who has ever felt different, and lets be honest, not good enough. Float tells the story of Waverly, a girl originally from Fairbanks, Alaska who is spending the summer with her aunt in Holden, Florida. Who just so happens to live next door to the cutest boy Waverly has ever seen. A great all around read and maybe the perfect beach read!

I actually loved this book. At first when I saw it was published by Wattpad I was a little skeptical but it was really good. It had some of my favorite tropes in it that were integrated really well into the story.

I loved all the characters. The main character was very relatable and loveable. The only thing I didn’t like about her was how clumsy she was. It seemed very weird and awkward to add. I loved Blake. He gave off bad boy vibes but was also super sweet and great for Waverly. I also liked the twins. They were hilarious and great friends. I enjoyed Waverly and Blake’s relationship and I liked how there weren’t any problems with them after they got together. I loved the ending and am very happy with it.

Overall I really liked this book. There were only a few things that bothered me, but other than that it was really good. I recommend this book to Young Adult and contemporary book lovers.

Good book for teens who's parents are going through a divorce. Teen books and teen authors shouldn't be afraid to tackle the hard stuff.

I am a sucker for summer romance books and this book came to me at the perfect time! I've been desperate for a new fix and seeing Waverly's story unfold was so sweet + fun and gave me *all* of the emotions. This story was the perfect mix of the type of butterflies-in-your-stomach romance, chuckling humor, and overall sweetness that you crave when the days get longer and hotter. I live in north Florida and it was really cool seeing it as the setting of this book-- I'm just hoping that I'll find my own cute little beach town to spend a month-long summer in.

Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

For some reason, I really loved this book. The way it was written, the characters in it, everything about this novel was great. I loved that this debut story was so good. I haven’t been on Wattpad much but compared to the things I’ve heard, this book surpassed all expectations. I loved the flow. The characters grew over time and even though the story takes place in only a month or so, I loved seeing the difference from the start to the end. This is a book over reading and I will be sure to look out for more of this author’s books to come.

I received a review copy and am voluntarily leaving a review.