*Netgalley and wattpad books provided me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review* Overall a good story; great for someone looking for a cute quick read, and has relatable main characters/ side characters.

I was given a digital copy of this book for an honest review. I really liked this book. I thought it was a cute, fun, and easy read that I simply couldn’t put down. It actually reminded me of, to all the boys I’ve loved before. Even though they are very different and the only thing in common was the high school romance! I really enjoyed the character growth from the main character and some of the side characters! I rated it a 4/5 and wouldn’t defiantly recommend it!

A book I couldnt put down and stayed up way too late reading. High school hormones are tough and it was so fun to get an inside look!

I enjoyed this fun young adult romance very much but it was a bit too long for me. After doing some research, the author came from Wattpad so this made a bit more sense to me. Some parts of the novel felt a bit too childish (even for the genre) and there was quite a bit of drag. Overall, a fun read, just go in with low expectations.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

The book was so cute! My expectations for Float were not the highest, but I was definitely blown away. This one delivered on the grumpy boy and bubbly new girl trope. Blake and Waverly are a high school couple that no one can seem to understand why they got together and work together, but they stay together.

Overall, it was a pretty good story. It was a solid three star read for me. The end of the book was even better than the beginning; contained more action and humor. The book had parts throughout that made me smile or give a slight, silent laugh, but the very end of chapter 21 and all of 22 had me laughing hysterically. This is a book that personally, I think teens and actual young adults would enjoy more than older adults who enjoy reading YA.

I adored the twins’ relationship with each other. It was fun and showed a very loving bond but they also teased and picked on each other like crazy, in a good way. The romance between Waverly and Blake ended up being sweet, but I disliked how it started out. I am not a fan of the “he’s a jerk to me but I really like him anyway” plot. Like him after he stops being mean to you! It was predictable, but a cute story and a fast read. It would be a fun beach book.

Thank you to Net Galley and Wattpad Books for this digital arc in exchange for my honest review.
#NetGalley #Float

Overall a very cute read, that I definitely recommend if you're looking for something quick and summery to read! Waverly is a relatable main character for anybody with social anxiety or just anybody who has ever felt like they've had trouble fitting in. I loved the friendships she formed throughout her time in Holden, especially with the twins! Overall, this book was sweet enough to (almost) make me want to move back to Florida even though I'm positive I hated it there and did not have the same experience as Waverly. I especially loved all of the side characters (Lena and Jesse are my faves) and Waverly's growth/learning to be more comfortable with herself.
There were some continuity/timeline errors that bothered me a little, but I'm hoping they'll be fixed before the book is published.
I'm going to list some here so there might be some spoilers- be warned!!
Pages 72-76 at least two days pass "Sunday mornings" "the next morning," but Blake mentions seeing Alissa at the beach "yesterday"
When they're at the hospital and Blake is telling the story about his mom he starts it with "when I was about twelve or thirteen" and I don't know, maybe he's just trying to seem nonchalant about it, but it seems like an important enough event that he'd remember the exact date and how old he was (p. 243).
That timeline is just a little confusing- because Waverly's aunt had stated that this had happened "years ago" before she had even moved to town, but Blake is currently 17, meaning this happened 4-5 years before the events of this book. And he also has a sister that was born when he was 15- the speed at which George moved on definitely could be a part of the reason Blake is so hostile towards Chloe, but I definitely think it's worth a sentence or two explaining the timeline because I was confused.
also does Blake lifeguard at the pool or the beach? Both? We know he definitely works at the pool, because he has the key and he tells Waverly this, but then he's also at the beach when Waverly is there and says he can't talk because he's working

This was such an adorable book! While I didn't come into it with the highest of expectations, Float definitely blew me away. I love the grumpy boy and bubbly new girl trope, and this definitely delivered. Blake and Waverly are that high school couple that everyone would be confused as hell as to how they got together and why they work, but they just do.

This book was everything. It's been a long time since I've read something that I couldn't put down. Float was addicting, what a great debut novel by Kate Merchant. Definitely the beginning of a great author to be addicted to.

This book follows Waverley, a girl from Alaska ready for a change in her life as she goes to spend the summer with her aunt and away from her parents and boring life that consists of friends that really aren't friends at all. Dieing her summer in Holden FL she learns to be herself and let go.

Waverly dings herself in this small town and finds that she does matter and she can be herself. With new friends and a very adorable new neighbor she lives life and even if she gets herself in some crazy situations it was a journey I was happy to experience. This was a must read and very much recommended for all.

This had all the right feels from beginning to end you felt connected with the main characters and the new people in her life. I loved everything about this book and can't wait to jump in another hornet with this author.

The perfect YA Summer Book. I think it will resinate with fans of Dessen, West, and Matson for sure. All around a great theme with two teens trying to understand their parent's ways of parenting. The social awkwardness, fun adventures, and great friendships that come with being a teen. I'm totally not sitting here reminising on my teen years... wishing I had someone with a nice body to teach me how to swim... Nope, definitely not.

This YA Contemporary read will appeal to many, with its family-centered themes and moody teenagers trying to make the best of situations created by their parents. I voluntarily read a Review Copy of this book. All opinions stated are solely my own and no one else’s.

I remember reading Float when the author was still uploading this story chapter by chapter, week by week and I enjoyed it so much. So when I saw that it was actually being published and also being turned into a film starring Robbie Amell, I was even more excited. Say what you will about Wattpad books but it's given a platform to so many writers and is certainly a non traditional publishing experience which is pretty cool. Okay so on to the review!

I feel like this new published version of Float is definitely a lot better in terms of quality and the overall storyline. I feel like a lot of the details have been fine tuned to make for a more coherent story and because I read the original so long ago - there were some key things I felt like I was discovering all over again. I especially liked the found family element in the book and reading how Waverley, Alissa, Blake, Jesse and Lena become so close and find their place in the world with each other was so wholesome. I also appreciated the exploration of having neglectful or emotionally abusive parents and how the characters navigate this and get through it all together and find common ground. The romance was sweet if predictable but still cute.

Float is an easy read, and it won't take long to get through so makes for a great holiday read or a book to pick up over the course of an evening when you're craving some sea, sun and summer antics.

I’m so excited that this book is going to be turned into a movie!! I adored the premise and the characters. Everything about this book just screams NOSTALGIA.

As soon as I saw the cover for this title, I knew I needed to read it! Float by Kate Marchant is such a cute, addicting YA novel. Similar to Waverly, I'm not ready to let go of summer just yet so I read this in September and had an absolute blast. I thought the pace/tone was just right, the writing was beautiful and I enjoyed getting invested in the characters and wondering how things would turn out for each and every one of them in the end. This book just reiterated that coming-of-age stories will always be one of my go-to's!

Thank you to Wattpad Books and NetGalley for this ebook.

I really liked this one! I always love summer themed YA fiction and this was supposed to have the vibe of a Sarah Dessen/Jenny Hahn book. I absolutely love anything by Jenny Hahn. To All the Boys is my life so I definitely knew I wanted to pick this one up!

The premise states
Description
A heartfelt summer read for fans of Sarah Dessen and Jenny Han about holding on and letting go.

Waverly Lyons has been caught in the middle of her parents’ divorce for as long as she can remember. This summer, the battle rages over who she’ll spend her vacation with, and when Waverly’s options are shot down, it’s bye-bye Fairbanks, Alaska and hello Holden, Florida to stay with her aunt..

This is a cute fish out of water story with a romantic element as well! it’s about that time in your life when anything is possible. I really enjoyed the way it was written. It would make a cute Netflix movie and I hope to read more by this author in the future.

Float by Kate Marchant was a great light, summer read about a girl coming into her own and figuring out what she wants over the course of a summer spent out of her normal environment. I thought the romance was cute, and I loved the friendships between all the different characters. It gave me tons of cozy, found family vibes. The only downside for me was I sometimes found it a little difficult to understand why characters did certain things - maybe it's just me, but I felt like sometimes they made leaps in their thinking that weren't logical to me. Other than that though, this book made me smile a lot, and was the perfect breezy read to help me cling onto the last days of summer for as long as possible. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC!

It’s safe to say that I love reading books on Wattpad, and Float is one I have read multiple times on that app. When I saw it on NetGalley and was accepted to read the ARC, I was so excited. Reading Float felt very nostalgic, and it reminded me why I had read it so many times before. It’s so nice to see how the author’s writing had improved and how well the story was told.

‘”Sorry,” he called, “I just thought you should know that he likes you too.”‘

When Waverly goes to Florida for Summer to stay with her aunt, she does not expect it to change her life. But soon Waverly lets it slip to the cute boy-next-door that she can’t swim, which is a problem as she is now living by the beach. Blake then offers to teach her, leading to them lying to the rest of their friends as Waverly doesn’t want anyone to know about her inability to swim. This book has everything you would expect a YA romance to have and it is the perfect summer read. Float also deals with relationships with parents, as Blake has a rocky one with his step-mother, and Waverly is in Florida because neither of her parents want her on their research trips.

‘I think it was pretty romantic. You. Me. Mood lighting from the storm. These awful pajamas. Jesse. What more could I ask for?’

Waverly gets pulled into Blake’s friendship group, working with Lena and his ex-girlfriend Alissa. I loved that this wasn’t your typical romance where the ex-girlfriend can’t get over their ex, and vice versa. It was such a fun read and I loved watching Waverly and Blake’s relationship go from a kind of hatred to friendship to maybe something more. I definitely recommend this for those that love Morgan Matson’s and Sarah Dessen’s books as it is a very enjoyable read!

This was a charming YA Novel and the perfect summer read. The main characters were likable and relatable. However, at times I felt that the relationship between Waverly and Blake wasn't as natural as it could be and it felt a little rushed. But I read it in one sitting, and I enjoyed it again, after reading it years ago on wattpad as a teenager. The story was cute and not unnecessarily dramatic. But sometimes the story didn't feel fully developed and I felt like the author didn't go deep enough, but just scratched the surface of the story and the characters and emotions. I also would have liked more of a natural character development for Alyssa, because in the beginning she read like a carbon copy of any dramatic friend in pop culture, and at the end of the book she was very different and you didn't get to see much of that change on the page.
Still, if you're looking fo a lighthearted read for in between, you can pick up this book and won't be disappointed.

Thank you to the publisher for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’m going to have to be honest, this is actually the second time I’ve read this book. The first time was when I was in high school and stumbled upon it on Wattpad. This was back before it was even a paid story and after reading Float, I became a frequent visitor to Kate Marchant’s Wattpad profile. Float is not even my favorite of her books and I am still patiently waiting for her other novel, Whistleblower, to be published. That is mostly irrelevant though so lets jump right into the review.

SUMMARY

Seventeen-year-old Waverly Lyons is from Alaska. She doesn’t do sun. But after her divorced parents can’t agree on who gets to have her for the summer, Waverly gets shipped off to Holden, Florida, to spend a couple months with her aunt, Rachel. There’s one minor hiccup: Blake Hamilton, Rachel’s seventeen-year-old neighbor. He’s athletic, outgoing, arrogant, tan, and pretty much Waverly’s exact opposite. She’s eager to avoid him at all costs, hoping to fit in with the other kids in Holden without drawing too much attention to herself. But when Blake discovers that Waverly has been hiding the rather embarrassing secret that she can’t swim, he does the unthinkable: He offers to teach her.

REVIEW

In my opinion, this book is the perfect summer beach read. I actually read this book on my family’s beach vacation this year and it fit the vibe perfectly. Marchant has created this perfect world full of imperfect relatable characters with enough personality to make almost anyone feel heard. As someone who grew up twenty minutes away from the closest beach, I was truly surprised when I really found myself relating to Waverly in ways that really mattered. Float manages to cover struggles that many teenagers face on a daily bases in a lighthearted manner that keeps you hooked from the beginning.

At times I felt that Waverly and Blake’s relationship was moving too fast but you get that when you have books like this where the character are given a time limit together. Waverly is only staying the summer in Florida so, while I did find it a little unrealistic, I understand why Marchant made that decision.

CONCLUSION

Like I stated in the beginning of this review, I am a huge fan of Kate Marchant’s work and this book did not change my mind. Float is brilliant and I can’t wait for the world to be able to read it. I ended up rating this book 4 out of 5 stars. Float is set to be released on February 22nd, 2022 so make sure to go out and get yourself a copy!

Float is Marchant’s debut novel and honestly, it couldn’t have come at a better time. Lately, I have been longing for a sweet and age appropriate new YA novel, and almost everything I pick up has been either too mature or completely toxic (see my post on Punk 57) for a YA audience.

Float was SO unbelievably refreshing. This was a cute, quirky and innocent read. I loved the world Marchant created in small town Florida; there has been a trend towards dark and disturbing teenage novels (think 13 Reasons Why) and it was nice to read about a welcoming and caring group of teens; don’t get me wrong, there were still raging house parties, bitchy moments between girls, underage drinking, realistic teenage language (plenty of fucks were uttered haha), sneaking out and breaking rules, but the friendships and romantic relationships were sweet and age appropriate.

Waverly and Blake were adorable; a perfect teen appropriate version of one of my favourite romance tropes, enemies to lovers. Marchant captured the excitement and magic of a first time summer love perfectly. One day I want my daughter to have a summer of self discovery like Waverly had.

Honestly, I just really enjoyed this book. It made me feel warm and mushy and I really hope that this isn’t the last we heard from this rag tag group of friends - I would LOVE to read about Alissa and Jesse, for example!

Fans of Jenny Han (TATBILB and TSITP) will absolutely love this book. It is currently in the production phase and being turned into a movie (I do have questions as to why they cast a 33 year old as the 17 year old teenage heartthrob Blake... but 🤷🏼‍♀️).