This novel told a story the world needs to hear with a representation the world needed to hear in the moment.

I hate the love triangle trope so this was a complete miss for me. If you like love triangle you make like this. If not run.

If you love a quick YA queer romance that doesn't only focus on the romance itself, but also on real -life struggles, this is the book for you!

Before heading off to college, Isaac is bound and determined to make this the best summer ever with his best friend Diego. But after he runs into his high school crush Davi, all his plans change in an instant and the summer turns into something unexpected.

Right Where I Left You is a coming of age queer YA novel. I enjoyed the character growth of Isaac and really appreciated the diversity of the cast of characters. When I read books, I want to learn from and experience different cultures and people. This book gave me a window into what it means to be a queer Afro-Lantix teen trying to find their way in the world. I did expect more romance in the story and did have a hard time keeping up with the comic and gaming fandom written into the story. At times, it felt like these overpowered the other story lines.


Thanks to Penguin Teen for the advanced copy and Penguin Random House Audio for the ALC.

This book is for comic lovers and anyone who can appreciate how deep you can fall into a fandom and how it feels to see yourself in the characters and the yearning to see yourself represented. The characters were vibrant and funny and flawed, but striving to be seen and loved. I adored Isaac and Diego and their friendship bond really jumped off the page immediately.

I was not excepting the fandom elements going in, but with coming of age storyline combined with that friends-t0-lovers woven in, I was able to enjoy it.

There are fun, flirty summer contemporaries... and then there is Right Where I Left You, a mastery of the best friends-to-lovers trope between two queer teens of color wrapped up in a perfectly nerdy and touching coming-of-age story.

**Thank you Penguin Teen for an ARC of this book for an honest review**

Set in the summer after high school Isaac Martin wants it to be the best summer yet and that means spending as much time as possible with his best friend Diego before Isaac leaves for college and Diego pursues his gaming dreams. But when Isaac messes up their chance to get to Legends Con, he tries to find a way to make it up to Diego while juggling time and feelings for a new crush. Their friendship will face more turmoil than ever but will they be able to overcome it together?

"The thing about apologies is, you can't force the other person to listen, no matter how bad you want them to. You can only gather the words, hold them in your heart, and hope the person on the other end will meet you halfway to hear them. Once you've hurt someone, wanting to fix things is the easiest part."

What I adored about this story:
- Smooth pacing
- SUCH a comfort read. I wish this story had existed when I was a teen. So. Much. YES!
- The best-friends-to-lovers aspect of the story is the long game and not the main driver of the plot and I gotta say... it's PERFECT as is. So just wait for it, it's worth it!
- For a single POV I never got tired of Isaac's perspective. His depth of feelings was so apparent.
- THE FEELS! Mistakes are made, hardship is felt, and so is love.
- The family dynamics. This story felt as much about Isaac and his relationship with his family as much as his friends. The gem that is Isaac's love for his grandfather is so touching!
- Isaac's social anxiety was described so well. The author gave us a chance to really feel it without blanketing the feeling with just the word "anxiety". So cool.

"Normal is finding the place where you belong. Sometimes, you find it early. Sometimes, it happens late. In the middle of the of the afternoon, in the unforgiving summer heat, I know this: Finding your normal is the best feeling ever."

The story was a smidge longer than I expected for a contemporary but every page had its purpose. I'm so glad it was the length it was so I didn't have to leave these characters sooner!

5 stars--high rec for fans of Felix Ever After. I sense a re-read in my future.

I absolutely loved this book, Julian winters is a captivating writer to the YA audience. I can’t wait to read more of his work!

I have adored Julian’s books in the past and this one was no exception! Cute and funny and relatable, all while having really important conversations about representation and inclusion and the importance of being seen! Would highly suggest to any YA contemporary fans looking for a geeky, friends-to-lovers romcom! Absolutely perfect for summer time!

Thank you to Penguin Teen for providing me with an e-ARC of Right Where I Left You in exchange for an honest review!

It's the bisexual rep that made this book for me.

I absolutely adored Right Where I Left You; I saw an author (I cannot find the receipt to this & can't remember who said it!) describe Julian Winters' books as a warm hug & yes, yes! I agree, 100%. The characters are so soft & sweet, the relationships are so good, & there's so much geekery in this one!

Right Where I Left You is such a wonderful story with so much to offer! It is a queer and nerdy coming-of-age story with slow burn m/m friends-to-lovers romance mixed in! The characters from this book were amazing and the diverse representation across the board is a major plus. If you're looking for a good book to make you feel warm and fuzzy inside this is definitely it!

FRIENDS TO LOVERS, holla! What an absolutely perfect summery read. I loved the characters. I loved the pacing. I loved the tropes. I loved everything about this book!

I really loved this friends to lovers romance. This book was adorable. I am excited to recommend as a Must Read YA contemporary for 2022.

Issac is planning an epic summer with his friend Diego before they head off to college in the fall. He decided to get tickets to Legend Con and go to his ever pride event. But along the way he bumps into crush Davi and things take an unexpected turn and now him and Diego are fighting.

This is a really sweet, queer coming of age, own voices, friends to lovers story. How friendship is messy and who you think you love isn’t really who you want to be with. That person who’s been your friend all along, could be the answer you needed.

This is my first Winter’s book and I love how fresh voiced his story was. He made me feel like I was back in high school feeling the highs and lows of loving someone. It explores friendship and family and second chances.

This was kind of... everything to me?

Right Where I Left You is one of the most authentic novels I've read in a while, and I related SO heavily to the main character, Isaac, who struggles with severe social anxiety throughout the book. I felt that so much of who he was is exactly who I was in high school, and I haven't read another book that comes so close to that experience.

This book features one of the most lovable love triangles I've ever read from a YA book (I mean seriously it's SO hard to make a love triangle lovable lol) as all 3 of the characters were so well fleshed out and so authentically real to high school. These boys are all so different, yet meld with Isaac so well. The plot was well done, and that combined with the characters motivations throughout the book serve a wonderful story.

My only complaint is that it felt a bit cartoonish of a portrayal of teenagers at times. Video game and online geekdom is not only the basis of the plot, but is intertwined with the characters throughout the story. At times this portrayal of geek culture felt very cringe, and I think some of the teenage dramatics were a bit unrealistic. If you can handle pop culture references (some real, some fake) in exchange for a wonderful story that ties up SO nicely at the end, you'll probably really enjoy this novel as well.

From the first paragraph, I knew this book would be a good one. I immersed myself into the book from the first chapter and I cannot say enough good things about this book! Honestly amazing! The writing is incredible and the plot is just one to die for. I am absolutely obsessed with this book. My favorite part would have to be the character development throughout the book. Character development is something I look forward to and this book did not disappoint.

If you are looking for a book that will have you smiling from ear to ear over the pure joy and happiness displayed in a book, this one is the on for you!

This story follows with Isaac just completing his last year in high school and he wants to make this last summer with his best friend, Diego epic. Isaac and Diego make a plan to attend Legends Con and their first ever Teen PRIDE. As Isaac is on his way to get the tickets for the comic convention, he runs into his old crush and gets distracted which results in him flushing all his perfect summer plans down the drain. With Isaac plans ruined, how will this summer turn out now?

Listen!!!!! I haven't smiled this hard over a YA book in a minute! It made me remember how I felt over my first love and how wanted to spend every waking moment with them! All throughout the book I found myself rooting for their best friends to lovers romance and them being true to who they are and what they want out of life. And baby!! The representation, the culture, the joy, the spacing, the love. Just everything!!! Julian did an amazing job with this book!

This book blew me away. I was anticipating it being good but wow. I laughed and cried while reading and I haven't done that is a long time. I think Winters did an absolutely wonder with this one. Finding love in an old crush and with it being lgbt just makes it so much more heart wrenching because you want to see them win.i love a friends to lovers trope and this was perfect. The cover is amazing, the writing is amazing, and I just loved everything about it. Definitely going my "comfort read" shelf!

A geeky queer character? Sign me up! Even though Isaac is a little love obsessed he was extremely endearing. I saw a lot of myself in him with the way he was trying to make the best of the last summer before moving away from his family and his friend, but winding up putting way too much pressure on events and not just being with them. Also, Isaac is completely oblivious to how Diego feels and it is adorable. From the beginning you are able to get little glimpses of the feelings they have for each that get mistaken for just friendship. I loved how much they just wanted the other one to have a good time. This one is definitely a very sweet young adult driven by the characters, for me, it was a 5/5.

If you like shipping characters, have dreamt of going to Pride, or are obsessed with video games, this is the one for you.

I received a digital copy of this book free from Penguin Young Readers Group and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is for comic geeks and anyone who can appreciate how deep you can fall into a fandom and how it feels to see yourself in the characters and the yearning to see yourself represented. The characters were vibrant and funny and flawed, but striving to be seen and loved. I adored Isaac and Diego and their friendship bond really jumped off the page immediately.

I can feel Isaac's yearning to be included and his hard feelings of being left out of the different friend groups he interacts with. I was also that teen and I could feel those emotions seeping off the page in a way that made me just want to hug Isaac and tell him it would be okay. The yearning for one last summer with the people he loved was so well portrayed. The need to celebrate himself and his friends and his coming out in a big way. The desire to be loved and to fall in love. The feeling of not being enough.

This book had big emotions and I really enjoyed it. Even though there were some tense times, some doubtful times, some angry times, there was a lot of JOY and it brought me so much joy. The ending had me actually in tears a few different times and it's when I realized how connected I felt to Isaac and the people around him. And this is why I really recommend this story. For all the things, the characters, and the joy that shines off the page when Isaac smiles.