Long Story Short has a fun sounding plot but something about constantly telling a teenager (or anyone at any age) that they need to change to be *normal* is not the message you think it is. And it's not okay. And Long Story Short is very much a *YA* novel with plenty of clichés. Which is definitely okay. But the former is why I did not enjoy this book. And I don't think I would recommend it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for providing me with a review copy.

Long Story Short is a young adult novel perfectly targeted to those who feel (or once felt) out of place.

Our female main character has a goal of becoming a normal teenager, or at least, making her parents think that she has, so they’ll allow her to move to England alone to attend Oxford. She arrives at Shakespeare summer camp with a checklist of teenage experiences, and as she marks things off, she learns more about herself and feels more comfortable sharing that with others.

It’s a sweet first kiss type of romance, where that first kiss is everything we all hope it could be.

In order to go to Oxford in the fall, Bea's parents are making her step outside of her comfort zone and do normal teenage things instead of studying and solving problems. They send her to Shakespeare camp with a list of to dos in order to go to Oxford. Her roommate Mia and budding costume designer Nolan help her navigate camp and her to do list

Fun, YA rom-com that makes want to go back to summer camp. A quick read with enjoyable characters and a whole lot of teenage drama.

Thankyou for Netgalley for this ARC

Y'all these '22 debuts are not playing! Just banger after banger, and LONG STORY SHORT is no different. As someone who is both a massively introverted nerd and a theatre kid (but not like that), this felt like two worlds crashing together and making something even more beautiful in their wake. I was invested in Beatrice’s journey the entire way, and I loved to see how much she grew without having to compromise who she is at the core. This was a joy to read, and one that I couldn’t recommend enough.

LONG STORY SHORT follows Beatrice “Bea” Quinn as she spends her summer at a Shakespearan summer camp in order to convince her parents that she’s ready to go to Oxford in the fall. Along the way, she’ll make friends, come out of her shell and into herself.

This book strikes the perfect balance between an introvert coming out of their shell without trying to make them into an extrovert. Beatrice’s character never felt betrayed, only further developed. She undoubtedly grew up within a sheltered bubble and it’s so satisfying to see her flourish. I could not help but root for her all along the way, from every burgeoning teenage emotion to almost overwhelmingly nerdy comment.

One of the best parts of this book, though? The friends they made along the way! Really, this book truly spends the time to highlight the importance of platonic relationships, making them the foundation of Bea’s growth instead of just basing it all on something romantic. The supporting cast of LONG STORY SHORT are all delightful and well-developed, making me wish there was a little epilogue for each and every one of them. They bring the world around them to life, so much to the point that I don’t even know if the camp ever had a name but it felt real (and I would like the opportunity to go please).

LONG STORY SHORT is an absolutely delightful, hard to put down read that shines through the classic teen cheesiness and somewhat predictable twists and turns. It wraps up a whole host of delightful characters that I learned to love by the end (some took longer than others), and a story that was both heartwarming and ultimately satisfying. Like I said, I couldn’t recommend it for YA readers enough!

Wow, can I state that this story invoked an amazing rollercoaster of feelings. A beautiful and sweet YA story about friendship, self discovery, ambition, and love. Sixteen year old Beatrice was accepted to Oxford University, but her parents didn't think she can handle being so far away. She was homeschooled for years because of an unfortunate circumstance as a child. Beatrice was bright and bold enough to believe she can go. Her parents highly suggested for her go to Shakespeare camp for the summer to prove herself and to them that she can handle personal relationships and Oxford. With their to-do checklist for her to achieve her dream she went to camp. By the way the checklist was hilarious. The growth, determination, vulnerability, and new friendships was so beautiful to read. Beatrice was like a caterpillar turning into a beautiful butterfly. I loved the interaction between her and Nik. Nik, the god of Shakespeare plays, and the son of the owner of the camp was an interesting character. Mia and Nolan were amazing cheerleaders, besties, confidents and really great friends to Beatrice. Now, I’ve forgotten most of the Shakespeare plays since it wasn’t exactly my cup of tea in school, but I liked how it was interwoven into the relationships. Lastly, I want to state that I highly recommend this book to everyone. Anyone who felt awkward or different growing up will appreciate that you are loved for who you are. The message that you can be yourself and yet grow into someone who can appreciate and learn new things in life was a beautiful message. The ending was chef’s kiss perfect, but I’m greedy and would love to see what happens in six months. Maybe a sequel, pretty please! Definitely, looking forward to the authors next book.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Sweet YA contemporary romance!
Great debut novel by Serena Kaylor!

Beatrice is an introvert through and through. As a young home schooled teen, she gets her dream in the form of an acceptance letter to Oxford. But her parents think this is too early, and their daughter should go experience "teen" life. So they chose a theater camp for the summer. If she can complete her social list, her parents will let her go to Oxford.

I love seeing an introvert put out of their comfort zone. Very realistic reactions to social activities, pressure, making friends. Beatrice is quiet with a spunky attitude. And I sense a neuroatypical in her mannerisms and personality which I love seeing in books!

Romance was sweet. A little enemies to lovers. Fun banter. Love the Shakespeare themes and quoting battle. Nik is a bit arrogant, witty, and charming. Their interactions make the book for me.

Her new friends are adorable and fun! Mia and Nolan are a riot!! Very cool to watch them help with her list and be such a great support group for Bea!

I would have liked to see more of her math skills...expand on what makes her so smart? The book also had quite a bit of insta-love to me. Camp was quite short but then again they see young teens. So I don't know. Plus, I did want a little more of Bryce history as well.

Besides a couple missing plot elements, I really enjoyed the book. Fun read. Nice to see some sweet romances in the YA contemporary field.

Thank you @netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC. All thoughts and words are my own

@the.book.belle

3.5
Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review
This book was so cute and I really enjoyed the whole camp vibe. I’ve never been a huge Theater person but I enjoy watching plays from time to time so I also enjoy that aspect. One of the main things I didn’t really like/connect with was anything Shakespeare related. I disliked Shakespeare so much when I was in high school so that was a disconnect. I related to the characters on a few occasions but for the most part didn't really relate to the characters. overall I still enjoyed this book and I’d recommend this cute YA rom com to any Theater & Shakespeare lovers.

I had Long Story Short on my eARC shelf for a long time and always gave priority to other galleys. And when I finally dived into the book I found out that I was so wrong. I requested the story because of its premise, a home schooled math genius, a summer camp to proof she can be a normal teen, and an annoyingly British boy. Those were all ingredients for me to love the story in advance. So, when I finally picked up the book, I ended up adoring this story!

I loved Bea’s anxiety and Nik as the love interest was so cute! I swooned and rooted for them so much! It seemed to me that Bea was neurodivergent, although it’s not mentioned in the synopsis or in the story itself. It’s just palpable throughout the book. A fantastic summer read!

This story had the sweetest characters and the development from enemies to lovers it was just so smart the banters and the events that took place at the summer camp so perfect! This book was very genuine and pretty adorable the main character is intelligent especially for only being 16 and a math prodigy you definitely can connect with her from the beginning of the story and her roots are easy to understand. I love the Shakespearean vibes from this book or interactions between the characters was always entertaining and I love how the author develop them from enemies to lovers. This book because everything I expected plus a little more it’s very fine and lighthearted and great for young adults aspiring to be stars!!

If you're into fun summer camp settings, characters discovering the "power of friendship", and Shakespeare based flirting then I 100% recommend you pick up Long Story Short. Struggling through the pitfalls of social interaction with introverted genius Beatrice Quinn was the perfect kind of second hand embarrassment.

Already tried to submit my review, but apparently I'd been logged out by the system, so you don't get my pretty rec, but I'll just say it's worth a read. There's cursing, if that bothers you, but it's still enjoyable, so don't let that deter you.

I did not finish this book. I read about 70 pages of it and that was about it.
I really did like some parts of the book the premise was good; our extreme introvert home schooled main character, Bea who in order to prepare for leaving home to go to her top college decides to go to a theater camp for six weeks. This book is part coming of age and part romance. In theory it was a the start of a fun book but I don't think I was the target audience for this one.
I think my one critic is the writing style makes it hard to connect with the characters even thought its first person. Everything was described in tangents so it left nothing up to the imagination and somehow made it harder to picture the person or place being described.
Overall Bea was funny and the parts I read were cute but this one didn't do it for me but I'm sure it's someone else's cup of tea.

*I received a ARC from NetGalley. Thank you St. Martin's Publishing Group!!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
The synopsis of this book sounded intriguing to me so I requested a copy to read.
Unfortunately, I have tried reading this book on 2 separate occasions and during this 2nd attempt, I have
decided to stop reading this book
and state that this book just wasn't for me.
I wish the author, publisher and all those promoting the book much success and connections with the right readers.

A huge thank you to St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!
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Holy cow! This book came recommended to me, and I am so glad that it did!! I was a theatre kid growing up (and am now a theatre professional), and even went to theatre camp when I was in elementary school, so I could definitely relate to a lot of these characters. Mia, Nolan, Shelby, and Nik could have all been people that I went to school with or friends from my local teen theatre troupe. Putting on a show in a few weeks time is overwhelming and all-encompassing even if the audience will ultimately be made up of your parents. These characters felt authentic and true to the various kinds of teenagers that find themselves at theatre camp, and most importantly, none of them were a caricature. Now, let's talk about Bea. I was on her side right from the start. Her anxiety was real and earned, but didn't fill the entire plot or drag down the stories. I've never considered myself particularly socially anxious, but there were moments where I completely agreed with her perspective and wanted to yell at her parents for trying to change her. Yet by the end I also understood how her friends were able to meet her where she is without shoving her out of the nest.
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I'm hoping that Kaylor has a sequel planned for Long Story Short (maybe we can follow Mia or Nolan off to college, and get a little check in on Bea?)! The writing struck me as honest, and the ending felt earned. The pacing is pretty quick and definitely keeps the pages turning, but the events themselves never feel rushed. Could it be this easy for a teen with anxiety to fit in with a new group of people in a foreign place? Maybe? I don't honestly know, but regardless the representation that you don't need to be perfect to belong is something I've always found to be true in the theatre and hopefully there is a Bea out there reading this book that will be inspired to try just one more thing, one more time. If nothing else, this is the perfect reminder that we should all be approaching others with compassion because you never know the path that someone else is traveling and what might be easy for one, could be earth-shatteringly terrifying for another. We all probably have a little bit of Bea in us, and could probably stand to be a little more kind, like Mia and Nolan, to others.

Before I get into the review, a quick thank you to both NetGalley and the publishers over at Wednesday Books for allowing me to have an ARC of this one in exchange for an honest review. Long Story Short is a summer camp story about a genius who is forced to go to camp in order to prove to her parents that she’s ready to go to college at Oxford in the Fall. Beatrice is a 16 year old genius with her acceptance letter in hand and her bags halfway packed. But her parents are unwilling to ship their only daughter overseas without proof that she’s emotionally, and socially, prepared to fly the nest. They come up with a compromise: attend a four week, theater summer camp, and Oxford is hers for the taking. Thrown into all new experiences at every turn, can Beatrice survive the summer? Long Story Short comes out on July 26th and is available for pre-order now.

I don’t normally like starting reviews with the negative, but I really want to point out that I think most of the reason for my rating is due to me not being in the target audience age range. I’m almost 33 and I feel like this book is targeted for people half my age. So, while my opinions could be valid in some ways, I do acknowledge that this might not be the perfect book for me because I’m not the perfect audience for the book. I thought Beatrice was too similar to Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory to take seriously at first. She always wore the same clothes (so she wouldn’t have to think about it and could focus on the work) and the same foods every single week. I feel like I know what the writer was trying to accomplish, but as our main character quoted from Walt Whitman, “I contain multitudes.” And in the beginning it really felt like she didn’t. She was so flat. I can understand having one bad social experience as a child and having that impact you as a teenager. I don’t understand how that translates into her having no really interests outside of academia. I think it would have been so easy to add in before she goes to a Shakespearean summer camp that she loves Shakespeare and knows his works backwards and forwards. Just anything other than academia 24/7.

I will say that as the book progressed we really saw Beatrice come out of her shell and develop into a more well-rounded person. I liked that she still struggled because no one changes over night. But I liked seeing her blossom as the story developed. I loved her friends Nolan and Mia. I wish we had gotten a little more from them. The love interest though. I love that he willingly admits to his mistakes and that he acknowledges that he can do better and then strives to actually do better. Also, the teenagers did feel very teenager-y to me so the authenticity was there in this one. An unexpected thing that I really enjoyed was the two main characters doing Shakespeare trivia against each other. Like, sometimes theater kids are just like that, you know? And it was a lot of fun to see what quotes they would challenge the other person with and try to tease apart what kind of message they were trying to send with it.

Overall, this is a fun and quick YA Rom-Com and I enjoyed it taking place at a Shakespeare summer camp. I think it’s a great read for a YA (or YA adjacent) audience or for the Shakespeare fan in your life.

As a huge math nerd and acting camp alum, I was so excited for this book. And it didn't fall short of those expectations! I loved reading about Bea's story, the obvious sexual tension with Nik, and how much she grows throughout the story. Bea is definitely coded as being on the autism spectrum, nothing is ever stated about it in the text and I absolutely loved that element. We get to focus on Bea herself, not any labels from a diagnosis that have been thrust on her. Mia and Nolan were exuberant and really helped lift Bea up throughout the story, without trying to change her. Bea's bluntness, humor, and tenacity are part of what makes her so compelling as a character. Add in a Shakespearean bet with a kiss on the line? It's solid.

*Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

Long Story Short surprised me in the best way possible. I prefer to steer clear when it comes to YA romance because they tend to be a little to corny for my liking. Not Long Story Short. This is such a fun summer read. Its fun, quirky, light hearted, with a little drama ;) It showcases the special bond of friendship and how important friends are in everyone's life, all while finding one's identity in the world.

I am not a drama kid, but man after reading Long Story Short I kind of wish I took some drama classes in HS and went to a good ol' drama summer camp because it sounds epic! Oh and if you are a Shakespeare fan you might as well drop everything and get to pre-ordering the book. Its PUB date is July 26 2022.

"O happy dagger! This is thy sheath; there rust, and let me die. O, I am slain!"

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Wednesday Books for giving me this ARC for my honest review.

Shakespeare theater kids shenanigans with a South Asian male love interest? This is THE fluffy, light-hearted book of the summer, so def add it to your TBRs!

The premise of this book is fairly simple really – and we’ve seen it done a thousand times. Bea is a super genius who’s been homeschooled her whole life. She’s had one singular focus this whole time: to study statistical genetics at Oxford and she got in early! The only problem – her sex therapist parents don’t think she’s socially ready to move from California to England all by herself. To prove to her parents that she is, indeed, ready, Bea has to enroll in a Shakespeare theater camp to make friends and do “regular teenage things.”

Naturally, Bea and the theater’s darling, actor prodigy Nikhil, start off on the wrong foot. You can imagine what happens then.

Except! Serena Kaylor wrote a story that is so charming and chock-full of friendship, first love, petty rivalry and anxiety. The Shakespeare quote competition between Nik and Bea was also a genius idea and it was so cute how Nik always selected quotes that gave away how smitten he was with Bea. I also mentioned earlier in this review that Nik is South Asian, but I had to mention it again because it’s so rare to have a male love interest be South Asian and I think Serena Kaylor did a terrific job of handling his identity with respect.

I also really appreciated that Bea had a therapist that was present during this story. Positive therapist representation (i.e., in which the MC has a therapist that they regularly see) is rare and it was a breath of fresh air to read this particular aspect.

The most burning question I had about Bea this entire story was if she was neurodivergent or not. She is very clearly coded as neurodivergent with her patterns of behavior and mannerisms but I would have appreciated more explicit confirmation of this, rather than my speculation from basically the first few pages of the book.

All in all – a thoroughly enjoyable book and I really look forward to whatever else Serena Kaylor publishes in the future!

Special thanks to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions!

Long Story Short was a cute YA story that almost every teenage girl lacking self confidence will relate to.

Beatrice is a super bright home schooled teen that is accepted at her dream college, Oxford. However, her parents feel as if she'll not socialize and just stay in her room all day studying as she's never been one to put herself out there. The tell her that they will happily send her off to Oxford as long as she attends a summer camp to make friends as well as check off certain other tasks on a "social to-do list" of sorts.

Thankfully, Beatrice is roomed with Mia and they hit it off pretty quickly. Mia helps her navigate the ropes of this dramatic summer camp since she has attended several years. By dramatic, I mean not only socially since we're dealing with a bunch of teens, but it is a camp for aspiring actors, set designers, etc.

Even though Beatrice is a prolific Shakespeare student, she never wanted to be an actress and quickly convinces the director to give her a behind the scenes job. Typical teen drama begins almost immediately which in some ways brings her out of her shell. She also does not want to mess up her chances of going to Oxford and knows that her parents mean business.

It is a fun teen summer read, but it is not a long story short. My only criticism is that it might have gone on a little too long. Still one to recommend!

Thank you so much to net galley and the publisher for sending me a copy of this book. I’m not sure why but I was hesitant to start this book. I immediately fell in love and could not put this down. I love all the characters so much and the emotions in the books. Extremely swoon worthy. I can’t even describe my love for this book. I can’t wait to read more from this author! It’s definitely a new favorite author and book for me!