ARC kindly provided by St. Martin's Press in exchange for an honest review

I must confess… the 1st thing I thought when I saw this book was Taylor Swift’s song. At the time, I was listening to it non-stop, which convinced me to start this. As the song says, long story short, Beatrice Quinn survived!

Beatrice Quinn finished High School at 14 years old, and two years later, she was accepted into Oxford University, her absolute dream. The problem is… her parents don't quite support her. After an agreement, however, she is set to go to a drama camp.

I saw a lot of myself in Beatrice, even if not to the same degree. The scene where she is wearing her new clothes, but something happens, and she goes back to her old clothes? Boy, think about identification.

We also have the romance between Bea and Nik. Seriously, their banter? God-tier. The way they get closer step by step (with funny moments!)? They had me in their hands. Bea’s friends? Chef’s kiss.

To sum it all up, it was a great read. I enjoyed my time reading the book, but I had some opinions… Although it was a nice book, it wasn't much more than this. I read this book some time ago, and it wasn't memorable. There weren't scenes or parts that got to my heart. The ending also felt a little meh (and some parts made me cringe).

All in all, I recommend it to YA readers that want a nice and fast book with an amount of representation in its characters.

My mature readers will love this novel! I will be looking to purchase a hard copy for my classroom library for my students to check out.

Posting about this one over summer is going to be so fun. I loved everything about this story. These are the sweetest characthers, so developed and the banter was perfect. I loved it.

Long Story Short was a charming, quick read that I'd recommend for anyone looking for a summery YA romcom. While I felt some of the characterization fell a little flat at times, overall it was cute and made me nostalgic for my own days at Shakespeare camp (although that might not be relevant to all readers, lol).

**I actually won a giveaway on Goodreads after requesting this book on Netgalley. Thanks!

Thanks to Goodreads giveaways and the publisher for an ARC of this novel! All opinions are my own.

This is a really cute book that was a great escape from the bustle of everyday life! I haven't had too much time to read lately, but every chance I could get I would sit down and read this. It was so dreamy and even though the characters were a bit stereotypical, they were adorable and I wanted them to succeed at every turn. I especially loved the character of Mia because I have a friend in real life, with the same name actually(!), who is just like her! Overall, the perfect book to read when summer just seems to get closer and closer. :)

4.5 stars. This book had me smiling and swooning the entire time! It did take me a bit longer than I thought to warm up to Bea but I loved her and her growth. I also loved her friendship with Mia and Nolan, as well as her relationship with Nik. The hate-to-love romance in this was superb! There was flirting through Shakespeare, jealousy, angst (!), "LI calls them by a name that's different from everyone else", and lots of running away. I loved that it was clear their relationship was more than just acquaintances or even friends but neither (okay maybe just Bea) were willing to admit it. The push-and-pull left me in shambles! Everything was said with an underlying meaning and Bea was the only one who refused to see it for what it was - I promise it's the best. I'm such a fan of the setting as well. It really made me wish I had gone to camp.

Truly the perfect summer read that I'd recommend to everyone! I will absolutely be buying a physical copy for myself.

Special thanks to Rivka and Wednesday Books for the ARC! :)

This was absolutely lovely and I would have given it a higher rating had I not found Bea’s parents and their whole behavior so insufferable. But overall I had fun! The highlight of this book for me was Bea's roommate and best friend, Mia. I literally have no words to describe how much I loved her, she is a princess. 3.5/5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Wednesday Books for the ARC.

First of all, I think it was really interesting to read about a character who is not labeled as having an Autism Spectrum Disorder, despite being coded as neurodivergent. The author recently tweeted that that was on purpose, and I think it was really well done, especially with the themes of needing to fit in with “normal” teenagers and how there’s not actually such a thing as normal.

Beatrice was such a force of character. She has the wit and charm as well as the smarts and sarcasm that I really enjoy reading. It was a really fun POV! I loved the sort of Taming of the Shrew mixed with Pride and Prejudice vibes the book gave off without being an obvious retelling!

The banter between the two love interests was so much fun to read! I especially loved the Shakespeare-off where she was giving quotes that sort of represented hate while he was just charming and it had me SQUEALING.

I especially loved the friendships and how supportive they were of her without forcing her into some box of “normalcy”. The characters were a delight to have, and I wish we’d gotten more of them!

Adv. Reader Copy Courtesy NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

What a lovely book! There’s a scene at the start of the novel where one of the main characters, Mia, sees her close friend Nolan for the first time after a year apart. She leaps into his arms with joy and he twirls her around. That’s honestly the feeling you’ll have reading this book if you have ever been uncomfortable around your age group, been a theater nerd, been a lit geek, or love the enemies-to-lovers trope.

The premise is that the young heroine, Beatrice, is clever and sharp-tongued, but as she has been homeschooled for much of her academic career, her education has been deficient in socialization. Before her parents will allow her to go off to college as a minor, she must get out of her comfort zone, attend a summer camp, and complete a task card of teen rituals. Naturally, Beatrice (yes, a nod to the Much Ado About Nothing enemies to lovers rom com template) selects one of the more cerebral options and ends up at a Shakespeare theater camp.

Beatrice gets lucky at this camp, and she even says so. Her roommate Mia and Mia’s friend Nolan are wonderfully kind and accepting. If they judge Bea at all, it’s so obviously affectionate that it isn’t painful to read. Together, this new trio embark on a mission to complete Bea’s teen experience.

Enter Nik (a nod to Benedick and Mr. Darcy, I’m sure). Beatrice, with her lack of social skills and unable to identify the uncomfortable feelings Nik makes her experience, gets their relationship off to a rocky start with some unexpectedly barbed comments directed at him. The banter begins, and it’s clear to everyone except Bea that, even if Nik has landed a verbal punch or two, he really, really wants to her to understand he didn’t mean it. He really, really likes her because she can keep up with him intellectually, because she’s naturally pretty, and because she’s “real.”

Over the course of several weeks as they put on a production of Romeo and Juliet, we learn along with Mia, the joys and value that words, drama, and personal relationships have. The cast of supporting characters really make the book. The author gives us an ethnically diverse cast who really ring true. In addition to the reassuring Mia and the enthusiastic Nolan, you’ll meet Shelby, the villain who isn’t all bad; Ben, a shy love interest to parallel Claudio to Mia’s Hero- at least the first sweet part; and Troy, the total bro who quite casually makes a triangle of out the Nik/Beatrice couple. It would be interesting in the future to see how Beatrice handles learning to balance both academics and a personal life, but as you close this book, you’ll have enjoyed a satisfying comfort read. This is a perfect addition to any YA library.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me an ARC of this! This is such a cute debut novel. Shakespeare, summer camp, enemies to lovers, enemies to friends, neurodivergent characters, queer characters, this book has it all. I loved it so much! It was so cute and brought a few tears to my eyes.

The perfect YA summer romance! I loved all these characters so, so much. I liked the story, the setting all of plot. This book made me smile while I was reading it and made me really happy!

This book is so fun! It made me wish i was involved with theater in high school. I feel like this was a great book that showed that growing up and finding yourself and who you want to be can be done in many ways. I liked the characters and getting to know them. It held my interest the entire book and was shocked how quick i read it.

I received this as an Arc from Netgalley. This does not effect my review (other than more obligatory plot discussion!)

Beatrice Quinn is accepted into Oxford, but she's been homeschooled and her parents are concerned that she has not lived and learned as a teenager.

So she goes to an acting camp, of all things for an introvert, to prove that she can handle the move. She gets paired with the best roommate a camper could have and the effervescent Nolan-who designs costumes as a part of the camp. She's constantly challenged by Nolan's twin, Shelby, who is so mean no one can dream up how they shared a womb.

There is a not insignificant part of me that resents when genius level brains (especially those tending to the math side of the brilliance) are portrayed this way. There's a bigger part of me that sees a book that has a setting of a camp and feels utter delight because there are some things I will always love. But Bea isn't just socially inept, she's lacking all life experience. She can swim (doggy paddle), she dresses in polos and khakis, can't even pretend to act even though she knows the plays in and out and is smart enough to remember her lines...and you know what I mean?

And then there's this tendency to "fix people" that are introverted. Like at the end, this feeling of triumph that yes "now you have lived,"and that is a moral achievement. What I loved is her friends seeing who she was, what I didn't was the idea she conquered everything she was bad at and in an endearing, frankly socially sophisticated way. Her truths are hard, but well-put, she's assertive. There's a point in the book where she hides away in embarrassment, but rather than having to return on her own and I don't know always explain herself there's a level of radical acceptance that feels too easy, particularly from her love interest-or the guy interested in her? Nik.

To be honest, sure he was a dick at their first meeting. Because would this be suitable YA without it. But after that? I'm not sure he could've been more forgiving, open, or perfect. Meanwhile, she acts like a cornered cat, right down to running and hiding when she sees an escape or is even moderately bested.

Interestingly, I really like this as a book. I mean it's cute, and at times emotional.I was invested in the triumphs. In the romance, I get that Nik is hot and talented, and ultimately really defies our expectations by falling for the hot, funny, smart introvert (see?) who doesn't really believe she could hold that appeal-but his entire character is centered around Beatrice. Don't get me wrong, it kind of makes this lovely, but also, where are his flaws other than his initially shit reaction to Bea, they are no where to be found. If you follow my reviews, you know this will always be a sticking point for me-he's gotta have <i>something</i> or he's pretty uninteresting.

I definitely snort-laughed in surprise more than once, and all in all it was pleasant. But in the end, pleasant isn't enough to be memorable, and in the crowded YA market, there are many other authors I can't miss.

What does it mean to be a teenager? Is there a rule book? If there was one, Beatrice Quinn might have memorized it, and it would come in handy as she finds herself off to a theater camp to prove to her parents she's ready to attend Oxford University - half a world away from her Berkley, California home. As a homeschooled only child, Beatrice has led a sheltered life, but she's ready to take on college. Her therapist parents aren't so sure, so she has a test run at living away from home - and the choice is theater camp with a checklist of must-do activities that are simple tasks like making a friend and hugging someone. But making a friend was easy and they up the ante with things actual teenagers do.

Ther's romance, adventure, and, of course, drama because it's theater camp, duh.

Good read. Some underage drinking but there's a lesson to everything, so it is good for 8th grade and up.

4*, YA. When a solitary, routine-bound homeschooled teenager gets into her dream school (Oxford), her parents decide to send her to theatre camp for the summer so she can prove her ability to socialize before they’ll let her travel abroad for college. (And her parents are therapists! OK, sex therapists, but still. Talk about out of the frying pan, into the fire.) What could possibly go wrong? An entertaining novel packed with the stereotypical theatre-kid characters and some to spare: the characters are a lot of fun to read about. I’m not sure of the significance, if any, of the title. Synopsis: Growing up homeschooled in Berkeley, California, Beatrice Quinn is a statistical genius who has dreamed her whole life of discovering new mathematical challenges at a school like Oxford University. She always thought the hardest part would be getting in, not convincing her parents to let her go. But while math has always made sense to Beatrice, making friends is a problem she hasn’t been able to solve, so her parents are worried about sending her halfway across the world. The compromise: the Connecticut Shakespearean Summer Academy and a detailed list of teenage milestones to check off. She has six weeks to show her parents she can pull off the role of “normal” teenager and won’t spend the rest of her life hiding in a library. (Netgalley, releases July 26)

I really enjoyed this story and thought the Shakespearean summer camp setting was really fun and unique! I thought that the two characters Nic and Nolan were really hard to differentiate between because they both start with N other than that I thought that all of the characters were very interesting in their own regards. The book did lose a star for being a very “slow burn” romance and having the two love interests get together at the very end of the book but over all I really enjoyed the uniqueness of this book!

I LOVED this book! One of my favorite romance tropes is the enemies to lovers, and this one fits the bill. I love the fact that it's a YA read because so many cute romcom books aren't. and this one was adorable! It has a good summer vibe to it, and I found the characters to be loveable. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a cute, easy, ya romcom type book!

I honestly loved this.

Beatrice is perhaps at time overly quirky, and her parents made me SO MAD at the beginning - Beatrice comes off as neurodivergent and they want to force her so far outside her comfort zone it made me deeply uncomfortable.

But - and this should not be considered a spoiler given the genre - it all works out in the end. And we get there in such an adorable and heart warming way, all is forgiven.

Is it cheesy and predictable? Yes. Does it lay it on thick at times and do many of the characters come off as stereotypes? Also yes. But it is done in such a charming way, and with some genuine chemistry, I couldn't help but just love it.

I will say, there is at times a feeling as if Beatrice needs to be "fixed", even as she makes friends who appear to accept her as she is, that may rub some readers the wrong way. If that is something you are sensitive to, it may not be the book for you.

If you enjoy Pride&Prejudice and To All The Boys I Loved Before, this book put me in mind of both of those and I think you'd rather like this.

I really enjoyed this, more than I expected I would.

Beatrice is an incredibly advanced and intelligent, yet socially inept sixteen year old who is going to Oxford in the fall…if she can complete a typical teen list concocted by her parents, to see if she’ll be able to handle the college experience overseas. Which leads her to going to a Shakespeare Acting Camp for the summer.

I usually don’t go for “list” plots, but the idea of Beatrice’s parents creating one for her was unexpected and original. Additionally, some great secondary characters and an enemies to lovers trope sold me.

A nice, quick and cute read.

As an anxious, brunette, bookworm, theatre kid... I'm obsessed. I will be recommending this book to all of my theater friends as well as my rom-com loving friends. It may have been a little clique at some parts, but who doesn't love a clique romance novel every once in a while?