I love the way Casey McQuinston can write a difficult topic in a way that doesn't make me feel like I'm drowning in life's darkness. Chloe's hilarious and hair-pulling adventures while trying to discover the secrets of The Most Popular Girl in Town kept me on the edge of my seat, while also leaving me clutching my heart and sighing at these sweet baby gays. This book leaves a fantastic message about being true to yourself and allowing yourself to do what you need to grow, while also understanding that even the worst years of your life can leave you with a few positive moments and nostalgia. The author treats the topics of Christianity and sexuality as something that's not inherently opposed, but that can and should be reconciled in an accepting way. It's a story for queer kids, straight kids, and anyone who ever felt like they should stage a coup in their high school.

Red white and royal blue was one of my favorite books of 2019 but one last stop was a bit of a dud for me. I saw "I kissed Shara Wheeler" all over social media and was so excited to have the opportunity to get an ARC.

The book pulled me in from the first chapter and pacing was great! I was able to finish it in just a couple of sittings.

The complexity of the characters is something that you don't really see too much in young adult. A feel good funny novel that I would highly recommend!

As ever with Casey McQuiston's writing, I was gobsmacked by her ability to both make me laugh out loud, and make me deeply care about the characters and the situations they found themselves in.

I loved this book. Like, utterly loved this book. Much like One Last Stop, I kept having to stop and reread sections because the writing is so well crafted, and because McQuiston manages to reveal universal truths - things that really matter - in her young adult writing.

The setting is small-town deep southern United States. Like, Alabama, deep-southern United States. Our protagonist, Chloe Green, is a fully out lesbian teen who has relocated with her moms to this community to care for a grandparent. She attends a conservative Christian academy, and really, really, really wants to be valedictorian. Shara Wheeler, her perfectly coiffed, homecoming queen nemesis is her only competition. And then, in a weird turn of events, Shara kisses Chloe and then promptly disappears. Off the radar completely.

Chloe becomes obsessed with finding Shara, because winning valedictorian without Shara to compete with just isn't the way Chloe rolls. Along the way, she discovers too unlikely co-kissees - Rory, the boy next door to Shara and Shara's football-playing (but maybe also flower in the hair wearing) boyfriend, Smith. And in the process, Chloe realizes that maybe all the time she's been thinking people are judging her, she's been judging them too.
As usual, in a McQuiston book, all the supporting characters are beautifully drawn, and we learn to love them right along with Chloe, who is prickly, and tough and messed-up and wonderful.
If you were ever a square peg in high school; if you did a lot of figuring out about who you might be in high school; if you have students who need to know that it's okay to be doing that figuring out - you will find much to love in this book.
Also, as usual with the remarkable Casey McQuiston, there's some sexual activity, though not as much as in One Last Stop, because these characters are still figuring stuff out.
I kind of wish I had kissed Shara Wheeler.

Let me just start by saying that I am a huge Casey McQuinston fan. After reading both Red, White & Royal Blue and One Last Stop, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on their new novel, even though it is a YA mystery. Per usual, they did not disappoint - I LOVED this book. The story follows academic rivals Chloe & Shara as they fight for the valedictorian spot at their school, but before graduation, Shara kisses Chloe and then disappears. Shara leaves behind clues that must be decoded for the mystery to be solved.

I really appreciate the representation of the queer community throughout the novel and the journey of self discovery that takes place for many characters. I think many readers will find it extremely relatable, and can see themselves in the struggles of the characters. This book made me feel everything it was supposed to, and I couldn’t put it down. I don’t want to give away too much of the love story, but it was perfect (academic rivals to lovers trope).

Check the trigger warnings - homophobia, emotional abuse, religious trauma

Thank you NetGalley for my ARC!

First of all, still reeling over the fact that I was approved for one of my most anticipated books of 2022.

Chloe Green is a senior theatre nerd and academic goddess fighting her way to the top to be the valedictorian. The only thing in the way? Perfect, holier than thou, Shara Wheeler. When Shara mysteriously disappears after prom, Chloe and an unlikely group of students are pulled together to figure out where she may have gone. What starts as a plan to find Shara to beat her at becoming valedictorian turns into Chloe finding out how deceiving perfection can really be, finding out the truth about her deeply conservative Christian school, and standing up in the face of injustice.

This book was gloriously gay, fun as hell, and knew the exact pressure points of my religious trauma (but, like, in a good way). The adventure was exciting and super fun to follow along, the characters were endearing, the ending was *chef’s kiss*. I personally cannot wait to force everyone in my life to read this book just like I have with Casey McQuiston’s other books.

This marvelous book transcends the YA stamp. It’s about teenagers, yes, but that’s the only thing “young adult” about it. The writing is superb, as I’ve come to expect from Casey McQuiston. The dialog is witty, the emotions are so real they’ll make your inner teenager feel soothed and validated, and the plot is just enough bonkers that you can’t really expect what will come next. The tongue in cheek references to “Gone Girl,” paired with the timelessness of Shakespeare and Jane Austen, enemies to lovers, and trips to Taco Bell will utterly transport you. Being a teenager is equal parts self-discovery and being trapped in some way ( expectations, shame, and even emotions that seem big and confusing) a dichotomy McQuiston dives into thoroughly. As someone who grew up in Southern California and spent time as a young adult in North Carolina, I loved the tender thread of angst the protagonist, the formidable Chloe Green, feels about her Alabama home. Love and hate are intimately intertwined for a Chloe as she learns to navigate her own complex feelings. For the record, you probably won’t be a Shara or a Chloe, but you’ll probably wish you had been brave enough to be one of them at 17 or 18 years old. Don’t skip this book, even if you don’t typically read “YA,” and give your high school student self a hug with this tonic about rivalry, friendship, and being queer.

I feel as if the creation of this book lacked something very important: thought. Very little thought went into this story and it’s characters. Maybe I just don’t like this author. Maybe I just don’t like YA (which is untrue, since some of my favorite books are YA). The incredibly unappealing romance really topped it all off. I cannot tell you how unamused I was by this.

Hmmm.

If the reader identifies and emphasises with Chloe, it is probably a delightful experience to sink into her point of view and gallop along with the flow (rush?).

To extrapolate:

Last year of high school! Queer Californian kid (with two mums) at a Christian school in Alabama!

A weird feverish rivalry for valedictorian (some American thing - maybe like the Dux of the school?) between Chloe from California who Does Not Fit In with another Shara the Perfect Girl! Who disappears! And leaves clues! Which the protagonist Has To Follow!

The world McQuiston builds around Chloe is very enjoyable and eye-opening. Because it's McQuiston, she can't not have a multi-layered story with a satisfying pay-off. The story is interesting enough and everyone else in the book is interesting enough that I kept reading even though I thought Chloe was awful and stupid. Fortunately, everyone else wasn't, except for the villains. Everything is resolved with a big schlumpf at the end, and it might have been better if some of it had played out a bit more earlier in the story.

The bottom line is that if you can sink into Chloe's brain, this book is probably a wonderful ride. If you are unable to, you're left with the experience of "why are you doing this...? wow, that was rude....God you're unpleasant....why are you...?" but it's still worth reading because everything else about it, other than Chloe is interesting and worth your time.

Negalley provided me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

GOD I LOVE THIS BOOK. Not only is it funny and charming, it holds so much emotional sway, and truly delivers on the interesting premise. I found myself sucked in five minutes after opening the NetGalley app, and while I had begun it with the intention of not paying much attention, I could not stop reading for four straight hours in order to finish it. The plot was tight, and while at times I felt it lagged slightly, I was so immersed in Chloe's world and False Beach that it didn't hinder my reading experience whatsoever. This book was simultaneously a warm, understanding hug, an examination of the danger of thinking that every LGBTQIA+ person is out and proud (or, conversely, that any queer person who ISN'T out ISN'T proud), and a compelling, jaw-dropping romance about two girls that made me kick my legs in anxiety and scream into my pillow in excitement once the book ended. This was such a well-done, rollercoaster of a story, and Casey McQuiston's prose is so witty and sharp you could cut Shara's hair on it. Love this and everything they write!!!

I had been dying to get my hands on the new Casey McQuiston, and thank you to the NetGalley and publisher gods. I absolutely adored the ragtag group of characters (does McQuiston just have an impressive group of hilarious and witty and adorable friends to draw from personal experience to be able to create these well-rounded, clever characters?). I loved the will they-won’t they, the mystery unfolding, and the relevant evangelical background. I really appreciated the care and attention that McQuiston gave to the religious hypocrisy and the challenges LGBTQIA youth face. Bravo!

I really enjoy Casey McQuiston's books. Red, White, and Royal Blue is one of my favorite books that I will never stop recommending to people. I also love that every book seems to be different. One Last Stop was a clear departure from RWRB and I Kissed Shara Wheeler another departure in itself. I Kissed Shara Wheeler had me hooked from the beginning wanting to know where all the notes lead. I also really appreciate the representation in the story. As a high school teacher I feel like it is important for people to see their identities and true selves represented in novels and any Casey McQuiston novel provides this.

McQuiston's debut YA is everything I love about contemporary YA novels—a good cast of characters, coming-of-age, and discovering yourself, even the parts you may not like. I devoured this novel, and fell in love with every single character. They all grew into beautiful humans ready for their new lives, embracing themselves for who they were. It was amazing.

I love Casey McQuiston’s body of work. This was no exception- it was very entertaining and an easy read. Great characters, and a mystery that was not easy to solve, but keeps you along for the ride!

I was hooked from the premise of a pair of academic rivals with unresolved feelings for one another plus a Paper Towns-esque mystery, and I really loved how it was executed.

Chloe is a great protagonist, and McQuiston doesn't shy away from her flaws, instead embracing them and building upon them to provide a satisfying character arc as the story progresses. I've loved Casey McQuiston's other books as well, and find the ensemble casts to be just as endearing and lovable as the main characters. It can be easy, with larger casts of characters, to lose some development, but the side characters stood out and had their own unique journeys throughout the book that I was thoroughly invested in as the reader.

Something I wasn't expecting but ended up really enjoying was the way the setting was woven into the story, it felt like a really authentic view of a small, very Christian, southern suburb, and what it means to grow up there as queer teens both trying to be themselves, and trying to figure out who that person is.

Overall, this book gave me a lot of nostalgia for the types of YA books I grew up on, and I think it will definitely be a mainstay of the YA contemporary genre going forward. I would absolutely recommend this book, and I can't wait to read what Casey McQuiston writes next.

Okay, well Casey McQuiston can't write a bad book.

I loved IKSW so much. It was one of those stories that propelled itself chapter after chapter. If I'd been less busy, this definitely would have ended up a one night sitting type of book for me.

But first let's talk characters:

I'm obsessed. Chloe and Shara and Smith and Rory have my entire heart. They were funny, contemplative, reflective, and just as dramatic as I'd expect any graduating senior to be. Chloe going through a final bit of self reflection before graduating felt all too familiar. For high school seniors and recent college students, I think this book will absolutely resonate.

It's also such a clever story. When you break down each part, it's so cleverly plotted that there are hints on hints on hints. This is a book you can read and reread and still find something new.

IKSW was so much fun and reminded me just how good YA can be when it's done right.

I was honored to receive an ARC copy of I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston. In 2022, she has become one of my favorite authors over the course of One Last Stop and, my very favorite, Red White and Royal Blue. When you roll CMcQ together with YA romance and add a light dusting of missing person mystery, the combination is a delicious and vanilla minty combination even non-YA regular readers like myself will absolutely love. As a high school graduate of the ancient year of 2004, seeing how the Willowgrove students of 2022 navigate the highs and lows of their existence made me envious - it's not like it used to be, and for the better - though I wouldn't likely trade my experience a diverse, liberal-leaning Michigan high school for the narrow, uber-religious and uptight Alabama private school of Willowgrove.

In summary, I Kissed Shara Wheeler begins with a caper, uniting three different students - our heroine, overachiever Chloe, Shara's boyfriend and quintessential jock (so it seems) Smith, and rebellious song writer who also happens to live nextdoor to Shara - looking for Shara after she disappears into the night in her almond pink dress following a school dance after kissing Chloe. What follows is more than just a mystery but a journey of teenage self discovery for all involved. Is this summary weak? Probably, but why spoil the fun and excitement of what comes after? Come on you guys - you're just going to have to do your summer reading this year.

I identified more with Chloe in feeling smarter than everyone, on an elevated plane of existence in high school, excelling as quickly as possible at academics and after school activities as a means to move on to greener pastures, but think there's a bit of Shara Wheeler - literally escaping without a trace in order to be found and FEEL found - in all of us at that time, but who actually gets to live it? Many thanks to Macmillan and Wednesday books for the advanced copy - the only thing that could have made it more delightful was if it had been presented in a sealed, crisp, pink envelope.

Casey McQuiston once again created such a clear and real-feeling group of friends and lovers. I Kissed Shara Wheeler is funny, heartwarming, and an instant favorite. Our titular character is more of a looming presence in the book with the story focusing on other people in her life - who start off as enemies to each other. This book is about found family, which has become a theme we can rely on from Casey McQuiston.

This was a book that I did not want to put down. I will admit that I was skeptical of it at first, but as the story continued and it went in new directions, I found myself being pleasantly surprised and wanting more and more. Overall, a very satisfying read and something I would definitely recommend.

I really liked this book, but not nearly as much as I loved McQuiston's other books. It was very slow to start. I didn't quite get the payoff, and Shara was a little "manic pixie dream girl" for my taste. It reminded me of Paper Towns by John Green. As usual with McQuiston's writing, the side characters are *chefs kiss*. As a Northerner, I appreciated the realizations the main character comes to about the South. It was fun and right for a young adult audience and queer representation is always appreciated, especially in YA.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58756420-i-kissed-shara-wheeler" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="I Kissed Shara Wheeler" src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1644433190l/58756420._SX98_.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58756420-i-kissed-shara-wheeler">I Kissed Shara Wheeler</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17949486.Casey_McQuiston">Casey McQuiston</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4414051740">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this earc. My opinions are my own.<br /><br />This book feels like it is right in the center of YA, taking place in the last few weeks of senior year at a point when all of the characters are assessing their pasts, their legacies, and their futures. It is very much a book about figuring out where you're from and where you want to go next (and given that that high school, Willowgrove Christian, is a particularly unpleasant and repressive institution and all the characters are queer and many have other complex identities, there's a lot to figure out. Even for the characters who aren't obsessively trying to track down Shara Wheeler.) Like all of Casey McQuiston's books, the characters are a strength; they are diverse, interesting, warm, and believable, even the ones we only see see briefly. (The pile-up of characters and the way people keep turning up in unexpected places also feels very true to the last few weeks of senior year.) The plot relies a little too much on the narrator Chloe Green's focus (she is both single-minded and oblivious to what's going on with other people's lives), but perhaps that makes the ending even more satisfying for the reader.
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