2.5 stars

Eh, it was alright but nothing special. I really wasn't a fan of the ending, but I did like the side characters. Overall, I think I'm leaving this book with the feeling of loss. Not in that I'm sad that it's over, but this book was missing a lot. For me, there was a lack of depth, lack of romance (at least to merit the title), and a lack of tangible growth. I was hoping for a big moment at the end, but it was a little rushed and unsatisfying.

Love & Other Great Expectations is a combination of exploring Europe, a cute bookish boy, and a good ole scavenger hunt. So much fun!

Britt is headed to a scavenger hunt in England after a soccer injury derails her plans and she asks Luke, a cute British boy, to join her. Will Britt win this literary scavenger hunt? Will she win more than the prize money and also win Luke's heart?

This book was so cute and I really loved Britt and Luke together. They really balance one another out and they also had great personal growth throughout the story as well. A fund, adventurous book, perfect for the summer! Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte Press for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

The perfect read if you love classic lit or if you’re in need of a little adventure.

This was such a charming story with a likeable cast of characters. Dean has a lovely writing style and I know I’ll pick up more books by this author in the future.

Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for providing me this ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book was fun and sweet. I really enjoyed the travel aspect of it and watching Britt navigate the journey. This is a great read for anyone who is a fan of YA romance and excitement.

Thank you to RandomHouse and NetGalley for approving this eArc! Honestly, I didn't like Britt too much at first - she was entertaining to read about, but it felt like everything she did or didn't do revolved around soccer. As the story went on, we learn more about why soccer is so important to Britt, beyond the UCLA scholarship she could've received. Her character development was something I loved; From someone who doesn't know what they want to do (since she's still stuck in her longing and past for soccer) to someone who has discovered that she isn't just built for soccer and can be more than just an athlete. The slow burn between Luke and Britt was impeccable. I was glad that their dynamic wasn't merely focused on their attraction but that they actually enjoyed each other's presence and could help each other's trauma in one way or another. Every character in this book had their own secret, and they were revealed in perfect timing so that there weren't plot holes and could provide closure to most of the issues, like Amberlyn and Britt's mutual dislike or Peter's one-sided hate for Britt. All in all, it's a great read if you like a lighthearted rom-com that isn't just centered around romance.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC!
I enjoyed this YA read, but it also surprised me.
I was expecting a cute rom com with some travel adventure on the side, and I mostly got that, though I did cringe a bit at how it was somehow an insta-love vibe with a slow burn, that ultimately felt a little confusing even by the resolution at the end.
What I did not expect was the depth of character development the author attempted. It didn’t always land, and some characters could have done with more attention, but overall I quite liked the way the autor wove in serious themes and questions for the main character in particular to ponder while traveling. If I suspend disbelief and put aside that this novel was supposed to take place over only one week, it works even better, but the timeline was one of the reasons I couldn’t quite go along with the premise fully. A month would have been more realistic for the character development, relationship building, and frankly the travel adventures the author included. I was glad that all the loose ends seemed to tie together at the end, as there were many small mysteries frustrating me throughout the book trying to figure out what character’s motivations were.
Overall an interesting read and enjoyed it.

low expectations with high rewarded outcome. fantastic weekend read and will definitely recommend to others

Rating: 5⭐️

Thank you to Delacorte Press for gifting me an eArc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

We follow Britt Hanson who’s life has turned upside down after devastating news that she can no longer play soccer. So when she’s chosen by her English teacher as a part of a competition with a cash prize, she takes the opportunity. Set abroad in the UK, she meets Luke who helps her travel the country while also opening Britt’s eyes to what and who she is meant to become.

I absolutely loved this story! As someone who played soccer for years and also had my fair share of injuries, I related to Britt so much. More than I thought I would. I loved her humour and wit. I also loved Luke and his bookish personality. Both characters had secrets that were hard to share but they grew together through the whole book which was enlightening.

The amount of detail in this book is fantastic. I really felt like I was a part of this group traveling around the UK and now I want to travel there even more! It’s sounds amazing to go there. It’s at the top of my bucket list for sure! I loved the literature themed scavenger hunt and how Britt recalled her adventures through her oral storytelling. I was captivated by her voice!

This was a clean, lighthearted, story perfect for fans of European travel, bookish British boys, and literary innuendos!

This was a cute read. I think it’s perfect for those wishing to travel especially if you have a thing for England! It kind of reminded me of that Mary Kate and Ashley movie where they went to London England! I connected with the main character who goes through a sports injury and what I call injury grief. I also found it to be about finding yourself after the thing you always identified with is taken from your life.

Love & Other Great Expectations was such a fun and cute read. The story follows a high school girl named Britt Hansen. Britt gets injured playing soccer and then receives some devastating news regarding her health. Struggling with her new health condition she gets something to be excited about. She is given a once in a lifetime opportunity by her English teacher. She and three of her classmates have to go on a scavenger hunt following literary clues around England. Whoever wins will get a life changing amount of money. I found myself trying to figure out the clues before reading on.

It was such a fun adventure following Britt along her journey. She meets a boy named Luke who was struggling with his personal life and needed a distraction, so he joins Britt on her adventure. It was so nice to watch their feelings grow for each other.

All the characters have a great amount of growth in such a short amount of time. I love that she met Luke. They balance out each other so well making a great match. Seeing Britt’s confidence grow throughout the book was inspiring and the way the story ends was absolutely perfect.

A big thanks to Netgalley & Random House Children's for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

An injury crushes Britt’s dreams of playing soccer in college. But when her English teacher offers her the chance to participate in a scavenger hunt across England to win $100,000, she has the opportunity for new dreams. Along the way, she meets Luke, an English boy who helps her solve the clues, find herself in the process, and gives her the opportunity for a little romance in the process.

Fun fact: I studied abroad in England when I was in college, so reading Britt’s British adventures reminded me of my own time traveling across the UK. Much like Britt, when I first arrived in England, I was a bit lost in life and through my travels and my experiences in England, I really grew up and found myself. I may not have had the scavenger hunt Britt had, or the romance, or the opportunity to win a large amount of money (although that would have been great haha), but I could really relate to what Britt was experiencing as I read this one.

Outside of my huge personal connection, there was so much I loved about this book. All of the tie ins to classic British literature, the adventure as they searched for clues across the UK, the sweet romance, and the angst of that transitional time in your late teens, all created such a fun read. I loved this one and cannot wait for more from Becky Dean.

Thanks to Delacorte Press for the advance copy.

What a fun adventure - can this be real life please? I'd love to have this happen to me. It was so real and entertaining. I loved Britt and kept picturing Blake Lively from the move Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (it fit so well). Luke, Al, Nick, and all the cast of characters were fun. Must read!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

What a friggin’ CHARMING book! This was so well done, so compelling and sweet, and thankfully not too young and angsty. We follow Britt, who after losing her hopes of a soccer scholarship to injury, enters a contest to win money to still attend UCLA. (Go Bruins!!)
The contest is basically my dream. A literary scavenger-hunt across the UK. Britt meets friends along the way, finds a little love (cue every dreamy hero with British accent), and ultimately learns a lot about herself. So cute!

Thank you to #NetGalley, Becky Dean, and the publisher of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Britt Hanson has always been the star on the soccer field, but when an injury and a surprise diagnosis end her chance to play college soccer and even go to college, she is crushed. Then a surprise trip to England from a teacher changes everything. Britt has a chance to compete for $100,000 by doing a scavenger hunt in around England. As she's competing, Britt meets book smart Luke. Luke isn't allowed to help her with the clues, but joins her on the adventure of a lifetime around England.
To win, Britt will have to outsmart her classmates who play dirty. Will she be able to do it without being distracted by the very cute Luke?

This was a cute and fun summer YA read! I loved how it tied in famous writers/novels from England. I will be recommending this book to friends who love YA and readers who love England.

Love & Other Great Expectations by Becky Dean immediately captured me from the very first line with its funny and relatable contemporary YA voice. As an avid reader and writer, I absolutely loved that the plot was about a scavenger hunt based on Classic English Literature. I thought that the premise of the book was unique and entertaining. I really loved the banter between the characters and how all the characters were well-rounded and had depth to them despite being based on YA stereotypes. They felt like real teenagers with their own personal struggles and messes which I really think is important for successful YA. The romance between Britt and Luke was so cute and felt like an authentic first love story.
Overall, I loved Love & Other Great Expectations. I will be recommending it to all my friends who love YA contemporary and I'm so excited to read Becky Dean's future work.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's- Delacorte Press for providing me with an ARC of Love & Other Great Expectations by Becky Dean in exchange for an honest review. This review will be posted on Goodreads/Amazon upon publication of the book.

I didn't have any preconceived notions of this book before I started reading other than it looked like a sweet YA novel, it was set in the UK (my Kryptonite) and it potentially had a bookish theme per the "Great Expectations" part of the title. Well, I was immediately drawn into this story, so richly told with such an authentic, vulnerable and relatable MC in Britt. It is completely, totally, wholeheartedly cute, fun and bookish, which just stole my heart.It's a travel book with a bookish quest, like yes, please I want one too! I'm so into this read from its unique and fun premise to its compelling language that makes it unputdownable. It's just so so so cute, fun, enjoyable and sweet. I just feel so warm and happy right now.

3.5 stars
This was fun! We follow Britt on a scavenger hunt through the UK as she encounters many real-life places that inspired the works of classic authors, like Jane Austen, Dickens, and C.S. Lewis, in order to win $100,000. I enjoyed this story, and perhaps my favorite part was going on the trips with Britt. I've never been to the UK, and since travel has been limited due to COVID, this was the perfect way to see these places without being there to see them in person. I really enjoyed all the literary references as well. Britt is a "retired" soccer player after she suffered an injury that led to a discovery that she can't play again, and this played a big part in how she sees herself and her experiences. We look a lot into her character, how she sees herself and how others do, which I also appreciated. Luke was a great love interest, the literary nerd of dreams, but other than the two main characters, we don't see much of the other competitors or members of Britt's life. The main issue I had with this book is one that I have with a lot of older-YA books, and it's that the characters don't act their ages. Britt is supposed to be 18, headed off to UCLA in the fall, but she reads like a 15 or 16 year old, if not younger. I would have liked for her to be more mature and reflective of her age. Barring that, though, if you're looking for a fun, literature-inspired travel story, I would recommend this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children’s for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Alright I really need to stop reading YA contemporary novels that feel weirdly personal. For someone who’s not a huge fan of the genre, I keep reading it and it keeps hitting home.

This book was sweet, fun, and cozy while still confronting the fear of the future in a meaningful way. Britt’s just had her life turned upside down, with the only constant in her life taken from her and her entire future in flux. Luke, too, finds his future up in the air when we meet him, and each of the three other competitors have their own struggles. It was so rewarding and so relatable, seeing Britt grapple with the future and learn to open up.

Was this cheesy? Absolutely. Could I have told you the outcome of the competition from the beginning? You bet. But none of that made the book any less enjoyable. Love and Other Great Expectations deals with classic literature and coming of age in such a fun and creative way—you really can’t go wrong with a competition plot.

And I’d be remiss without mentioning the romance! Luke and Britt’s banter was adorable, and their connection (and Britt’s rationalizations of it) felt very realistic to me. My dislike of insta-love had me wary about this, with the 10-day time limit, but I couldn’t have hoped for a better ending for the pair: optimistic and sweet, without being too all in or unbelievable.

Lately it has been hard for me to pick up a book and finish. But, this book has solved that problem. It was such a quick and fun read that I could not put down! The overall story was creative and I loved the characters. I would highly recommend this book to YA readers and personally can't wait to read more from this author!

Main Characters:
-- Britt Hanson – 18 years old, had plans to play soccer on scholarship at UCLA until she is sidelined by an injury and medical condition that pulls her permanently from playing competitive sports
-- Luke Jackson – 18 years old, just finished secondary school, loves literature, recently moved with his father from Oxford to London
-- Alexis – works for Britt’s English teacher, assigned as Britt’s chaperone for the scavenger hunt, also happens to be Luke’s cousin

I loved this book! Every once in a while, I like to dive into a Young Adult novel. They’re usually good clean fun, and this one had so many elements that I could lose myself in.

Britt Hanson is one of four students hand-selected by her English teacher Ms. Carmichael to compete in a scavenger hunt in the UK. The prize is $100,000, and we find out over the course of the book why each student was selected. In Britt’s case, we know it’s because she’s going to lose her soccer scholarship to UCLA because of a medical condition. The youngest of three kids, her dad left, her siblings are already well on their way to successful careers, and Britt has no idea what she’ll do without soccer. She’s determined to win the competition.

The scavenger hunt feels a lot like The Amazing Race, and as a huge fan of reality TV, I loved this. The students receive clues that they have to decipher, and there’s a task they have to complete at each location to receive the next clue. The difference between this and The Amazing Race is that the first to finish doesn’t win.

Each of the eight tasks the students will be given corresponds with a piece of classic literature that they covered in class. As a huge fan of literature (former English and psych minor here), I loved this part too. Ms. Carmichael tells the students that the competition is inspired by The Canterbury Tales. They have nine days to decipher all eight clues, complete the tasks, and record their experiences in a journal as a series of tales. Those journals would be turned in at the end of the nine days, and she would choose the winner from there.

Britt meets Luke at her very first task when she blocks a soccer ball from hitting him in the face at an orphanage. Britt is drawn to him because he’s attractive (of course), but she stays drawn to him because she likes how he sounds when he’s reading to kids at the orphanage. They have a fun and comfortable banter. When he drops some books from a bag and she sees The Canterbury Tales, she sees it as a sign and invites him to join her for the afternoon. One afternoon turns into the entire week traveling around the UK.

The author tells a great story here. It’s a young adult romance, so predictable, but there’s really nothing not to like. Britt has a sassy personality. Luke seems to understand her. Alexis (affectionately known as Al) acts like she’s unhappy with her role, but you know that she is not-so-secretly enjoying getting to know Britt along the way. And Britt and Luke both do a bit of self-discovery.

I knew how the story would end, but I enjoyed the ride to get there. I’ll definitely be reading more by this author.