A thoughtful and well-written YA romance about finding people who accept you and finding hobbies that make you happy

This was a super cute LGBTQ+ novel, with great representation. I loved the main character in all of her flaws. The storyline was relatable, as were the characters. Definitely recommend this!

I will admit this title has me waffling on a star rating. Part of me feels like 3 stars would be accurate based on how I never felt fully gripped and wanting to keep reading (hence why I started another title in the middle and finished it before this one) BUT I have a really weird sense of comradery with this book and I think a lot of people in the elder-to-mid-range-millennials group will too. Finding a sense of community online that supports your fandoms and allows you room to grow and love something in such an unashamed manner is so special and can feel both world expanding and isolating at the same time. It is hard to explain those relationships and that space to the world around you when you are afraid of being judged or feeling the need to explain yourself - especially when our main character Cass has already been through that situation in her life by coming out as queer! It was kind of difficult to feel attached to the "Tide Wars" fandom in the book, and get a grasp on what makes it so great, when you're trying to connect with the insertion of the roleplay scenes our character's are writing....but your brain also easily substitutes it for your favorite author and book series (hello, I was thinking about SJM and her book fandom everything). Then while it was hard to connect I found myself rooting for Cass's roleplaying friendships and waiting them to be a comfortable addition to her real life - enter Rowan Davies the high school fandom nerd of our dreams. It was clear that Cass and Rowan were initial points of creation for this story on the part of our author Jenna Miller because they are so fully fleshed out that they could walk out of my kindle at any moment. I loved them and their friendship and every interaction. The plotlines weren't perfect....but neither is high school and navigating life & relationships at that age. This would be perfect for fans of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (oh boy....do I have a type here haha). This was honest and lovely and I'm so thankful for the chance to read and review this title. I'm looking forward to more from Jenna Miller.

An absolute love story to the power of online friendships, and honestly just friendships in general.
A beautifully proud queer fat MC, hiding her online role play life from the people around her, I truly loved every minute of this one and struggled to put it down to do anything else. Definitely recommend for all the queer fantasy lovers, and really just anyone who feels like they have to hide parts of themselves for one reason or another.

oh my goodness, i love this book so much! i had my doubts because i'm normally not a fan of the friends to lovers trope, but this was perfect!! i loved the queer & body positive representation!! the found family was just the cherry on top!! 💕🥰 i cannot wait to read more by jenna miller in the future...

Cass has proudly embraced being a fat lesbian, but the online role-playing game she plays based on her favorite fantasy novels? That she keeps in the closet. But when her real-life girlfriend and her online best friend collide, which one truly understands the real Cass?

Full of teen angst and self-exploration, this is a heartfelt book about loving all aspects of yourself and bringing your full self to every part of your life. Cass feels like a very real teenager, and I hope a lot of readers find her journey meaningful.

5 Stars

I’m now officially going to be talking about Out of Character on my blog! If you follow me on my other platforms, I’ve been wanting to talk about this book for months but due to the HarperCollins strike I was unable to. Now with the strike ended as Harper Collins negotiated with the union, I can now talk about this story!

Out of Character is a heartwarming story full of love, friendships, and fandoms as Cass tries to navigate through life. At its core, this is a story about change as Cass works to adapt to said changes. Cass absolutely shines in this story as she works to figure out how to use her voice and figure out who she truly wants to be, a character I think many people will be able to resonate with.

Not only does this story provide a loveable well developed main character, but she is also surrounded by an incredible support system who are so full of heart. Both Cass’s real life and online friends are given the same amount of development and importance in her life. Miller beautifully crafts the different complexities in Cass’s relationships in her life showing that they have fun with each other but also stick by each other when things get rough.

Out of Character features the aspect of online roleplaying, which isn’t commonly seen in Young Adult fiction. Miller does a brilliant job of developing this subplot and it comes off as personal even if you haven’t ever done online roleplaying before. Roleplaying scenes pop up every few chapters giving insight into Cass’s personal choices while developing the characters’ relationships.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Jenna Miller, and publisher HarperCollins Children's-- Quill Tree Books for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

This was a fun read to get me back into YA! I rounded this up to 4 stars because this is simply everything that I would have been obsessed about as a teenager. A queer, plus-sized nerdy girl that gets lost in fanfiction role-playing with great friends that help her to manage her anxiety? Sign me up! There is a LOT that happens in this book, and for the most part, it is handled great. I loved all the side characters just as much as Cass, and I truly cared about her as a protagonist. There are witty and funny lines, and her friendship with both Tate and Rowan reminded me a lot of friendships that I have. I liked that Miller wasn't afraid to delve into some deeper topics, like Cass's anxiety, instead of just keeping it a fun YA book because I think it was handled really well and gave the book depth. The romance portion of the book was also great! I loved seeing how everything played out, and I found myself rooting for Cass's happiness the entire time. The biggest thing that I couldn't get past was the entire plot line of her mom leaving. The whole situation just felt SO abrupt, rushed, and unrealistic. I loved seeing Cass's relationship develop with her (cool) dad, but I wish better care would have been given to her mom leaving, since it played a big role in the other struggles she faced. I also thought the writing was a bit immature at parts, but I am also above the target age range of readers, so that didn't affect my takeaway. Overall, this is a cute book that I think will resonate with lots of teenagers who aren't afraid to be themselves, even if it's a little nerdy! Petition for Miller to write a new adult book following Cass and Rowan at college now because I NEED it!!

- thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc to review!

- unfortunately, this was a dnf. the character of Cass was relatable for a bit, as she had anxiety, and as a reviewer with an anxiety disorder, i related to her almost instantly. however, her habits became self destructive, and as i kept reading on, i felt like we weren’t seeing a change. it could have changed later on in the novel, but i couldn’t handle the tension of her throwing away all of her relationships and things to do in order to stay online with Rowan. it may just be a personal thing, but she needed people in her life to trust and open up to, not to hide away and turn them away from her struggles.

- I’m sad this didn’t work for me, but i know it will work for someone else. :)

This was a cool concept and I liked the characters and story. However, the discord messages didn't read like actual discord messages. All of them had perfect capitalization, spelling, and punctuation. In reality that's not how discord messages look and it was really distracting. Some of the vocabulary relating to discord also felt a bit dated. (Specifically referring to dms as "private servers.")

Out of Character is the perfect name for this book about a girl living a double life!

I didn’t know much about role-playing before this novel and kind of thought it was all D&D. Miller helped me see a more accessible side to role-playing while also showing the way one might escape into another life to avoid hard truths.

The characters show the complexities of relationships and that not everything is black and white as we discover that Cass’s double lives aren’t as easily separated as she thought.

This book is for all the gamers out there that practically never see themselves in books. Those of us who game to escape reality for a while, when real life gets a little too real. This book practically has it all gammer rep, fat rep, LGBTQ rep and a little bit of extra in between.

“You’re still you’re own damn hero”

I absolutely adored this story. We follow our main character Cass through some really trying situations during her senior year, all while juggling her secret online roleplay world she’s built. I felt like I could relate to Cass in a number of ways personally and really loved how this book kind of healed me in certain ways! As a child of divorce, this story was so similar and so different than my own experiences, but in a way it felt really healing watching how her Dad steps up after things go south.

I loved the relationships in this book, both romantic, found family, all of the above! It was nice to see the friendships and varying types of people in said friendships - I feel like too often we see your stereotypical friendships, where nerds and jocks aren’t the go to friendships but I ABSOLUTELY fell in love with Tate and Cass’s friendship! Also, Tate is just the greatest best friend one could ever ask for I’m certain of it. As we’re all her online friends - UGH I loved this book too much! You should definitely read it if you’re looking for a cute, queer, nerdy read with humor and healing and experiencing new things 🤍

“Until my last sunset”

Cassidy Williams is going through it. When her family crumbles she turns to role playing with her internet besties for an escape.

The only issue is, no one is her real life knows about her online life.

When the two worlds start moving closer together she has to figure out how to share this secret life.

Lots of teens angst, big feelings, and new beginnings.

first off, i’ll start with a common gripe i have with a lot of sapphic books with lesbian leads; this book absolutely refused to use the word lesbian. it had no problem accurately labelling the pansexual, bisexual and gay side characters but didn’t call either of the lesbians, well, lesbians!
aside from that, this spread pretty decent body positive messages, those of self love, and how to learn to love and forgive people in your life who have hurt you.
the love triangle was well done and i liked the love interest the protagonist chose. parts of this book were cringeworthy but ultimately it was worth the read.

Did it take me much too long of a time to put together that the title was ooc, aka fandom slang? Yes, and I'm embarrassed by it. This was an important coming-of-age story that had several important themes and messages that I think people need to hear at this age-range. I loved the fat rep and how it was there but it didn't play into the relationship at all, which is important. As an Iowan, I love Midwestern rep (shout-out to Culvers and TaterTots).

I do have a tiny issue with the queer representation, namely in that Cass is described as a lesbian in the summary, but never uses the word lesbian in the book. I hope that was fixed in final printing. Besides that, I loved Cass's relationships. Her issues with her mom were well organized and age-appropriate reactions, and I liked her Dad. Tate and Greg were amazing storylines. The sapphic romances were interesting, and I think served their purpose and I liked the open-ending plus I'm glad they made the decision they did, because that was going to be a bad idea.

TLDR; sapphic coming-of-age that deals extensively with online friendships, found family, family issues, and queerness. 4.25/5

Thank you netgalley, for the advanced copy of this book!

I really enjoyed out of character. It's the kind of book I wish I had as an awkward queer kid. Cass' friend group from online to in-person were heartwarming and perfect. The representation of different body types and those struggles was also really great to see.

When Cass stumbled upon a roleplaying group for her favorite book series, she never expected to start her own or for it to become her safe haven. In the sixteen months she’s watched her parents’ marriage deteriorate, Cass has turned to her online friends and their made-up world for escape, camaraderie, and comfort. As important as her roleplaying friends are, especially her character ship partner and online BFF Rowan, she’s kept them a secret for fear roleplaying would get taken away from her, as she had struggled with gaming addiction in the past, and well, maybe she’s not been doing her homework or studying for exams or even applying to college like she should. It’s cool, though, Cass has it all under control! Besides, when her mom suddenly bails on the family for a man she met online (after all her warning about online stranger danger no less), Cass needs to escape more than ever.

However, not everything in the real world is terrible, as her crush, Taylor, asks her out and Cass and her dad are spending more time together. At first, dating Taylor has Cass swooning, but having a girlfriend becomes complicated when you’re keeping important people and a huge part of your life secret. Taylor wants to get to know Cass and spend time with her—time Cass would rather spend roleplaying, and as the reality of who Taylor is versus who Cass envisioned her to be sinks in and their relationship moves at hyper-speed, Cass feels increasingly overwhelmed and uncertain. It also doesn’t help that when she finally meets Rowan, she realizes she has feelings for her. As the lies pile up and Cass’ online and offline worlds collide, she’ll have to finally face reality and the consequences of her actions.

Out of Character is a coming-of-age story following Cass, a seventeen-year old who struggles with overthinking and moderation, coming to the realization that while reality may be painful and can’t be scripted, it still has to be lived and valued. Structurally, the main narrative is intercut with snippets of roleplay scenes and personal messages that help with the pacing and overall tone. I really enjoyed all the characters, especially Cass’ offline BFF, Tate. He knows Cass so well and is so supportive, but is given enough life that he’s not just the token bestie prop for Cass. The friends in the group apart from Rowan aren’t as fully realized, but the structure of the book and their appearances still work and add richness to the story. As a character-focused story where not much happens, the narrative is a relatively quiet, internalized drama that’s not overly angsty/emotional, even when conflict arises. Cass is stuck in a cycle of hiding for most of the story; when something changes either IRL or online, Cass loses herself in pretending.

It’s established early on that Cass has a tendency towards addictive behavior, so her fear that she’ll lose her roleplaying if her parents see how it’s affecting her grades has some validity (if they hadn’t been so wrapped up in their imploding marriage). The dynamics in Cass’ household and how they affect her emotions and her decisions are relatable, but if you can’t buy-in to how intense Cass is about keeping her roleplaying a secret, then watching her lie about something that isn’t actually an issue may be hard to empathize with for an entire book. There also isn’t much in the way of character growth as Cass is basically the same from beginning to end—she already knows ignoring her responsibilities is wrong; she knows dishonesty is wrong; and she doesn’t correct any of it. However, she does eventually acknowledge good things in her life and learn how painful her inability to deal can be for herself and for others in the long term.

That is not to say that the story is boring; the narrative is a snapshot into a painful school year for a teenager whose family has fallen apart and her coping mechanism. Cass is smart, creative, and self-assured. She’s confident in her fat body, her queerness, and her nerdiness, but she’s also avoidant to the extreme. She ignores anything that isn’t fun or easy, and the emotional upheaval of losing her family unit or dating for the first time is definitely not easy. Cass can’t bring herself to be honest—honest about her emotions, honest about her situation, honest with her girlfriend, or well, honest about anything except her love of her favorite book series and roleplaying. Moreover, she has such an intense fear of losing her haven that she is incapable of contemplating any possibility where honesty does not equal loss.

Cass is her own worst enemy, as she has really supportive and understanding people in her life, so there isn’t logically a reason to be so secretive, but while hiding the roleplaying began as self-preservation, its all-consuming nature and the camaraderie she found with her friends became her private safe space and something she’s hesitant to share. She hides the roleplaying from her girlfriend because Taylor doesn’t like the books and Cass doesn’t want her cool girlfriend to dismiss something that Cass is so deeply passionate about. She’s protecting something that has been life-changing and solace giving for her. The friendships she’s made and the adventures she’s created with them feel so big and special to her that she likens telling people about it to coming out and exposing vulnerable pieces of herself.

Overall, I think that Out of Character is a pleasant story that will probably resonate well with its YA target audience and those with really rich online/fan community lives. Plus, it’s just really nice to have a story about an overweight lesbian girl that isn’t about her queerness and/or her weight; she’s just a normal teenager struggling with growing up.

<i>Thank you to Hear Our Voices Tours and the author for providing me with an e-ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!</i>

<i>Out of Character</i> is a love letter to the internet and fandom. It is full of flawed characters, drama, and borderline obsession.

And I loved it.

Although I’ve never been on the roleplay side of the online world like Cass, I’ve had my fair share of internet access since I was, oh, probably twelve. I think those who relate to finding solace in online communities will especially appreciate this book. As I’ve gotten older (because maybe I shouldn’t have been talking to grown adults when I was twelve?), I’ve come to appreciate the internet even more—I’ve made real friends that I talk to every day and have met in person and have spent actual time with. Like, literal multiple-days-in-a-row sleepovers with my online friends!! Who would have thought that would be the highlight of my 20s!! Little me would have never imagined that as a reality. (And as a side note, I loved the Chicago visit because I too had an online friend visit me in Chicago and we did the same touristy things!)

It’s certainly reads like a young adult book (which is good because it is a young adult book!), which means that there was some naivety that some readers probably could live without, but I think it has its purpose. There were some rather annoying decisions and character traits, but I’m choosing to appreciate them because I get it. There’s a smaller theme of distinguishing fiction and reality, which seems like common sense when navigating online spaces, but unfortunately isn’t always. I don’t think this aspect will be for everyone, but again, I understanding.

The representation was also fantastic. There were genuine conversations on body image and sexuality without using pain and shame as a crutch for eliciting emotions. Overall, I thought this was an entertaining read about internet culture, friendship, and passion!

Fat lesbian main character who falls for her online roleplay best friend? Yes freaking please.

This is another one of those books that falls into the category of "it wasn't an audiobook so it took me ages to get through it and then I ended up just listening to the audiobook anyway" So here we are months later than I was supposed to finish this and I'm so happy I finally was able to finish. This is a messy chaotic story about nerdy teenagers feeling their feelings and living their life.

I really enjoyed the concept of the story and just the reminder that teenagers are imperfect messy chaotic humans who make mistakes and deserve to make mistakes was really great. I really liked her relationship with her neighbor best friend as well as all of her online friendships. I think all of the relationship dynamics were well done and complex in this story. No one was perfect and no one was without fault.

I do think some of the on page roleplay scenes weren't necessary to be honest. I just don't know that it added a ton to the story that couldn't have been done in a different way.

However, I would definitely recommend this one and it is a great contemporary YA!