Please notice that feedback for "Out Of Character" by Jenna Miller will become available once HarperCollins strike has ended. Star Rating does not necessarily reflect true opinion.

i recieved a netgalley arc of this and oh my god thank you for allowing me to read this book. It's not perfect but? It nearly is. And IT HAD GIRLS FALLING IN LOVE that's like all i ever wanted. Aresha and Roux (Cass and Rowan) were just? So cool. Nerds are so cool. And I've never read a book about RP before so this is so??? Fresh. all in all. 5 stars. everyone should read this when it comes out (if it did idk I've been in a funk). Loved THIS SO MUCH.

This book has my name written all over it (I mean... lesbians, found family, falling for your online friend, parental issues, etc??), so I'm not surprised I ended up loving it so much. OUT OF CHARACTER is such a relatable, fun story with lots of important messages woven throughout it. I loved how packed with love this book was, whether that means for fat nerdy lesbians (Cass), romances (ROWAN), friendships (Tate <3), parents (Cool Dad!!), our passions (roleplaying), and, of course, all our flaws (ALL OF THEM).

OUT OF CHARACTER saw right into my heart, made me feel so loved, and the whole book truly felt like a hug for my younger self. I love it!

I really enjoyed Out of Character. I found Cass, our main character, to be incredibly relatable, and I loved that being lesbian and fat were just character traits, not plot points as they might be in another coming-of-age YA book. Addiction to escapism is so real, but I’ve never seen it explored as it was here.

*spoilers*
My only negative: I never really understood why exactly Taylor liked Cass. She doesn’t really know her, and even when they’re dating she still doesn’t. Of course, having read from Cass’s perspective, I can she why she would be likable. However, from an outside perspective that’s not her RP friends or Tate, it’s a little less clear.

One of the most exciting things about OUT OF CHARACTER is the role-playing and how important it is to the main character's life. Not only does Cass express her love of a book series through writing role play, she has found a close-knit group of friends who support her. The issue is how other people perceive the role-playing and the fact that her friends are online. (Which is not an issue to most of those in the role play. ) I'll definitely tell my students about the book as something they may want to read on their own time.

The issues I had with OUT OF CHARACTER is that two of the key characters felt flat: Taylor and (sadly) Cass. Taylor seemed like such a cool character at the beginning of the story but was a bust as a girlfriend... she disappeared and none of that "coolness" remained. I get where the author was going with it, but it was way to sudden, making the Taylor-Cass relationship almost impossible to believe. Given how long we're supposed to follow that relationship, not believing it was a big loss.

Cass had such a great voice at the beginning and felt very original. Her mother's actions (unfortunately) were also believable and that was very well done. (Until the end, which I didn't buy.) But where Cass fell very flat was in the history of gaming addiction and hiding her role-playing. It was hard to believe that the online role-play didn't bring up any of the addiction issues, so it felt like an inconsequential backstory. Cass also didn't make any of her own decisions until the very end. She let others do the acting, which was lack-luster storytelling.

I'm critical of the book because there was so much going for it. When I first read the description, I couldn't wait to read the book. I do want to read what author Jenna Miller writes next!

Big thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I saw this book in a Goodreads giveaway, and I knew I needed to read it even after I lost. This book, at least to me who is definitely the target demographic, is utter perfection. I needed this book in high school, and even though it's too late for me (as an almost-postgrad student), I know that it's going to help a lot of teenagers. If I had read a book about a self-confident fat girl who is not only loved and cherished by her friends but also literally approached and asked out, I would have exploded! In a good way.
This book is so kind, and any character flaws stem from the characters being children who are still figuring out their lives. I cannot even put into words how much I adored this book. Cass is the perfect heroine for self-conscious nerds everywhere, especially of the fat variety like myself. She has nothing but positive self-talk in regards to her body, sexuality and other "unconventional" aspects about her, which could not possibly be more important. Out of Character is diverse, funny, heartwarming and addicting, and I can't recommend it enough.

This book was in turns really fun and really upsettingly full of teenagers making horrible choices where you just want to run in and be like "WHAT IF YOU CHOSE THIS MOMENT TO NOT LIE TO LITERALLY EVERYONE???"

It's like, 4.5 stars rounded down because of potentially permanent damage to my blood pressure for Cass's terrible choices. But overall, i really liked this book and felt like it was good fat queer rep, which i always want teenagers to have more of. Should be in high school libraries!

I loved this book. Fat queer representation? Hell yeah sign me up!

I loved the online community insite. It explains the world a little more for someone who may not be familiar with it. This book was like a breath of fresh air.

This book was relatable and a joy to read. I’d recommend it to anyone.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Children's Books, Quill Tree Books for this ARC.

The rep in this book is *chef's kiss*! Fat! Lesbian! Nerd! This book is nerdy and sincere and a joy to read. Sure to be one of my faves of 2023!

Given that I am not in the role-playing or fanfic communities, I lost interest in this book quickly. The main character was kind of annoying and the conflicts felt redundant. I feel like Taylor for hating on this book but it simply wasn't my cup of tea. I can see how others would love it!

This was a fun read! It's interesting to see how, with the growing rate of children spending their adolescence online, this topic is incorporated into books. I love how unapologetic this book was, and the topics covered felt relevant to teens today.

I loved this book so much!!! It perfectly captured the joy of online community and the feeling of falling in love for the first time. All of the characters were so vivid and I rooted for Cass the entire way (even when I wanted to shake her by the shoulders and tell her to get it together!). SO relatable. SO fun. SOOOOO swoonworthy!

Really cute teen novel. Happy to see a queer fat girl as the main character with a diverse set of friends. Would appeal to people into RPG, and that part I wasn’t a target audience on but I could see it appealing to other readers.

I loved this! It reminded me so much of "Eliza and Her Monsters", and I think those that love fan culture and who live in the nerdy bookish online world would feel so seen within this story.

**Thank you to Jenna Miller and Harper Collins for a free e-arc copy for review. All opinions my own.**

This is one of the very few books I've reached out to the author and begged for an arc. I tried entering giveaways (US only) and Netgallery never had the option for Canadian readers to request this book, but I got it. Jenna is amazing, and I really appreciate her getting back to me, and being able to give me an arc.

Now, onto the book. THIS BOOK. It's been a few days since I finished it, and I LOVED IT. Cass is such a messy, dramatic, heartful character and I was needing to read chapter after chapter because the mistakes she would make, or the things that would happen! I couldn't stop!

Seeing a fat character and the character loving herself, and her body not even being a issue was AMAZING. Fat girls are always the sidekick, or the funny person, or someone who hates themselves due to weight, and I hate it. Fat girls not only deserve to love themselves, but they CAN love themselves, and find others to do the same.

I really loved the progression of this story as well. It is her senior year, and the changes she goes through are intense (aren't they always?)

This book releases in April 2023, and I will be screaming at literally everyone to buy this book. 10/5 stars.

Big thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC. I loved this book so much!

The main character, Cass, has two lives, but they never intersect. One is with her best friend Tate and parents. The other one is a role playing online discord for her favorite book Tide Wars. When Cass’ mom leaves her for some guy online it cements her decision even more to keep the two apart. When she starts dating her long time crush Taylor in real life it starts to become hard to keep the role playing a secret, especially after she becomes even more entrenched in that world when her mom leaves them. And of course there is Rowan, her online BFF who is straight but Cass can’t help to feel something towards, especially when they write some intense scenes together. What’s more important, real life or her online life or can they be somehow blended together?

This book was fabulous and has so many layers! Honestly Rowan was my favorite character but all the characters were great. I also enjoyed the role playing scenes interspersed between the chapters. Everything seemed so real and I couldn’t wait to figure out what was going to happen. I honestly can’t wait to re-read this book and also read whatever the author writes next! Highly recommend this book!

Out of Character tells the story of high school senior, Cass, and the balancing act of her IRL and online lives.

I loooooooooooooooved this book. It made my heart so happy. As a role player myself I could relate to a lot of Cass' struggles and triumphs. I thought the cast of characters in this book were wonderful and I'd love to read more about their adventures in college. Do yourself a favor and read this book.

I was given this book in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

Cassidy Williams is an endlessly charming, big-hearted nerd balancing more than her fair share of family, school, and friend-group drama. So it's no surprise that she seeks escape online and nurtures a secret roleplaying addiction. But when she starts to realize that she has real-world feelings for her online bestie, things get more complicated than she bargained for -- and readers get to watch as Cass navigates precariously through her senior year while the lines between her role-play and out-of-character worlds start to blur.

This book is everything good and bright. Reading it is like sipping a fizzy lemonade in the sunshine: pure, bubbly joy. It's a heartwarming ode to our internet friends, who so often transcend the label, and the incredible community we build around the things we nerd out for.

No familiarity with online role play required to fall in love with this one; I went in completely blind and left caring for the RP characters as much as their out-of-character counterparts.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

In Out of Character we follow Cass as she goes to her first relationship, senior year, and plenty of obstacles. She faces her true feelings and goes through a lot of development.

I adored the fat representation. I appreciate how the main character didn’t try to change herself or was insecure about her body. This is the kind of story I wish I could give my younger self. The role-playing aspect was fun and the online addiction was dealt with well. It was also refreshing to have such a supportive cast of characters!

At times, the dialogue between the characters was unrealistic. I have never once heard teens call each other “fam” without irony before. Other small dialogue like this really pulled me out of the story.

This book was a solid four stars. It was an enjoyable read. I would recommend you give this book a try!

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the eARC!

There was a lot I liked about this book and a few tiny things I felt weren’t great.

First what I liked!

I loved Cass and I loved Rowan! Cass was so interesting and personable. All of her insecurities felt real and valid. I really enjoyed how her being fat wasn’t plastered all over the place like some authors do. It was mentioned when it was needed - and the rest of the time, you just knew and that was okay. It was very well done.

Rowan was so adorable. What I loved in particular about this book was the connection between the two girls. That chapter where they first met in person felt so electric! That’s truly where the story began.

I also really liked Tate and Greg. Two men who wholly accepted Cass. They were a couple of sweethearts.

There were a few things I didn’t like though and that’s why it can’t be five stars. I didn’t like Taylor at all. You could tell from the get-go that her and Cass didn’t work together. I was so disappointed with how much time was spent on them building their relationship because there was like no chemistry between them. I wished we had them already an established couple before the book began and we didn’t need a full what…. 6 months of them trying and failing?

Which leads me to my other hold-up on the book. We had an entire SCHOOL YEAR. 😬 It felt waaaaaay too long. I needed a shorter time frame. I was bored at points.

Along the same lines, I felt some of the end was unnecessary. The book felt a little too long. The climax was too early and the aftermath felt forced, like she was trying to fill it. I really could have done with less.

Overall though I enjoyed this book! What I liked outweighed the bad. And I think anyone will enjoy the book who likes roleplay. :)