SOOOOO GOOD! 5 STARS!!!

i’m always cautious of YA novels in general as an adult and lower my standards even more for YA novels from authors i love especially when they’ve never written ine before. but oh my gosh talia hibbert really hit it out of the park with this one! it was charming and funny and so wonderful!! i love hibbert’s adult novels and this one just did not fail me.

celine and bradley were such wonderful and well rounded characters who grew on me so quickly. the dual pov was everything to me and i loved reading about all their worries and thoughts. hibbert has such a wonderful way of writing her characters who are as sweet as they are funny and she didn’t miss a beat here. the premise of the book was also so interesting and the pacing was to my exact liking.

hibbert’s brown sisters novels have centered around characters who have invisible illnesses and i wasn’t surprised to read about bradley having OCD in this one. what continues to make my heart warm is the care that goes into the writing. it always amazes me!

bravo talia hibbert for your first YA novel, for what a success it clearly is, and for writing such a charming story about friendship, growing up, and love with such care.

also thanks netgalley for the arc!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute
by Talia Hibbert. All opinions are my own.

Okay first and foremost, I am a huge fan of Talia Hibbert so I had high expectations for this. At the same time, I am not that into YA novels so that was my only reason to be hesitant. Thankfully that didn't even matter. I felt totally brought back to my high school self and the pressures of applying to universities, making new friends and navigating those social circles, and high school romances. Happy to say, Talia Hibbert has done it again. I am actually really hoping she does another YA novel.

Where do I begin with the actual story? Celine and Bradley are now sworn enemies, but it wasn't always that way. There was a time when they were paired at the hip and spent all their time together. As they begin their final year of high school, they get thrown together again when they have classes together and end up in a survival course in the woods in order to win a high profile scholarship. We get to learn about what tore them apart the first time and watch them slowly begin to trust each other again. Not only do they become friends again, but they realize they are each others first loves. Wonderful book. Also I can't finish this review without mentioning how wonderful it was to see the bisexual and OCD representation in the character Bradley. This is why I am a loyal Talia Hibbert fan!!! <3

Hibbert's foray into the YA genre is just as delightful as her popular adult series featuring the Brown sisters. Hoping she continues to write more YA. I love that her heroines are always so wonderfully body positive.

This was so good! I loved the banter between the two main characters. They had some real chemistry. I also really appreciated how the author wrote about Brad's OCD. It seems like there was a lot of care and research done by the author. Overall, a well-written, cute romance!

I absolutely loved this book. It hooked me and kept me turning pages until I was done. Finished it in two days! The character development was strong, and the premise was unique enough that it didn't feel like anything else I've read.

So excited to get to read Hibbert's first YA! Celine and Brad are an unlikely couple, which also makes their unlikely relationship work. The back and forth between them is half the fun of the book, and matches the dialogue from Hibbert's other novels in cleverness. I love how through both of our protagonists, we get a sense of being a teen again (regardless of if the reader is or not) and dealing with the many life facets that come your way. I also really appreciated the careful way she chose to represent OCD. There were a few moments that didn't quite hit for me, but overall, a very enjoyable read.

This book was high on my TBR! Hibbert has done it again with this one! Insert some internal squeals cause this book was so cute! Loved it!

I'm so sad to say that I didn't love this one. Part of the problem is I went in thinking of the Chloe Bown series, and this was very different. I just didn't love this the way I've loved her others. ⭐⭐

Okay I loved this one. Talia Hibbert can do no wrong. This is a Y/A novel so it’s different than the other books I’ve read of hers, but it was equally as good. This one had me cheesing. Lots of fun scenes and environments. A girl who loves the paranormal and makes tik toks about conspiracies? Yes please! And the male lead is diagnosed with OCD and it was a really good representation and educational character. I appreciated the recognition for mental health in this book. I appreciated the young love. The high school soul mates of it all. ⁣
⁣
Love can be found anywhere, like high school between two best friends while on camping adventures together 🥰

Thank you to the publisher for this digital copy 🖤

I've adored Hibbert's books going way back to her self publishing days - so when I saw she had her debut YA book coming out - I took the rare step or requesting an arc.

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute his most of same notes and themes as her adult books. Mental health, quirky hobbies, witty banter - check, check, and check!

Celine and Brad used to be best friends until Brad decided to be more concerned with fitting in with the popular kids - which does not include introducing them to UFO, Big Foot - conspiracy theory obsessed Celine. Instead they've become enemies, waging verbal warfare and trying to one up each other academically.

Their fighting goes too far during an (accidental) altercation which leaves Celine with a bum foot and Brad with a giant case of guilt.

When Celine, aspiring lawyer, is accepted to a survival course in the woods with a grand prize to meet her idol, help her career path and yeah - maybe stick it to the father who abandoned her family, she jumps at it. Brad, feeling like he needs to help her win after what he did signs up as well.

Their rivalry softens at the camp and they open up to each other more about what happened in the past and their struggles and hopes for the future.

This is a really adorable romance with two great kids trying to overcome natural insecurities, mental health issues (OCD) and abandonment - surrounded by good parents (minus the absentee dad, of course) and supportive friends. This is light, easy reading which was nice.

Having said that, I was expecting more adventure, rivalry and I guess more about Celine being a popular social media conspiracy theorist lol All of those things take a backseat to Brad and Celine's budding romance. It is super sweet, as I said, but I felt like those cool elements that made me want to pick up the book were more stated as fact than part of the plotline described int he summary.

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute does tackle several deeper issues (brilliantly by the author, as always) and both characters show a lot of growth but this is mostly a low stakes, lots of witty banter/inner monologue, romance/coming of age story vs action and big characters - which is fine! just not what I was expecting.

Overall, despite not being what I was hoping for, it was the adorable, light read I was looking

Bradley and Celine were the best of friends until a misunderstanding stopped that. Now they are fighting for the same scholarship.
A few more misunderstanding get in their way of happily ever after (as much as a 18 year old can have).
Bradley has ocd

This book had all the wonderful Talia Hibbert swoony goodness but in a delightful YA package. That is high praise. I adore Talia Hibbert and how she can make you fall in love with two flawed and wonderful characters and root for them completely. The way she writes her love interests is just the best. I am so glad this book exists. I wish I had books like this when I was in high school.

All the heart eye emojis for Bradley and Celine!!!!!! Pitch-perfect friends to enemies to lovers romance...great for teens who are requesting Hibbert's spicier adult titles not carried in school libraries.

3.5 rounded up
Cute little romance book. Was s000000 slowwwwww up until like 40% for me. It took me almost a month to finish bc I kept loosing interest.
Dual POV
MCs are POC
FMC is plus sized
MMC is mental health rep (OCD + intrusive thoughts)
Trust issues / parental abandonment
Childhood friends to enemies to lovers
NO spice ( probably could count as YA)
Rating 3.5 /5
Spice 0 / 5
Anxiety 1 / 5
Bargain (Buy, Bargain, borrow, burn)

Very cute and very YA. After devouring The Brown sisters trilogy, I was really interested in seeing how Hibbert was to do YA. I found the teenagers to be very believable. I was just missing the extra spice that her adult novels have, pun intended. As always, the rep is really well done.

Celine and Bradley are childhood friends turned teenaged enemies. Ok only Celine sees them as enemies, but they are rivals at school. When the both enter a competition for a scholarship/mentoring opportunity, Celine sees a chance to work with one of her idols and Bradley sees a chance for independence. Being forced to work together makes them examine their feelings for each other and goals in life.
This a smart, funny and heart touching YA romcom.

So fun and flirty. The mutual pining in this is excruciating. I wanted to scream "kiss already" for at least 70 percent of the book. At least it felt that way. I love the way Brad and Celine come together after so many years apart. Their friendship is one that I admire. Celine's growth especially, to face what she thought she could avoid, is empowering. This book has all of Hibbert's signature humor with the sweetness of YA.

I love Talia Hibbert AND academic rivals-to-lovers, so this book was right up my alley. As Bradley and Celine partner up for a survival challenge, I laughed at their banter and swooned as they rediscovered their friendship and feelings for one another. Both characters were well-developed and I thought Bradley's OCD was represented well. Highly recommend for anyone for fans of Jenny Han, or anyone looking for a fun YA romance

Rating: 3.75 ⭐️

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute was a charming and amusing young adult romance book.

It is dual POVs of the main characters, Celine Bangura and Bradley Graeme, and has some great tropes like childhood friends to enemies to lovers, close proximity, and slight academic rivals. I would highly suggest checking the content and trigger warnings before reading as well.

The overall storyline was enjoyable as there were some laugh out loud and heartwarming moments, but unfortunately the pacing of the story was quite slow. There were also just some scenes that seemed too drawn out. I will say though, the representation of OCD was carefully written and explored.

The romance between Celine and Bradley was really cute. I loved all their bickering and banter. The competitive nature between them was really amusing as well. I will say though, I would have liked to have seen them reconnecting more before they got together.

There was also a bit of misunderstanding between them at the end but thankfully it was quickly resolved. The ending was really sweet though. Overall, just a quick and fun read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Joy Revolution for giving me access to an eARC of this adorable romance by thee Talia Hibbert. I apologize for not writing this review closer to the publication date.

I’m just going to start by saying that if you’ve read any of the Brown Sisters trilogy and wanted a YA with the same hilarity and gooey romance, Talia Hibbert delivers. This book hits all the notes one expects for a romance from the blossoming crush to lovestruck moments to the classic HEA (Happily Ever After). I was so excited to find out how Hibbert would tackle a YA romance and I would say she scored all the goals. This is perfect for teens who are getting into romance and want to see healthy sexuality without the intensity that will be in romance books about adults. It’s also a lot of fun because it’s a romance between two teens who are enemies but they used to be friends which makes the being enemies all the more personal and then things happen and romance blooms. Classic friends to enemies to lovers trope.

In Hibbert’s fantastic book our main characters who take turns telling the story are conspiracy theory-lover Celine who wants to be a lawyer when she grows up and Brad, a jock with OCD who kicks butt on the field and in class. Celine and Brad collide when they both sign up for a survival course that will give them a chance at a scholarship and internship with Celine’s idol. They have to put their differences aside to make it through the course and slowly gain their friendship back.

It’s not all fun and games for these two. Celine’s dealing with her father walking out on her family years ago and the law-firm sponsoring the banquet at the end of the course is her father’s. She can’t quite make up her mind on how to feel about that. And Brad? He wants to figure out what to do for school next year. Does he stay the course his father intends for him or chart his own path?

This book will make readers feel like they made it through a survival course of emotions after they laugh, cry, and cheer for our two protagonists who are going through a challenge even bigger than their survival course: learning to forgive each other to move forward.

5 out of 5 stars.