This story was slow and cute. We have our mc, Autumn, who loves to plan events, pull off a promposal for a friend. Finding her college application waitlisted has her doubting her abilities. She hadn’t applied to other colleges, so this was her only shot. She has to show them why she is not an “average” student and has more potential.
While she’s scrambling for solid ideas, her former crush comes up with a business deal to turn her love for planning events/promposals into a project that could help her with her applications, too.

I liked how each promposal came with a personal story. It was mostly people who were too shy to ask their crush.

Autumn had self-esteem issues. It was prominent throughout the story. Time and again, she was reminded how awesome she was and she took her time to come to terms with it.
Huge chunk of the story was about promposals and getting her accepted into the college whilst building her friendship with Mekhi. For some reason, the romance didn’t work for me. They kept drawing lines whenever they came closer.

But overall, this makes a good one-time read, and I’m looking forward to reading more books from the author.
—
Thanks to TBR and Beyond Tours and the Publisher for the early access of the book!

This book felt like a movie, in the best way. It was a bit slow at first, but soon found it’s pace. The main-character is a go-getter that’s endearing, misguided at times and relatable. Her Promposal business was interesting and added something fresh to the genre. I haven’t read anything like it before, which was fun.

The romance is a slow-burn that had worked really well with the characters. Because whenever you have a romance in a book it’s important that you connect and like both of the characters involved in it, otherwise it will just fall flat. Luckily in Promposal, I was rooting for Autumn and her new co-worker Mekhi from the start. They made a great duo together. Which brings me onto something I didn’t like and that's how drawn out the misunderstandings between them was. More often than not I felt unnecessary and one-sided from Autumn's side. Also many of the side-characters didn’t add a lot of the story, and some were full on annoying (like her ex-best friend and her ex-boyfriend).

Overall a fun YA contemporary with a good balance between the romance and realism of high school. The business aspect made the book feel not too juvenile, and the story could easily have been set in a college as a high school.

Autumn Reeves – who is our Main Character in “Promposal” – has been waitlisted at her dream college. Which is something that doesn’t sit well with her. So she needs to stand out more to be accepted into her (hopefully) new school. Something that doesn’t look easy at first until an idea hits her mind: Promposal Queen. And Mekhi, her sworn enemy/former crush, is the only one who can help her…

You need to know that “Promposal” is a slow-burn YA romance novel before starting your read. Autumn’s determination throughout the story is really admirable. You can see that she wants to be accepted into her dream school and how she is crushed when she finds out that she has been waitlisted by Mercer.

Something that troubled me the most in the read was the miscommunication. I don’t know if this was made on purpose or not by the author but I found it really troubling and it kind of disturbed my reading of the book. Other than that, “Promposal” is a cute and quick read and definitely something for YA and Adult readers to identify themselves with the main plot lines (senior/graduating high-school student, love and relationships in school, applying to uni/college,…).

Beneath my snarky, sarcastic exterior, I'm actually a hopeless romantic at heart (I know, I know, it's hard to believe), but I kinda love the idea of a promposal even though they're kinda cheesy and over-the-top and, speaking from personal experience, awkward and uncomfortable.

So when I heard about a YA debut about a girl who teams up with her former crush to throw a bunch of promposals, I was intrigued. After all, the only thing I like more than enemies-to-lovers is a second-chance romance featuring lovers-turned-enemies-to-lovers.

Unfortunately, RaeChell Garrett's debut did not work for me. The characters were flat, the stakes weren't sufficient, and the plot was underdeveloped. I just didn't have any kind of emotional connection to the story and couldn't bring myself to care about what was happening. Autumn is a frustrating protagonist who is neither likeable nor compellingly unlikeable, and Mekhi is about as interesting as a piece of cardboard. Overall, Promposal had a great premise but was disappointing in its execution.

Promposal is the debut novel from Raechell Garrett and it was good. I absolutely love the cover. The story reminded me of what it was like to be in high school with college and prom just around the corner. I enjoyed the slow burn romance and I loved how driven the students where when it came to a business plan. In some parts of the book it was really predictable but all together it was an enjoyable weekend read.

I enjoyed this book. It was def more of slice of life novel. I also did enjoy the job element to this story to create prom posal for people. It was a quick read. I also really liked the talks that happen both about self discovary and also just life before college. This book had one of my favorite troup friend to stangers to more. I did not feel that connected to the writing style or the characters but it was a fun and quick read, great for prom season!!

Unfortunately this book wasn’t a hit for me. The build up was long and unnecessary. The main FMC is too stubborn to be believable, unlikeable, and kind of mean.

Now, I totally understand this is a 17 year old character and no one at 17 has life figured out. But really the whole premise of her problem could have been solved if she just applied to other colleges. Which really frustrated me.

The MMC, Mekhia was AMAZING. He’s level headed, kind, and a wonderful business man. He really made this book more enjoyable. I loved his truth telling and his composed manor, yet he’s also still just a teenager, his character was more believable.

This story just feel flat for me. Nothing special stood out. The ending is rushed, after ALL that build up, the characters didn’t really do much growing. I’m really disappointed, because it’s potential was incredible.

Thank you TBRandBeyondTours and Poppy Books for sending me an advanced copy. This review is being left voluntarily. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Autumn is Waitlisted at her dream school with no other college plans. She must put her all into getting off that Waitlist.
After being enemies for years, Autumn recruits Mekhi to help her gain Mercer recognition.

This was a really good read. It had just enough teen angst to keep it interesting and a little unpredictable.

I love a good Promposal. Working in a high school library these kids continue to surprise me. With Prom season just around the corner it is the perfect time for this book.

Throw in a high school student starting a business and best friend/boyfriend/love drama and I am sold.

Go on this empowering, charming, and emotional journey of navigating high school and all the drama that it brings with it.

After winning a competitive scholarship to the Mercer School of Business, Autumn assumes the contingency on acceptance is only a formality. Mercer is Autumn’s dream school, offering a prestigious entrepreneurship program that will set her up for success. But her future comes to a crashing halt when she is waitlisted; disbelief takes over as it sinks in that she banked everything on Mercer. In addition, a bad breakup leaves her feeling average and unsure of what she can do in the next six weeks to prove herself to Mercer. Her counselor pulls strings for her to join the Young Black Entrepreneurs, and things really get complicated when, despite their intricate romantic past, Mekhi offers to help her turn her skill of crafting enchanting promposals into a business. Can Autumn, voted most likely to brighten someone’s day, build her new business, find love, and regain her confidence when everything seems to be disintegrating around her?

Promposal will appeal to readers interested in entrepreneurship and messy almost-enemies to lovers with compelling witty banter. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the story was not predictable. Little details were effectively revealed throughout that kept me engrossed in Autumn’s personal growth. The realistic portrayal of the promposal theme was refreshing compared to other young adult rom-coms that do not consider the delicate emotions surrounding teenage love. Plus, is there anything sweeter than watching two people come together in a special way? Promposal also included some of the finer details regarding starting a company, creating a business plan, and hitting on profitability. Being from southeastern Michigan, the novel setting was dead on, including wearing coats and gloves during class. Every side character had an important role to play in Autumn’s self-growth journey. I also found Autumn’s parents to be refreshing for a young adult novel because they did not smother Autumn or overtly fault her for her mistakes.

Promposal captures the joy of the end of senior year and the excitement ahead without overshadowing the accompanying fear and doubt to create a refreshing read about learning to believe in yourself.

This book was so much fun and such a quick read that I finished it in one day! I adored all the characters and loved the romance. Some really sweet and adorable moments between Autumn and Mekhi had me grinning so hard my cheeks hurt.

This is definitely a book where the characters make teenagerish decisions and put their foot in their mouth. The conflicts Autumn has with others (Mekhi, Jordyn, Reese, her parents, etc) due to saying or doing the wrong thing are all believable. There's no one epiphany that makes her completely flip her behavior. She's constantly growing throughout the story.

There were maybe a few things that were present in the book that could've just been rounded out more. Like how Autumn was seemingly perceived by her peers and teachers and a bit of her friendship with Reese.

Overall, it was a really fun and adorable read. 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving this ARC, and this doesn’t influence my review. This was a great read! I loved the synopsis more than the book TBH though

📖 ARC REVIEW 📖

Thank you @littlebrownyoungreaders for an early copy of Promposal by RaeChell Garrett. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. 🤍

Promposal is a YA romance novel about high school senior Autumn, who has been waitlisted at her dream school (and the only school she has applied to for college), and Mekhi, who’s the only one who can help increase her odds of getting off the waitlist and be accepted at her dream school, and the one who broke her heart during their freshman year. Their business idea for Mercer, Promposal Queen was a hit, and Mekhi was indeed a great business partner, but when working with Mekhi jeopardizes her only chance at rekindling a friendship with her ex-best-friend, and secrets long buried threaten to ruin Promposal Queen, another broken heart may be the least of her worries--her entire future is on the line.

I found this novel quite enjoyable despite being a slow-burn romance. Autumn was relatable as she keep doubting herself and her abilities, and with Mercer waitlisting her, she was at her lowest, but I admired her determination (although part of it was because it was the only school she applied to) to change their minds and accept her application. And though desperate times call for desperate measures, I’m glad Mekhi was able to help her make Promposal Queen a reality. I initially found Mekhi too closed off and too quiet (and for a second, I kind of found him to have no personality based on Autumn’s perception of him always being too stiff and almost always have no reactions at all), but I loved his brilliant mind when it came to business.

I feel like the miscommunication between Autumn and Mekhi (and her ex-best friend Jordyn) could have been better explained or expounded on as it confused me even toward the end of the novel. Everyone was rehashing events from the past and how it went from their perspectives and suddenly a simple yet heartwarming promposal makes it all better (??). I feel like the overall ending could have been better (and longer to be honest).

Rating Promposal ⭐⭐⭐ /5. Releases April 4th, 2023!

This was super cute and I enjoyed it. I think that Autumn is a super compelling character. I liked seeing her and Mehki develop their friendship and just have fun with each other. They had really cute banter that I loved. I just wish there was an epilogue and we saw them after prom.

I received an arc through netgalley.

*Thank you to NetGalley, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Poppy and TBR And Beyond Tours for providing me this arc in exchange for an honest review*

When I saw this book I with the cover and the own voice tag I though to myself: I HAVE to read this book. So unfortunately it was a disappointing read at least for me. Hence the 2.5 stars. So I really loved the black community representation but overall I didn't care for the characters.

Both Autumn and Mekhi appeared more juvenile than they were. The mis-communication trope is so good but if it's done correctly. Which in that case it didn't. I really hated Autumn sometimes, but mostly I just didn't care about her.

She kept talking about being mediocre but she never did actually anything to be exceptional. If it was just a book without the romance it would be so much better, at least for me. Because then it would be a coming of age story about goals and succeeding them. With the rushed romance her character didn't developed as much as I was expecting it.

It begins with the bad news: denied college admission. Then the worse news: a breakup instead of a promposal.

But somehow, Autumn becomes even more determined. To get into her dream school. To get the perfect guy. To maybe get her best friend back.

And most of all, to become her authentic self. That's what appeals most to me about this book. Let's face it - Autumn is a pretty shallow person at the beginning of the book. She desperately needed this character arc!

I think many teens will be able to see themselves in Autumn. And enjoy her personal journey.

"'I'm just average. I mean, what do they want us to do?' There's that word again. Average."

It's the trope of misunderstanding done well. And the best part is, this book reads like a movie. Perfect choice for a good teen read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this debut novel. I’m a sucker for sweet, slow-burn romance, so that kept me interested. I also really liked the idea of smart, driven high school students working to realize a business idea. It was interesting and refreshing. There was definite predictability, and some of the conflict was a little unbelievable. But, overall, this was a delightful read.

First off, I want to thank Netgalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for sending me an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Now, this book is a book I’d recommend to get out of a reading slump. It’s a quick, cute read that I think if I hadn’t been so busy with school, I could’ve finished in one sitting. Right from the start, you get invested in Autumn’s story.

Autumn Reeves is determined to get into Mercer and has done everything right to be the perfect applicant, so she’s shocked when she’s waitlisted. In order to set herself apart, she starts her own business: Promposal Queen. Autumn is very creative with how she thinks up of her promposals, always trying to tailor it to the couple’s story. It makes me wish we got to see even more promposals! The first official promposal for her business was amazing, and the couple's story left me wanting to learn more about them. I felt myself getting as invested as Autumn. She did start this business to make her application look better, but she does truly care about creating the best promposals and making her customers happy.

Her business partner is Mekhi Winston, who she has history with and now hates…except you can’t help but see the chemistry that the two have. Garrett did a great job at writing their banter, and this definitely delivered on the romance! It was so cute and sweet. Despite their history, Mekhi really did want her to believe in herself and succeed. Autumn saw that, and she started to change her opinion of him as the story went on. As they grew closer, we got to see them really open up to one another.

Eventually, we learn what really happened back in freshman year that led to them not wanting to be near each other. With so much buildup, the ending felt a little anticlimactic. It was still cute, but it felt a little rushed how it all wrapped up. However, I still really loved the book!

Overall, I give it 4.5/5 stars!

Rating: 2.75/5 stars

Autumn Reeves is close to graduating, and has applied to her dream school. Autumn thinks it’s a done deal; until they waitlist her. Now she has to think of an idea to make her move up the list, and that’s when she becomes Promposal Queen. She joins a business group and finds herself around Mekhi Winston. A boy who’s hurt her in the past, but seems to be the only one that can help her. Only Autumn doesn’t know if she can trust him.  

I couldn’t help but want to read this book after seeing the cute cover! Plus, the synopsis was also a drawn in! The characters reflected well for a YA book, and this story had topics that would relate well to that demographic. Unfortunately, I found the overall story to be disappointing. There was constant miscommunication throughout the story, and it muddied a lot of progress the MC’s made in their relationship. It felt like everything went down the drain, only to be salvaged at the last possible minute. This made the romance unbelievable and the ending very rushed. Overall, it left me unsatisfied with the ending and I wish we could have spent more time repairing Mekhi and Autumn’s relationship. It would also have been nice to peek into the future some. Autumn constantly talks about her dream school, but it feels like we got ripped off by not seeing her off to college. I also couldn’t help but wonder what would happen next for her and Mekhi, despite their issues.

Thank you to Net Galley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the ARC!

If you are into potato chips, college admissions, BIPOC representation, friendships, enemies to more, second chances, misunderstandings, light romance, dummy ex boyfriends and cute endings, I would definitely recommend this one.

Thank you, @netgalley for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.