Queer found family? sign me up! this was such a lovely story that I really enjoyed. The romance was nice but I think my favorite part of this was the friendship and their beautiful dynamics.

I did not love this book. The idea is great, and I enjoyed the plot, but the rest of it wasn’t really fleshed out. Liz and Daria just don’t seem to have a healthy relationship. It’s very will-they, won’t-they and a lot of back and forth, and I just wasn’t invested. Weston was extremely two-dimensional, and Jane and Bailey were very cliche.

This was such a lovely little Queer interpretation of pride and prejudice, it took me significantly longer than it should have to realize this. I think that Kellogg made really intelligent decisions in how they showcased the diversity of queer presenting people and the intersection of their identity struggles. By no means is this groundbreaking or revolutionary, but it is fun escapism and a non traumatic queer story, and I can't ask for better representation than that.

I loved this book. I am a sucker for Pride and Prejudice retellings and the fact that they were lesbians made it so much better. I loved the modern queer magazine take on the plot and how true Liz and Daria were to Lizzie and Mr. Darcy, despite how different the setting was. The conflicts were just so perfect and I loved that the book followed the plot of Pride and Prejudice without being predictable. This was such a good retelling, and simply just amazing outside of that.

This cover was what drew me in - and I really enjoyed this title.

I don't think that I felt like there was much of anything contrived or said just to be said in this novel. It felt really real, really authentic, and although there were a few fantastical elements I think it really spoke to me and came across 'just as it is'.

It was also a bit of a surprise, and at first unwelcome but then refreshingly I realized how welcome it was, to not have it be full of sex. This was more than sex, more than heated moments. Which brings me back to the last paragraph of my review - it's real. Life is more than sex. It's more than heated moments. It's figuring things out, losing friends, questioning choices and decisions.

I really liked this book.

You had me at queer Pride and Prejudice inspired but wow, I’m blown away at how much I enjoyed this.
I haven’t connected with a character quite like Liz Baker before. It was so easy for me to feel for her while she navigated friendship, dating, an upcoming layoff, and how to present herself to the world comfortably and authentically. Parts of Liz reminded me of parts of me and seeing her character development until the very end is damn near inspirational. Liz’s struggles with gender presentation were written incredibly well and in a way that I think most people can empathize with, even if they’ve never struggled personally.
I wanted to throw hands with Daria at first, ngl. The author does an excellent job at showing us why Daria is the way she is and by the end, she’s 100% my favorite character.
The NYC vibes were immaculate.
Liz’s roommates and coworkers (except one, you’ll understand who once you read it) are the queer friend group of my dreams. Liz’s relationship with Jane is so special, I love them so much.
The representation in this book is so important and an honest delight to read. The amount of stellar queer books that are coming out honestly makes me emotional. This would have meant the world to me as a disaster bisexual trying to figure shit out in my early 20’s. As a disaster bisexual nearing 30, it still means the world to me.

Liz Baker is a pop culture and listicle writer (who is a lesbian) at queer online magazine, Nether Fields (an online queer publication that is owned by a queer woman of color) which is teetering the line of shutting down. When our story begins it is believed to be the magazines last day when two independently wealthy queer women purchase the magazine. Majority investor Bailey Cox and minority investor (and Bailey’s best friend) Daria Fitzgerald. Bailey is bubbly and friendly and optimistic while Dara is prickly and a realist at best and pessimist at the worst.

Right after Bailey and Daria meet the team for the first time (a meeting where Liz was very in her head and rambling) Liz comes back to the conference room to retrieve her forgotten water bottle when she hears Daria say some less than favorable things about her, fueling Liz’s intense dislike of Daria from the beginning.

The characters in this book are MESSY (I mean, this is a Pride and Prejudice re-telling). They’re dramatic, they’re emotionally volatile, they love deeply, they get angry, they don’t always think before they act, they’re flawed and they’re not always 100% likable. I believe this makes them far more reliable and realistic.

Liz’s three roommates: Jane (a black trans woman), Lydia (who is non-binary) and Katie (a curvy, queer, woman of color) all also work at Nether Fields along with Liz. Jane being Nether Fields star writer and Liz’s best friend. Soon after Bailey and Daria purchase the magazine, Jane becomes romantically involved with Bailey. There is also an outing where one of Liz’s romantic interest is present and there is some clear backstory and bad blood from earlier in life with Bailey and Daria while in college.

I don’t wan’t to give away too much more of the story but this is very much Liz’s story and she isn’t a perfect person. She is deeply flawed, insecure, anxious and judgmental and doesn’t always bite her tongue when she should but she is also passionate, caring, creative and a devoted friend. She apologizes when she knows she’s in the wrong and attempts to do better and listen.

There are a few instances when I felt Liz and a few of the other characters came off as particularly immature or petty that feel a little juvenile but I don’t think that’s always unrealistic, as I think all people can be that way.

Overall, I enjoyed this very queer story full of modern queer pop culture references and full of heart and the ups and downs of life.

4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and The Dial Press for the E-Arc in exchange for an honest review!

A QUEER PRIDE AND PREJUDICE-INSPIRED ENEMIES TO LOVERS ROMANCE???? *requests*
I’m so glad I got to read this. It delivered exactly what it said it would.

My favorite things:
1) The Found Family trope. The friend group was super realistic and their dynamic was great.
2) Liz’s character development. I think her gender expression was very well written, and it was wonderful seeing her figuring her life out.

This was such a good book. Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for giving me this arc in exchange for an honest book review.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. A delightful queer romance with a whole cast of quirky characters. The setting of an LGBTQ magazine made this book next level gay & not in a bad way. I could have used more chapters of the happy ending!

I really enjoyed this. Creative set up with a group of friends instead of sisters, I loved the way Lydia's betrayal was set up. Daria was complex and interesting, and I adored Jane and Bailey as a couple. The one thing that bugged me was that Daria didn't do the big selfless gesture at the end that has become so much part of P&P for me. I mean, yes, she did nice things, but one of them was before Liz went off on her and the other is something any decent human would have done. Or maybe the Insta-finish was just too slow building for me. Good overall, but the end wasn't what I'd hoped for.


Review based on ARC.

A huge thank you to Camille Kellogg, Random House Publishing, and Netgalley for an eARC inexchange for an honest review. Just as You Are comes out April 25, 2023.

Just as You Are is a a queer modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice. Liz is a listicles writer at Nether Fields, a queer magazine that is vert close to shutting down. She lives with Jane, Katie and Lydia who happen to also work at Nether Field. All four are contemplating what they are going to do with their futures and lets be honest how they are going to pay the rent, that is until the magizine is bought by Bailey and Daria. Due to some quick judgements Daria and Liz do not get off on the right foot, it seems that they actively hate each other. Even though Liz has been given evidence that liking and trust Daria are not in her best interest, but will she be able to keep resisting the atraction she senses between them and can she really trust the sources of said evidence.

I have to say that Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorite movies and classic novels, and I thought that Camille Kellogg did such a good job retelling it. Liz is loyal, caring, and driven but she is also impulsive and stubborn. Daria is arrogant, harsh and closed off but she is also loyal kind and driven. Both characters make quick and harsh judgments about one another right off the bat, and to get to the end they had to go through alsot of charcters growth. I think that there was amazing representation including different people of gender, sexuality and race. I liked that Kellogg didn't shy away from there being conflict in the main queer friend group, it was honest and real. The only thing i would have loved was if there was an epilouge a couple years in the future.Otherwise, Come as You Are is brimming with romance, heart and queerness and it was an honor to read. I am looking forward to read what Camille Kellogg will write in the future.

For all the people who've read Pride and Prejudice and thought, "I wish this were a modern sapphic workplace romance."

I'm torn on this one, because although I loved the concept, I think the execution wasn't fully there for me. I was hoping for more depth to the characters and the story and the relationships. I also think that the book may have relied too heavily on the audience knowing the names/backstories of the characters from Pride and Prejudice, because for at least the first part of the book, it would have been hard to keep up if you weren't familiar with them. I had to constantly remind myself that it was a retelling just to keep the characters straight.

That said, the representation was excellent (only one character wasn't explicitly queer!), and it was an overall enjoyable read!

Camille Kellogg’s upcoming debut adult rom-com, “Just As You Are,” is a sapphic “Pride and Prejudice” retelling that will be published next year by Penguin Random House. Liz Baker dreams of being a novelist and telling the kinds of queer stories she never had growing up, but due to her current job as a columnist at queer magazine The Nether Fields, she barely has time to write outside of work. And just as the magazine is about to shut down for good — which would secure Liz the opportunity to work on her novel for the first time — it gets bought by two wealthy women. The two investors are Bailey Cox and Daria Fitzgerald, the latter of whom is an attractive butch lesbian. Only, when Liz meets them, she discovers that Daria is not only determined to cut costs but also hates Liz and her “fluff articles.” But the more Liz and Daria’s paths begin to cross, Liz discovers another side of Daria, one that’s much softer than she expected. And rather than hating Daria, Liz finds herself falling for her.

Kellogg writes an intimate, witty portrayal of queer life in the novel, one in which every character of the cast shines in their own right. And the exploration of queerness alongside gender presentation was remarkable; Liz’s struggle with how she wants to present herself to the world, finding herself most often in the space between butch and femme rather than clearly one or the other, is an experience many queer readers will relate to. At its heart “Just As You Are” is a book about everyday queer life and lets queer readers know that a happy ending exists for them, even if they’re imperfect and unsure of themselves.

Daria and Liz’s romance was written beautifully, full of yearning and misunderstandings but a testament to this idea of love as something that doesn’t have to be earned and can instead be the result of someone seeing every part of you and finding that it’s enough. Despite the struggles both women have with their queerness, it ultimately is something that enriches their lives, and they’re able to find happiness because of it. As a lesbian who adores Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice,” this novel felt like home and as if it were a promise of all the things to come in my own future. The novel is currently available for pre-order.

A realistic and enjoyable romance that is all too easy to read in one sitting, JUST AS YOU ARE has wonderful queer representation and an important message, paired with a delightful romance that gives a wonderful sapphic twist Pride and Prejudice fans are sure to adore.

I adored this. It felt so queer and familiar and fun. I especially loved Liz, and if I'm honest, there were a lot of moments when I thought she could do better than Daria. But by the end I was fully rooting for them, so Kellogg definitively did the work of building that relationship. If I have any complains is that the final conflict felt a bit confusing to me. I couldn't remember anything in the book that set-up Liz and Jane's relationship would go in the direction that it did, so some of the reactions felt a bit off to me. But I still really loved he book (and I wanted more Jane and Bailey for sure).

Just as You Are by Camille Kellogg was a phenomenal debut rom-com!
A beautifully written sapphic contemporary retelling of Pride and Prejudice.
I enjoyed reading Camille Kellogg's writing. I especially liked the angsty moments. This is one of those books where you continue reading because you want to know what will happen next.
Kellogg's characters are well written, relatable, and fun to read.
I'm excited to see her next creative book and characters!
A romantic, delightful enemies-to-lovers story.
Truly a captivating page turner!

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Random House & Dial,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this eARC!

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the chance to review this novel.

This is a pride and prejudice inspired novel, and I would probably have told you, before reading, that the world didn’t need another one of those. But I was wrong. The world needs this one! Everyone else can stop as this was my favourite Austen-inspired romance so far.

I love the queer village of characters the novel sets up, in the context of folks working at a small lesbian magazine in NY that is struggling and bought by some rich investors. The characters are sharp and interesting. The plotline is creative in its reinterpretations so you don’t feel like you immediately know what is coming. The romance is sweet.

There is a fair amount of soul searching by our main character, which I might have had issue with if I didn’t relate to her so much. Quite a bit of discussion early on about her self-presentation and where she fit in the queer spectrum - something I also dealt with when I was younger. Confidence struggles and a lack of clear direction by the protagonist also came through and it gives the romance a bit of depth. Nice work.

A sapphic contemporary retelling of Pride and Prejudice, Just Are You Are is clearly the work of someone who loves romance and New York City and queer community and the nuances of instastory signaling. I started this book thinking it would be charming and I ended up so engrossed it made me cry. Liz Baker is a white writer for a queer women’s magazine, Nether Fields. She lives with her roommates who also work at the magazine. Jane is a Black trans woman who’s the best writer. Lydia works in ad sales and Katie is on the pop culture beat. At the beginning of the story, they’re all commiserating that Nether Fields is shutting down after two decades with Charlotte at the helm. Well, mostly commiserating. Liz is secretly relieved because she’s tired of writing advice columns and listicles and is ready to try to become a Serious Writer. And then, at the eleventh hour, the magazine is saved, by a friendly woman, Bailey Cox, and a less friendly minority owner, Daria Fitzgerald. Plot ensues. Happy endings for the main couples all around.
One of Liz’s big dilemmas is what kind of writer she wants to be. She had started a blog and liked that but it had tapered off. And she likes getting readers with her pithy writing but also feels like it’s not substantial enough. I liked this part but wanted more of Liz’s writer voice. Give us more blog excerpts. And just as Liz is trying to figure out her authorial voice, she is also trying to figure out her gender presentation. She’s often feeling like her outfit doesn’t match how she wants to be presenting, and she also doesn’t have the money to find clothing options that do fit her vision (there is a flowered jacket that I thought would be Chekhov’s gun but it is hardly mentioned again). Daria on the other hand is masc and wears suits and works in finance. The conversations and connections between Liz and Daria are great, but again, I wanted more that shows the connection between the two at the beginning. Still, Kellogg hits on Fitzgerald’s introvert nature that comes off as stuck up but is not about that at all, really. Class issues come up in the book, and you get a good picture of what living in New York is like at both Liz’s income and Daria’s.

One of the changes I liked most was changing the scandal/crisis to not be something that happens to Liz or her found family but something they do. Liz has to take ownership of her culpability here in a way that reflects how much more active a role she has in 2020’s queer New York (versus 19th century England). It’s not enough of a scandal for Lydia to run off with the Wickham character (here Weston); Lydia (and Liz) do something that attacks the legitimacy of Nether Fields. And Daria doesn’t fix everything like OG Darcy does; instead, Liz steps up publicly while Daria works back channels.
Even the little nitpicks I’ve mentioned here (and also the queersplaining of the significance of each of the rooms at the Nether Fields office irks. Just call it the Kiyoko kitchen and trust that the reader will get it) don’t detract from the joy of the book, which manages to be celebratory while still talking about the downfall of print media. Just As You Are is an intensely hopeful book as well as a romance. And the big finale scene is a messy muddy delight (though this reader would have loved an epilogue). Just as the movie Fire Island showed new layers to Austen’s classic, so does this book as its spiritual sister.

I got an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars
This queer romcom had me from the beginning to end. I loved how liz was still trying to figure herself out and how relatable that was. The way everyone came together, I lived for the characters no matter if they were mentioned for just a second or was in the book from the beginning they were funny,relatable, and just down right amazing (well expect for a couple people). this book is perfect and so relatable I cried,laughed, wanted to scream at a couple of people.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing me this arc!!
This review will be posted on my booktok at the end of November!

Unfortunately not for me. I couldn't connect with the characters. Loved the idea as it might work for others. I just unfortunately struggled as characters and I couldn't connect. Might try again at a later stage