“Nothing but good is on the horizon.”
This audition is Nikki’s one chance to get out of Texas and start her music career. She’ll finally get away from a mother who doesn’t love her, a sister who betrayed her, and a life that stifles her. As Nikki sets off for the audition in California, her best friend Mal becomes an unexpected roadblock. Mal convinces Nikki to spend spring break with him, and she just can’t refuse him. Mal has always been there for her, and there might be something more to their friendship. Nikki’s perfect bubble with Mal doesn’t last, though. Her sister goes missing and her mother comes calling. Nikki’s ticket out feels so close, but maybe there’s a reason to stay and fight for herself.

This is my first time reading a book by Joya Goffney. As I started reading, I was drawn into a fast-paced story about a girl getting out of her hometown and bad home life. What I thought would be a breezy friends-to-lovers road trip romance became a much edgier story about family history and how we’re raised. Not that the romance takes a backseat, though – Nikki and Mal have plenty of page time exploring their relationship. This book is very much a contemporary romance, though there is a major plotline about Nikki’s abusive mom and toxic home life. This arc is what drives Nikki to really reflect on herself and where her own hesitations come from, and in the end, fuels her confidence to follow through with the audition. The resolution of the book is hopeful, which is the best way for YA to end, in my opinion. While the characters, relationships, and overall story of My Week With Him are enjoyable, I found myself wanting more depth. For Nikki and Mal, we get tidbits of their history and we see their banter, but I didn’t really care about them the way I wanted to. I also never really felt the stakes of Nikki’s home life. We get multiple references to Nikki’s mom being emotionally abusive throughout the book, but we hardly see the impact of that because Nikki just turns to Mal and his family. Nikki’s relationship with her mom could have been a much stronger part of the book, if we just had more meaningful page time with the characters. I think the pacing of the book, and maybe my expectations for the story, contribute to my lackluster feelings. Fans of Goffney have shared online that they enjoyed her previous two books more than this one, so I’m curious about Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry and Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl. I was disappointed with My Week With Him, but the book is not a bad read… I just wanted more from the story.

Love love love it!!!

Thank you soooooo much netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advanced review copy if this book💗
"I voluntarily read and reviewed the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

I loved everything about this book. From the friendship and love of the main characters, to the exploration of past traumas that continue from generation to generation. Sweet and funny and sometimes painful in all the right ways.

I requested this book because I loved the other two stories from the author. This was a bit different and had I known that I would have skipped for personal preference. I can still see the amazing writing in this and would recommend for certain readers but not necessarily readers that want something like her first two.

Included as a top pick in weekly July New Releases post, which highlights and promotes upcoming releases of the month (link attached)

This was one of my highly anticipated releases of the year and it did not disappoint. Joya Goffney is THAT girl, she can not write a bad book. Both Nikki and Mal are my sweethearts, their dynamic and banter reminds me of Kiki and Kai from Honey and Spice. It was also just easy breezy to read through, as it took me less than a day to finish it. Goffney has become an auto-buy author for me, can't wait to add this to my collection!

I've read all of Joya Goffney books and I find her stories so special. My Week with Him is no different. She explores the difficulties of intergenerational trauma and the importance of true friendship and love.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This story follows Nikki and her best friend Malachai. After a huge argument with her mother Nikki is kicked out of the house. She is plans to get a way to California to chase her music career dreams but is given an opportunity to spend the rest of her spring break in Texas with Mal. When Nikki’s little sister goes missing she has to work with her Toxic mom to find her while navigating her ever growing feelings for Malachai.

This book deals with so much and you really feel like you go through everything with Nikki. Living in a toxic home environment could have had horrible repercussions for Nikki but her perseverance showed. Malachai is swoon worthy throughout the story although he is in a relationship at first. No he didn’t cheat he quickly ends it because it should’ve never happened.

Thank you HarperCollins Children's Books, HarperTeen, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This was my second Joya Goffney book, and it was pretty different from the first one I read, her debut, but I again really liked it. Nikki is the kind of main character you'll end up rooting for so much. I have a massive soft spot for the best friends to lovers trope, if well done, and it was so well done here. I thought Nikki and Mal were absolutely adorable together, and their love for each other just jumped from the page.

I especially loved seeing him and his parents support her in dealing with her family issues, while never overstepping. There's a lot of focus on Nikki's relationship with her mother, which I thought was given a lot of depth and nuance. The situation was never portrayed as all good or all bad, giving space to all of Nikki's complicated emotions about it.

The story works towards Nikki leaving for California to audition for a girl group, and her talent for music is very present in the book, but it's never the main focus. I would honestly love to see a sequel where we follow Nikki in her budding music career and to see her try to balance it with her relationship with Mal.

This was such an engaging story. I really liked how the story kept getting more layers of complexity as it went on. The character development was so well done, I felt like I knew them. And I appreciated the author making the characters flawed and incomplete. I felt the frustration and love throughout.
It was kind of funny because I read two books in a row with the mothers having issues. But they were both done with thoughtfulness and empathy.
I really loved this book.
Enjoy!

nikki had already been planning to run away to start her music career, but after a particularly bad fight with her mom, she’s even more sure of this decision. but when her best friend, malachai, begs her to spend just one week with him to see if he can convince her to stay, she gives in. will this week give her the last push she needs to leave for good, or will she find a reason to stay?

i love books set in texas, which is just one of the many reasons i was excited to read this one. while i am more familiar with east texas, i could still picture some of the setting since i’ve visited west texas, so i enjoyed this aspect.

another aspect of this book i enjoyed was the friends-to-lovers storyline! from the beginning, it’s clear that nikki has feelings for mal, but unfortunately he just started dating someone else. (though i should also mention this does NOT have the cheating trope—they break up pretty quickly.) i really liked the way their relationship progressed!

lastly, i want to mention nikki’s relationship with her mother. i thought it was handled so well. both in past memories and the current story, nikki feels like she’s getting closer to her mom and their relationship is healing, then BOOM, something happens that lets nikki know her mom doesn’t feel the same. this book also did a good job of showing that you can see your parents as people who make mistakes while also not wanting to let them back in a position to hurt you once again.

i would recommend this book to anyone who loves YA romance.

Thank you so much Netgalley for this ARC 🙏🏾 I love Joya and I will read anything she writes. She is three for three at this point. What an amazing read, and I expected nothing less.
The romance was so cute between Malachi and Nikki, but as always, Joya’s books always have a message. Parents do not realize the affect they have on their children. Their words hurt more than they think, and not hearing I love you enough can harm your child in the future. A lot of parents have not healed from their own childhood trauma, then they traumatize their children the same way. This book handled that topic so well, because I despised Nikki’s mom until they finally had that conversation. It doesn’t excuse anything and I damn sure still don’t like her, but you can tell how much Nikki needed her mom’s love. I loved the sister dynamic between Nikki and Vae. Joya is so great at writing authentic friendships and relationships, you’ll even laugh out loud during some scenes. I am so here for Mal and Nikki’s relationship, he is so obsessed with her and I loved it.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
Sometimes you just aren’t the audience for something, and that’s absolutely ok. That’s how I feel with my second Joya Goffney book now, her latest, My Week With Him. There are some things that worked, but a lot more things where I felt it missed the mark, both objectively and personally.
While I liked the more “traditional” narrative style of her previous book, something in the way this one was laid out alienated me in the same way her debut did, with the myriad lists. I’m a big fan of books that take format risks, but instead of feeling the fast pace of the week, it really felt like it dragged, as each day was split into time segments, and choppy ones at that. And there are some other interstitial moments that just didn’t really grab me that much either.
I did find Nikki as a protagonist to be the standout, even if I found the structure and even some of the narration a bit choppy. She’s in a tense situation with her mother, having been kicked out for daring to pursue her music dreams. And I really liked the contrast between the dysfunctional family life Nikki is used to and Mal’s wealthy, more stable family, even if he has some baggage of his own, being adopted and having a birth mother who once tried to kidnap him.
The friends-to-lovers dynamic between Nikki and Mal is cute, but I can’t say I was super blown away by it. I do like the sense of history and deep connection between them, but I don’t think the narrative would have been super different if they remained best friends, especially given how his parents sometimes tried to adopt her.
This was a very “mid” book for me, and while I’m not opposed to trying more from Joya Goffney again, it’s hard not to be disappointed, as she did previously write something I really loved. However, if you’re a fan of YA contemporaries that take place over shorter periods of time, I recommend checking this out!

This one gave me all the feels! What a fantastic exploration of the many facets of love — romantic, familial, and all the nuances and complexities that go with the many different sides of love. The story was enjoyable and adorable, but it also was very emotional at times. It gives a lot to think about in terms of the impacts family dynamics have on the way young people’s personalities are shaped. This book was not just a fun read; I think it could be a very important developmental read for teens.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really quick, really lovely read that dealt with some pretty heavy themes while also still being full of quite a cute romance. Friends to lovers has never been my favorite relationship dynamic, but since these two were obviously in love with each other for ever, I'll give this one a pass - mainly because they just work so well together.

This kind of book hurts my heart. Seeing kids raised like Nikki; having to walk on eggshells at home, having to raise themselves or take care of a younger sibling, or having to wonder where their next meal is coming from. I've seen the anger that kids like Nikki have or the way that Vae shuts down and this book was such a good example of why kids sometimes act like this.

With that being said, I love that Nikki was still able to chase her dream. That she had supports in her life to help make things not so bad. I appreciate that all the ugly was brought out and examined. Overall, I just thought this was a well done book and just another way for young adults to find a connection through literature.

If I had to sum this up in one sentence it would be: This is like the YA version of Seven Days in June, and I am here for it. I could not put this one down. This is my second Joya Goffney read, the first being Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry, and this one now takes the top spot for me.

It was a great, solid read, and I honestly can't think of any complaints. It was heartbreaking and raw. I was rooting for Nikki from the beginning. Her mother made me SO angry. There were so many people around her who loved her and constantly built her up telling her how talented and amazing she was, but she couldn't see what they saw due to her mother constantly tearing her down and making her feel like a burden and a mistake. Nothing infuriates me more than when someone's light is dimmed because of the cruelty of another.

This book examines just how much the impact of lacking a feeling of belonging and being wanted and having a place that feels like home can truly have on a person; especially when that lack is due to a neglectful parent.

Honestly, my only issue is that I need more! I need to know how things end up for Nikki and Mal.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book. I loved it! My review will be posted to my Instagram, @readingwithtrey, on Wednesday, July 5 and Goodreads on Tuesday, July 4.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Nikki has an audition to join a girl group in California. When she told her best friend Mal, who she’s also crushing on, a wall built between them. He asked another girl to Prom, and Nikki is left angry and running away. She’s not just running to the audition or away from him; she’s also running away from her mother again. All she and her mom do is fight, and this time, her mom kicked her out and is threatening to change the locks. Nikki has to say goodbye to Mal though, and when she confronts him, he somehow convinces her to stay with him for the week of spring break before deciding to leave for good. The book takes place over that week, and the chapters are short snippets of time throughout the week. The short chapters and the dialogue between the characters make this book easily readable. Nikki’s relationship with her mom, her sister, and Mal are all well developed, and readers will be just as invested in Nikki’s decision whether or not to stay in California after her audition as those close to her.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this eARC of My Week with Him.

Joya Goffney, always writes such wonderful stories that I just eat up so quickly and always enjoy. This new book isn’t any different, I felt so giddy and proud of the relationships that developed, the declaration of love and figuring out the future.

This was such a pleasant read even with the many obstacles and trials that did occur. Nikki and Mal are the cutest and I’m so happy for them. The bond and connection they have is truly so sweet and precious.
The overall message of this book was just so impactful and inspiring - you can let yourself feel loved and supported even when you may not have received it much along the way in this life.

5/5 stars ⭐️

I love everything Joya Goffney! So I was definitely excited to receive this ARC.

This story was a bit different than the other two books she wrote. But I did enjoy the story. I moreso enjoyed Nikki & Val. It was a cutesy love story.

I do feel like it was missing some info. I didnt quite understand why Nikki’s mom was so awful to her. And some things just moved fast,

All and all, I would still recommend it!