Nobody in Particular is a tender & charming sapphic romance that made me feel like I was 17 again in the best, worst, most gloriously messy ways. It’s heartfelt without being saccharine, romantic without losing its bite, and full of characters who feel like real, complicated people rather than tropes.

Princess Rosemary is sharp-tongued and emotionally guarded, trying to clean up her public image after a very public fallout. Danni Blythe, new on a music scholarship and fresh off the trauma of high school bullying, just wants to fly under the radar. Neither of them are prepared for the gravitational pull between them, or the ways their connection will challenge what they believe they’re allowed to want.

I loved how rooted the characters felt, especially for a YA novel. Danni’s self-protective instincts, her wariness of privilege, and her relationship with her music all added texture to her arc. Rose, on the other hand, walks this tightrope between duty and desire, and watching her slowly crumble (and then rebuild herself) was incredibly satisfying. Bonus points for the way the story handles friendships, especially Rose and Molly.

Their dynamic is well-balanced, flirty, tense, funny, and emotionally honest. Their bond feels less like a grand revelation and more like something slowly, genuinely built, which made me SO happy to see. If I had one minor gripe, it’s that I would’ve liked just a little more time for the romance to bloom before we hit the high-drama beats. But the emotional payoff still worked for me, especially because the story is about more than romance, it’s about becoming the version of yourself you’re proud to be.

I wish I had stories like this to read as a teenager, this was incredibly healing.

4.5 stars, and a new favorite YA sapphic romance.

3.75!

I really enjoyed this! It was really cute and I laughed out loud multiple times at Rose’s quick wit.

I don’t typically reach for YA romance but I think this being at a boarding school helped it feel like it was at least college aged 😂 but even still I did have a fun time with this book! Rose and Danni were so sweet and I loved watching both of their journeys. Seeing Danni gain confidence and trust in her friendships was so lovely after her time at her old school being bullied. I was glad that she found a group that was genuinely so kind to her from the very beginning.

The story did feel like it was really long? I think it’s only like 350 pages but it felt way longer for some reason. I think it’s just kind of a slow plot and it seemed to drag a little toward the middle. BUT I loved the ending and still would recommend it!

Thank you Wednesday Books for the early copy through NetGalley! All opinions are my own ◡̈

Nobody in particular might be my favorite sophie book to date. In the author’s note, she talks about how she spent eleven years on this book. Even without the knowledge of that, I could tell just how much time, care, and love she put into this book. The characters, the plot, and primarily the romance.

Rosemary might be my favorite character from Gonzales. She’s sarcastic, abrasive at times, but loves and cares for others so deeply. I saw so much in myself in her from how she handled grief, her views on childbirth, her acceptance of her future (pretty much everything about her except for the fact that I’m, like Danni, bi and not a princess). The way she suppressed her grief so much that she truly believed she couldn’t feel anything was so well done. I also adored Danni and loved the journey of self discovery she went on throughout the book. Her growth in her self worth and overcoming stage fright made me so proud. Both girls had me feeling overjoyed for them both at the end.

The romance was adorable. I do think I would’ve preferred it to be a bit more of a slow burn, but I liked how it ended up progressing. It all felt very natural, which is something a lot of romance books don’t do well.

There was a subplot in this book that involved the death of one of Rose’s friends. I had expected this book to be heavy, given that one of the comps is young royals and that show has some heavy topics (and this book is kinda in the same vein as if this gets out), but wow. Gonzales did not approach this topic lightly. You will grieve with the characters. I loved the communication and accountability both Molly and Rose took with each other.

Overall, this was a delight and I can’t wait for the rest of the world to read it.

(Also, I loved the reference to if this gets out)

Danni is the new girl at an elite European boarding school, having just moved with her mom from the United States. There, she strikes up a friendship with her new classmate, Rose, who also happens to be the princess of the country. Slowly their friendship starts to morph into something more, but they face a ton of obstacles to being together.

This is a YA book and I think there's going to be a YA audience that absolutely loves this. However, I have to admit it was a little lackluster for me. I found it really hard to get into and it felt pretty slow paced for a lot of the book. Unfortunately, I didn't really buy into the romance between Danni and Rose. They didn't seem to have that much chemistry and everything just felt a little forced.

The setting of the boarding school was interesting and I think a definite positive of the book. And I enjoyed reading about Danni and Rose's friendships with the other girls at the school.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC!

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: June 3, 2025

Young Royals…but make it sapphic! This YA romance was so much more than I expected and the perfect read to kick off Pride Month!

Danni is a middle class scholarship student at a prestigious all girls boarding school where one of her classmates (Princess Rose) is set to be the future queen. The characters in this cast are fully formed, realistic teenagers with a lot of depth and I really enjoyed each of their journeys. The story is quite heartfelt and appropriately YA. Dislike anyone being outed but also appreciated the 3rd act conflict wasn’t a dramatic breakup between the MCs and their communication stayed on point!

Bonus: another incredible cover art illustration by Jenifer Prince!

We love a royal/civilian moment and I thought this was very well done. There are a lot of queer books centred around coming out that it can feel oversaturated, but this felt fresh and I liked how things were resolved. We’ve already ordered it for our school library!

Thank you to Wednesday books for the advanced copy!

3.75/5 stars

-sapphic royalty romance
-boarding school
-coming of age
-complex friendship dynamics
-European setting (made up country)

This was kinda like Princess Diaries 2 plus Red White and Royal Blue? I hate to make media comparisons but that's how I'd best describe it. But still wholly it's own thing.

Definitely some heavier topics (check CW) but I do think they were handled well for a YA/NA audience. These characters really go through it!

I love a musician main character - there were some beautiful quotes about music. Danni was definitely the more relatable MC as she's not royalty and is worried about fitting in at a new school being the scholarship student. Despite Rose being a very complex character who has been through a lot, and has lived her life always in the public eye, I think the fact that she is a princess made some of her struggles in the book a little unrelatable. But if you remove the whole having to hide your gay bc you're a royal and insert any other situation a teen might not feel comfortable coming out, then maybe it is more relatable. The topic of 'is love/romance worth it even if xyz might happen' is a big subject between Rose and Danni.

Overall there's a lot of drama in this book but it does lead to some interesting discussions between the MCs and their friends especially around mental health (shoutout to Molly whom I didn't initially like but won me over by the end).


Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Grief, Outing, Alcohol
Moderate: Bullying, Sexual content, Toxic friendship
Minor: Classism

Rose is dealing with the fallout of a friend dying from overdose and it is described in flashback on page and discussed throughout the book.

Sapphic young adult romance + princess x commoner + boarding school

I am a big fan of Sophie Gonzales--Perfect on Paper is one of my favorite YA books ever. While I didn't connect with this one quite as much as POP, I did have a lot of fun reading about a scandalous princess and the piano playing new girl at school.

This one is marketed as Young Royals meets the Prince and Me, but I'd add that you might get a little bit of The Princess Diaries vibes and Gossip Girl-like scandals!

Loved the:
• vibes
• writing style!
• character development, friendship struggles, various ways of coping with grief
• the conclusion really worked for me!

My only complaints:
Sometimes the characters read a little bit younger than I usually enjoy in a YA romance. The drama and scandals were upper YA, but they just felt like kids a lot of the time, too...
I felt like the royalty bit could have been played up even more than it was and that would have increased the fun. I wanted the difference between royalty and commoner to be even more of a struggle.

👍 I recommend it!

3.5 ⭐️

This was a cute story for what it was. I think I’m getting too old for these YA stories.

You got drama, grief, friendships tested, betrayal and romance.

I did like both main characters. I expected princess rose to be snobby and mean but I was pleasantly surprised.

Cute ending.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars.

I’m a big fan of queer royal romances so it’s no surprise I enjoyed this book. The romance was very sweet and I liked both main characters. The were a few parts that I felt dragged on a bit but overall it was a good read. I recommend to anyone looking for a sweet sapphic YA romance.

This was super cute and well written! It is a sapphic YA romance, we have the two main characters Danni and princess Rosemary. Rosemary is recovering from a big scandal and can't really afford a distraction. They fell for each other as they spent more time together. It covers some tough topics like teenage drug use and overdose. Overall, this one was pretty good! I am sort of over the boarding school trope though. It was also fairly YA so not my cup of tea since I am older but I think it was well written.

This was definitely a well-written book, and I know it’s going to become a new favorite for so many people, but it just wasn’t my exact cup of tea.

I’m generally not a fan of the modern royalty trope, but I am a huge fan of Sophie Gonzales, so I still wanted to give this a go. And I enjoyed it enough - I thought the characters were very complex and layered yet easy to love, and the story was well-paced. I wasn’t such a fan of the toxic boarding school drama, and there were a few plot points I definitely got annoyed by, especially towards the end when Rose became paranoid and suspicious of her friends and began accusing multiple people on her wild goose chase. But once things were resolved, I really appreciated the optimistic if unrealistic happily ever after!

Overall, I think this is a solid book, and despite my personal issues with it, I still gave it 4 stars.

4.5

Sophie Gonzales’ book? I’M IN! Sophie Gonzales’ book with a lesbian princess? I’M SUPER IN!
This book is amazing! I have no doubt about it but it was even better than I thought it would be. I love it so damn much!
I love Rose and her fragility, I love the way she hides it because she is a princess and she has duties. I love Dani and her insicurities. I love the way the trauma is portrait and I love the love story.
Yea, the subplot of Alfie was like super evident, but that was not the point, so I don’t really care and doesn’t change my mind about this book.
I love it so much!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

dnf @ 22%


Couldn't get into the narrative voice & style. However, I feel like this would be a suitable book for reluctant late teen readers, since it's written in a very approachable and conversational style. (Wouldn't outright recommend to younger teens, as it deals with some heavy topics, such as a drug overdose.)

I’ve only read a few royal romances, but I’m happy to report that this is another I can add to the list of ones I’ve enjoyed! 👑

Danni is the new kid at an all-girls European boarding school. After facing bullying at her last school in America and now being the scholarship student amongst the wealthy upper crust of Henland, she’s understandably nervous. Luckily, she finds a friend group that takes her under their wing, and it just so happens one of the members is Princess Rosemary 🌹

I couldn’t get enough of the hope and yearning of young love as Danni and Rose fell for one another 🥹 There’s just something about crushing hard as a teenager and exploring what it’s like to fall in love for the first time that is so special to read! Rose’s sarcasm and standoffishness mixed with Danni’s empathy and vulnerability made for a fun dynamic in this dual pov structure. They could still be dummies at times that led to some frustrating moments for me as a reader, but what teenagers don't make impulsive and sometimes stupid decisions? They're learning.

I also appreciated that while Gonzales included underage drinking and drug use, she did it in a way that highlighted the negative repercussions and the dangers that can happen. While cutting loose and breaking the rules seems fun, there can be serious consequences, and it shouldn’t be used to numb the pain or escape your problems. I hope this message will sink in for teens who pick this one up! I thought the author handled it well.

Overall, this book didn’t quite capture my attention throughout as much as I’d want in order to bump this up to a 4+ star rating. However, I’m glad I gave it a read and enjoyed the drama-filled ride that only a teen royal romance can provide! 3.5 stars

The blurb mentioned The Prince and Me, one of my favorite movies, so how could I resist this new story from Sophia Gonzales. Danni is an American who moves to a small European country of Henland for her step fathers work. She is a very talented pianist and gets a scholarship spot at a very prestigious boarding school there. It also happens to be the school where the Crown Princess Rosemary attends. I thought this would be light and breezy but it is a more serious story. Danni is welcomed into a new friend group that includes Rose. But the previous year has been rocky and hard, especially for new friends Molly and Rose. And there is a huge amount of pressure on Rose because of her title and position.

I don’t want to give away details and some of the drama was predictable. But I clung to every word as I turned the pages. There is teenage impulsiveness and dealing with bullying, outing, and anxiety. But one of my favorite things was the depth of friendship. A scene of Molly and Rose discussing the tragic event of the previous year and how they dealt with it was honest, mature and forgiving.

This is a great YA read for young teens and up. And kudos for the beautiful cover.

A heartwarming story about a queer princess who is determined to protect the girl she loves.

I really enjoyed watching Danni and Rose become close and recognize their feelings for each other. The characters were so uniquely interesting with different circumstances, and even the secondary characters leapt off the page and left an impact.

I loved how one of the major plot points of the book was resolved and felt that it was a comfort to read and have the pleasure to experience.

Nobody in Particular was such an enjoyable coming of age story about two girls learning about themselves and what they want their future to look like. I really liked how they each chose to navigate the obstacles that appeared in their lives and how they decided to grow from them. This story while heartbreaking and devastating at times showed so much growth which was heartwarming by the end.

Danni and Rose come from completely different lives and it created such an interesting dynamic between the two. Rose being a princess had her life planned to a tee. Especially after recent events in Amsterdam, Rose had no space for mess ups. We see her struggling with her destiny as the future queen while also knowing she is lesbian. As for Danni, she is on a scholarship and trying to fit in to a new school where she is a complete different social class and knows no one. I honestly wish the class dynamic was touched on even more than it was, but no matter I loved how they navigated their relationship despite their circumstances. Their relationship was sweet. I felt like it was a little insta at first, but by the end I was completely here for it. As for the characters individually, I really enjoyed them both. I honestly think I preferred Rose’s point of view simply because I found her struggle between who she loves and her future to be so interesting. I know she came off cold to a lot of people, but I just want the best for her. I can’t image what all that pressure would do to someone. I also really loved Molly. That girl had been through so much and I really loved her friendship.

Overall, I did feel the beginning of the book didn’t peak my interest as much as I thought it would. I don’t think it was until the 60% mark where I was fully invested. I absolutely loved the ending of this story and can’t wait to pick up some other books by this author. Thanks Wednesday and Netgalley for an earc. All opinions are my own.

This was one of my most anticipated releases and it did not disappoint!! I always love Sophie’s writing, and I loved the sapphic royal spin this took. Just the right amount of drama for a YA novel without feeling cheesy. Also the whodunnit aspect was so fun (for a very not fun reason). I for sure thought it was Harriet that told outed them! Or I guess she kinda did but Alfie, that little shit. This is a must read!

A modern forbidden royal romance with a queer twist? Usually I’d say no, but wow. Gonzales built up two great characters before initiating romance and it worked so well. You love both the characters and root for them to the end. You get plenty of backstory for the pair, building them as flawed and fascinating and I love that. I really adored this. It’s perfect for fans of Red, White, and Royal Blue.