Charlie is ready to start fresh at his new school where no one knows that he is trans. At least, he is until he meets his new roommate: Jasper Grimes. The boy who broke Charlie’s heart before he transitioned. However, Jasper doesn’t recognize him.

So, Charlie strikes a deal with Jasper to secure his single room. All Charlie has to do is write some love letters. And hope that his secret doesn’t get revealed.

Thanks to Roaring Brook and NetGalley for an advanced copy of And They Were Roommates by Page Powars! I loved Borrow a Boyfriend Club when I read it last year, so I was excited to pick this one up. The premise also sounded like it made for a particularly interesting romance, and I was correct on that front. Especially as Charlie realizes he might not quite be over his feelings for Jasper.

Powars excels at writing a cast of characters that you’ll care about from the beginning (even if they’re a little off-putting at first like Jasper). Charlie forms a little group of friends at Valentine Academy for Boys, who all eventually want to fight for a different future at the school. They all support each other, and I appreciated their little found family.

Jasper and Charlie also had great chemistry from the beginning, even when Charlie was putting up a front of not liking Jasper. To be fair, Jasper grows on you the more you get to know him, so it made sense where Charlie was coming from. All of the events in the story lead to a satisfying ending with hope that the future at the school will be better.

If you like boarding school romances, definitely check this out when it comes out at the end of the month!

This was EVERYTHING. I can't express how excited I am for this book to be released so I can own a physical copy! This was not only absolutely adorable, this was so human! Vulnerable, complex, and so lovely. Please read this.

So many good releases this year and this is one of my favorites! The plot already sounded interesting just by the description, but the execution was flawless. Charlie and Jasper are such lovable characters, and although they play into overexaggerated characteristics, I never felt that it degraded my experience reading. If anything, it added to the whimsy environment of the school and its students. The way Jasper would take what Charlie told him to heart (the bookshelf!) was very Mr. Darcy of him. Side note, but I thought naming the chapters after classics was extremely clever and (as far as I know) they seemed to have some element from the book it was named after.
What stopped this book from being five stars for me on fable and storygraph? I would have liked if the boys faced consequences for what happened to some capacity. The conflict in it felt low-stakes, which, is fine for the audience this book is intended for! It's a matter of personal preference. However, I would still highly recommend this book to anyone who already loves well-written (happy) queer stories.

This book was amazing ! The writing was done so well, and the story was amazing.
It had a good amount of humor, but also sweet and soft moments. The characters were really well written and interesting to watch develop.
My favorite part had to be the school. I always have loved academic romance or fantasy, and the system and overall school idea was amazing,
I want a second book to see their story continue!

I’m going to need somebody to get movie rights STAT. I have to see this on the big screen.

The romance was so adorably written. Even if we only saw things from Charlie’s slightly-faulty point of view, it’s clear how much Jasper genuinely cared for him from the start. “Oh my god, they were roommates” is such a fun way to force the main couple into spending time with each other, but Powars ups the ante by making Charlie’s transness a point of strong anxiety for him. Most of the blocking of our main couple comes from his inability to see past his fears and imagined flaws - no one could possibly want to be friends, let alone DATE someone like him if they found out he was trans, right? But Powars disproves this every step of the way. Delilah, Luis, the STRIPpers - they all love him unconditionally, and they’ve been trying to prove it despite his continual self-sabotage.

The relationship between Charlie and the other STRIPpers was one of my favorite parts. It’s so important to have a safe space in high school, especially when you’re struggling with the idea you might not fit the “traditional” mold. Charlie’s friend group is able to break his walls down and show him that even the “perfect” kids have insecurities, but having people around that care makes everything less scary.

Charlie has two main battles over the course of the book - hiding his transness, and keeping his grades high enough to stay enrolled. Academic stress is no joke; I remember multiple instances throughout high school and college where I’d make myself physically ill over my grades. In hindsight, it’s stupid - none of those will matter in four years - but a high schooler’s brain can’t compute that. You need a stellar GPA for college acceptance, to measure up against your peers, to please your parents. Add Charlie’s extra stress over needing to be one of the top five students in the school or risk expulsion, and it’s no wonder the poor kid was on the verge of a heart attack every chapter. This book handled the topic well, pushing the belief that grades shouldn’t rank above your health, and that there will be people - friends, teachers, parents - willing to help if you find the strength to ask.

As a quick final note, I want to mention my favorite scenes - the egg drop and both confessions. They were so unbelievably well-written, and the confessions were on par with classics like 10 Things I Hate About You or How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, with the perfect addition of queer joy.

I’ll definitely have to pick up a copy of this and Powars’ other book once it hits shelves!

(thankyou netgalley for the arc )
I really appreciated the concept of this book and kind of through it was a take on She's the Man but I wasn't drawn into this book. I felt like it really took a long time for me to into it and didn't really like it until the end, it's the only reason for the higher reading since I liked the ending and the representation.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan for the eARC!! This YA romcom, set in an ultra competitive private school, is perfect for fans of coming of age stories and lovers of queer joy. Absolutely adorable, I found myself having a great time throughout this book! I enjoy Powars’ secondary and tertiary characters as well — there’s generally a sense of found family in his books, even when it isn’t at the forefront of tropes, which I love. Great representation and exploration of what it means to be coming into one’s own as a trans teen!

And They Were Roommates is a sweet YA romcom by Page Powars. Charlie Von Hevringprinz is vibrating with anxiety when he arrives for his first day as a scholarship recipient at super-swanky Valentine Academy for Boys. He’s beyond stressed to find out he has a roommate instead of the single room he’d requested, then horrified to learn that roommate is Jasper Grimes, the boy who broke his heart before he transitioned. From there, a part-Cyrano, part-Shakespeare romance of hidden identities and forced proximity ensues.

Despite the millennial-coded title, And They Were Roommates has a heavy gen Z/alpha vibe, so I’d probably recommend my fellow adult readers give it a pass. But for the intended YA audience, I think this will be a fun, relatable read that has readers rooting for these boys. 4*.

Thank you to Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing this e-arc.

1.5 stars

(thankyou netgalley for the arc )
so this concept really intrigued me so i read it .
with such a good concept i was disapointed with the outcome ,
the book is marketed as a romance when really only the last couple of chapters are the rest of the book was filled of a poetry sending letter aspect and i really could not care less of i was bored and didnt reallly understand it .
the last couple of chapters were good but apart from that it wasnt worth the read .

📖 Bookish Moments:
This book is absolutely ADORABLE! MY Charlie!! He’s such a sweetheart—tender, anxious, and trying so hard to hold it all together. Being the only trans student at this elite, ultra-rigid school is already stressful enough… but add being a scholarship kid who has to keep his grades up? My heart was aching for him. And then the poor boy ends up rooming with his summer fling Jasper—who only knew him pre-transition. The tension!! The anxiety!! I wanted to wrap him in a blanket and protect him. Also, he was the sweetest tutor!

Now listen… Jasper was a whole damn vibe. He’s a hopeless flirt who has a way with words! His underground love letter schemes and antics had me dying laughing. Absolutely loved him!

I absolutely loved both MMCs and the book!

❤️Read if you love:
Trans MC rep
Forced proximity
Roommate drama
Second chance romance
Boarding school
Love Letter writing
Queer romance

📖 Final Score: 4.5 Stars
Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and NetGalley for the ARC. All thoughts are my own.
Releases May 27, 2025

Sweet YA romance. The main character is a believable (trans) teenage boy. I appreciate that the author and thus the book chose an optimistic view of people, even if the institutions they're part of often fall short of legitimating the lives of trans folk.

I loved this book, it was very fun and light but with a touch of teenage drama to it. This wasn't too serious and was a very easy one to get through, seeing as i ate it up.

I will say that I felt that one of our main characters, Charlie, fell just a little flat to me especially since Jasper felt like a more dynamic character to me but I did still love them both. I also adore all of the side characters, they are a bit wacky but so fun and made me smile.

This was a very fun read!

Cute, funny, and full of heart. And They Were Roommates gave me the feels—awkward crushes, real friendship, and the kind of queer joy that just makes you smile. We really do need more of that queer joy - all of our stories don’t have to be tragic! That said, I’m not usually a big romance reader, so take this with a grain of salt. It was a bit too sweet for my usual taste, but I can see the appeal for romance fans.
3/5 stars

in AND THEY WERE ROOMMATES charlie arrives at valentine academy determined to keep a low profile as the only trans student, but his plan unravels when he's assigned a roommate: jasper, the boy who unknowingly broke his heart pre-transition. jasper doesn’t recognize him, and charlie sees a way out: help jasper ghostwrite love letters to other students in exchange for a solo dorm. but as late-night conversations spark unexpected feelings, charlie realizes that keeping his heart out of the equation may be the real challenge.

this book was so silly and fun!! charlie, bless his anxious little heart, is so endearing that i wanted to crawl into the pages and give him a hug. he’s just trying to survive valentine academy without accidentally outing himself or emotionally combusting. then there’s jasper, who is peak dramatic teen poet energy (yes, he has a cardboard cutout of himself). he’s insufferable and charming and exactly the kind of chaos this story needs.

the side characters were delightful. every one of them brought something fun to the table, and even though they weren’t the center of the story, i found myself genuinely rooting for them. the whole book is a little over the top in a way that feels intentional. it's heartfelt and perfect for when you want something light that doesn’t take itself too seriously. don’t go in expecting non-stop romance; this is more about charlie figuring out who he is, making new connections, and navigating love letter mischief with a boy who doesn’t even recognize him.

page powars, you’ve got a new fan. i’ll absolutely be picking up whatever comes next.

3.5 stars.
This book is strikingly similar to the author's debut, The Borrow a Boyfriend Club:
MC is clueless about romance? Check.
Undercover club related to love that keeps the school going? Check.
The club has a goofy acronym? Check. (To be fair, the acronyms in both books *did* make me laugh out loud.)
MC needs to join that club to somehow prove himself as a man? Check.

I am so unbelievably elated that books by trans authors with trans main characters are becoming more popular (+ being published at all), so my last point isn't really a critique. I just feel that the thesis of this book and TBBC were the same, as both MCs went on the same character arc. Being trans myself, I know it's important for us to be able to tell our stories the way we want to--however, just because of the nature of books, that story must be entertaining and unique for readers. So while I appreciate the effort in this book, and love that it exists, the execution did fall flat, at least for me.

Separate from that, the main reason this book didn't live up to my expectations was the love interested--I found him absolutely insufferable. To be fair, that was kind of the point, but I don't think enough was done to humanize him or explain why the love interest would be drawn to him, especially considering they had a relationship in the past, so the main character needed to fall in love *twice*. The reason they broke up in the past also seemed really contrived, though I guess some slack can be cut for them because they were very young teens at the time. And this may be another personal gripe, but them being roommates did not come up as often as I would've liked, considering the title of this book. If the title and author promise me AO3 antics, then I want AO3 antics, goddamnit!!

As it is, this is a cute trans romance about a trans boy coming into his own while dealing with a ghost from his past, in the form of his ex that doesn't recognize him post-transition. I thought the concept was sweet though the actual book left me wanting more, however I definitely will be reading more from Page Powars simply because of how unapologetically trans his books are.

Well this was so disappointing. I was really excited for this but unfortunately it just didn’t meet my expectations. I wasn’t enjoying the characters or the plot at all.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: May 27, 2025

An illustrated map to start! Always a good sign. This YA trans+cis M/M roommates to lovers romance has great trans rep and acceptance, but the plot is over the top and a bit too absurd. After transitioning and spending a year homeschooling, Charlie is finally attending the school of his dreams on scholarship. He’s shocked to find out his roommate at the all boys school is none other than his summer camp crush/kiss from before he transitioned, Jasper. I usually love private school vibes, but this revolves around an absurd secret club that writes love letters to their all girls sister academy, because the school is called Valentine Academy? Too hokey for me.

And They Were Roommates is a ridiculously funny romantic comedy about two boys attending a strict and very competitive private school.

Charlie has wanted to attend Valentine Academy for Boys since he realized he was a boy. Now that he's transitioned and been accepted into the prestigious school, he wants to "lay low" and try not to attract unnecessary attention. Unfortunately for him, he's been assigned a roommate, Jasper, who not only knew him pre-transition but also broke his heart at summer camp two years ago.

Jasper, the principal's nephew and Sexiest Poet of the Year, does not recognize Charlie as his previous Summer fling, but Charlie fears that - if he does - he could get kicked out of the very traditional school. However, as the two work together on a side project, they begin to clear up misunderstandings about each other and their brief relationship. Slowly, Charlie starts to realize that maybe Jasper isn't as bad as he thought (even if he does have posters of himself on their ceiling and a life-size cutout of himself in their dorm).

Besides Charlie and Jasper, the cast is filled with a lot more delightful characters. Charlie's growing friendship with a small group of fellow students adds a little of the "found family" trope to the story. He also has a best friend, Delilah, who attends the sister school next door. Various faculty and family members also fill out the cast.

The tone of the book is light and funny. Reading this reminded me of watching a teenage rom-com. This is a very low-angst, funny, joyful, triumphant, and incredibly fun read. I had a smile plastered on my face the entire time I read it!

I highly recommend this for lovers of queer stories, especially anyone who needs something light, silly, and happy. This is guaranteed to make you giggle at least once!

This is wonderfully adorable, if not a stressful, romp through adolescence. Coming of age in a place you fear you are not welcome, while growing into yourself and your body is something all of can relate to even outside of puberty. I felt connected to the MMC on an emotional level, even though I have not lived the trans experience.

This is YA romance, it’s more about learning to communicate and accept love than experiencing physical aspects of love. I feel like it’s important, and helpful expression for people, especially teens, to read. There are things we assume that hinder our abilities to get close to others and other assumptions we don’t even realize we make, that would otherwise help us if we just acknowledged our bias and mistakes.

I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

I am giggling and kicking my feet as we speak. Page Powars debut book was one of my favourite reads last year so I was incredibly happy to find out I got an e-arc for this new book. I admit it took me a bit to warm up to it but then I fell very quickly in love. Powars has a way to write characters in a silly yet authentic way because yeah sometimes teens are just a bunch of silly people learning to grow into themselves.