I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Y'all, if you want a cute, fun, coming of age YA romance set at a boarding school, with a FMC who is a card shark, good girl and a MMC who is kinda dark and broody but also a great basketball player, this is your book!

Evie (birth name Everett) Riley is mistakenly assigned to the boys dorm at her new boarding school. They have no other rooms for her on campus so she hangs tight in the boys dorm while trying to be more of a badass than her goodie two-shoes days. she meets Salem Grayson, who's pot-smoking, bad boy antics got him and his twin Sabrina sent to the boarding school. Evie and Salem team up to help the other improve.

This has some plot holes, but overall I really like Evie's character and Salem is so wonderful too. There are some miscommunication things, but for 15-16 year olds it tracks. I loved the characters (esp. Mm art and Sabrina), setting, the banter between Evie and Salem, and the antics. Very cute, very fun and fast read!

A fun high school story with relatable characters and a unique plotline. The sister dynamic was interesting and the friendships seemed natural.

DNF at 27%. There’s nothing wrong with this book so far, but I am not the demographic for it. So I’m not going to finish it.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Come As You Are by Dahlia Adler is an absolute gem that had me hooked. Set against the atmospheric backdrop of a boarding school, this novel beautifully captures the tumultuous journey of teenage romance, self-discovery, and the inevitable growing pains of adolescence.

The characters are richly developed, each with their quirks and complexities that make them feel incredibly real. The romance is sweet, authentic, and layered with the kind of emotional depth that resonates long after you’ve turned the last page. Adler masterfully blends humor with heartfelt moments, creating a perfect balance that keeps the story engaging and relatable.

What truly stands out is the exploration of identity—encouraging readers to embrace who they are, flaws and all. The witty dialogue and laugh-out-loud moments are the cherry on top, making it not just a heartfelt read but an incredibly fun one too.

Come As You Are is a must-read for anyone who loves stories about finding your place in the world, navigating the highs and lows of young love, and laughing along the way. I couldn’t recommend it more!

Thank you @WednesdayBooks for my ARC copy of Come As You Are.

Plot: Come As You Are by Dahlia Adler follows Everett “Evie” Riley, who arrives at Camden Academy ready for a new beginning after her ex-boyfriend cheated on her with her sister and her best friend let it happen. But when she arrives, she finds out that she was accidentally placed in the all-boys dorm. Rumors and gossip about Evie’s housing placement start to spread and she quickly decides that she should lean into her new reputation so makes a deal with her dormmate, Salem Grayson. He’ll teach her how to be bad and she will teach him how to be good so that he can repair his relationship with his parents.

Overall thoughts: This was a great book that featured a cast of memorable characters, was funny as it had witty banter, was full of heart, had great queer and Jewish representation and was also a great portrayal of self-acceptance. Furthermore, the relationship between Evie and Salem felt believable as it did not feel rushed and built on their friendship. However, the ending was a bit abrupt and it felt like a possible sequel was being set up at the end. 4.5/5

TRIGGER WARNINGS: toxic sibling relationship, past cheating, sexual content

Come As You Are is a classic "coming of age" teen/YA romance that follows Everett - “Evie” - as she transitions from her hometown high school to a private boarding school with the goal of starting over. Right off the bat, her housing situation causes problems when she is mistakenly placed in the male dormitory, and she is saddled with a new reputation she didn't ask for. Still devoted to "starting over", Evie tries to ignore teasing from male peers and continue to put herself out there, make new friends, and mold herself into the person she has always wanted to be.

Evie ends up making a pact with her dorm mate, Salem, who is the classic "bad boy". Evie hopes that Salem can teach her to be less of a goodie-two-shoes, while Salem hopes that Evie can help him fix his act and repair his ruined reputation after being expelled from his previous high school.

While I enjoyed the plot, the banter and relationship between Evie and Salem (and the friendship between Evie and Salem's sister, Sabrina), and the slow-burn romance, I found other aspects of the book to be hard to follow. The prospect of a private school where the students are allowed so much freedom, where Evie is allowed to remain in the all-boy's dorm, and details such as these were a bit difficult to grapple with. However, this book does a great job of highlighting the struggle of the teenage experience and the ups and downs of self-discovery.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Dahlia Adler for providing an early digital ARC of this novel. "Come As You Are" is available for purchase beginning May 27, 2025.

This was my first time reading a book of Dahlia Adler and I was not disappointed! I was invested in the story from the very beginning. Come as You Are is a very fun YA read and I was always looking forward to what was coming next. The characters are very lovable and their relationships are relatable. Loved it!

Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin Press and Spotify Audiobook for the ARC and ALC.

I picked up the ARC partly because of the cover and I absolutely loved it; although I felt it ended a bit abruptly. Most YA's I've read have been good, but not great. I loved the banter, queer rep and it was a super quick read. Would have loved more.

This book was so much fun to read, the way Evie’s first day in college goes??? It was funny, I can relate to what she went through because my name is also masculine, so I had my share of people confusing things. She is known as the Rumson girl who is living in a boys only dorm. But she came to college broken hearted, and while in college she thinks she can become something else to change her rep, but now its compromised thanks to stupid rumors. But this is a coming of age for Evie, where she is starting to find happiness within in herself, by herself not because of others. And I will say this she is so bad ass; sarcastic and funny I was loving her throughout this whole book.

Evie transfers into a boarding school with more emotional baggage than actual luggage. Parental neglect, a cheating boyfriend, a sister who betrays her (multiple times), and the best friend who knew about the cheating and never said a word is just some of the stuff that Evie is running from. Confusion about her name (Everett) and the unavailable rooms has Evie living in the boys dorm - not really good for her reputation or starting over. Then she meets Salem, another guy in the hall who seems to be a loner and there begins the snark.

Come As You Are is laugh out loud funny. I see the word “witty” used alot in reviews and I always think “eh”, but witty definitely applies here. There’s so much snark and banter that I felt like I was let into the cool club. Salem and Evie are quick on the one-liners and the comebacks. I’m chuckling even now remembering some of the incidents.

This is the first non-rainbow couple I have read from Dahlia Adler and I’m okay with that because the secondary cast is as diverse as our world. I was so glad to see the real world reflected in a cis-het romance book. I really want to see Sabrina and Iz get together so I hope Adler writes their story. I just love Sabrina.

Sometimes you need to get away from the people who pigeonhole you to become who you want to be. This is Evie’s intent and while she doesn’t exactly succeed in her original mission, it’s a hilarious process that she goes through to get to happiness.

I love Come As You Are. I can guarantee I will be re-reading this book because it’s hilarious. Put this in your must read pile, you won’t regret it.

This was my second book by Dahlia Adler, and I have to say, so far I’ve really enjoyed her books. She creates stories that are relatable and just fun to read. I had a really great time reading this book.
I really enjoyed the characters she creates. I feel like when I read a YA contemporary book, I just love seeing the growth and self-discovery in the characters, because that’s the time in our lives where we are the most in need of it. Evie, our main character, is flawed in her own way, but she is discovering who she is, discovering what it means in relation to friendship, family, and romance. And I just love that there as this balance within her kind of discovering who she is.
And of course, you can forget about Salem. There is just something so fun in their dynamic, to see them learn to be friends, to falling for each other. It was just so much fun to see them interact with each other. But even more than just those two, there also really fun supporting characters, like Sabrina, Salem’s sister, and Matt.
Overall, it was just a really fun read, and I definitely need to work my way through Dahlia Adler’s other books. So far, I’ve enjoyed what I’ve read from her, so you can be sure I’ll keep an eye out for whatever she releases next.

This book really confused me. I have loved and enjoyed Dahlia Adler's other books, but this one left me scratching my head.

When Evie is placed in a boys dorm at her boarding school, she feels left out because she wanted the experience of bonding with a roommate. She becomes friends with Salem, one of the boys in her dorm, and they agree to help each other change their images. She wants to be more of a bad girl, and he wants to reform his bad boy ways. The problem is that this part of the story is boring.

I didn't understand how when Evie first gets to school she kisses the boyfriend of one of her new friends. In her defense, she didn't know that they were dating, but she doesn't tell the friend. This is the exact reason that she left home- her sister cheated with Evie's boyfriend!

Also, she develops feelings for Salem, and he supposedly likes her, but he goes and sleeps with someone else? And he said that he did it to get over Evie? I don't understand that logic.

Overall, the book didn't feel like it was about high schoolers. Everyone was hooking up, and it just felt more like a story about college students. I am so disappointed that I didn't like this one.

4.5 stars.

Come As You Are by Dahia Adler is a sweet yet meaningful young adult novel.

Everett “Evie” Riley is inadvertently assigned to the boys’ dorm at her new boarding school. Unable to move into the girls’ dorm, she makes the best of her situation. Evie becomes friends with Salem Grayson, his sister Sabrina, and his roommate Matt. With Salem’s help, Evie becomes a bit more edgy while Salem sheds a lot of his bad boy image.

Evie is witty, sarcastic, and holds her own against her new schoolmates. Salem is super laidback and does not seem to have a care in the world. The two of them together are hilarious but is there more to their relationship than just friendship?

Come As You Are is a captivating young adult novel. The characters are mature for their age but still have room to grow. The boarding school is pretty tame backdrop for Evie’s evolution. The storyline is engaging and touches on true to life situations and emotions. Dahia Adler brings this young adult novel to a swoony conclusion.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the ARC!
The only reason for my rating being a 3 is because this was a little too YA for me. The banter was cute and the friendship between Salem Evie was enjoyable. I did like the character development from the two. Overall, the book was good but again just a little too YA.

Sometimes you pick up a book that you just can't stop thinking about it even when you put it down. This is that book. The author mixed in family dynamics, new friendships, boy-girl romance and so much more in this book.
The story flowed so seamlessly and was relatable. There were so many situations in the novel that seemed like I'd experienced them as well. Everything from the awkward meeting new people, to the sibling rivalry, you can relive the emotions of the time.
The author did not take any easy outs, the characters were awkward and insecure and just trying the best they could. This really increased the appeal of the book.
Enjoy!

Come As You Are is one of my new favorite YA books. Dahlia Adler has a way of writing YA content that feels accessible and relatable to older readers while still making sure all the character dilemmas are serious but age-appropriate.

Evie has made a serious and personal decision to go to boarding school on scholarship to get away from her toxic sister's behavior. Her parents don't know the whole story, and we find out as she shares it to her budding friendships in moments of trust. She wants to start over and while she does do that, she also ends up in an environment and with people who make her feel good about herself for who she is, even as she tries to be someone else.

I loved that most of the book was about friendship first, and feelings second and at the end. Maybe especially that there are multiple friends and friends-of-friends Evie interacts with along the way in deep & meaningful moments, even if they're fleeting to the other character. Teens deal with plenty of serious subject matter every day and need strong community -- peers, parents, and otherwise -- to make it through those difficulties with good outcomes and support. Come As You Are models that in spades. It also explores how to move forward when friendships diverge or break...and how some friendships can often be mended, if we want.

This book was a nice return to Adler's standard after Going Bicoasta, which unfortunately gave us half the plot of a normal novel twice over. In contrast, Come As You Are was a consistent, building narrative that was fully built-out and satisfying. Structurally, it helps that all the dilemmas are dealt with in an age-appropriate manner, meaning they can be resolved in comparable page scope. Likewise, the boarding school made it naturally believable that the circumstances and characters' daily life could feel as it did; sometimes boarding school plots can make me ask, "Why didn't they just age them up to be early college students?" but that was not the case here. Parents and underage elements were utilized thoughtfully and intentionally.

10/10 loved this and wanted to leave sociable functions to finish it!

(4.5 rounded up) Come As You Are is such a fun, sassy, sweet YA romance! I instantly had a crush on two of the male characters, and I hope to see more of one of them someday maybe!! As with Going Bicoastal, Adler is amaaazing with banter! I kept finding myself grinning and giggling 🤭 She’s also so good at writing relatable characters; even at my big age I felt so much connection to Evie. The only thing I was left wanting (hence the half star off) was a little more “after” from the happily ever after. It felt a little like the MCs got together, and the story immediately plateaued. I think I also wanted more about the resolution with Sierra or Evie’s parents. Like a one-year later epilogue to wrap everything up with a bow.

Come As You Are is another fantastic YA from Dahlia Adler. I love Dahlia Adler’s writing and was immediately drawn in from the cover! Evie is ready for a fresh start at a boarding school, only to discover to her horror that she’s been placed in the boys’ dorm. Evie is not willing to mess up her new chance, so she is determined to make it work. When Evie meets Salem, they decide to work together. Salem will help Evie be more daring and Evie will help him clean up his act. As they become closer, will Evie be brave enough to acknowledge what’s growing between them?

Evie and Salem have a great friendship between them and I enjoyed watching the sparks fly as they grew closer. Evie has a complex relationship with her sister (and parents) and I didn’t see quite as much resolution with that as I hoped, though it is certainly realistic. There are excellent side characters such as Sabrina, Salem’s sister, and Salem’s roommate Matt. Come As You Are has lots of satisfying tropes such as good girl/bad boy, sunshine/grump, and soft-but-only-for-her.

Readers who love good girl/bad boy dynamics, compelling characters, and satisfying YA will enjoy Come As You Are.

Thank you to Dahlia Adler, Wednesday Books, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC!

This was exactly the palette cleanser I needed in between my binge of Zodiac Academy. Lighthearted, an easy read. Will definitely be adding to my summer reread list.

This was my first Dahlia Adler book, and while it wasn’t perfect, it was a fun ride. The boarding school setting, witty dialogue, and chaotic energy made for an entertaining read. Evie, the sunny and relatable main character, shines—though her handling of certain conflicts (like with Heather) left something to be desired. The slow-burn romance with Salem was a highlight, full of banter and chemistry. Great supporting characters rounded out the cast, though the story leaned more on vibes than depth. A solid, enjoyable read with room to grow.