*2.5 While I think the setup was really fun (LOVE a boarding school setting), I'm not sure the execution of this one exactly worked for me? Maybe it's just because I'm growing out of the YA genre, but some of the plotlines and character choices were truly WILD. Still had its cute moments but don't think this one was for me :(

Every once in awhile, I find a YA romance that is so excellent I read it in a single day and need to tell everyone about it. That's how I feel about "Come As You Are".

The emotions and emotional turmoil in this book is SO authentic and relatable. It's been awhile since I was a teenager, but this brought back that almost painful feeling of wanting to belong, making and losing friends, and falling in love. The interpersonal relationships between characters were perfect for the ages being portrayed, and the plotline was SO much fun. There were moments where disbelief had to be suspended (she ends up in an all-boys dorm, and they won't move her?!) but I personally LOVE a bonkers moment that kicks off the rest of the action.

As an adult, I very much enjoyed this, but I also think it's the perfect YA romance for The Youths this summer.

Note that there are references to sex, drugs, and alcohol (off-page) in this book. I don't have kids, I'm not here to police what they read, but some people might care about this.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! All opinions are my own.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher, Wednesday Books, through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is a Young Adult novel. I appreciated the banter and the friendship that developed between Evie and the rest of the characters. However, I felt like parts of the story were glossed over. I do look forward to reading more from Dahlia Adler - this particular book just was not for me.

Overall 📚
This is an adorable (YA) school romance. I did not know this was YA going in and I typically struggle to read high school romances so this one at least kept me invested. I think the cover was super cute and it definitely fits the vibe of the story. I would say the plot was pretty on brand for high schoolers so be prepared to be annoyed by their immaturity lol.
FMC 👧
Evie or "Everett" she hates her name ok *hair flip* has all the makings of a teenager who is done with everyone's shit and in her "IDGAF" era and I don't blame her. If I got cheated on with someone close to me and ANOTHER person close to me knew about? Good bye, I'm skipping town too sis. I will say, I was irked by Evie many times as badass as she projects herself to be at times I feel as though she was a bit too "roll over and whatever" like she expected the problems she was encountering to fix themselves. By all means CRY IT OUT GIRL but you can't just sit there???
MMC 👦
What can I say, Salem is about as cool as his name sounds (so pretty cool) he has all the building blocks of a book boy and definitely someone I would have melted over in high school and maybe obsessed over, as an adult I struggled with some of the wording/romantic moments. I wanted to jump out of my skin a few times, but nothing that ruined the book or made me want to stop reading.

I really love that Dahlia came out with a playlist for this! TAKE NOTE OTHER AUTHORS!!! I think this was a solid YA romance and I'm definitely open to reading more from her. 😊

Thank you to Netgalley, and Dahlia Adler for this opportunity and ARC, all thoughts and opinions are my own ♥

I've been a fan of Dahlia Adler's works since Home Field Advantage and have never been let down, but I'm sad to say that her newest, Come As You Are, is solidly a middling 3-star read for me. I think some YA readers will really enjoy it, but it just wasn't up to par with what I expect from Adler at this point.

Everett "Evie" Riley has come to Camden Academy to escape a miserable series of betrayals - her boyfriend cheated on her with her sister, and her best friend helped to cover it all up. Except things are off to a poor start: she's accidentally been placed in the all-boys dorm, and rumors are already starting to spread, earning her a reputation she's done nothing to deserve. She decides to lean into her new reputation, with help from her grumpy new dorm-mate, Salem Greyson. It won't be for free, though, since Salem needs help repairing his relationship with his family. So she'll teach him how to be a good student, and he'll teach her how to be a bad girl.

Sadly, I just didn't vibe with this story. It felt largely predictable from very early on, which would be fine, except it also made no sense. The school just left Evie in the all-boys dorm? All of these kids are literally only thinking about sex all the time? Genuinely, I think what would have saved this book for me would have been if it had been bumped up to a New Adult story with college-aged characters. At least then the constant focus on hookups would have made a bit more sense. And then the conclusion and wrap-up, especially with Evie reaching out to her former friend and sister felt very phoned in and... not really solved?
So overall, this book was solidly fine. It was honestly just fine. Now if Adler wants to write a spin-off about Salem's sister... I'm there.

🦇 Come As You Are Book Review 🦇

❓ How would you describe your high school self in one word?

🦇 Hot on the heels of a broken heart, Everett “Evie” Riley arrives at Camden Academy ready for a new beginning, only to find out she's been placed in an all-boys dorm. When rumors and gossip about Evie's housing predicament spread like wildfire, she decides the only way to survive is to lean into her questionable new reputation...but she's definitely going to require help. Her grumpy emo dorm-mate Salem Grayson isn't exactly her first choice, but he does need her help to repair his relationship with his parents every bit as much as she needs his to learn how to be cool. And so they make a pact: he'll teach her how to be bad, if she teaches him how to be good. What happens when Salem starts to thrive, and Evie can't?

💜 One of my current fave Young Adult writers, Dahlia Adler can do no wrong. Let's break it down.

✨ Characters (5/5): Every character stands out from others in this messy, authentic cast. Evie's trying so hard to break her own mold, but it's her eventual self-acceptance and discovery that gives this story its unique beauty. For Salem and Evie to learn from one another and grow beside each other was authentically heartfelt.

✨ Plot and Pacing (4/5): The "only girl in the boys' dorm" plot seems silly, but it presents Evie (who is already carrying a mess of high school drama baggage) with new challenges regarding her identity and reputation. The love story is an excruciating but realistic slow burn that's neither rushed nor dragged out, which makes it all the more heartfelt.

✨ Romance (5/5): As much as I adored the slow burn romance between Evie and Salem, the friendships here steal the show. They're messy, everyone concealing motivations, but at the end of the day, they simultaneously support (and tease) each other. Which is what makes Evie and Salem work so well as a friends-to-lovers pairing. Salem never fully tries to change Evie; he fosters the inner strength she's had all along.

✨ Mystery/Suspense (3/5): Holding onto the mystery of what happened back home (between her ex-boyfriend, ex-bestie, and sister) would have given the story more tension.

✨ Tone/Prose (4/5): There's something comforting, like talking to an old friend, about Adler's prose. Though Evie's narration is fresh, distinct, and damn full of wit, Adler's voice shines through.

🦇 Recommended for fans of Begin Again and Better Than the Movies.

✨ The Vibes ✨
💜 Opposites Attract
💜 Young Adult
💜 Grumpy / Sunshine
💜 Boarding School
💜 Strike a Deal
💜 Found Family
💜 Slow Burn
💜 Identity / Self-Acceptance
💜Friends to Lovers

🦇 Major thanks to the author and publisher for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book. #ComeAsYouAre

💬 Quotes
“I was a peach. Now I’m a bad apple.”

"Salem is standing there, and my first thought on seeing him and the flannel pants hanging off his hips and his mess of midnight hair is I cannot believe I ever thought there was anything about this boy that needed fixing."

"You just kept on finding new ways to be such a cute fucking weirdo, and I fell so damn hard for it. Hell, I’m still falling. You are magic to me, Peach, and the best person I know.”

"There’s a difference between doing something shitty and being someone shitty.”

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for this ARC!
•
My rating: ☆☆☆☆☆ (4.5 stars rounded up to 5)
•
I read this book in one day. What a cute high school romcom. I liked the characters. It was sweet - I love it when in romance books, the characters meet, become best friends, and then a couple. And it was funny - I laughed a lot while reading, snort laughed even. This book has the good vibes of a comfort read. I had such a great time reading it and was sad when it was over.

I usually really like YA romances, and the premise of this one caught my attention. Boarding school, dorm mix-ups, good girl x bad boy, opposites attract, fresh starts. The tropes and vibes sound like something I'd enjoy, but the story couldn't keep my attention. I just wasn't into it.

DNF @ 35%

This was my first Dahlia Adler, and I'm sad to say this wasn't it for me. I'll probably attempt to read it again, but this was a dnf for now.

This is going to be a short review, I apologise for that already. Fact of the matter is that I just don't have that many thoughts on this book. It was a perfectly fine read. That's it!
I really liked the premise of this book. I thought it was quite fun. I also really liked the cast of characters. They immediately just had a click with each other, and truly made for such a good group together. Their banter was everything for me.
Despite this book being about self improvement I however, just didn't get it. I mean, I do think there's some good messages in this but I overall just think the characters were just a little too one dimensional for it to be fully pulled of. I don't think the main character is that different by the end of this book. There wasn't enough depth for it all.
On top of that I also just thought the romance was a little underdeveloped. I mean, I did really like the dynamic between Evie and Salem, as I mentioned before the overall dynamic between the friend group was incredible, but it felt purely platonic to me. I just didn't really feel any chemistry in that department between them.
So yeah, this was fine. I had a fun enough time reading this book. I also definitely think that some of the more emotional moments definitely did hit. It's just really lacking depth and developement in my opinion, and I overall don't know just how memorable this one is for me.

I was excited for this story as I have really enjoyed previous books from the author, Cool for the Summer (2021), Bicoastal (2022), Home Field Advantage (2023) to name a few. The premise starts off fun. Everette “Evie” Riley arrives at a private boarding school called Camden Academy. Because of her name she is mistakenly assigned to the male dormitory. I am not sure that a private school couldn’t have figured out a better solution but I went with it. Her plan is to reinvent herself and become who she wants to be. But her reputation is already taking a hit because of her living situation. She does make friends with her upstairs dorm mate Salem Grayson and his twin sister.

It is shared in the blurb that the two agree to help each other. He agrees to let her help him make better choices (more join in, less weed and emo). He in return is supposed to help her be less good. That part of the plan really never made sense to me even though it is explained. The book has so many sweet and good things going for it. Salem’s sister is there for humor and good LGBTQIA representation. The activities like a talent show, movie nights, doing laundry and even poker nights are very wholesome. But the flip side is the easy acceptance of casual hook-ups, (not on the page). I kept thinking these students are sophomores and where are the adults and dorm monitors. Fifteen is barely the age of consent in my state. I would have been more comfortable if they were a couple of years older.

The friendship to love story itself is wholesome and sweet. But I did not like Salem’s casual situationship. It hit too close to the reason Evie wanted to be away from home in the first place. I enjoyed Adler’s writing style and ease of storytelling. The banter is very fun as well. (3.5 Stars)

i wanted to love this so much, but i just didn’t. that’s not to say it was a bad book because i still had fun at times! i thought the nickname peach was cute also, it’s one that you don’t see often. as well as the banter was cute!! but how are you not upset with this man after some of the things he did…? i would be livid!

This was SUCH a cute YA academic-setting romance. I loved Evie and seeing her trying to rebuild hope for romantic relationships after going through a bad breakup and losing trust in those closest to her was beautiful. I LOVEDDDD Salem and his twin sister Sabrina, and Salem and Evie were adorable. This is one of the best friends-to-lovers books I've read! It was fantastic.

This was so, so good! Evie is an incredibly relatable awkward, flawed heroine, and Salem is the perfect grumpy emo annoyance-to-friends-to-lover. I absolutely loved everything about their entire dynamic, especially how it was truly the SLOWEST of slow burns -- I adore that. Additionally I loved how realistic the relationships were between Evie and her family and sisters, and how Adler shows how just because something is flawed doesn't mean it's not worth having. Love, love, love!

Come As You Are is my first book bu Dahlia,Adler. Loved Evie and Salem and the boarding schoolsetting. This book was funny and sweet and the perfect comfort reads. Will definitely read more from this author.

I really did not care for this book. I was expecting a cute young adult rom com about a girl who ended up in a boy’s dorm at boarding school, but other than this being set at a high school, the content really was not young adult appropriate in many ways. I wouldn’t at all want my teenager reading this and I felt that this super over sexualized young teenagers and encouraged and condoned many inappropriate behaviors and habits. I had a hard time getting through the whole thing. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Dahlia Adler does YA so well. This was easily bingeable and just a lovely story.

Evie was so relatable - I think she may be a love her or hate her type of character and I loved her. And I adored Salem - a little bad boy is always good in a love interest.

The supporting characters were also fantastic. This will not be my last Dahlia Adler.

Read: April 24th, - May 6th
Format: E-Book
Rating: 4 stars

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review

I actually started this book uncertain. I just took a bit to really get invested, but once I did, I DID. Salem just worked for me, and Salem + Evie? 👌🏼 Their banter felt like it was specialized just for me, and I ADORED every second of it. It also just felt like a very authentic slow burn, having them become genuine friends that developed into something deeper.

This also has one of my favorite tropes of "I could do the thing I asked you to teach me to do but I wanted to spend more time with you because I'm in love with you". Very specific type of trope, but one I absolutely adore thanks to Golden Lily by Richelle Mead 👌🏼

It was also a nice coming of age story in general, with Evie blossoming into her own person outside of her sister's shadow, while also accepting that there was nothing wrong with who she was.

Overall, a book I went into expecting to just be pretty okay, but I ended up enjoying a ton 😁

5 stars
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
She teaches him how to be good and He teaches her how to act bad. Salem and Evie are the portrayals of snuggling in warm and cozy nook.

it’s a super cute, realistic, YA love story.

Come As You Are follows Evie or Riley, as she finds herself stuck in the ALL boys dorm after a mishap involving her birth name Riley. She becomes the talk of the whole campus which is not exactly the fresh start Evie was looking for after her breakup. Now to make matters worse, she has to STAY in the boys dorm because there is not other open dorms. She recruits her neighbor Salem to help fight it a way to make it through the year without this new reputation. The plan should work perfectly except Evie realizes she doesn't really know who she is or what she wants after all. This was an interesting
read, and I appreciated the depth of Evie's character.

This was such a fun YA romance. I really enjoyed this story.

Everett is wanting to leave behind a school and old friends and attend a boarding school and start over. However, her name doesn’t help her start off in a pre place well. When she is confused for a boy and placed in the boys dorm she feels like bad luck just follows her everywhere. Things begin to turn around for her when she decides she wants to be/act the complete opposite of how she normally is and makes a deal with one of her dorm mates to teach her how to be trouble. Salem is going to teach her how to be the cool girl.

The writing is so fun in this story. I haven’t read one of Dahlia Alders books before and I am glad I have been introduced to her stories. The characters are well written and have great personalities. This was such a quick fun YA romance. I really enjoyed it.