It was a wonderful, adorable, coming of age story. I really enjoyed the graphics and the storytelling in many places the comic strip was excellent in very creative way I just felt wow. I fell in love with both Tess and Olive. I am highly recommending this one.

Really cute sapphic graphic novel. The art style is nice and the art is consistently good throughout.
I loved Tessa as the main character. Her struggles with love and her emotions are relatable and well written throughout. I wish Olive had gotten a bit more focus too to show her in the present, but I do think the scenes in the past combined with the explanation for her actions later on make her compelling enough. The enemies-to-lovers aspect between them is good but pretty rushed. It might be too much for the scope of this novel, but I still found their reconciliation very quick after the apology. In exchange, we do get more scenes later on in the book where they are spending time, which is nice. I especially liked the montages of them together.
Solid 3.5 stars

Wow !! This book was a ride of emotions and reconciliation. I really enjoyed seeing the growth between the two leads and how they handled everything. I am excited to see if our amazing roommate will get their own story too ❤️

The art style was lovely and refreshingly new for me. I think the story had a great HEA and HFN situation.

An easygoing, low-angst, sweet romantic read.

Watching the main character go from feelings of resentment for events she didn't even remember and being too much in her own head to finally having the tough conversations is one of the most realistic and healthy representations of growth that I've seen in a graphic novel.

The characters were diverse and interesting, the plot was intriguing and kept me interested even when it was sort of obvious what was going to unfold, the art style is unique and satisfying to see, and the overall story gave me the warm fuzzies. I love a good WLW story and this checked all the boxes for me.

Although I thoroughly enjoyed the read, it felt very surface level and lacked the depth I expected. The romance felt rushed and there could have been some more hard-hitting and interesting plot points to draw everything together with a bow. Like I said, it's a simple and quick, low-angst sapphic romance read.

This is definitely leaning more toward a 3.5 or 3.75 stars, but I'm going to have to suffer and pick a flat 3 stars!

since this was available to read now, I thought I would try it. I used to love reading the little comics that come in the newspaper when I was younger but this just wasn't for me. Maybe if i had a tablet where the images were bigger id like it better.

⭐️ 3.75 stars

This graphic novel was cute.

It was a very easy read, and the writing was good. As much as I prefer a novel fully in color, I appreciated the green tone that made the drawings prettier.

In terms of the story, I didn’t fully love most characters at first because I couldn’t relate to their little high school dramas. The depiction of enemies-to-lovers was enjoyable, but I was expecting it to go deeper and not be resolved so easily.

Overall, I’d recommend it if you’re searching for a light romance read with low angst and a second-chance trope.

Kathleen Gros' modern young adult book I Hated You in High School combines comedy, emotional depth, and the intricacies of high school relationships. It explores friendship, self-improvement, and navigating the uncomfortable, occasionally painful aspects of puberty. The protagonist is frequently forced to face her prior issues, which results in self-discovery and a shift in how she views people she used to detest.


1. Character Development: The protagonist's path from bitterness to comprehension is riveting and realistic. She has many preconceived ideas about her classmates at first, but she learns to see things differently as a result of introspection and new experiences. Her character gains depth as a result of this development, which also makes it easier for the reader to identify with her.
2. Writing Style: Gros's writing is humorous but poignant, and it is captivating. The novel excels at striking a balance between poignant passages and humor. It is an interesting and occasionally thought-provoking book to read.
3. Relatable Themes: Readers can relate to the portrayal of high school drama, including friendship problems, old rivalries, and personal development, especially if they have gone through comparable experiences. Identity, forgiveness, and understanding are all skillfully handled in this novel.
4. Pacing: The book's pacing could have been a little quicker in some places, particularly where the protagonist's observations linger on for much too long. But this self-examination makes the character's development more genuine.
5. Appeal: Those who appreciate coming-of-age stories, particularly high school dramas that combine comedy and emotional inquiry, will find the novel to be quite appealing.


I Hated You in High School is a wonderful option if you enjoy YA books that emphasize high school dynamics and personal development while containing a considerable deal of humor.

thank you to netgalley for the ARC!
okay, wow. i’ll try and keep this short to avoid spoilers but this story really struck me in a way i didn’t anticipate so we’ll see how I do.
it’s been a long time since i’ve been able to get through a book in one sitting, even graphic novels and other short books. but i hated you in high school managed to be a one sitting read for me.
i was immediately intrigued by the title and basic premise of this book and excited to read. but it wound up hitting really close to home for me and that’s probably the biggest thing that will make it stick in my head.
i’m out of practice writing reviews so i’ll just share some thoughts and hope it’s coherent. i really loved the friendship between tessa and frankie. i thought it was great backdrop for the story and i could really feel just how much love there was between them, even with frankie’s limited appearance. i also loved the occasional interjections of canadian context that i tend to not even consider as a result of my US centric mindset. i really enjoyed a lot of the framing around repressed memories; i really identified with the way those were visualized in the art style and how it enhanced the text of the story.

as for things i might take issues with, i do share some sentiments about the romance plotline but not strong ones. while it might not be entirely advisable or ‘just’, it feels quite realistic to my personal experiences as a lesbian. i felt pretty confident in my initial guesses on where the story was going and i was right. in my opinion, love is complicated and messy and embarrassing; it isn’t simple and maybe a good piece of art should raise those questions. maybe we should let that sit with us after reading or watching or whatever your preferred way to consume it. that said, i see why other reviewers have felt mislead by the tropes used to market it and i do think it could upset or trigger readers who have experienced similar things. i’m sure i once had much more to say about this book but i’ve already written too much so i’ll leave this review there. sorry for the ramble; i definitely failed at my goal to keep it short.


rating: 3.5/5

After losing her job at a coffee shop in Vancouver, lesbian struggling artist Tessa is suddenly available to return home to Ontario in time for her parents’ anniversary party. She’s surprised to learn that her parents are renting their basement apartment to none other than Olive, her former high school best friend-turned bully. When they interact again for the first time in ten years, Tessa realizes there was more going on between them than either of them were willing to admit.

Yes queer rep! I really enjoyed this one. This is one where you can guess where the story is going but it was told in an enjoyable way.

I found it interesting and relatable that Tessa had repressed her high school memories to the feeling of “I don’t remember what you did but I know you were mean to me.” Using her journals as a way to bring those moments back was a great bit of storytelling.

I appreciated seeing the growth that the characters went through. They still made mistakes as adults, but they were different and they learned from them.

I also enjoyed the discussion about the point in an artist’s journey when they have to determine whether they were in a place to keep hustling or whether they were comfortable letting art be a hobby and not how they sustain themself.

I loved the art in this and the variety of bodies. Would definitely read more by Gros in the future.

Thank you NetGalley and Andrew McMeel Publishing for this ARC.

I've absolutely loved Kathleen Gros' previous graphic novels (Jo: An Adaptation of Little Women (Sort Of) and Anne: An Adaptation of Anne of Green Gables (Sort Of)), which both bought fresh, modern twists to beloved classics while still capturing the heart of their original stories. So I was super excited to read her latest, I Hated You in High School, expecting another heartfelt and engaging read. While this was definitely a super sweet story with charming artwork and a cozy, nostalgic feel, I found the storyline a little basic and not quite as compelling as her previous works. The emotional beats were there, but they didn’t always land as strongly as I’d hoped, and I wished for a bit more depth in both character development and the central conflict. The romance had its moments, but the enemies-to-lovers dynamic felt somewhat rushed, and I struggled to fully buy into the reconciliation.

That being said, it was still an enjoyable, easy read, and I’d absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for a cute sapphic graphic novel.

For me, this is closer to a 3.5 star read but I don't have that option!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for a copy of this novel. ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

First, thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange or review.

I didn't love this, there's no way around that so let's get it out of the way early. Benefit of the doubt, this one just wasn't for me. I was grabbed title cause I'm a sucker for a hate to love, but it just really didn't work for me. Maybe I'm not a an of contemporary romance when it's staged as a graphic novel? It just didn't feel like there was enough going on to support the book, romance kind of lives and dies on its descriptors for me so when you lose that scene setting and internal monologue it becomes a harder sell without an additional plot, I guess.

It also read a little young, to me. Maybe it's meant to be new adult, though not to sound like an old fogy I don't really get that as a descriptor anyway. Some of the interactions between these twenty-something adults read like they could have just as been easily occuring between their high school selves, the difference being the interactions ended positively. That feels harsh especially for a book I was ultimately fine with, I think there's an audience for this but it wasn't me.

A cute, sapphic graphic novel that portrays the enemies to lovers trope well, with a time jump added in.

I really enjoyed the characters and felt the plot was believable and relatable.

I landed on a 3.5.

The novel itself has fun characters and overall drawn well. The coloring took me out of a lot of the novel. The story is simple but works. I wished that it went a bit further, and the characters got together sooner. But would still recommend and has some great rep in it as well.

Tropes:
Coming-Out, High-school Crushes, Enemies to Lovers, Second-Chance Romance , Forced Proximity,
Bio:
Struggling 20-something Tessa has a dead-end job as a barista and the dream of a creative career that never quite seems to take off. When the coffee shop where she works goes out of business, she's able to visit her parents for the first time in years. Arriving at her family home, she discovers that her parents have rented out the basement apartment to her high school nemesis, Olive Virtue.

Love this 💕:
💕 Creative Burnout rep
💕 Career path of Creative
💕 Enemies to lovers
💕 Personal accountability
💕 Complex Love interest

Cup of tea ☕️:
☕️ Mocking Older Sibling

Ideal Reader:
✨Fans of books that right previous wrongs
✨Readers looking for good Sapphic Rep in Manga/ Comics
✨Fans of Enemies to lovers romance

10/10 no notes. Truly the most heartwarming queer coming of age story and the characters redemption arc truly shows how everyone is on their own journey. Might have shed a tear or two while reading this!

Oof a rough one in terms of connection to the material. I wish I enjoyed it more because I could relate to both of the main characters. However, I just didn't. I also didn't love the style of the illustrations.

Finally some adults who just talk to each other like adults! Really enjoyed this graphic novel romance, something I don't think I've read too much of. Very quick read but interesting characters with a lot of depth. And I cannot stop thinking about that speech bubble through the heart!

Thank you NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This is a queer enemies-to-lovers romance graphic novel that follows Tessa, who, while visiting her hometown, finds out that her high-school nemesis Olive has moved into Tessa's parents' basement, which leads to Tessa having to face some old memories between them. I liked the color palette of the pages, and I really enjoyed the clever usage of the text bubbles in some of the panels. However, I found the dialogue a bit lackluster for the most part. The progression of the romance was also a bit too fast for me, but it was not a huge problem considering that this is a fairly short, standalone graphic novel.

I would recommend this to people who want to try reading graphic novels but don't know where to start.

This was pretty cute! It's very low-drama, slice-of-life-y. That's not to say that there's NO drama, but there's none of the implausible mayhem that some romance stories include. It's all very plausible and low-key.

Personally, I would have liked to see a bit more depth in places, as Olive in particular didn't feel fully developed. While parts of this read as very YA, the characters are in their mid-20s and trying to figure out what comes next in terms of housing security and career options. I suspect that the target audience is in their early twenties and feeling that same sense of loss and uncertainty. That said, this is closed-door (there's some smooching on-page and some implied canoodling) so it's not like it's a "mature" comic in any sense of the word.

This was pretty cute and fluffy. If you're looking for a cozy little enemies-to-lovers with an HEA, this could be for you! In general I prefer stories with a little more emotional heft, but I'm also not going to complain about a cute sapphic love story with a happy ending. <3

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. My musings are my own and have been left voluntarily.

netgalley ARC
I really enjoyed this and felt like the characters were very easy to care about and relate to! i like the art style. it was nice to see a supportive family.