A deftly-handled story about discovering your identity and the things that bring you joy and finding your voice to protect the things and people that you love.
If you love roller derby, this will obviously be a hit, but if you love stories with mental health representation, more queer/trans characters than you can shake a stick at, and endings that feel real rather than perfect, this will also be one for you.
A real stand-out debut from Peach Morris, I can't wait to read whatever they write next.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC! This debut novel told the story of a teen girl who finds herself through roller derby. I loved the queer rep and the introduction to this unique sport. A great read!

This book was right up my alley from the jump. Queer YA is my favourite genre, I love roller derby, and I also have the same chronic illness as both the author and the MC’s mum.

The character development was brilliant, and the plot was a great balance of both quicker paced scenes, and more drawn out narratives. I really respect how the mum’s disability was represented, and the honest discussions about the impact of being a carer. The in-depth inclusion of derby rules, strategy, and culture was also incredibly well done.

This is a great book for those looking for a fun, quirky time, with some really impactful discourse about disability and mental health. I look forward to checking out future books by Peach Morris!

4 stars. I'd like to thank the author and the publisher for this ARC. 'Learning to fall' is a fast paced book with really loveable characters. There's happening A LOT in this book, but the most of it is clear and well written. I love the roller-derby storyline, since there aren't a lot of books who cover this kind of sport. That in combination with the personal stories; loveable characters en the realistic problems they struggle with is what makes this a great YA story. I really like to read more books from this author.

The sapphic romance is cute and messy, and I liked the resolution, because for a while I was scared that their issues wouldn’t be addressed.

Overall, it’s a fun and fast-paced read that tackled really well the queer-safe-space aspect of roller derby.

Casey has always been someone anxious, but it’s been getting worse as her college enrollment deadline nears. Due to her mother’s chronic fatigue, Casey took a year off to take care of her, and while life is boring, it’s … safe. Leaving her mom to go to college, though, moving to London, being alone with strangers, it’s all very much not safe. And all of this is made even worse by Casey walking in on her boyfriend having sex with another girl — the same girl who later offers up a very genuine apology and a tentative offer to be friends.

Casey has found her life turned upside down. For one, she’s not even certain she really minds losing her boyfriend. It’s shocking, it’s hurtful, but it’s not as crushing as TV makes it seem — much as spending time with him and kissing him wasn’t as romantic or all consuming as TV made it seem. And really, Casey’s surprisingly fond of Imogen, even with that past issue behind them.

While trying to befriend Imogen, Casey starts training with the local roller derby team, the same team Imogen is on. There she meets Venom, the team captain; Mel, another newbie like herself; and so many other girls. Casey learns to stand strong against rival skaters, to work as a team, to touch and be touched, and to have friends. She also starts falling in love, just a little, with Imogen. Does Imogen feel the same way? And even if she did, is Casey brave enough to tell Imogen how she feels?

Before going too far, I should mention that this isn’t really a romance. While Casey has feelings for Imogen, and the two share a brief moment as possible girlfriends, all of that happens off page, assumed and implied rather than shown or explored. The focus of this book is Casey’s self-discovery, her growth as a person, and her coming out, as well as coming of age. There are also quite a few mentions of injuries incurred while skating, such as bruises, twisted ankles, broken ribs, punctured lungs, and a broken nose. It’s not graphic, but it’s there.

Casey is a younger sister; her older sister, Billy, grew up with fewer opportunities and less interest in school, so she sees Casey taking this year off as … well, a bit offensive. Casey has all these opportunities she’s wasting, and Billy is very judgmental about it, equally — or perhaps more — upset that Casey is spending money on roller derby equipment, rather than saving for school. While the two sisters aren’t close, when Casey comes out, Billy doesn’t care. If her girlfriend treats Casey poorly, Billy will go after them, but still, when is Casey going back to school?

Casey herself is full of self-doubts, always judging herself against other people. She leans on Imogen’s friendship to guide her through life, looking to Im for support, encouragement, and validation, even when she is getting much the same feedback from the team, who sees her and respects her for the player she is. When Casey has her first panic attack, it’s Im who calms her down; when Im isn’t there for the second one, Casey breaks down and, after an accident during training, considers leaving the team. It’s only her therapist who can get her to see that she not only can keep going, but she deserves to. Skating makes her happy, the team are her friends, she’s good at what she does, and she deserves to be proud of it.

Casey’s mom will never not need help, and Casey has become somewhat parentified with her imagined need — and her mother’s real need — for Casey to help. When Casey starts having panic attacks, her mom has to finally step in and tell Casey that she’s not the parent who has to worry about the future, she’s the child who needs to go to school and have her own life. She encourages Casey into therapy, she’s understanding and forgiving when Casey lashes out in pain and fear and uncertainty. And, like Billy, she is warmly accepting of Casey regardless of her sexuality.

There’s even a nice moment where Casey’s mom, on learning Casey has a girlfriend, sits her down for a talk about dental dams, because you can still get STDs even if you’re not having penetrative sex.

“I’ve been meaning to talk to you actually,” Mum says, putting her mug down on the side table by the sofa. I instantly cycle through all the worst possible reasons for this— she’s ill, Billy is ill, Harry is ill, maybe I’m ill? “It’s about Imogen.” Imogen’s ill?

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to make sure you’re being … well … safe, with her.”

Oh god. “Mum, you don’t have to—”

“Because even if she can’t get you pregnant, you know you can still get—” “Mum!” “No, I’m doing this. There are these things called dental dams that—”

“Mother!”

“Or maybe she can get you pregnant, I don’t know.” “

She can’t get me pregnant.”

“I just want you to know about your options.”

We’re both turning bright red and I want the floor to swallow me whole. “I really appreciate it, but honestly, I’m fine.”

“And you know you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do?”

“I know.”

“I just don’t want you to feel pressured to move faster than you’d like to. Your body is your own and you get to decide on things like that when you’re ready. And I know it’s cringey to talk about it with your mum but you really can. We might find it embarrassing but it’s important you know that.”

The Imogen in question is a bright shining star of personality whose mother is strictly conservative and who lives mostly closeted at home. She also, through the book, turns more and more to drink to cope with the stress. Much like her introduction, where she is caught sleeping with someone she was pretty sure had a girlfriend (but someone she decided to fuck anyway), Im is flighty, scattered, and better as an idea in Casey’s head than as a person. Or a friend.

The book takes place over the course of a year, with almost every moment of the developing friendship and romance between Casey and Imogen happening off page. It helps add to Casey’s uncertainty, because I am uncertain of how much — if anything — Im actually felt for Casey. And because this book is about Casey and her growing up and coming into her own, it does work for me that Im is more an ideal, the daydream of a girlfriend, rather than an actual person.

The pace of this book is all over the place as months, weeks, and days pass during random chapters; no friendship is shown with any depth, because there simply isn’t any of it on page, leaving everything to be taken for granted rather than explored. The one thing that is explored, in detail, is roller derby. Loosening wheels, buying helmets, how points work, scenes of the team practicing, doing endurance runs, learning to jam or block or what have you. It felt, to me, like a reenactment of an article on roller derbies. I didn’t really get a sense of the team, or any of the people Casey meets, as much as I learned how much she loved roller derby, and what she did while at practice.

Because of all of this info dumping, and so much talking about things rather than dealing with them — with what felt like a good half of the story missing from the pages of the book — I didn’t have the best time with this. I struggled to keep my interest up because, while it’s clear the author is interested in the subject, the roller derby scenes weren’t explained or written in such a way that I could visualize it. I felt like the author was telling me about their hobby, rather than sharing it with me. But, that’s just my opinion.

The writing’s fine, Casey’s relationship with her mother and sister are well written, and I think both her mother’s chronic fatigue and Casey’s anxiety and panic attacks are handled well. I just think the rest of the book feels lifeless. If you give it a try, I hope you enjoy it.

What a firecracker of a debut!

I read the whole book in less than 12 hours, I was hooked! I devoured as much as I could before falling asleep one evening, and finished the rest in the morning.

Although there is a romantic aspect to the story, it’s much more about the journey of the main character, Casey. As well as having a very touching coming-out storyline, she also goes on a journey with her mental health and self-confidence that was really powerful. I particularly liked the way her experience with compulsory heterosexuality was depicted.

The whole book is a love letter to roller derby, and the author’s love for both the sport and its community is leaping off every page. You can’t help but sense the excitement and exhilaration of the sport, as well as the strong bonds forged between teammates. I particularly enjoyed the parallels the author drew between the sport and queerness, in exploring how they often go hand in hand.

Although the pacing was a little rushed at the start, this was a really great read that I loved from start to finish. I look forward to reading more from the author!

I received a free copy for an honest review.

I am not quite sure how to feel about Learning to Fall. In terms of the Roller Derby aspect of the book I love how it taught you the sport along with the FMC. As someone who did beginner courses for Roller Derby, it really hit home and made me miss the time I had while in the sport before I had to move away from my team. The author also does a great job touching on the troubles of mental and physical struggles and what the reality of being a part of the LGBTQ community can be for some people.
When it comes to the romantic plot, I know that not every story can have a happily ever after since life isn’t about that but

-Spoilers-

I was upset that the 2 main characters didn’t end up together in the end, unless I misread the ending. I do like how the FMC did get her confidence back to play the sport and I understand why they went their separate ways but I read for the happy endings and to get away from the real world icks. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

I felt really close to our main character, Casey, as she discovers her new passion in roller derby. She also has her first queer-love experience while finding a new community that accepts and supports her for who she is. Very sweet and touching read.

Thank you to NetGalley, 8th Note Press, and Peach Morris for this ARC for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this coming of age, bi-awakening Sapphic sports romance set in the world of Roller Derby that had great disability rep, found family, new love and great emotional depth and character growth. Highly recommended for fans of the movie Whip it and the graphic novel Pillow talk. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy of this debut in exchange for my honest review!

I really liked this book.

Casey was so relatable, and some of her experiences with anxiety felt a lot like my own. And I also love her mum.

Imogen is a fireball. We've all known and loved an Imogen who crashes into our lives.

Who doesn't want a friend like Mel?? I love her.

I appreciate that Casey realizes her bi identity in this book but that it's not the main focus. The story is more about finding community and passion, and what that kind of love feels like. The ending feels very fitting.

As a WLW who also loved "Whip It" and daydreamed about being a Derby Girl, this was a great book.
Also, definitely read the author's note at the end.

I must say, I loved this!

It was such a cute YA sapphic romance, that had me right in the feels.

Then opening to the book--Casey walks in on her boyfriend with someone else-- really hooked me right in.

There are definitely immature moments for the characters but, to be honest, that makes sense for their age. At nineteen, I was still a bit childish.

THE WRITING. THE ROLLING DERBY. THE DETAIL!!! I loved it! It hooked me in!

This was such an enjoyable book, and I'm looking forwards to reading more from Peach Morris.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review!

thank you to netgalley and 8th note press for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I did not finish this book. I got about 20% in and I couldn’t finish it. I will try to read it again at a later date.

Thank you netgally, 8th note press and Peach Morris for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very cute coming of age story about discovering your sexuality and found family. I love all the representation that was in the book, from different sexualities to gender identity and illnesses.

I have a lot of feelings about Casey’s relationship with her family. She has such a beautiful relationship with her mom, I love that her mom tried to give her the gay sex talk. I feel for how much responsibility she feels about taking care of her mom and I hate how her sister left but still gave her shit about joining roller derby in case something happened and she wouldn’t been able to take care of their mom anymore.

I also loved her relationship with all of the roller derby girls, especially venom. Who doesn’t love a bad ass girl who doesn’t take shit from no one but really has a heart of gold and is there for you in the toughest of times.

And lastly, her crush on Imogen was so cute to me. From the first time they met (which was very awkward because Casey’s ex cheated on her with Imogen) when imogen chased after Casey to apologize about her ex and taking her to see a roller derby game to them being girlfriends🫶🏻

I didn’t really like how Imogen just up and left without an explanation to Casey. I know she had a hard time but she could have at least send a text. But the character arc that Casey ended up having because of it was really good. Meeting a new person who helps you through your anxiety isn’t a great solution so I’m really glad Casey got help with her anxiety and can deal with it on her own now.

Thank you NetGalley and 8th Note Press for access to this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I've really been on a roller derby kick recently, it's making me very interested in the sport! This book does a good job at explaining the game and how it works. I also could relate to Casey so much in regards to her anxiety and being scared of literally everything. I'm a fellow catastrophizer as well, and it can be debilitating. I loved watching Casey grow and learn over the course of the book, and see her become more confident in herself. This is yet another book with some amazing found family components. I also like how Morris formed Imogen and Casey's relationship, and how it realistically progressed throughout. Overall this book is a super cute coming of age novel that I recommend!

This might sound harsh but I really wish I would have DNF'd this book. I thought about doing it about 20% of the way through but I checked the reviews and they were all pretty positive. So I decided to carry on hoping it would get better. However, it absolutely didn't. Typically my 1 stars are for books I actively hated, and I can tell you this isn't one of those cases. However, I just think it was extremely poorly written, and the give it more than 1 star just isn't fair. Gosh, that sounds harsh. I don't want to be harsh, because gods knows that I can't really write anything better myself.
Anyway, this basically just felt extremely bare bones. This really felt like random scenes poorly stringed together with barely any plot. It was so hard to follow along because there was just no transition from one moment to the next. We're just doing one thing, you turn the page, and all of the sudden you're in the middle of doing something else. Because of the way it is written there also was no tension or stakes. I just knew that in the next scene whatever conflict arose would be completely gone by the next one. On top of that this sort of writing led to a lot of dropped minor plot threads. There were just so many things that we never really went back on.
Besides that because this is so bare bones, with no actually meat of the story in it, it also just feels very fleeting and forgetable. I already can't tell you anything about our main character that isn't in the synopsis. I mean, the characters are extremely one dimensional in general because of the way it is written but they also just aren't memorable at all. I found it so difficult to keep the side characters apart as well. I'm still convinced someone got mentioned like we already knew them but it is the first time we ever got that name. I mean, I could look it up, to see for sure it's not just my memory being shit, but honestly with the way the rest of this book was I wouldn't be surprised if its true.
The resolution completely fell flat as well. I mean, are you surprised? Did you expect me to say anything else? I feel like all of our main character's issues were just over all of the sudden. There wasn't really any developement or anything. I don't know. This could have been something, for sure, but it just wasn't.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and 8th Note Press for an ARC of Learning to Fall by Peach Morris.

This book is so raw, so powerful, so very real. The protagonist, Casey, is a bright young woman with a lot going on in her life - she's deferred from university for a year; she's a full time carer to her mum, Laura, who has myalgic encephalomyolitis (also known as chronic fatigue syndrome,) and she just discovered her boyfriend cheating on her with a beautiful girl named Imogen, who eventually introduces her to a sport called roller derby.

Casey struggles a lot in this book. She has severe anxiety, and how refreshing it was to read a compassionate, kind portrayal of both anxiety disorders and CFS/ME. The book never demonises Casey's anxiety or her mother's disability; both aspects of the story are offered nothing but understanding, both from the narrative and from most of the characters around Casey. The depictions of both mental and physical illness were grounded in reality, even when Casey's symptoms were at their most severe. She manages to face her anxiety with true courage throughout the story - with some help from Imogen.

Imogen and Casey's story is beautifully told, perhaps even moreso because it doesn't get a clear cut ending. I would advise anyone going into this expecting it to be a sapphic romance to lower their expectations massively; yes, Casey and Imogen fall in love, but so many things happen that add conflict to their relationship. The resolution is beautiful, but by no means is it clean. Casey and Imogen are very messy together, and they get a messy - but definitely beautiful - ending.

The supporting cast, including Mel and Venom, and of course newcomer Charlie, are all so vibrant. They leap off the page with personality. Most wonderfully, Casey gains a found family in roller derby, a group of people who one hundred percent have her back. This story is brimming with queer joy and queer love. Casey ends up finding her place in the world thanks to the sport, and through it gains the courage to start being herself, putting herself first.

I'll admit, I was a little annoyed Casey's older sister and brother-in-law never get a bit of retribution for how they treat her over joining roller derby when she's supposed to be caring for her mother. The whole scene set at Christmas had me on the edge of my seat, ready to start fights with fictional characters for their extremely wrong opinions! But that's the beauty of a story this well written - it makes the characters come alive, both good and bad. Truly, every character in this, from our lead Casey all the way down to the fresh meat on the roller derby team, is so well-constructed you almost want a whole collection of these books following each one of them.

Alas, this is Casey's story, and what a perfect story it turned out to be.

Who on God's green earth decided to market this as romance? In hindsight, NOT the good folks at NetGalley, but it seems every other listing has this tagged as romance. There "romance" portion of the book is quite literally 12% of the story. I'm not rating the book based on this, but for folks who see the cover an tags and go, "Oh, a sapphic derby romance!" I think it worth noting that this is a YA novel *WITH* romance elements, not a romance novel. Unless we're counting roller derby as the love interest, in which case, carry on.

As for the story itself: I liked it, but I struggled with the actual prose. I had to keep going back and rereading to figure out where things were taking place, what things or people looked like, and felt like there was very little sensory description. There were places where Imogen and Casey were talking and instead of learning more, there would be a few lines akin to, "We talked for a long time and got really close." I need more than that. A lot of telling, not showing, which made it a quick read but not always a satisfying one.

On the other hand, this book takes on a number of topics that I liked to see: chronic illness, anxiety, being a caregiver, alcohol abuse, etc. That makes the book sound quite dark, and it's not, though perhaps with more depth it would have been. I got quite attached to Casey and her journey, especially her battle with anxiety and panic attacks. Her character arc throughout the book is quite strong. I just wish there had been more depth, nuance, description, etc. The writing would have been fine for a middle grade book but was just too surface-level for me in this context to fully immerse myself. It's clear from the end notes that this is a very personal story for the author, and that shows.

Lastly, a gentle reminder for other reviewers: the author uses they/them pronouns.

Than you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. My thoughts are my own.

Learning to Fall by Peach Morris is a really adorable coming of age story. In this book Casey is going through the motions of life caring for her chronically I'll mother, planning for university, and engaging in social activities but her life just doesn't fill full until she stumbles upon roller derby. It is there that she realizes what it means to be part of something that feels really good, and also that she definitely likes women. I binge read this book because it was just so good. The characters are likable and their stories feel real. I think most readers in the LGBTQ can find a part of this story that really resonates with them.
Thank you Netgalley and the publishing team for the ARC in exchange for my honest review of the book.

I was accepted to read this book before official publication through NetGalley and below is my honest review.

I enjoyed this book. It’s a YA book about our FMC Casey. She is at a loss with what to do with her life until she discovers Roller Derby!

There’s many things I liked about this book - it’s British, it’s sapphic and there was a But I’m a Cheerleader reference 😍

This was a lighthearted read with emotional parts. I felt connected to Casey, the writing style really captivates you. It feels like you’re on the journey of self discovery with her.

I recommend this book to anyone who likes a sapphic and YA novel.

Overall, I give this book 4 stars!