A cute second chance romance between a transgender boy and his roommate. The 16-year-old drama was a little over the top but the characters were great and I loved all of the relationships in this novel. A solid read but I definitely wanted to shake the main character a few times.

3.5/5 stars

Very, very silly and fan-fic-y, I really enjoyed this and listened to it in an afternoon--trans kids deserve lighthearted fun, and that's exactly what this was!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Young Listeners for letting me listen to an ALC of And They Were Roommates by Page Powars!

I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH. A sappy, sweet childhood lovers to enemies to lovers with hilarious forced proximity! Seriously, I kicked my feet through this entire book! Charlie’s internal struggles and monologue as more and more secrets pile on his shoulders had me stressed out while his growing friendship (and more!!) with Jasper had me cackling to myself. The breaking point was poignant and the relationship that begins to blossom after the fact is so sweet and tender - I only want the best for these precious, sweet boys.

If you’re looking for a lighthearted young, queer romance, check this one out! And if you’re a fan of audiobooks, I highly recommend this one. Ben Balmaceda as a narrator is phenomenal and he truly brought these characters to life and made them real in my head as I was listening.

I liked the audiobook, the narrator did a good job and I thought was great for the character.

I didn’t really like the book very much though. I get that this is fiction and there’s a certain level of suspending belief that we have to do sometimes, but I had a really hard time with so many aspects of this being even remotely possible of actually happening. Also a second chance romance between 16 year olds is WILD.

Far from the worst book I have read, it wasn’t like BAD, but I didn’t like it like I hoped I would.

A solid 3.5! The humor and pacing did not quite work for me but I love the heart of this novel and the narrator was fantastic! Some plot points moved too quickly, and I never really felt connected to the backstory &connected of our main characters, but the relationships in the novel really started to coalesce by the end which was lovely. I will absolutely be recommending this to my teens!

Absolutely adored And They Were Roommates! Jasper and Charlie's story hooked me from the start, and I absolutely binged this!

What a fantastic fun read! A completely unique premise that had me hooked from the second I first heard about it. This book has a stunning cover and a story to match. The characters were so 3 dimensional and I just want to befriend them all! Another great read with great representation from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC!

This was so good any time I put it on to listen to while doing other tasks I would get so wrapped up in the book I would forget to do what I meant to do.

This was a delight from the first seconds. The cast of characters were unique and deeply lovable, and the friendships throughout were a genuine high point. The main character Charlie was both very relatable and appealing to me, as I have a soft spot for slightly grumpy anxiety driven academic weapons. His love interest Jasper was also so far up my ally its not even funny. Their antics made me laugh out loud consistently and sent me swooning more than once. I love a yearner and both of these boys are grade A yearners, especially because they can't tell the other wants them back just as badly.

I absolutely recommend the audiobook if you have the chance to pick it up. The narrator was the perfect choice. His acting decisions made so many already good lines that much better, and imbibed each character with so much life.

I absolutely loved AND THEY WERE ROOMMATES. this book tells the story of Charlie as he starts classes at his dream school—a religious boys-only school. Charlie is anxious about keeping his identity as a trans student a secret, but gets even more worried when he’s forced to share a room with a guy he knows. A guy he hates. A guy who broke his heart before he transitioned.

this book had so many beautifully human moments between Charlie and his new friends at school and all of them trying to figure out how they can be a part of the school’s traditions in a way that helps fellow students. while Jasper resembled Gaston from beauty and the beast for a bit, we even got to see his depths and humanity as well, which made all of our characters so lovable. and most importantly, queer joy. this book showed Charlie’s insecurities as they are but also gets to see him find a place to belong, to be seen, and to love.

Have you ever wanted Ouran High School Host Club to be a novel where Haruhi is a transgender student and unfortunate enough to have a history with Tamaki-senpai and now they're roommates? Well, do I have a book for you! haha. Thank you Netgalley for the arc. I had a very fun time with this. It has a few expected tropes but I really liked the characters and setting of this. You really feel the pressure that Charlie is under and the second-hand stress was palpable to me. It's a quick read and has the vibes of a story that easily could be a hit teen movie with the shenanigans that happen and just an amazingly quirky cast of characters. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this.

The story is fun and cute. But hands down to the narrator who brings this story alive. I definitely had fun listening to the audio.

And They Were Roommates is the definition of cheesy romantic tropes, and it is SO much fun! A trans boy at a boarding school who ends up rooming with a crush from his past, lots of love letters, and dialogue that is absolutely wild for high schoolers. This book is a delight!

Thanks to NetGalley, Page Powars, and Macmillan for the chance to read and review. My opinions are my own!

This is such a compelling story of a young trans man working through his transition and navigate being a teenager at the same time. To top it all off the first boy he ever loved (before transitioning ) is his new, unexpected roommate at boarding school. Their relationship is struck with many difficulties the top of which being their struggle to communicate and share their truths with each other. In short the angst was angsting but it was a great story.
As for the narrator, I loved how the narrator felt like he was in the character’s head and brought the teenage mentality to life without sounding cartoonish.

I liked the story. The narrator did a good job with delivering the narrative. The setting was interesting and I really liked the titles of each chapter.

4 stars

This is a great YA romance, and it comes with characters who love high drama, which is especially noteworthy in the way the audiobook is narrated.

Charlie is off to boarding school, and he's made some significant changes before arriving, including but not limited to transitioning. He's especially interested in having his own room to maintain his privacy. After all, Charlie is alive in this creepy world, and who can tell how someone might react to, you know, someone being their true selves? (Sighs, rolls eyes, tries not to think about the crumbling of society as we know it...). That's why when Charlie realizes he's going to have to share a room (hence the titular "roommates" note), he's extra panicked. What makes this situation wilder? Well, the roommate is this fella, Jasper, about whom Charlie has been losing his young teen heart ever since a long ago summer camp romance. The big questions here include but are not limited to will Jasper recognize Charlie, who is now presenting very differently? Will Charlie be outed? Will these two somehow find a way back to romance with all of these new details in play and a few more years under their belts?

I really enjoyed the pacing, characterization, and unapologetic nerdiness of these characters, and while they are remarkably dramatic, as noted, this feature is more fun than irritating. I recommend this for folks in the mood for a snappy YA romance.

*Thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan audio for early copy for review*

This was such a delight. Our main character was a teen that was going through all the emotions at once (which were probably exacerbated of he was on testerone as well). He had so much pressure from his school and other sources and didn't know when to take a break. I think a lot of teens will be able to relate to that. I related to it as an adult. The romance aspect was also good leading to hijinks and comedic moments. Jasper was a hilarious character that reminded me of the lead host from Ouran Host Club. I really like their dynamic and would love to see more books set at this school.

This was so great. It was such a wonderful story of gender affirmation, friendship, and overcoming societal expectations.

The narrator was able to add so much to the story with their voice inflections making the story so much more enjoyable.

This is a perfect YA friends to lovers story with a spin on second chance romance. I think exploring gender identity and sexual identity is such an important part of growing up these days and it’s important to have impactful fiction written about that experience.

* Transgender rep
* Boarding school setting
* Friends to lovers
* Queer rep
* Second chance

Thank You to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC early in exchange for an honest opinion.

This book is described as hilarious and unputdownable, but I found it angsty and slow-paced. It’s well-written but not for me. DNF ~15%. The audiobook narration was very well done.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

This book is marketed as a romance, but the romantic elements really only come in during the last few chapters. Most of the story is written in a poetic, letter-style format, which wasn't what I expected. I found it hard to connect with

I also felt there wasn’t much world-building, and more focus was given to side characters than to the development of the main characters themselves, which made it harder for me to fully invest in their journey.

I think I would have appreciated it even more if I were more into poetry, since that plays such a big role throughout.

This book was actually so cute. It takes a lot for contemporary romance to sway me, usually because a lot of it feels lazy. And They Were Roommates never once felt lazy or overdone. It feels original. And I know that despite my average rating, people who love contemporary romance will love this book as well.

When I started the book, I was worried about how the author would handle the main character’s experience as a trans person - in so many other books, authors have a tendency to associate being LGBTQIA+ with tragic stories. It was refreshing to enter into a world where everyone was accepting, parents, friends, etc. where coming out to someone is as simple as “oh okay, cool”. And nothing complicated. It’s how I wish the world could be. In this way, And They Were Roommates felt like a little hug that I didn’t know I needed.