Five books in, and Ann Liang only gets better and better at making me feel a million different feelings in the span of several hours. Leah is quite different from many of her other YA protagonists, the first one who’s not so obviously focused on academic success, and I love her so very much. What a touching story with such an adorable romance. I love to see a boy/man who’s been pining for years.

ANN LIANG MY BELOVED!!! I love Ann Liang's work so much—if she has no fans, I am no longer in this world, truly. I loved this travel romcom and the True Beauty vibes with Leah's relationship with herself and her modeling. Cyrus took a while to grow on me, but by the time the ending rolled around, I was in the palm of Ann Liang's hand. I do have to say that this romance ranks lower for me in Ann Liang's universe, but that's not to say it's bad in any way! I think I just connected more to Sadie/Julius and Alice/Henry, and found their interactions more humorous. However, Ann still made me laugh out loud with Leah and Cyrus' banter; I read a lot of this during breaks at my job and found myself trying to hide a smile at all times!

In my ranking for romances, this falls below IYCSTS and IHTDFY, but above JESSICA CHEN and TTIR
In terms of books, I'd put Jessica Chen above this just because I related to it more, but I know a lot of people will relate to Leah and Cyrus, especially Leah's relationship with herself and her wanting to be other people.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

4⭐

Thank you to Ann Liang, Scholastic Books, NetGalley & Coloured Pages Book Tours for the ARC.

𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐈'𝐝 𝐄𝐧𝐝 𝐔𝐩 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 by Ann Liang follows a former model Leah Zhang, who is determined to get revenge on Cyrus Sui, her enemy who ruined her life, in this hilarious and heartfelt novel where they're travelling to China for a two-week intensive travel program to reconnect with their roots and learn more about their culture. The deeper they wander into China's provinces, the deeper Leah finds herself falling in love - with the boy she once thought she despised, the home she never thought she'd call her own, and the parts of herself she thought were already lost.

This is the third novel I read that was written by Ann Liang and like the other two, the writing in this one flowed so well that I could not put it down as soon as I got hooked. There is something in the way that Liang writes and frames her narrative that leaves you reeling from shocks while simultaneously holding emotional control the entire time.

𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐡 𝐙𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠 was the most relatable character in the entire novel. I felt and related to her on a whole different level. She felt so real, with all her insecurities and flaws, and how she was so lost inside trying to find herself inside. She feels like she can't be the same person with everyone, and this is relatable with the incidents in her life. Leah’s inner thoughts about not being good enough and her struggles with self image are spot on for this age group. She deserves so much better from everyone and her finally finding her peace at the end was the most fulfilling thing to read about. She's strong and brave in her own way, willing her mind to live and survive --- to exist.

𝐂𝐲𝐫𝐮𝐬 𝐒𝐮𝐢 was a character I hated from the very beginning and I was skeptical on how he was going to be redeemed but Liang did not fail us on that. He is the sweetest lover boy inside and so broken that he doesn't realise that it wasn't normal to feel that. He's a book lover and has a sarcastic humour. I loved Cyrus' cynicism, love for literature, and sincerity when it came to Leah.

Their relationship took twists and turns, hate to partners to revenge to hate to love and possibly other turns that I missed here. Their banter was one of my favourite aspects of their story. Her witty replies against his cynic comments were entertaining. Their growth and healing arc was comforting and their love for each other was heart-warming.

This book felt like a love story to China, I loved how the beautiful landscapes and culture were incorporated into the story and the descriptive history of the landmarks was written.

The side characters were a fun cast of characters incorporated into the storyline. Their position in the story was essential and their impact on the characters were very important.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book. The beautiful descriptions, the revenge and theove story were very well written and the cast of characters are amazing! For readers who love reading stories set in China with a little angst and love, this one is the perfect read!

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐏𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐓𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐍𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐈'𝐃 𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐔𝐏 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐛𝐲 𝐀𝐧𝐧 𝐋𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐭.

I read A Song To Drown Rivers a few months ago, and it destroyed me. I wanted to read more works by Ann Liang, so I requested this e-arc.

I loved this story. Teens are often struggling with figuring out who they are and trying to meet other people’s expectations so they can be accepted. In Leah’s case, this is quite complicated because of a past event that made people hate her. We don’t know what, exactly, happened, but we do know it had something to do with Cyrus, and that she’s never forgiven him.

When the two end up on the same group trip to China, Leah plots her revenge. But as events unfold, she’ll have to decide if she wants to get even with the person she blamed for ruining her life, or if it’s time for everyone to get a second chance.

This is an excellent exploration of the complexities of exploring and preserving your cultural heritage while figuring out who you are. It’s also a great story about forgiveness and second chances. And it’s also a great story about friendship. I found it really inspiring, and I loved the chance to explore China through this story.

While the story focuses on Leah’s perspective, I felt there was a great cast of supporting characters who added to the story. Sibling dynamics are also explored through Leah’s mom and aunt, and the rivalry felt real to me.

This is a fast-paced story. I flew through it, and I will definitely read more by this author.

I received an e-arc of Never Thought I’d End Up Here from the publisher.