Praise for The Feeling of Falling in Love:
* "Mason Deaver delivers a satisfying, nuanced queer romance right out of the rom-com playbook." — Bookpage, starred review
"What makes this novel unique is Neil’s beautifully written evolution from someone who cuts himself off from those who might love him for fear he’s unworthy, to someone who both knows his worth and wants the best for himself and those he loves." — Booklist
"Deaver details Neil’s challenges navigating body dysmorphia and transphobia, and his slowly dawning self-awareness toward his treatment of others, with empathy." — Publishers Weekly
"Deaver crafts yet another delightful YA romance." — Popsugar
Praise for The Ghosts We Keep:
One of Buzzfeed's Best Books of June
* "An unflinchingly honest story that doesn’t shy away from the complex emotions of grief but also offers a hopeful path forward... [An] emotional, character-driven journey" — Booklist, starred review
"As heart-expanding as it is heartbreaking" — Publishers Weekly
"Offers an honest look at the messy, overwhelming experience of coping with sudden loss." — School Library Journal
"[The Ghosts We Keep] is outstanding, maybe the best take on grief I've ever seen in a YA novel." — Shannon Jones, Scuppernong Books
Praise for I Wish You All the Best:
"Heartfelt, romantic, and quietly groundbreaking. This book will save lives." — Becky Albertalli, New York Times bestselling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
"Tender and bursting with humanity, I Wish You All the Best tells a heartwarming queer love story without compromise." — Meredith Russo, Stonewall Award-winning author of If I Was Your Girl
"A beacon of hope in a broken world. We all need this book." — Nic Stone, New York Times bestselling author of Dear Martin
"Emotional and heartfelt... This is the sort of novel that goes beyond being important; it has the potential to save and change lives." — Kacen Callender, Stonewall Award-winning author of Hurricane Child and This is Kind of an Epic Love Story
"I Wish You All the Best reminds us that, when we open up to love, we have the capacity to become our most authentic selves." — Adib Khorram, Morris and APALA Award-winning author of Darius the Great is Not Okay
"A truly unique and beautiful debut." — Adi Alsaid, author of Let's Get Lost
"Profoundly poignant and often swoon-worthy... a stunning gift to the world." — Jay Coles, author of Tyler Johnson Was Here
"An important and inspiring novel about identity, acceptance, friendship, familial relationships, and the people who become your family." — Sabina Khan, author of The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali and Zara Hossain is Here
"A soft, sweet, and incredibly important story about a nonbinary teen finding their voice. This book is going to be so important to so many people." — Alice Oseman, author of Radio Silence and Heartstopper
"A welcome addition to the growing body of LGBTQIAP+ literature." — Booklist
"An honest coming-of-age and coming-out story... Deaver's treatment of Ben's nonbinary identity creates a realistic portrayal of their journey toward self-acceptance... through sympathetic characters and a hopeful narrative of empowerment." — Kirkus Reviews
"A powerful illustration of the ways that compassion and love can overcome intolerance." — Publishers Weekly
"Deaver shows us that love, like gender, is fluid and nonbinary." — NPR
01/20/2023
Gr 10 Up—Neil Kearney has his life right where he wants it: he's far away from his complicated family life, is fully out as trans with his classmates at his boarding school, and has a steady friends-with-benefits situation happening with his longtime friend, Josh. Then Josh declares his love for Neil, and it all falls apart. Now Neil needs to find a new date for his brother's wedding in California, and the best choice at such short notice is his annoying roommate, Wyatt. But the more Wyatt and Neil hang out, pretending to date to present a united front to Neil's bigoted relatives, the more they realize that they might be falling for one another, despite their differences. Neil's friends are racially diverse and most identify as LGBTQIA+. The plot tackles such issues as family bigotry and unacceptance, class divisions, and self-introspection. Neil in particular must confront his thoughtless, selfish tendencies and own up to hurting others, which doesn't come naturally to him after a lifetime of feeling inadequate and out-of-place. Readers will enjoy standard romance tropes, such as fake dating and "there's only one bed." Deaver writes about gender and identity in thoughtful, respectful ways that help center the individual experience and make it clear that everyone has a right to their own journey and feelings. The plot struggles to move forward due to uneven pacing and an often unlikable main character. Readers might have trouble relating to Neil, who comes from extreme wealth and privilege and tends to overlook other people as side characters in his own story. Characters are sexually active and sex scenes are present, though appropriately handled for a YA audience. VERDICT Only buy for a robust collection that can use more LGBTQIA+ fiction.—Christine Case
2022-05-25
Emotionally shuttered 16-year-old trans boy Neil has his world shaken when he starts to fall for his fake boyfriend.
Neil wants to make it extremely clear to Josh, his heartbroken ex-friend-with-benefits, that they’re finished, so he enlists Wyatt, his roommate at their expensive boarding school, to be his date to his brother Michael’s weeklong Beverly Hills wedding celebration. They just have to pretend to be boyfriends in front of Josh, who’ll be attending because his brother is Michael’s best man, and then they can go back to hating and ignoring each other—or so Neil thinks. Aspiring musician Wyatt is lured in by Neil’s promise of an audition with recording studio executive Michael. Neil ultimately finds there is more to Wyatt than he realized. The book fully leans into the poor-little-rich-boy trope but fails to make readers actually feel that bad for Neil. Facing transphobia from his family and the world at large, he understandably has put up defenses; however, when it comes to awareness of his financial privilege and showing basic civility toward Wyatt, he is so unpleasant for so long that it is hard to get to the part where he learns his lesson. Conversely, Wyatt’s multiracial, two-mom family is financially poor but rich in love in ways that feel stereotypical. The fluttery romance that develops between the boys is not enough to make up for this lack of depth and nuance in characterization. Main characters are White.
A potentially tender romance limited by shallow character development. (Fiction. 14-18)
