I loved, loved, loved this book. It was my first Casey McQuiston book to read, and it did not disappoint. I read this after a disappointing two weeks of news and it was the perfect escape read. (Btw, contact your senators here.)

I would definitely recommend this book to ANYONE who loved a good, easy breezy romance but loves a mystery from time to time (but is scared of thrillers and horror movies like me).

Synopsis:

Chloe Green is so close to winning. After her moms moved her from SoCal to Alabama for high school, she's spent the past four years dodging gossipy classmates and the puritanical administration of Willowgrove Christian Academy. The thing that's kept her going: winning valedictorian. Her only rival: prom queen Shara Wheeler, the principal's perfect progeny.

But a month before graduation, Shara kisses Chloe and vanishes.

On a furious hunt for answers, Chloe discovers she's not the only one Shara kissed. There's also Smith, Shara's longtime quarterback sweetheart, and Rory, Shara's bad boy neighbor with a crush. The three have nothing in common except Shara and the annoyingly cryptic notes she left behind, but together they must untangle Shara's trail of clues and find her. It'll be worth it, if Chloe can drag Shara back before graduation to beat her fair and square.

Thrown into an unlikely alliance, chasing a ghost through parties, break-ins, puzzles, and secrets revealed on monogrammed stationery, Chloe starts to suspect there might be more to this small town than she thought. And maybe--probably not, but maybe--more to Shara, too.

Fierce, funny, and frank, Casey McQuiston's I Kissed Shara Wheeler is about breaking the rules, getting messy, and finding love in unexpected places.

My Review:

I liked Casey McQuiston’s writing. It was filled with banter and it honestly made me laugh from time to time. I don’t usually annotate in books (I wish I would), but I started with this book! The plot didn’t fall through like in the previous books I’ve read and each character really had a strong character development. It was fresh and funny, but also making some strong statements around LGBTQ equality and coming of age in a Southern evangelical town. The book starts out with a disclaimer/content warning from the author on religious trauma and homophobia, so if that’s not your thing or you don’t want to read that sort of subject, then this isn’t the book for you. But I also strongly recommend Christians to read this as well. As Christians, we are Christ followers and as Christ followers, we follow His example which is made out of love and acceptance. This is a great read for Pride Month as well.

Overall, definitely loved it and I’m excited to read her two other books, Red, White, and Royal Blue and One Last Stop!

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