3.5*
There's nothing inherently wrong with this book, so I feel like my negatives will be sparse. It's just that it also didn't leave a huge lasting impression either, so take that for what it's worth. Let's just break it all down into positive/negative, shall we?
The Good:
- Super fabulous friendships were a huge win. Especially the elusive "positive female friendships" which were present in spades. I'd say this was my favorite part of the book, actually. It was incredibly relatable, the characters trying to navigate being away from home for the first time, meeting all new people, trying to figure out how a person even makes friends as an adult. Watching these relationships play out was great.
- Dealt with more serious topics like sexual exploitation. While the book was mostly lighter fare, there was some discussion of photos of women in compromising situations being posted online against their will. And to be clear, this was definitely treated seriously- though the guys who did this thought it was just "boys being boys", this wasn't brushed aside.
- I am so glad to see more college YA! Gosh, college was a time for me. I wasn't a fan, didn't want to go, and it seemed like no one could relate to those struggles. I like that this book showed so many of the ups and downs of being away from home for the first time, trying to figure out how to live on one's own, etc. I do wish books like this had been around when I was 17, in college, and felt super alone.
- It was fun to learn about college outside the United States, too! This book is called Freshers elsewhere (why they couldn't just leave it as such in the US I have no idea, but there it is) because it's set in England and that's what they call "freshmen". And wow, colleges are different! (Sorry- universities, my bad.) Like- they were able to cook! I couldn't even have a freaking candle in my dorm room. OH! And of course, you don't have to be 21 to drink there, so no Campus Safety hunting you down trying to catch underage drinkers. It's all quite fascinating honestly, noting the similarities and the differences!
- This book was super real about love and expectations. I'm going to leave it at that but... sometimes we build something up and well... this book talks about that sort of thing. Again, the good and the bad.
The Not As Good:
- The main characters were just... okay. I didn't actually like the male main character very much, nor did I think he exhibited a ton of growth, and I maybe wanted to punch him a little. I liked Phoebe, but I feel like she could have been fleshed out a bit better? She did grow quite a bit during the course of the book though.
- It just didn't leave a lasting impression. In the end, I was like "okay cool" and moved on. Which is fine! Plenty of books are like that, it's not really a hugely negative thing, but nor is it a positive one. I like to be left with some kind of feelings after I read, and I just didn't really feel any emotional connection.
- The ending was more unfinished than I'd have liked. I actually think it was okay to leave it somewhat open since it was, of course, just Freshman Year, but would it have been fun to look at them a few years down the road? I don't know, I like a little closure, maybe that's just a personal preference, but there it is.
Bottom Line: Happy that there's another good example of college YA out there! Though this didn't leave a big impression, it was certainly fun enough.