That's Not What I Heard

by Stephanie Kate Strohm

[Sam@WLABB]

Rating: 4.5 Stars

This is the hilarious, absurd, and over the top fun that made me a Strohm fan. This book is very reminiscent of It's Not Me, It's You and The Date to Save, and it delivered the laughter I was hoping to find. It gets a little emotional and the warm fuzzies found me in the last part of this story, which touches upon endings and the future. I may have shed a few tears.
======================================================
As soon as I started reading this, I was like: YES! YES! YES!

Because, this book instantly had the feel of It's Not Me, It's You, which was my gateway Strohm book, and made her one of my go-to authors, when I need some fun in my life.

The premise of this story was that William Henry Harrison High's golden couple had split. One person witnessed part of the event and went on to tell one person, who told one person, and you can see where this is going. As the rumors spread, the truth became more and more distorted and hilarity ensued.

I thought it was brilliant the way way Strohm wrote the story. I found it quite effective, especially on day one. The point of view quickly passed from one person to another, and reminded me so much of a good game of Telephone. Each person seemed to miss important bits and pieces, and then took liberties to fill in those gaps. As the story and the POV went from character to character, the chaos grew, and so did my laughter.

This was the high school version of a celebrity break up. Most people never know all the details, but they will speculate as much as they like. Nothing is off limits. People will also choose sides in a breakup, as was the case at WHHHS. You were either Team Teddy or Team Kim, at least until splinter groups began to form. Watching it all spiral out of control was highly amusing. The rapid pacing matched the buildup of emotions at WHHHS, until it all came to a head.

Just because this book was full of laughs doesn't mean it was without substance. Part of the story was about saying goodbye. Kim and Teddy were seniors, and this was their final chapter of high school. Best friends since childhood and sweethearts for the past six years, it could have been the end for the power couple. Strohm incorporated that, as well as living in the shadow a super sibling along with some other issues that are relevant to high schoolers. I liked the way Strohm integrated some of those ideas, and I may have even sniffled or shed a tear or whatnot.

The book was everything I was hoping for. It was super fun, jam packed with hijinks, adorable, sweet, and highly entertaining. I enjoyed meeting the denizens of William Henry Harrison High, and wouldn't mind catching up with them at a later date.

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

BLOG | INSTAGRAM |TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS