Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie Gonzales

Only Mostly Devastated

by Sophie Gonzales

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda meets Clueless in this boy-meets-boy spin on Grease

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

"Only Mostly Devastated is the kind of book I wish existed when my kids were younger--a charming, funny, laugh-out-loud teen romance that reminds all readers love comes in a multitude of flavors, and they are ALL sweet." --Jodi Picoult, New York Times-bestselling author of Small Great Things and A Spark of Light

"A delightful, heartwarming, heartrending story about family, love, friendship, and living your most authentic life. I couldn't put it down." --New York Times-bestselling author Sandhya Menon

Will Tavares is the dream summer fling--he's fun, affectionate, kind--but just when Ollie thinks he's found his Happily Ever After, summer vacation ends and Will stops texting Ollie back. Now Ollie is one prince short of his fairytale ending, and to complicate the fairytale further, a family emergency sees Ollie uprooted and enrolled at a new school across the country. Which he minds a little less when he realizes it's the same school Will goes to...except Ollie finds that the sweet, comfortably queer guy he knew from summer isn't the same one attending Collinswood High. This Will is a class clown, closeted--and, to be honest, a bit of a jerk.

Ollie has no intention of pining after a guy who clearly isn't ready for a relationship, especially since this new, bro-y jock version of Will seems to go from hot to cold every other week. But then Will starts "coincidentally" popping up in every area of Ollie's life, from music class to the lunch table, and Ollie finds his resolve weakening.

The last time he gave Will his heart, Will handed it back to him trampled and battered. Ollie would have to be an idiot to trust him with it again.

Right? Right.


Only Mostly Devastated [is] an instant hit and Sophie Gonzales one YA author to watch." --Julia Lynn Rubin, author of Burro Hills

Reviewed by whisperingchapters on

4 of 5 stars

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What a cute story! I loved the entire cast, especially Ollie and all of his supportive friends.

Only Mostly Devastated is a super feel good story that you can't help but love. It's a light-read, perfect for times like these. Something that really stood out to me was the diversity, not only in characters, but in the important topics being talked about, such as sexuality (not only Ollie's but another character, whom I enjoyed meeting so much), a woman of color dreaming of becoming a plus-sized model, and fat-shaming. All of these were handled with grace, poise, and eloquence.

I'm definitely looking forward to reading more by this author!

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 5 March, 2020: Finished reading
  • 5 March, 2020: Reviewed