It took me a while to get through this book and I was worried that I wasn’t going to like it, but I ultimately did. It starts off really slow, focusing more on Mallory’s over-protective parents and breaking free from homeschooling than anything else. There are multiple chapters just getting Mallory to public high school and making in person friends. This takes up about 3/4 of the book. The action really didn’t start happening until the 75% mark. And the dramatic part that I would have liked to delve more into took place in the last 10%, so the pacing was just off for me.

That being said, I loved the premise and would have liked to explore the background a bit more. Especially the relationship between Mallory’s parents, Troy’s dad, and Kaitlyn’s mom.

I did enjoy the developing relationship between Troy and Mallory. While he seemed like a jerk at first, he was always protective of Mallory. Whether that was because of her past or because of his feelings for her, I’m not sure, but I suspect it’s a little of both. He certainly resented her initially, with good reason.

I’m glad that the friends Mallory made were true friends, especially her online BFF Nic. Mallory was lucky in the friend group she built for herself.

This is another book I’ve rated with a half-star that is not visible most places. While you will see a 3-star rating, my actual rating is 3.5 stars. The pacing and slow beginning kept it from being a 4-star read.

Disclaimer: I received an eARC of this book through Net Galley on behalf of the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.