Alex, Approximately

2.75/5 stars. Okay, so don't let the low star rating fool you. I did like this book a lot. I'd probably recommend it to someone who isn't an avid reader. I just had problems with it.I hate comparing books to one another. I really do. I mean, the next time I see a “the next Hunger Games” comparison I might just burn something down. Yet, I couldn't help it with this book. While I did enjoy it, I would have liked it a lot more if I hadn't already read [b:Tell Me Three Things 25893582 Tell Me Three Things Julie Buxbaum https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1448596179s/25893582.jpg 43223043] or [b:P.S. I Like You 25486998 P.S. I Like You Kasie West https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1442247987s/25486998.jpg 45261093]. All three books were so incredibly similar, but I just felt like the other two did things better. (Just FYI, I totally brain farted the title of Tell Me Three Things , so I googled searched “YA waffle book” and that did help me at all)I think the problem for me was that there was no chemistry between the main character, Bailey, and the guy she had been talking to online, Alex. We barely got to see any of their interactions. And the interactions we did have weren't that funny or enjoyable. Also, their conversations we didn't get to see didn't make sense to me. Why would they discuss their locations and where they live to each other openly, but get uncomfortable about telling the other their first name? I didn't get it. At all. Also, even though it's literally so obvious who Alex is, they tell you in the freaking description of the book. Not cool. Then there's love interest Porter who is a quiz-loving, weather-obsessed, surfer who works as security guard and also nerds our about movies. He was almost too much to be honest. And don't let the description fool you. It states that Porter and Bailey are “archnemesises” but they literally only hate each other for maybe twenty pages. Not long enough to really make me feel like they hate each other. (And, if I hasn't already read [b:P.S. I Like You 25486998 P.S. I Like You Kasie West https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1442247987s/25486998.jpg 45261093], this wouldn't have been a big deal). Protagonist Bailey is suppose to be film geek. I don't have much experience with a die-hard love of films, but I kind of imagine it's like my die-hard love of books. Whenever I can read a book, I read a book. Whenever I can talk about a book, I'm gonna talk about a book. So, I imagined that Bailey would do the same thing. Did she? Nope. She literally only mentioned movies when it was essential to the plot. Bailey was also so frustrating. It was so, so obvious what was about to go down but she was so oblivious. Literally, everything was painted out for her and she just kept blinking her eyes. Even her dad, who just watched things from a far instead of living it out, saw everything coming from thirty miles awayI'm ranting now. I'm also over analyzing. I really did enjoy this book. Yes, the characters were a little ridiculous. And the plot really isn't the most original. But romantic contemporaries are suppose to just be fun and lighthearted, which is exactly what this book is. I had fun reading it. I'm sure you will have a great time too.

This was a super-cute Young Adult Romance. I really enjoyed the change in formatting for the online conversations between Mink and Alex, and the explanation for why Bailey hadn't shared any identifying information online at all. That was pretty well done.

The book is a Young Adult take on the enemies-to-lovers trope, but it mostly avoided the “he picks on you because he likes you” line. The initial conflict between our two characters is really just due to misunderstandings, and the boy quickly apologizes. (With cookies!) I really enjoyed both of these characters, and I was definitely cheering for them as they revealed more of their histories and insecurities to each other.

I REALLY enjoyed their date to Monterey, California - they visited the Natural History Museum and the aquarium, both of which I have been to personally! I lived in Monterey many years ago, so it was neat to see them in a place I have personal memories of.

Overall, I thought this was an excellent young adult romance. There was some mention of sex, but nothing too graphic. I loved the setting; it brought me back to the Pacific Ocean, even if it was California beaches instead of the cold, rocky Pacific Northwest.

You can find all my reviews at Goddess in the Stacks.

— Pretty enjoyable and I admire it for being sex-positive however 1) I didn't really like any character at all, 2) for a you've got mail retelling, I couldn't appreciate the online selves of the two main characters and they only hated each other in real life for like 1/10 of the book so LOL, and 3) it got really really frustrating towards the end, at least for me.