A fun, feminist YA that had me laughing almost every page. Perfect for those rebellious teens and those wanted to feel empowered by the message this book has to offer.

The characters were so lovely, Alex and Mary Kate just has the purest friendship despite being so drastically different and honestly just wonderful main characters. Of course, Alex being the rebellious teen she is was so wonderful and funny to read as she went on her journey to try and bring about radical change at her boarding school whilst learning some valuable life lessons along the way. The rest of the cast of characters from fellow students to nuns and priests were so brilliantly created, you really got a sense of St Mary's as a school based of the student body as well as the wonderful descriptions of the setting we got throughout the book too.

The plot itself was so well written and just brilliant. A classic trope that was so beautifuly crafted into the amazing and unique story it is full of feminism and funny gags. It truly was a delight to read and I just want to go and read it all over again because I loved it so much! I have a feeling that this book will quickly become a classic YA that every teenager will want to read, and should read because of the string message of female empowerment through friendship and action. It is just such an incredible book and I'm so glad that I got a chance to read this book.

The wiring, of course is phenomenal. It's funny and feisty and just so full of love for female empowerment. You could tell that the author really tired her desire to improve female sexual education and awareness of women's sexual health as well as just female empowerment in the text because it shone through not only in Alex's personality but just the book as a whole. I cannot wait tp see what the author does next.

I was kindly gifted a copy of this book as part of a blog tour in exchange for an honest review.

A sweet YA novel about friendship, love and feminism at a Catholic boarding school in the American Midwest.

It took me way back to being a teenager and worrying about expectations in a very patriarchal school environment! I really enjoyed it.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher.

I knew I was going to love Alex from from the first few pages, and I was quickly proved right. She was a genuinely hilarious character, both because of her wit and also the righteous indignation that made me so remember my teenage years. I might not have had the fauxhawk, but I did have Doc Martens, work with knee high socks covered in skulls, and always worn with a ripped skirt. Ah, the memories.

Alex's fight against the patriarchy and the rules in general were driven by a fierce determination to remain her own person while being pushed into a little box. She realises along the way that the picture is bigger than that, however, and wants to make sure that every student at St Mary's - especially the girls - has someone to turn to, to look up to, and to guide them.

As much as the story is largely an easy to read, funny tale, there are key points where Alex grows as a person, with discoveries about others as well as herself, both opening her eyes to things that she might have otherwise have been willingly blind to. The fact she can manage to do so well still finding her sense of humour - and her natural rebellion - is a testament to her character as a whole, and to how well crafted she has been by the author. She's far from perfect, and that is what makes her so utterly loveable in my eyes.

The characters she interacts with along the way are all special in their own way too, especially her room mate, Mary Kate. Having attended a boarding school as a day girl, I can completely attest to the friendships you form under close quarters are those of a certain kind. The fact they were so different but so close really made me smile, and it really sings of one of those friendships that will last a (fictional) lifetime.

BAD HABITS is laugh-out-loud funny. Flynn Meaney’s supply of metaphors is impressive. And the Catholic school environment brought up some very familiar scenes from my grade school days.

Alex is smart, with quick bad-ass comebacks every time. Her literary references are remarkable. Somehow, her protests are viewed as mere misbehavior because Alex is also impulsive, unruly, and foul-mouthed. For someone who is screaming for change and equality, Alex has her own biases. And so, I enjoyed how her friends (basically, everyone around) keeps her grounded. These second characters are marvelous around her. Despite all her flaws, Alex cares for people and self-reflects when needed.

A fun and inspiring read, asking readers to look deeply inside and break barriers. I recommend.

Full disclosure: I signed up for this blog tour because the blurb and PR release made me snort the cup of tea I was I drinking at the time. And, further full disclosure: that has not been the only laugher based accident that has occurred during the course of reading Flynn Meaney’s hilarious YA contemporary novel Bad Habits.

Bad Habits follows Alex, a junior year student at St Marys Catholic Boarding School. St Marys is a place of tradition. They love peace and quiet, wholesome extra-curricular activities, and hockey. Alex is the opposite of this. With her brightly coloured hair and biker boots, she’s never more than a day away from a new uniform violation and the opening page of the novel sees her hanging off the side of the male-only dorm long after curfew.

Safe to say Alex and St Marys aren’t exactly a match made in heaven. And Alex would love nothing more than to kiss the place goodbye once and for all. But despite her very best efforts (and boy, has this girl tried!), she just can’t seem to expelled. But when a tampon-buying trip results in an (unsuccessful) attempt at ritual humiliation, Alex sees an opportunity. If TAMPONS cause the girls of St Marys to blush and the boys to jeer, what would happen if VAGINAS were placed front and centre of the St Marys Feminist Club’s first ever stage production. One battered copy of The Vagina Monologues later and Alex has a plan…

As you can hopefully tell from that description, Bad Habits is a fresh and fun take on contemporary YA. The contrast between the free-spirited and sparky heroine Alex and the constraining tradition of the environment in which she finds herself provides endless sources for humour throughout the book. What I really liked though was how this humour does not come at the expense of anyone else’s beliefs. Alex is determined, forthright, sassy and fiercely feminist – but her feminism isn’t the only kind depicted here and, as she learns along the way, there are other ways and other methods that are equally useful in furthering the cause and smashing the patriarchy.

In fact, Alex has as much to learn about St Marys as St Marys has to learn about Alex and, whilst this is very firmly Alex’s story, I really enjoyed seeing her development as she begins to interact with other students (and even some of the staff) and learn more about their own beliefs and perspectives. In particular, I really liked Alex’s roommate Mary Kate. Quiet and studious, Mary Kate seems to be everything Alex is not (and reminded me a lot of myself at that age – I wish I was an Alex but I was definitely more of a Mary Kate!) but she has her own deeply rooted determination and it was wonderful seeing the way in which her character comes to compliment Alex’s over the course of the novel.

The writing is fast and fluid, with plenty of action and humour to keep the pages flying – I tore through the book in less than a day and I was laughing out loud regularly throughout. The humour of Bad Habits might not be for everyone – Alex is loud, occasionally crude, and certainly extremely opinionated – but I really enjoyed it and it was refreshing to read about a young women prepared not only to speak her mind but also to reflect on and change her opinions when she feels she’s been correctly challenged – and to stand by them and back them up with evidence when she knows she is right.

I’m so glad that being part of The Write Reads gang has re-introduced me to contemporary YA. Although Bad Habits is somewhat out of my usual comfort zone of YA mystery/thrillers (and has a high school/college setting that I am usually very wary of), I really enjoyed this fun and fast-paced novel, which has plenty of humour alongside some extremely important messaging about equality, sexuality, and the importance of being true to yourself.

Bad Habits is the riotous, fun, and humour filled feminist read of 2021.

First of all I want to mention that the main theme of Bad Habits is feminism and it goes a long way to highlight the everyday sexism that exist in society. Throughout the book we are remained that not all sexism is glaringly obvious. Some are little comments or micro aggressions that although don't seem to be offensive they do reinforce sexist ideas that lay below the surface and are just as detrimental as the more obvious and intended attacks. Now for me as a male and at times very ignorant (although I do try to inform myself, learn and change my ways) to everyday sexism Bad Habits served as a good reminder of my part and what I can do to help the situation.

Now another really clear directive of Bad Habits is that the ultimate goal of feminism can differ from person to person. Our main protagonist, Alex, for instance is an example that sexual freedom is high on the list for many however for others the idea of saving ourselves for that special someone is just as much an important goal. What I'm saying is that Bad Habits does a fantastic job of highlighting the fact that feminism comes in many flavours and people fight for what matters to them most. One thing I did note is that at times Alex puts her own goals ahead of others and this goes to show that in her pursuit of feminism she actually undermines other's efforts or down plays the importance of their idea of feminism.

With all that being said Bad Habits was a really enjoyable read. The humour was right on point for a young adult novel and the characters are nice and diverse. One thing I really enjoyed about the read is that the two main characters, Alex and Mary-Kate, are such different characters but they work so well together. Alex is our resident bad girl with her purple fauxhawk and motorcycle boots that treats school like the Thunder dome rather than a place of learning, kinda like I did myself, and then we have Mary-Kate a typical goody two shoes that avoids trouble making like the plague. This ultimately gives us the ideal conditions for some humorous happenings to flourish. A big high five to Meaney for that.
Bad Habits is set in the ex all boys school of St. Mary's which is totally fitting to the theme of the book and a great choice by Flynn Meaney. Meaney does a great job of building a beautiful setting which really helps bring the story alive. The school is filled with the usual aspects that would be found at any real world school. Secret passage way/corridor that no one knows about, the odd ghost story and the sections of the school that you really don't want to walk down for fear of bumping into the resident bully.

Oh one more thing I liked was the nice sprinkling of references to movies, books and songs through the book. I know some people don't like references to other works but there are a lot that do and where references are used they make sense. They don't feel like they have been plonked in randomly to help jazz things up. I do want to mention that it seemed to be a strange choice to include Harry Potter references given recent happenings over the last several years into a book that promotes equality among the sexes. Depending how you feel on the matter will depend on what you make of the use of HP references but I thought it worth a mention nonetheless.

On the other side of the scales one thing I didn't like is that Alex didn't really see any comeuppance for the way she treats those around her in her blind pursuit of her goals. Those on the receiving end just seemed to be fine with it and shrug it off which I didn't feel would be true to the age range of the characters. Teenagers after all can be an unpredictable bunch at times when it comes to friendships. This is only a small issue I have with Bad Habits and it does not hold back the story which continues to flow nicely regardless.

Overall Bad Habits was a good eye opener for me on the topic of feminism and with it being a light read with easy to read prose I would happily recommend Bad Habits to those wanting a fun, quick and humour filled read while wanting to know more on the subject of sexism.

P.S. Okay no I am now expert on the subject of feminism and gender inequality so by all means if anything I have said in this review is incorrect or offensive please highlight that to me. After all the main reason I want to read Bad Habits is to educate myself in a fictional setting that I enjoy best.

Promised as the 'funniest, feminist book you'll read all year', and perfect for fans of Derry Girls and Sex Education (two of my all fave shows ever), Bad Habits instantly captured my complete attention. I wanted Louise-Rennison-vibe-cackles. I wanted fierce and honest feminism worthy of Laura Bates and Roxane Gay. I was going in with high hopes and even higher expectations...

On the surface Bad Habits is an all round lively, quirky and chaotic story of feminism, identity and rebellion. It's like a bubbly mix of (very American) Derry Girls meets Wild Child. Underneath, it's sadly lacking authentic substance, real representation, and, most disappointingly, laughs.

With that said, a successful book is one that encourages thought and discussion long after reading it, and Bad Habits definitely delivers on this front. The protagonist Alex for example, is very closed-minded and stubborn when it comes to her ideals of feminism. And until the end, Alex neither leaves nor creates any room for growth or new opinions and ideologies. But it's called Bad Habits for a reason (I think), and Flynn Meaney boldly delivers a narrative that stirs and sparks conversation, whether that's on the freedom of feminism or what feminism personally means to you, but from conversation comes understanding, receptivity and empathy. And with that in mind I can for sure see Bad Habits becoming a popular YA book club read. If you're in it for The Vagina Monologues though, I'd recommend skipping it and going directly to the book itself - you won't be disappointed.

Thank you to Dave @ The Write Reads, Penguin, and Netgalley for sending me a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

As you all probably know by now, I am a sucker for a great cover. So, when Dave sent out the email about this tour and I saw that bright, yellow gloriousness, I knew I had to sign up! How could I say no to something that looked so vivid and fun?

Thankfully, the book’s cover did not deceive. Bad Habits is a raucous good time and our main character, Alex, absolutely comes to life on the page. We meet Alex as she is climbing out of a window in one of the boys’ dorms on her Catholic boarding school campus. That action lands her in the principle’s office for what she hopes is the last time. Not because she’s going to “straighten out and fly right”. No, Alex is hoping this last act of rebellion will be enough to get her expelled and sent back to California where she belongs. Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen, which leads Alex to dream up her most daring expulsion attempt yet: staging St. Mary’s first ever production of The Vagina Monologues!

You guys, when I say this was a good time, I absolutely mean it! This book had me grinning like an idiot and laughing my head off multiple times. I adore the wit and humor that is woven throughout this feminist tale. It made this such a quick and engaging read that I found myself at the end and was confused as to how I arrived there so quickly. This is definitely a book you could read in a day because you have to know what Alex is going to do next!

Speaking of Alex, can I tell you how much I loved her? I don’t know if I can because she is one of those characters that’s just larger than life! I loved following her along as she fought for what she believed in, even if her surface goal was getting kicked out of school. It was interesting to watch her being a badass but I also loved getting a peek at her other side… the side that tries to comfort lost freshman and helps people when their secret weed stash is found. She’s a complex character with a biting wit and sense of humor that I meshed with so well! But a book can only go so far with a solid main character. Which is why I was glad that the side characters in this story, though they didn’t leave quite the same impression, definitely did not fall flat.

Beyond the fabulous characters, I just loved the writing and the overall tone of this book. The writing pulls you in with it’s conversational tone. You feel as though Alex is sitting next to you, recounting her rebellious days at St. Mary’s Catholic School while you’re making posters for a protest. I felt so connected to this story because of the fun and feminist current that is running throughout. This is the first book I’ve ever read by this author, but it definitely makes me curious about her other work!

Final thoughts: I had such a good time reading this book! I adore the main character and I thought the author did an incredible job at creating someone not only interesting, but also relatable. The tone and writing were great and the humor just matched mine perfectly. Are you looking for a fun and vivacious young adult contemporary that will have you chuckling as you turn the pages? Do you like a book that tackles feminist issues in an accessible and interesting way? Then I think you’ll enjoy Bad Habits!

“And what I learned from that is that you can’t judge a book by its cover. Or a virgin by their crucifix. Or a feminist by their purple fauxhawk. Or a hockey player by their … bloody gums. Even in a place like this, people have stuff going on underneath that you have no idea about, ya know?“

You know, if this was the conclusion the book/main character had come to earlier in the book, I may have loved it, but the fact that we had to get to the FINAL chapter to realise that feminism means different things to different people is just. Frustrating. She doesn’t get the chance to change.

Hi, welcome to Bad Habits. A book where feminism means one thing to the main character and that’s the only version of feminism that counts. Okay, I’m sorry. I can feel, as I start writing this, that this might become more of a rant about feminism than the book itself, but the book claims to be big on feminism and so to not do that well seems to be counterintuitive.
Alex, our main character, is a very stereotypical, I want to say 80s, feminist: short purple hair, big on the bra burning, sleeps with everyone and is proud of it. And that’s fine, that’s her brand of feminism and she can keep that. However, she also tries to force this feminism on everyone else. She doesn’t seem to understand that choosing not to have sex until marriage is also a feminist choice. She doesn’t seem to consider how feminism is useful for boys too. She just tries to force her opinion on everyone else.
Take Mary Kate, her “best friend”. Admittedly, I didn’t love MK either because she didn’t really support Alex but that’s because Alex was constantly making her do things she didn’t want to do. Alex embarrassed MK with tampons right at the start and she continued to just not listen to her throughout.
Or the Rowers. Side characters just mentioned in passing, but constantly mocked for their physique and choices.
I loved when, about 80% of the way through the book, people told Alex that her feminism was selfish. But does she change straight away? Pfft. No. She’s a very privileged white feminist and we barely get a whiff of change by the end.
OH. And the play. The play. The centre of the story, the event from which all other events spiral. It’s barely there. I don’t want to say too much because spoilers, but it wasn’t even really a thing until 50% of the way in and then it was barely a background noise.
A positive? I quite liked Pat. He was a refreshing change from Alex, but I also feel like he could have done better than her.
Maybe as a film/TV show I would have liked it more, but I hated being in Alex’s head and I don’t ever think I found it funny, it was just easy to read.

And what I learned from that is that you can’t judge a book by its cover. Or a book by its reviews. Even in a community like this, where people also love Holly Bourne and Derry Girls, ya know?

Thank you to The Write Reads for organizing and inviting me to participate in this blog tour. Thank you, Net Galley and Penguin, for providing me with an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Bad Habits is about Alex, a rebel teenager who wants to get kicked out of her strict Catholic boarding school, St. Mary’s. She’s always getting in trouble, and she hates the double standard with how boys and girls are treated. After a late-night incident at the campus store, Alex decides that she’s going to get expelled by staging a production of The Vagina Monologues. What follows is a laugh-out-loud journey of self-discovery and feminist fun.

My favourite thing about this book was all of the laugh-out-loud moments it had. I read most of this book on the couch, and I received a lot of strange looks from my Dad because I was giggling while I read. Some people don’t appreciate the kind of humour in this book and might be offended by it, but I thought some of the lines were hilarious, and it was definitely the most enjoyable part of the book for me.

As far as the characters go, I have mixed feelings. In my opinion, Alex really isn’t that likable of a character. She’s pretty judgmental, kind of spoiled, and a little bit too into herself and her problems. That being said, I thought she was funny, and she did grow as a person as the story went on. Alex’s roommate, Mary Kate, was one of my favourite characters in the book. I liked that she had a goal, principles and that she stood up for herself. I also liked Patrick, the hockey player, I thought he had his funny moments, and he seemed like a decent person.

I liked the feminism and body positivity aspect of this book, even though I was frustrated with Alex’s brand of feminism. Alex has a specific brand of feminism that is fairly judgemental and not very feminist. Fortunately, throughout the book, Alex starts to learn more about feminism and makes her a better person.

I also want to say that I liked the hockey aspect of this book. It seems very cliché that a boarding school in Minnesota would be obsessed with hockey, but I loved it.

Overall, this was a fun and quick read. It had its laugh-out-loud moments, and it had its memorable moments.

Well this book is a definite must add to your TBRs. I thoroughly enjoyed Bad Habits by Flynn Meaney and found that the main character Alex has become a new firm favourite of mine! It has humour with laugh out loud moments as well as topics that some might find disturbing/hard to read but I will get onto them.

So let’s talk Content Warning/Trigger Warning before I continue on…. it does have strong sexual references, mention of unprotected sex, drug use and alcohol use and some references to sexual harassment. HOWEVER I found that Meaney explored these in a superb way and didn’t feel at any time that it was in your face and each of these were an important part of the storyline.

Right now that I have told you about some of the themes in the book let’s talk about Alex and her adventures at St. Mary’s Catholic School.

Alex, well she is basically a bit of a rebel. She is a senior at St. Mary’s Catholic school, she is always in trouble for something or other and she just wants to return to her old life and get away from the school where she feels that the school takes too much focus on sports and doesn’t do enough in regards to promoting feminism and promoting sexual health.

Alex has a plan for all of this though, she is determined to get herself expelled from school and to do this she is using her feminist group to put on a show. The show however is not any show it is the Vagina Monologues- problem is she needs to get permission from the Dean and Alex isn’t in his good graces at the moment.

The book is definitely about feminism and Alex’s growth and her identity. She is at times quite selfish and trying to get her opinions across and not always listening to others. However you do see her grow throughout the book and along the way it allows her to see others opinions and how her actions impact others. Her friendship with Mary Kate is also tested when she tries to force her views on her and you can see how being the way she is doesn’t help her trying to get her point across.

The secondary characters on the book I felt added extra depth to the book. To Mary Kate, Alex’s best friend and roommate, to Pat (the love interest) and Katie Casey, someone who is also trying to promote feminism but in a more subtle way than Alex. The interactions between all these characters are some of the funniest moments in the book. I especially love the relationship between Alex and Pat, from when they first met (it was hilarious) to how they were at the end of the book.

As I said one of the strong topics in the book is about Sex. Alex is of the opinion that to be sexual isn’t a crime and that the females going to St. Mary’s should be in charge of their sexual health and be able to talk freely about it and know about their bodies. I found that this is so important today, we need to talk about our bodies even saying the word Vagina. Our bodies are not things to be hidden and no topic I feel should be taboo and I like that Flynn Meaney talks about it. I felt that at times Alex tries too hard and the way that Katie Casey’s way is more subtle but no less important. She talks about respecting your body and I am again 100% in agreement with this.

Let’s get back to Alex – her whole idea of putting on the Vagina Monologues is there for shock factor. I mean she goes to a very strict Catholic School and wants to be expelled but towards the end of it she can see how important it is for not only the females to be educated but also the males. They need to learn to respect females as well.

The book was so easy to read. Flynn Meaney had the right amount of humour and seriousness throughout the book that made it easy for me to read and I finished it within a day. The humour had me laughing out loud and actually thinking about sexism and the freedom to talk about our bodies. I think it’s really important that young readers read this and not only females but males as well. We need to normalise talking about our bodies so that we don’t make it taboo.

4.5 STARS

I read this book for a blog tour, so thank you to the author, the publisher and the blog tour organiser for letting me be part of this tour and for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own!

Bad Habits by Flynn Meaney is a hilarious and fun YA contemporary novel about Alex Heck, a young, feisty feminist who is at St Mary’s boarding school and trying to change everything about the place and the people. This book is set at a private Catholic school in Minnesota and it was a really great setting in my opinion as I suppose it might be one of the most conservative places you can find. I am not a religious person at all so to see how Alex kept flipping off the patriarchy, the school, the nuns and the priest made me cackle.

Alex is the main character from this book and the only POV we get, and along the way, we learn a lot about her and the people around her, as she stumbles over obstacles, thinks about why she is trying to set up The Vagina Monologues, and experiences various relationships while getting into a lot of trouble. I loved Alex from the first line. Teenage me was quite like her, minus the purple lady-fauxhawk so I really identified with her, only she was a lot funnier than I was (and still am, aha!). I found Alex to be sassy, determined, strong-willed, with a strong sense of right and the need to understand sexuality, gender, identity and not be ashamed about these things. I love her and I loved to see her grow.

I’m not sure I’ve read a book centred on feminism before, but after reading Bad Habits, I’ll definitely pick up more books with this theme in the future. I think this book was really interesting because it showed Alex’s feminism, but also the feminism portrayed by the people in her Feminist Club, and the opinions of people all around her.

Overall, this was a fantastic, funny, sensitive, important, poignant and great book that I enjoyed from start to finish and laughed out loud about numerous times. A lot of moments in this book had me mentally cheering the characters on and I was just hoping that Alex would get her play the way she wanted, that Mary Kate would get her walk around the lake and her boyfriend even though I thought her wish was a little ridiculous, and I wanted Alex to crush through the patriarchy and smash down those prejudices and restrictive ideals.

The writing style was so fluid, it read so easily and fast. I was immersed in this book and had a great time reading it. The author’s prose was a joy to read and I salute her for making me laugh so much. The book was written in such a funny, witty, snarky and clever way that I couldn’t help but be fully engaged in it and root for the characters! I will definitely be reading more books by this author!

I gave this book 4.5 stars. I struggle with YA contemporary usually, but this was a great book and I enjoyed it thoroughly. Just missing a little spark and maybe a little slow at times, but I highly recommend this book to YA contemporary fans who love witty prose, complex and interesting characters with strong ideals and important topics and discussions.

3.5 Stars

Synopsis: Alex is rebellious, a feminist, and a student at a strict Catholic school – St Mary’s. Constantly in trouble for her rebellious behaviour, Alex has been on the brink of expulsion – just to have her dad save her place. Now she has a new plan, tired of the sexism pervading the school and with expulsion as her goal, Alex is determined to perform The Vagina Monologues. But in a school where no-one will even use the ‘V’ word Alex has set herself an impossible challenge.

CW/TW: Drug use/Alcohol use/ sex, sexual harassment references/ unsafe sex/ others may be present.

So a big thankyou to Dave @TheWriteReads for giving me a spot on this fun and brilliant #ultimateblogtour!

Bad Habits, by Flynn Meaney is a fun, quirky and chaotic story of feminism, rebellion and identity. Alex is a force of a character, she is determined, headstrong, vocal and chaotic. But, she is also self-centered and, despite her feminist views, narrow minded with a strong belief in her own idea of feminism and women’s liberation. However, because of this Alex comes across as a very real character, flawed, but still a character you can root for.

The plot is easy to follow, the prose flows well and is quirky and comical! This is definitely an engaging and fun feminist story that manages to tackle serious issues in an upbeat way without making them seem insubstantial – it is very cleverly done and reflects reality quite well. I loved the little pop culture and classic literature references littered throughout the book. The humour and comedy may seem quite overwhelming at first, but as the book goes on the comedy becomes more balanced and works to really highlight certain scenes or points that are key to the story and message.

The plot focuses around Alex trying to get the school to agree to her production of The Vagina Monologues, hoping it will get her expelled – her rebellion is entertaining to watch but is also handle in a clever way, she wants to get expelled, yes, and her home life is not all that great, but part of her does this also to battle sexism and liberate language surrounding women’s bodies. What starts as an attempt to anger the school becomes something much more important, an open discourse about sexism and freedom.

The book takes a feminist focus, and Alex is a very specific type of feminist who believes freedom comes from sexual liberation and outward portrayals of personality – and while this is great we also explore why her feminism may be harmful to other women. For example, we get a nice contrast between Alex and her overt personality and plethora of sexual innuendos compared with Katie Casey, vocal in a different way she supports keeping yourself until marriage, owning your body by choosing not to have sex until then. I really liked the clash between these two characters and the ultimate plot beneath it showing that being a feminist means freedom with choices about your own body but also the choices other women make about theirs even if it does not coincide with your own. This important message for and behind feminism is explored in a delightfully funny way.

I also loved the book had the school vibe behind it, the rumours and school ‘curses/stories’, the strict Catholic setting, the sports team and the clubs – all of it worked very well with the plot and theme of the book. School is a time and place of growth it is where everyone begins to find their own identities through clubs, friends and the school system itself – so having that alongside the idea of feminism and freedom of identity really supported how the characters tackled their ideologies and allowed their opinions to grow and change over the course of the book. The addition of school stories and traditions also made the setting come to life and added humour to the story.

I also liked the male characters in the book, primarily Pat (The main one at least). It was interesting to see how the male characters would fit into the feminist narrative and I liked how it was done without demonizing ever male character present. They are flawed and have privilege in the book, and some are problematic, but some of them learn and are supportive of Alex’s feminist ways. Alex is quick to blame misogyny for her failures and sometimes that is standing in her way, but other times she uses it as an excuse and gets called out on it by male characters but also female ones, causing her to address and correct her feminism. I think this was handle quite well and I thought it was clever how the concept of feminism was addressed. Alex does make mistakes with her beliefs but at her core she does care about freedom and identity and goes out of her way to help the other girls, and it was nice to watch her slowly improve over the course of the book in this regard.

This book has a nostalgic feel for me, I loved all those trouble making school students sent to boarding school for misbehaviour, and this book sort of resonated with the nostalgia of those reads. While this is clearly for a much older audience, the fun, comforting feel still exists, but with something extra!

Overall, this book has the fun of a teen/YA read, that comical and realistic school setting and great complex flawed characters. It is a comical book that also deals with serious issues but does so in a light way without debasing them, and addresses the concept of feminism. The strict Catholic backdrop gives a stark view to wider reality, its extremes reflecting the subtler forms of sexism in wider society. This book was a great, fun read overall!

About The Author: Flynn Meaney

Flynn Meaney is the author of The Boy Recession and Bloodthirsty. She studied marketing and French at the University of Notre Dame, where she barely survived the terrifying array of priests and nuns, campus ghosts, and bone-crushing athletes who inspired Bad Habits. Since completing a very practical MFA in Poetry, she works for a French company and travels often between New York (when she’s in the mood for bagels) and Paris (when she’s in the mood for croissants).

*I recieved a review/eARC copy via #Netgalley, thanks to @TheWriteReads, for a spot on the blogtour and in exchange for honest review.*

'Bad Habits' by Flynn Meaney was the first book by this author that I have read. It promised feminist power, fun and rebellion and it certainly delivered.

However, at this moment I am struggling to point out what I enjoyed from this book. Towards the end of this book, I was skim reading as I just could not fully immerse myself within this story. I think my main issue was the protagonist, Alex.

Though there were a few times where I laughed out loud, most of my reading experience was punctuated by my inability to like any of the characters. The character of Alex is what I would define as a white feminist, a young woman who thinks she is 'woke' but her feminism is actually more performative than she thinks. She is an incredibly privileged and wealthy young woman who basically acts like a brat for most, if not all of the book, and never fully takes accountability for her words and actions. At the end, her best friend Mary Kate and her kind-of boyfriend Pat, pull her up on her own fakeness, but Alex doesn't really take on the words, takes responsibility or tries to learn. She doesn't really change.

The entire story centres on Alex wanting to be expelled from St Mary's (a Catholic boarding school, which is valid) so in order to do that, she wants to put on a show of The Vagina Monologues. She is the leader of St Mary's Feminist Club - which is more of her just telling the group of girls what she wants to do, with no compromise or discussion (this doesn't happen until literally the last page) - and admits that she is using the girls of the club as her 'feminist army' to do her bidding. Alex is introduced to the reader as a rebel, as someone who is almost constantly in trouble because she 'rebels against the patriarchy' of the school but her acts of rebellion are juvenile and bratty. Her feminism has no real purpose, and only rebels against the patriarchy because she can't get away with everything she wants. There was no motivation. As someone who went to an all-girls Catholic school, there are plenty to rebel against (sexual health or lack thereof, conversations of consent, toxic masculinity/femininity etc. - which again, is briefly brought up on the last page) but Alex does it because she can.

Alex is also incredibly judgmental about other women's choices for someone who considers themselves the only 'feminist' on campus. Mary Kate does tell Alex this but again, Alex doesn't really do anything to broaden her understanding of feminism or feminist issues for a range of different women. She had a very limited understanding about how women should showcase their feminism that is just proved to me how little Alex actually knew about what the movement now stands for.

The way that Alex and Mary Kate spoke as well reminded me how adults think teenagers speak. There is always some sort of punchline that is in reference to popular culture, a meme or a celebrity. It felt in-authentic. As someone who is around teenagers/young adults, this is not how they communicate with each other.

However, I do think alot of people would enjoy this as it is a quick and light read.

Bad Habits is a brash and boisterous look at feminism in a Catholic boarding school, and it will keep you laughing long after you close it for the final time.

What I Liked

The story is funny on the surface, but underneath there’s a potentially tragic story in the making, both masked and reflected by Alex’s rebelliousness and witty cynicism. Alex’s dad enrolled her in the school he went to after he and her mother divorced. It’s never stated, but the situation sounds like her dad was trying to remove her from a volatile transition period at home and find the best place he knew for her to have a happy and stable high school experience. Alex, of course, didn’t see it that way. She just wanted to be home in the comfort of everything familiar. She is hiding her pain, and, as pain will, it’s coming out regardless.

I enjoyed that the story is based on events from the author’s experiences at Notre Dame University. This gave it an air of authenticity that it usually wouldn’t have. I’ve never attended a catholic school, but now I feel like I have a good idea of what it is like.

The feminist theme of being comfortable in your skin and not afraid to own your needs, body parts, and beliefs is refreshing and bold. I know I still feel uncomfortable buying certain feminine products even though I shouldn’t. And the same with all sorts of unspoken taboos, which are not taboos but a socially created discomfort with all the is natural and normal.

I also enjoyed the development of the theme of belonging and the security and acceptance that goes along with that feeling. Alex, Mary, Kate, and even Katie were all looking for that and not finding it. As the story explores these three very different journeys, it takes on a new depth and unexpected poignancy.

To Read or Not to Read

If you are looking for a laugh out loud and bold look at what it means to be a teenager today, this story will give you that and more.

Can I get a hallelujah for how freaking amazing this cover is? I could stare at it all day long!
This was a fast-paced and fun read, following Alex as she tries to get kicked out of her Catholic School. The only thing that really grated on my nerves were all the Harry Potter references. It's hard to even think about this series without feeling angry now, and obviously I don't know when this book went to print but with JKR being the TERF she is, this was hard to overlook how often references were in this as feminist advertised book.
Beyond that, still a great book. though!

Everybody needs to read a funny book from time to time, and this one proved the right book at the right time for me. I'm perhaps not the target audience, being several decades older than the main characters, but it certainly made me laugh. Thanks to NetGalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

The story is set in St Mary's Catholic School, a strict boarding school in America, where the main character, Alex, is determined to have an impact. In fact, what she'd really like is to be expelled. Her purple hair and incessant rule-breaking isn't proving enough, so she decides that she will stage the school's first production of 'The Vagina Monologues' with her (mostly less-than-keen) feminist club.

This book is the story of the battle to bring the play to the stage - a battle that Alex takes on to both shock and prove her feminist credentials. What she finds is that the challenges aren't the ones she expects.

Alex as a main character is spiky, sassy and cool - everything I wasn't at school, so I found her pretty interesting! I'm not sure she is really intended to be likeable at the start of the book - her instinct is to push back on everything and everyone in order to prove her rebel status. However, as the book progresses, I did warm to her and felt that she started to see the bigger picture.

However, more immediately likeable is Alex's roommate, Mary Kate. She is more relatable for me and a whole lot less prickly - although she does have determination and is a strong character in her own right. The other supporting characters are also appealing, particularly the very tolerant Pat and the rather diverse bunch in the feminist club.

I've always been a sucker for a school story, even from my youngest years reading Enid Blyton's Mallory Towers books, and I enjoyed this one. I like the boarding school setting with the range of teachers (the usual suspects - scary, eccentric, kindly) and the rivalries of the cliques. The fact it is a co-ed American boarding school, whose team sport is ice hockey, seems to me to have a glamour and interest not found in the school stories of tuck boxes, lights-out and cross-country races that I grew up with!

This is more than a school story though - it is a funny school story! There were several points that made me laugh out loud and I loved the absurdity of some of the situations - I don't want to give any spoilers so I'll just say the recruitment drive the sleeping nun and the protest all made me smile. Alex's voice is a humorous one and she calls on a range of unusual references, from Harry Potter to metaphysical poet Andrew Marvell, which I loved - it made her narration engaging, often surprising and clever.

There are serious messages in the book, particularly around feminism and gender. I won't give anything away, but I will say that I thought the ethos of the book was positive and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to teenagers - although there are a lot of sex references and some swearing (which I - not a regular reader of YA fiction - was quite surprised by).

Overall, I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes funny books, school stories or just likes fiction with a solid feminist message. Personally, I love all three of those things, so it is a big thumbs-up from me!

My Rating 3.5 stars

Bad Habits by Flynn Meaney


I was definitely drawn to the book after seeing the front cover. Honestly I didn’t know what to expect before I started it but, it definitely turned out to be a fun and entertaining read.

Bad Habits follows the main protagonist Alex who has been sent to a Catholic boarding school after the divorce of her parents. She’s constantly breaking the rules but the head of the school refuses to expel her, so she decides she’s going to make it her mission to get herself thrown out.

The writing was very simple and easy to follow which made it a nice quick read for me. I really liked the premises of this book and how although funny and light still covered some important topics, especially those topics that are still taboo’s even now.

Now, although I found that most of this book moved pretty fast there were a couple of slow sections, where I struggled with a my interest wavered a bit but t honestly I think that may just have been down to preference of what was happening rather than to do with the actual story.

There was a nice mix of characters. You have the protagonist Alex who isn’t particularly likeable at the start as she comes across as quite self-centred and irritating. But as you follow her and through the book you really get to know her character more and you see there is so much more to her character and you really do start to see the true her. Then you have the side characters, who I found quite intriguing and entertaining, and thought they were also well created and developed. However, one thing that I did notice was the lack of diverse characters, there are a couple but was surprised that there weren't more.

Even with some of the issues I found in the book, I really did enjoy this one. It made a nice change to my usual reads. I would definitely recommend this one to anyone looking for a quick yet light and funny read. A quick heads up, there is quite a lot of explicit language throughout the book, which didn’t personally bother me but, if you’re sensitive to it then you may want to go into with caution.

This is a short, contemporary YA read with an interesting premise. I liked that it was a 'smaller' story when so much of YA seems to have to be hugely ambitious in scope and setting. However, I never found this narrative hugely compelling, partly I think because Alex isn't particularly likeable to start with and is trying so hard to be 100% rebel all of the time (I got irritated by the repetition of 'motorcycle' boots). Some of lines landed really well and made me smile or laugh, and some were less successful. I do think I would have enjoyed this as a teenager though and been attracted to the blurb. Mary-Kate also strikes a lovely balance alongside Alex.

This book really warms up as it unfolds though and Alex's journey as a character is really nicely done.

A genuinely funny, feminist story that made me laugh out loud but also stop and think.

Full review to come on my blog.