Ah this was quite cute to be honest - gave me such strong disaster teenager vibes just like late to the party. A basketballer and a cheerleader fake date under a wild arrangement and actually fall for each other - iconic just like the cover.

I enjoyed this story even if Scottie did get on my nerves from time to time, but that's to be expected for a 17 year old. I really liked Irene as a character and love interest. And I loved their friends!!!

I love sports so I guess this was a good book for me. Glad it wasn't filled with toooo much drama though, just enough to form a plot. Overall, a fun read that made me happy.

Okay I’m always down for some fake dating, enemies to lovers shenanigans and while this WAS heartwarming and a lot of fun, with a dash of geekiness, it ultimately just wasn’t for me. I’m sorry but the sports talk etc prevented me from getting fully invested and had my attention wandering ever so slightly, I’m the laziest person around and I don’t even run for the bus!

She drives me crazy by Kelly Quindlen

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to netgalley, macmillan and kelly quindlen for the opportunity to read this book

I'm giving this one 4 stars, it's a cute YA sapphic romance with a touch of enemies to lovers.

I really enjoyed the romance and the friendships that the author created but the best part was the character development we see not just in the main characters but in the side characters too. As someone who struggles with anxiety and depression I think the author did a really great job of showing what someone experiencing them might feel like after a bad breakup.

"The key is to not be afraid of breaking" I chose to read this book at the right time because that part got me.

"Because before you can worry about who's in your passenger seat, you have to learn to drive yourself" I may just keep a collection of quotes from this book because there's some really good ones about mental health and relationships in here.

Overall I really enjoyed this and while I did as previously mentioned recieve the digital arc it timed out before I finished it so I am now a proud owner of an ebook copy. I look forward to bumping the authors other book up my tbr for 2023.

Okay just going to preface this with a warning that I have not seen anybody else mention, but I think is important for anyone looking to pick this up - there is a minor HP reference on page 172. It's mentioned in passing, but I do still think it's important to note!

But anyway onto my review: this did end up being really cute, and I don't think this is a bad book, but I just don't think it was necessarily for me. I am the furthest from sporty that it is possible to be, so all of the discussion on sports is just not what interests me or gets me invested in a story. I also just felt that the relationship starts off kind of iffy because Scottie is essentially paying Irene (not even a little, she literally hands over $1000), and it was just very cheesy. I also wish we'd had some chapters from Irene's perspective because I loved her character!

BUT I did really like Scottie & Irene's relationship (once you get past the money part), I loved the friendships in the book and I loved Scottie's family dynamic! And despite it being cheesy, if it was a romcom movie I would eat it up like there's no tomorrow! I just cringe when reading that stuff. I also really enjoyed the aspect of handling the end of a toxic relationship, of learning to love yourself, of misogyny and sexism.

So if you like cheesy, if you like sports romances, if you like enemies to lovers, this might be the one for you!

Unfortunately I could not read this as it didn’t have the options available for me to download can’t wait to get round to reading this book

Scottie is still hung up on her ex girlfriend Tally when she hatches a plot that involves fake dating the head cheerleader, Irene. What follows is a sweet coming of age high school romance with brilliant characters and a lovely plot.

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

I'd like to start this review by saying I did really like the romance in this book--I thought Scottie and Irene were very cute together, and I always love seeing more diversity in YA romance, especially when that diversity is just another point in the story, rather than the main focus.
The issue I had with this book, however, was more to do with the teenage high school experience portrayed in it. Granted, I'm not American, and never attended a US high school, but I found the archetypes and characters all to be so very predictable, and unrealistic. The classic 'mean girl', the school journalists, the cheerleaders. It all felt very unlike real life, especially in conjunction with the social media use of the characters, though to be fair, as a member of Gen Z, I'm still yet to see a millennial author get completely right.

Anyway, this was a cute, sapphic high school romance, that I would definitely recommend--if you think you'll be a fan of this book, you probably will be.

(Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Children's Books for this eARC!)

'She Drives Me Crazy' is a highly adorable and addictive book. We not only have two of my favourite tropes centre stage, enemies to lovers and fake dating, but they are pulled off with great fun and humour. Scottie has recently broken up with her girlfriend Tally and still reeling from the upheaval - they are now at different schools but still rivals on the basketball court. So, when Scottie gets into a minor car accident and forced to share lifts with head cheerleader Irene, it makes sense for them to fake date in order to make Tally jealous... Of course! What comes next is all but inevitable.

There are lots of reasons to like this book, one of them being how much I enjoyed the maturity and honesty these teenagers used when they approached their relationships. Instead of starting something potentially toxic when Scottie was in a bad headspace, we see her work on herself to be ready for a healthy relationship with Irene. I also liked how basketball was a backdrop to the story and a gripping quest for Irene to be taken seriously as an athlete when cheerleading, from her peers and her family. Finally, this was all made worth it by the absolutely delightful Honey Belle who is such a marshmallow and ray of sunshine. The scene in the hot tub where she is getting the group to share their truths was fantastic.

Overall, I enjoyed the story - it was fun, well paced and with an edge of seriousness. I will certainly be looking out for Kelly Quindlen's books in the future. 5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

'She Drives Me Crazy' was the perfect book to get me out of the slump that I have been in recently. This book was so much fun and I loved every second of reading it. Even though this book is only 280 pages long, so much happens within such a small amount of pages and it was the best book to read when you want something that will just make you happy when you are reading it.
'She Drives Me Crazy' follows basketball player Scottie and cheerleader Irene who decided to fake date each other for mutually beneficial reasons, and I loved both of their characters so much, but especially Irene. Irene was so loveable and relatable and the kind of character I would have been obsessed with if I had read this when I was a teenager because she was so smart and confident but was so open and honest about her struggles and how she felt about everything happening in her life. I love all of the friends/side characters in this book. I loved that both Irene and Scottie had their own small groups of friends that they could rely on and that there was never much drama in the friend groups.
This book was everything I wanted in a light-hearted, fun, f/f rom-com and has made me miss reading cute rom-coms.
Thank you to Macmillian Children's for providing me with an advance copy of this book via Netgalley.

Unfortunately unable to read this copy as no send to kindle option/I do not have the correct software. I read the sample from Amazon and it looks like it would be a brilliant read (such a shame!)

Unfortunately unable to read this copy as no send to kindle option. Will read physical copy at some point and update review here

the cover alone deserves at least 3 stars. i really enjoyed this book but i think this was a bit too ya for me. while i am a sucker for a fake-dating, one-bed romance, i do think this book will appeal to a slightly younger audience than myself - which is great because i would have LOVED to have a book like this in my teens. it would have made me feel so seen.

it was very sweet, definitely campy, and dealt with serious issues including toxic relationships, sexism, homophobia, and racism in such a good and thorough manner. these serious topics were tackled really well in this, and the diversity was fabulous.

while scottie did get on my nerves in the beginning, her character growth throughout the novel was heartwarming to see, and watching her go through the motions of understanding when a relationship can be toxic and needing to let it go was both realistic and moving. also, her ability to understand that it takes time to heal was remarkable and i think we should see more of this.

irene was my favourite. she was so cool, knew what she wanted and did not lower herself to others' level even when they *cough charlotte cough* were being horrendous. i can't say the same for myself. cheerleading IS a sport, people.

and scotties supportive family? ugh, the best. i love them all.

4.5
The perfect enemies to lovers book everyone needs to read!
I laughed throughout this entire book.
The way the characters are written is fantastic, you really get the chance to understand them
Thankyou for the ARC NetGalley

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

This was a very cute and easy read. The characters were well written. But the book sometimes veered into the "too cheesy" area for my liking. I'm happy I read it but it would not be one I'd pick up again.