⚠️cw: child neglect, addiction ⚠️
Nikki has always had a difficult relationship with her mother. When she's thrown out, her best friend Malachai begs her to stay with him over Spring Break. Over the course of the week, he desperately tries to change her mind about moving away from Texas to LA.
Joya Goffney is brilliant at writing complex, flawed characters. From the beginning, we see Nikki's mother through her eyes. Cold, hard, and unloving. On more than one occasion I really wanted to scream at her mother to see how much she was hurting her. Nikki is terrified of upsetting her. But she has a way out. An audition in LA. But that means leaving her friends, her sister, and her best friend Mal behind. I absolutely LOVED their connection throughout the story. Nikki has so many vulnerabilities. She broke my heart so many times, but she was also so sweet with Mal and I loved her humour. Mal is the rich boy who seemingly has it all. Meanwhile, Nikki is the girl from the wrong side of the tracks. Both have been holding back on how much they care about each other in a romantic way. But when things come to a head at home, and Nikki decides she's not coming back from her audition, Mal steps up. As the days pass, they learn more about each other and finally address their feelings for each other. I absolutely adored Mal. He was so sweet, kind, and level-headed. I also loved the development of their relationship, as well as their banter. And it's only as the story progresses that we begin to unravel why Nikki's mother is the way she is. And while it doesn't excuse her behaviour, you can at least empathise with her own vulnerabilities.
Another beautiful story from this author.

Overall Rating: ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Heat Rating: 🔥
Emotional Rating: 💓😬🤬💔😊💓😢💓😂😉🥰💔😍🥰😢💔😬😂🤬🥰😒💓😲🥰💓🥰😍💔🤬💔😢💓🥰

*Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to leave an honest review. My Week With Him is published on 11th July in the UK*

Not her best work, as it felt more youthful than her other books but not particularly in a good way. It was still a fun story but I didn't feel myself enjoying it the way I have with her previous two books. Maybe it felt a bit more far fetched? and the chemistry wasn't as palpable...

I’ve read all of Joya Goffney’s novels and at this point I can safely say I’ll read anything she writes!

My Week With Him is a fun, fast and entertaining story of young love and adventure but it also tackles harder topics such as family troubles, belonging, prejudice and poverty with sensitivity. Many elements of this story will be relatable in some way to YA readers and I think that is very important. Not only is this an adorable romance with fun elements it also opens the readers eyes to the struggles of others and showcases the harder parts of life in an elegant and accessible way. There are so many elements to this novel that I feel I simply cannot do it justice in a review but I thoroughly recommend everyone giving it a read!

AD/PR GIFTED

The struggles between a young woman and her mother can be so tough. Many times we butt heads and don’t see eye to eye. This story highlights that perfectly. Nikki and her mother’s relationship is intense and difficult to read. Many times i found myself welling up, almost unable to imagine a mother could be so cold towards her daughter. The dynamic between them is written beautifully by Joya and the ending gave me such closure. The love story between Nikki and Mal is a typical “Friends to Lovers” trope and i found comfort in reading those parts. Im glad Nikki had someone who constantly showed her love and affection- Mal is amazing.
Thank you Netgalley for this ARC copy.

Thank you netgalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review. I absolutely loved every aspect of this book, from the characters to how the plot developed. Because of this, I would recommend this book to absolutely anyone, and cannot wait to read the other works from this author. 5/5 stars!

A great romance novel that had me all up in my feelings!!

I really enjoyed this book. It follows Nikki and Mal who are friends but end up falling in love. I loved the complex family relationships and drama that came with it. It was written so well and their relationship was super sweet. It was so realistic and I felt all the emotions, rooting for Nikki.

I highly recommend this one!

my first book from joya but definitely not my last! an absolute treat of a read. i loved how she wrote the characters in a realistic way. they were so cute and wholesome!

I would read Joya Goffney’s shopping list, that is how much I love her work, so it was a no brainier that I would love this book. I always have high expectations for her work and she exceeds them every time.

I love Joya Goffney's writing, but I really struggled with this one. The premise - about parental emotional abuse is an important one, as is the role of exploring creative dreams and head vs heart - but the execution was disappointing. The central romance came too early, too easily, with little room for development. The narrative style occasionally blended now/then which was confusing at times. The mother-daughter relationships didn't get the light/depth shade they deserved.

I’ve read both of Joya’s previous books so I knew I would love this! It has a different feel than the other books, but it still had elements throughout that feel signature to Joya’s writing. She manages to write difficult subjects in easy to digest ways. It was a little difficult for me to read this time, but I’ve connected emotionally through all three of her books, and I love them for that.

The romance feels very natural and wholesome, the friendships weren’t as well developed in this one as they have previously been but this book had less to do with them and more to do with family - I think I can definitely say by now that she will be an autobuy author for me! If you haven’t read a book by her yet, you should, even if you’re not heavily into romance

Thank you Netgalley and publishers for the review copy

This was very cute and more than a little sad. A quick, enjoyable read. Would recommend to my older students.

A cute and fun romantic YA book with some exploration of troubled mother/daughter relationships that it was easy to connect with Nikki’s feelings. At times the character development felt rushed especially Mal’s backstory and why Nikki didn’t know this prior.

Adored this book! Whilst it did cover some tricky subject matters, it was a thoroughly enjoyable teen fiction read and one I know some of my students will enjoy. Will definitely be added to my recommendation board!

What can I say about My Week With Him...
I adored it!
The story follows Nikki and her fight for her dream of becoming a singer, all she wants to do is make it to California for an audition, but her life situations keep getting in the way.
The book spans over 7 days and each chapter is a new day with a new section for whatever time it is during the day. The format was interesting and is able to keep a reader engaged with the story.
There is so much that happens within the days, however everything that happens doesn't seem far-fetched, it’s all completely plausible.
The relationships are so defined from Nikki and her mother, her sister and even seeing Mal and his relationship with his parents, it just gave this whole story and premise so much more depth.
I cannot recommend this book enough! It’s engaging, plausible and just so consuming. An accurate depiction of what a toxic household can look like and what it can feel like growing up like that. I felt for the characters, and I just couldn’t put the book down.
Definitely a 5 star read for me.

I was a big fan of Joya Goffney’s previous books, Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry and Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl so I was eager to read her latest, but something just didn’t hit the spot with My Week With Him.

Central to the story is Nikki’s difficult relationship with her mother, who doesn’t seem to want her around and gets angry at her for no reason. Her mother just wasn’t developed enough as a character to justify her changes in mood, and this would be fine if she were a minor character but she’s a big part of the story and the ending just seemed unrealistic because of this.

Teenage homelessness is a real issue many young people with insecure living arrangements face and it would be good to see this covered in a YA story. But Nikki doesn’t seem at all that bothered that she’s at risk of homelessness, and for parts of the book is technically without a permanent residence. The whole thing hangs on her either getting a miracle dream job or living with the family of her boyfriend. Both very convenient safety nets.

I feel like Joya ultimately wanted this to be a nice story that didn’t put her main character into too much peril, but I was constantly worrying how Nikki was going to manage on behalf of the character who didn’t seem to have the slightest bit of survival skills for the real world. I actually think it’s good to teach kids about money management and it’s not something that needs to be swept under the rug in stories.

Then there’s Malachai, why would he not want Nikki to chase her dreams? While I thought her being supported financially by a music career was a long shot, you shouldn’t be making decisions on the rest of your life based on what a boy thinks you should do.

The parts that were Nikki and Malachai hanging out and him trying to convince her Texas isn’t that bad were sweet and enjoyable, it’s just that unlike her previous books, the serious issues weren’t so well woven into the fun writing.

It is the beginning of spring break and Nikki is going to California just for an audition, but when her abusive mother kicks her out she decides she will go there permanently. Her best friend and 'secret' crush Malachai asks her to spend spring break with him instead and see if she still wants to leave after that. When her younger sister Vae goes missing, things get even more complicated and Nikki has to face her mother again. Will that and her feelings for Malachai affect her decision to pursue her dream?

Goffney's last book Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl was one of my faves last year so I started this with high expectations. We jump right into Nikki's life from the start and feel comfortable like we've always been there. The honesty of this quite moving 1st person POV makes the emotions it conveys palpable. The author always manages to write characters we want to protect at all costs. Nikki's memories put the situation into perspective and help us learn more about the characters, though sometimes they feel like they are interrupting the narrative.

I really like how the book was dividend into parts that were days and the chapters were different times of that day. Also, the notes to self which are sometimes funny, though they always pinpoint aspects of the current situation and stuff the protagonist realizes.

You will adore Nikki and Malachai together. There were instances when I just wanted to hug the book.

This book is about family dynamics, and how they affect us in a positive or negative way. How abuse can carry into the next generation and even emotional abuse is still wrong and harmful. People are a lot stronger than they think and healing comes from within ourselves with acceptance and realization. It isn't selfish to look out for, to take care of yourself.

I was so carried away by the wonderful and absolutely engrossing writing that there were parts, luckily not often, where I thought I missed something and I had to go back and reread previous pages. It usually helped but sometimes it didn't. Like something with Dallas that was partially explained much later.

This is a thought-provoking and charming story about growing into and realizing who you are. It is full of life lessons that rise from bittersweet melancholy and soul-searching, while it always celebrates life.

This was such an interesting read! I found myself so engrossed in the story, the characters had such incredible arcs, and I can't wait to follow this author's journey!

Content Warnings: parental neglect, alcohol use, classism, racism, domestic abuse (mentioned)

Nikki's plan to escape her life in Texas to make it big in California is thrown askew when her sister Vae goes missing, forcing Nikki to work with her difficult mother and the best friend she might be in love with to find her.

This was such a highly anticipated book for me because I loved Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry and I am a notorious sucker for the friends to lovers trope. I'm delighted to report that I was not disappointed!

I really enjoy Goffney's writing style, it's super engaging and easy to read. Her characters are really strong, I was immediately invested in Nikki. The romance, while I did think their getting together was a little rushed, was really sweet. Nikki and Mal had great chemistry, and I appreciated the lack of miscommunication and 3rd act breakup. These children are emotionally intelligent!!! Nikki and Vae had a great relationship too, it felt very genuine and relatable. My main critique would definitely be pacing, the searching for Vae plot was concluded by the 50% mark, which surprised me, and I think drawing it out would have made the book a bit stronger. The romance, while I really liked it, had the same issue. That being said, it's clear that the main arc we're following here is Nikki's character growth and developing relationships with Mal, Vae, and her mother. This arc was really well done, and I was definitely invested enough in the characters to want to read the less plot-heavy 2nd half.

This is a definite rec from me, and a new author added to the insta-buy list!

Thanks to NetGalley and Joya Goffney for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

WOW!!! This is the first book I'm reading from this author and I am absolutely blown away!! I don't often pay much attention to the synopsis so I went into this pretty much blind; I expected a sweet YA romcom and although it wasn't quite that, it was incredible and I'm so so glad the author went in the direction she did!! I loved the time-keeping, it would've been very easy to shove too much into a week but the time-stamps and the way events unfolded was done very skilfully, which made it read like just a very busy week!!

Nikki is such an incredibly layered, dynamic character. She's both vulnerable and resilient, she takes care of her little sister but also needs to be taken care of; she exhausts herself trying to protect her heart from disappointment but still secretly kindles a hope that things will change. This could have made her a bitter or mean character, but once again, Goffney has taken something that could have gone very badly, and made it absolutely gut-wrenchingly good. You can't help but sympathise and empathise with Nikki; you want her to go out on her own and take back that control that was stolen from her, you feel for her frustration and her sadness. At one point I was almost rooting against their relationship because I was worried she would give up the audition for him but I really shouldn't have worried because the way that was handled was flawless. She was allowed to grow and take steps forward and take steps back, but she never sacrificed her dream, herself, what she knew she needed. She knew what would benefit her, even if she couldn't quite name it - she needed the audition because it gave her the independence, the confidence, the validation, the out, and she didn't let anyone take that away from her, while still maintaining caring for her sister and allowing herself the peace that Mal brought her.

I love how soft Mal was- he made a stupid choice at the start but he was allowed to grow and come back from that and I didn't feel the defensive need to hold that against him (I tend to be unforgiving when it comes to love interests making mistakes oops). Which is such a kudos to the author's skill - that she's able to let her characters make mistakes without making them horrible people- absolutely love to see it.
When he gave her his chain??? Maybe I sobbed; also their first kiss??? WAS SO FREAKING SWEET!!! The way their love was so soft, wholesome, and gentle - his voice cracking at the start when he was begging her to stay, the way he would absolutely drop everything to help her/be there for her etc. I mean,, him teaching her how to love??? How to be vulnerable and shed the guilt of it - I couldn't get enough of them, actually. And the way that extended to taking care of her little sister? That boy was in LOVE love. The way he reacted to her not knowing how to say she loves him back, he was so mature about it. He didn't push her to be vulnerable or talk about her feelings, he showed her that it was ok by doing it himself and that was just,, ugh so good!!

The one thing I struggled with a little was the pacing - I thought I knew where it was going when they started the road trip but that quickly got complicated. It was a lot of back and forth so pacing-wise that as a little jarring. HOWEVER, narratively, and appreciating the reason behind the pacing and repetitiveness of events, it's genius. It's exhausting reading her take steps and make ways to get to that audition and get her life started, and then be dragged back to the place she wants to be least in the world. It's exhausting reading her hope and be disappointed and hope again etc. but it's so so smart because in doing that, the reader is living a little of what Nikki is- if its exhausting reading about her life, imagine how it is for her to live it.

The relationship she has with her mother is painful and unhealthy, toxic even. The way it's written with so much depth and so much unsaid is really- so validating for anyone who has a difficult relationship with a parent. I could identify with her internal conflict between wanting to protect herself and also wanting to give in and take the small blessings when they come. When she asked her mum "...so then, what was it that I did that made you do that to me?" I had to put my phone down because wow. It was such a simple question but the weight it held- it felt like a very pivotal moment for all the characters, it was an acknowledgment that she didn't deserve the abuse, it was the heart-breaking realisation that she still on some level blames herself, but it also felt like an answer - there was no reason, there never is a valid one. This is definitely one of my favourite lines in the whole book. Closely seconded by "As soon as I unlearn it, though, I'm going to teach my sister how to love." This was so beautiful - that she could acknowledge that her sister needs to un/learn the same things she does and that when she hurt her it was just an attempt to protect herself. That perspective and that empathy that she showed was so so wonderful to read.
By the end of this book I felt so at peace knowing that these characters will go on to live very good lives off-page. That they would continue to learn together and hold onto their worth, and that they would have each other. It's never perfect, but the ending was so hopeful and to be quite honest, maybe I tearing up a little.

This was such a gem of a book, I can't wait to pick up a physical copy when it's released!! It's definitely one of my new favourites. The author has taken very real experiences that often breed hopelessness and resentment, and instead of ignoring the reality of that, which she could have for the sake of a cute romance, she used the romantic plot as a vehicle for gaining self-awareness, empathy, and giving the MC a safe-base to touch back whenever she needed a breather. She wove the difficult reality with a hopeful ending and it just made the most wonderful story.

My Week With Him was another delight from Joya Goffney. If you enjoyed Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry, you’ll love this equally as much. This book was full of teen angst, complex family relationships and young dreams.