I have started this review quite a few times as I do not know what to say to give it justice. So he goes, I loved the book. Cameron(Cam) was a sweet, funny, patient lad and Finn whilst going through some issues wanted to give their relationship a try and when they were together there are some of the most sweetest scenes going.
As to expect there were times that there relationship did not run smoothly thanks to the bullies at the school including West who has his own story to tell, I hope we will get it.
The friendships Cam had at the school kept him strong when faced with the difficulties and in turn helped Finn. There was one scene with Cam's parents had me laughing out loud, poor Cam and I could imagine him being in the kitchen mortified by his mom's comments.
The pace of the story flowed well and I found myself reading in one day, wanting to know more. I loved that it was set in the UK and when they were all at school had me imagining that I was back in my 6th form walking the school halls.
Yes this has some similarities to heartstopper, but I enjoyed this more. As soon as I finished this book I sent the link to my daughter and told her to buy it on the release day as I know she will love it, she is not a fan of detailed intimate scenes so I know this book is right up her alley. This is one author I am going to keep following and I hope I get to read more of his stories

A good read for anyone who is a fan of Heartstopper. The second half the book was more favorable for me and I couldn't put down the book because I needed to know how it would end. As a someone who saw parts of himself in both of the main characters, I am glad this book exists as a coming of age book for the younger generations who might be struggling with accepting themselves (something that I wish were available to me when I was at that young age).

Hiding Him is a wholesome queer YA story. It is set in a British secondary school and it definitely feels realistic to my own knowledge and experiences. It is full of chemistry, teenage drama and snark.

It took me a bit of time to get used to the writing style, as I felt there was some overdescribing and strange word choices. Once I had gotten used to this, though, the sweet, easy to read story went past very quickly. There were a couple of scenes/comments about students crushing on and sexualising a teacher near the beginning which I have to admit is something I hate to read, but thank goodness nothing actually develops in that area; it's just teenagers making teenager comments!

The romance that emerges is cute, heartwarming and happy. An easy pleasant read for fans of school romance stories.

This book needed to be written. Especially in the world we currently live in. Where Hate is so prevalent in many forms. I was genuinely hooked and interested in Cam and Finn's story the whole way through

Having followed Adam on social media for so long it was so hard for me to take his voice out of it. It sounded very much like Adam telling a story in a more explicit way than I am used to hearing on his vlogs. That in addition to the bullying was very hard for me to get through. As a person that was horribly bullied for things I had no control over - it hit way too close to home for me and I took my time reading the story for my own mental health.

That being said, it should not take away from the importance and brilliance of this book overall. As always, the acknowledgements made me ugly cry at the end of the book. Definitely feel like this book is for the older end of the YA scale over all. Highly recommend.

A gay teen romance that sits comfortably alongside Heartstopper

Full of zingy quips and adorable interactions, as well as a smidgeon of teen angst and bullying, Hiding Him sits comfortably alongside Heartstopper as a gentle gay teen romance with a little spice. Remarkably, as a self-published debut novel, this knows exactly on which side the bread's buttered on, and it's just the right mix of comedy, romance and real world issues, with realistic parents, best friends of all genders and sexualities to die for, and a relatable will-they-won't-they couple at the heart of it. Not everything is resolved, which suggests a sequel to me, and possibly adaption.

A well-deserved four stars: the ground's already been broken but this is a very worthy addition to the canon.

I was initially drawn to this due to my usual love for Disney and Adam being a well known Disney blogger and advocate, but was pleasantly surprised! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

If you love Heartstopper - then this is a perfect read for you! Initially it took me awhile to get into this but I loved how it unfolded - what a great LGBTQ+ read!

I love the emotions explored by all - it’s very relatable to many young people coming out and exploring their sexuality whilst in school alongside the family dynamics.

Cam tainted by history and bullying of his first ‘romance’ meets new student Finn. Finn’s father shuns him having discovered his sexuality - meaning he had to leave his old school and start again.
Not ready to come out again yet at his new school, Finn and Cam’s relationship was a secret until he was forced out by a precious bully. Will their relationship last?

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of Hiding Him Published July 2024!

It is rare these days that I reach for a YA novel but honestly this was like a welcoming hug to my younger self.

Hiding Him embodies a story of finding yourself and your people. There are trials along the way but love always wins. Cam, Finn and their friendship group (#Geriforpriminister) take you on a journey of exploring beautifully raw and at times heart wrenching moments counterbalance with hilarious inner monologues and references as well as showcasing what it can be like to be part of / an ally of the LQBTQ+ community.

Adam’s writing is free flowing and easy to read; I could hear his voice in my head which I think added to overall experience. I will say that it is very British and while this did give me many nostalgic moments, international readers may not get all the nuances.

I have been a long time viewer of Adam’s youtube content and it’s safe to say that this novel is like an extension of his other mediums. There were a number of subtle references to vlogs and content from the years gone by and humour that we know and love has been sprinkled throughout this novel.

Overall, this was a brilliant debut of Adam’s in the YA space and I cannot wait to see what he does next.

P.S. I do have to take a moment to reference the letter at the end of the book and the acknowledgment section - it had me sobbing!! #goose (IYKYK)

4.5 stars

I am someone who absolutely loves Adam's videos and I was so excited for this unfortunately this book wasn't for me. I didn't enjoy the writing because I can't stand books in present tense this is definitely a uts not you it's me issue because I feel at 25 I've also massively grown out of YA books set in high school. However I really really really hope this book does well because it will mean a lot to a lot of people!!

I imagine there will be a lot of comparisons to Heartstopper with this book but I think that’s unfair. A lovely book dealing with teenage issues with a great cast of characters. Highly recommended.

The full review has been published on www.guidetogay.com - five stars and a jolly good read, Adam - you have done yourself proud!

4.5
This was the perfect balance of everything for a queer UK high school romance - cute, sweet, emotional and angsty!! I’ve been a fan of Adam for many years now and I knew I had to read his debut novel. I cannot believe this is a debut! The love, soul and emotion that had gone into writing this book is truly evident and that in turn makes me feel even deeper for the characters and the story. Well done Adam!!!! Even with that aside any book that mentions high school musical and taylor swift in the same sentence immediately has me SAT!

This book is extremely raw and realistic as well as heartwarming and comforting. It’s the perfect book to really sink into and just binge in a day or so (I know from experience lol). This is for my lovers of Heartstopper and my UK romance book lovers who are sick of every romance book being about American high schools.

Thank you to Net Galley for a free advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was quite excited to get quickly approved for an ARC for this book as I enjoy watching Adam's YouTube and Instagram videos (particularly any featuring Gary C). Despite being a fan I will be honest! Whilst this book is very sweet, earnest and will definitely find an audience thanks to a wholesome romance plot, funny, quippy dialogue and modern references, I couldn't help but find it a little derivative of things I have read before, particularly Heartstopper. I just think that with the LGBT+ market being so popular right now I think more needs to be done to stand out and blow readers away. It's very readable but I wasn't exactly gripped by it unfortunately. Books like this definitely find an audience and I wish Adam nothing but the best when this book is unleashed to the world in July.

I couldn’t but this book down, it had me captured from beginning to end. The relationship itself was dreamy, the friendships in the book were pure magic and I just loved it. It obviously dealt with some very real issues when coming out but it was done brilliantly.

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗴𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘇 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗶𝘅𝘁𝗵 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗺’𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗼 𝘆𝗮 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄.

Hiding Him is Adam Hattan’s debut novel and it is wonderful! A true YA romance in the lgbtq+ community. A warm hug based in the UK with so much consideration and heart. While I didn’t necessarily find it easy to navigate the names of grades and certain English terms since I’m not native, it didn’t detract from the story as a whole and I found it refreshing reading about a different culture.

Cam is living in a smallish town and seems to be the only openly gay guy around. He’s part of the “no clique” clique and he tries his hardest to not let the older bullies and lack of boyfriend-material from keeping him down.

Then one day when he’s walking his family’s dogs with his parents, a hot new guy meets his eyes and before Cam knows it, Finn starts at his school and the sparks, and rumors, fly.

A genuinely sweet, realistic ya mm romance. The only issues I had with this story were personal but the writing and flow were great and for a debut author, I gotta say bravo!

𝘙𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘋𝘢𝘵𝘦: July 2, 2024
𝙄 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙘𝙤𝙥𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠. 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙤𝙬𝙣.

Cam leads an average life with a loving family and good friends. He has been out at school for some time and is accepted by all except his former friend Gabe West who has turned against Cam for an unknown reason and who takes every opportunity he can to needle and trip up Cam. When new boy Finn appears on the scene, girls plus Cam immediately are drawn to this god-like creature. But Finn seems to have been befriended by West.
However, he slowly migrates to Cam’s friendship group who finds it very difficult to take his eyes off Finn, making it obvious to everyone he has fallen for him. When Cam accompanies Geri to the school darkroom one day he finds Finn in there too and it quickly becomes their clandestine meeting place.
But Finn outwardly shows no sign of being gay.
The story follows this new relationship with its ups and downs with West playing a big role.
I was fully expecting a further revelation which didn’t come, but am not convinced it wasn’t there, just the author choosing not to reveal it.
I could have done without the great detail of intimate scenes but the story was sweet and unobjectionable.

I received this e-book for free via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Hiding Him was a quick and fun read for me. Cam and Finn made for a cute couple to get to know. I genuinely enjoyed their interactions as well as their little friend group. As always I wish there was more in depth and deeper connection between characters before the “L” bomb is dropped but nevertheless I enjoyed the moment it happened. I felt as if some of the deeper issues were swept over and not fully resolved. Even the adult getting involved later in the story felt very unsatisfying. Some of the descriptions felt very embellished and not genuine as well. Overall, I truly enjoyed reading this and would read more about these lovely characters in the future!

I was intrigued to read this book as it was set in the UK and we don’t get many YA books set in the UK compared to those set in the US. It was nice having one of our own write about UK schools and from a first time author too. Now having read it I think your enjoyment will very much depend on how much you have already read in this genre and what you are expecting from this book. For me this was a light hearted, fluffy book which was quite inoffensive (and I don’t mean that in a “kiss of death” or patronising way) with some fairly sweet characters. The plot is what you would expect and the angst was fairly low compared to many YA books. It felt like the type of book you would sun yourself under when things feel a little grey in your world. And it was good to see another British male author writing in this genre, someone I hope we continue to hear from in the future.

One thing I liked about it was that it was a first person narrative and I do like a first person narrative, especially when the characters are witty and intelligent. My go to in this genre is always going to be “Maps” in the “Life According to Maps” trilogy by Nash Summers. He’s a hard act to follow but a wonderful example of how a book can be elevated into the stratosphere when you get that first person character narrative just right. Unfortunately Cam is not quite there for me and I struggled a little with his voice in the book and his voice as heard in the prose. Occasionally the two felt a little off to me. At times some of the scenes in the book felt like they were being written like cartoon sketches, with overly curated comedy scenes and somewhat 2 dimensional character skits.

The other thing I had trouble with was how the author switched from writing scenes in the minutest of detail to suddenly writing chunks of text in precis format, missing out huge sequences. It was as if the author just wanted to jump to another intimate scene between Cam and Finn and not flesh out a scene he had already set up for us. The Christmas market scene for example, cuts out a huge section of the gang having fun together, which would have been much more interesting to read. We moved from a detailed description of Cam looking for Finn at the start of the evening (including a detailed description of Finn’s clothes) to suddenly jumping to the end of the evening with Robyn throwing up. As a reader I wanted to know what they had got up to in between. The author told us they were meeting up at the Christmas market, he even mentioned we were going to meet Finn’s puppy that night too. Then he short changed us and we got virtually nothing of the market or the puppy… did Cam actually get to meet him other than seeing Finn’s uncle holding him? It would have been fun to read about some of that. There are some great characters in here, the scenes could write themselves. If Cam and Finn had a good time at the market I want you to show us it, not just tell us afterwards in conversation that they had a good time. It is these things that give substance to the world the author creates because we get to live those experiences with the characters too.

The same can be said following the “break up text” on 22nd December. We jump straight to the New Year party without any description of what Cam must have been going through over the Christmas period. These are important characters moments that shouldn’t be glossed over because the author wants to get to the next big showpiece scene. Sometimes those things work in films or on TV but with books being a more intimate format, you want to know what is going on in your character’s head.

The two main characters were fairly likeable guys. They maybe could have benefited from a few more character flaws which would have made them feel a little more real and easier to relate to. All that said, he has written some great side characters in Robyn and Geri, even the parents stand out on the page. In fact I would love to read a book with Geri as the main protagonist, I am sure it would be so much fun. For me though this was a sweet book, if a little on the dull side. With so many incredible YA books out there by the likes of Simon James Green, William Hussey and Julian Winters, this might struggle to find its audience. I hope not as the author shows promise particularly with a decent story editor behind him.

I loved the chemistry of the characters and I liked that it was set in the UK. The pacing was good but at times the writing style went less to chunky which did not flow for me

I have been a big fan of Adam Hattan and his Disney vlogs and when I heard about this book I was so excited to read it. I knew it would be good and how much hard work would be put into it. That aside, I have reviewed this book without any bias and can say that this is a genuinely brilliant book.

I found it to be an easy, well paced novel with really likeable characters. It explores raw emotions beautifully and I loved the character group dynamics. It is a fun, heartwarming story and I will definitely recommend this book to anyone I know. For me it's genuinely hard to believe it is his first novel,

Thank you so much to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to like this book more than I did, and I've been sitting here trying to argue myself into giving it a fourth star, but... it just didn't work that well for me. I thought that the characters at times behaved very young for their age and at times just the opposite. Part of that is that the drinking age in England is lower than in the US, but I don't think that accounts for all of it. Anyway, as a result it kept feeling to me more like a middle-grade romance, except with these weird occasional detours. Clearly it works better for some readers, and I'm happy for them.

My thanks to the publisher/NetGalley for an advance copy of this book.