The First Move

thank you netgalley for this arc.

If you’re looking for a book with arthritis rep this is the book for you💗

I don’t normally read YA romance, but I really enjoyed this one! Just from the cover of this book I knew it was going to be amazing and I was not disappointed. A book with two unknown people connecting over the app chess life.

Jenny Ireland gives you characters that are multidimensional; Jules a 17 year old with arthritis, Ronan living with the aftermath of drug issues, Micheal the ever supportive gay friend and Jules best friend Tara having issues at home.

The only reason why this book isn’t 5 stars is because I did find it cheesy with the cliches at times but that’s because I’m used to reading adult romances and I know other readers would enjoy those parts.

I’d definitely buy a copy of this book for my younger sister who has perhes disease as this novel is really relatable and shows you can do what everyone else does

I'm not the target audience for a YA romance, but who cares? The gorgeous cover immediately drew me in.

Seventeen-year-old Jules (real name Juliet - her mum's obsessed with the Baz Luhrmann film) is a bit cut off from her peers due to her arthritis (yes, young people can get it too). It could be worse - she has loving parents and her friend Michael is ever loyal and supportive. Other friend Tara is a little less so (but has her own issues).

Ronan has just moved to the school from the other side of town after a family tragedy - keeping himself to himself (or trying to), he's not keen on letting anybody get too close. When Jules and Ronan meet, unbeknownst to each other, on a online chess site, an immediate connection is made, but can it survive in the real world?

There are a few cliches here - the gay best friend, the online chat with a "stranger" who turns out to be someone you know - but this was a brilliant read which I thoroughly enjoyed. The whole part where they are figuring out each other's real identities had me on the edge of my seat!

I'm going to buy a copy for my sixteen year old daughter when it's published - I think she'll love it.

It was so cute, fluffy and sweet. I don’t really read YA but this makes me want to get into genre more. This was definitely a Cinderella story x Queen’s Gambit themed. That’s spot on. It was so good - like this is a book I’d recommend to a younger version of me. My problem with most YA books being that they’re cringy - this wasn’t at all. I love the rep. It’s great and not harmful. Sheds light on what it’s like living with the disease and what it’s like for the people around you- yes young people can have it too. Delicate topics were well handled. I didn’t think it would be such an emotional read. The characters are three dimensional and very loveable. Yes, there’s the cliché queen bee and the gay best friend but I ate it up. I loved Juliet and Micheal’s friendship. He was there for her and was a true friend to her. I loved the healthy portrayal of her relationship with her parents and how they supported her.

I definitely didn’t expect it to be a deep book. It wasn’t just romance. It deals with some dark topics and it hit so close to home. ( Check TWs). It was an emotional read for me.

I like how matters were handled , nothing too dramatic to thicken the plot. The romance was cute and wholesome. It was a great read.

I just sat and read this entire book in one sitting, from the first page i was hooked!!! Juliet and Ronan have my heart, they’re so cute. Ronan googling arthritis to understand Jules more made my heart burst. I just loved every second of this book, my cheeks hurt from smiling so much. If you love a Cinderella story and Queens Gambit you will LOVE this as much as i did!

I thought this was really cute whilst having such a lot of heart and thoughtfulness behind it in the messages it wanted to put across. It had important things to say about difficult topics and did it well. I really enjoyed it.

The First Move is incredible!

From the very first page, the wit and dialogue sparkled in this YA romance. Juliet and Ronan meet in real life and, without knowing it, online too. In the real world, they get off to a terrible start, but meeting online in a chess community each of them are drawn to as a way to escape the difficulties they face, they connect immediately. It's a premise that worked SO well. I loved their witty, flirty online exchanges and was desperate for them to work out who they were talking to and to connect the same way in real life.

Juliet, Ronan and their friends feel so real and are all so well developed it allows Ireland to delve deeper into what lies behind the fronts they put on to the outside world. As the main love interests, Juliet is living with adolescent arthritis and (totally believable) parents who struggle with the boundaries of helping her while giving her freedom to grow, and Ronan is dealing with a new school and a struggling family set-up. I loved how equally weighted both characters stories were, which left me caring about them both and rooting for them to get together as it was clear how amazing they would be as a couple and how much they'd help each other. Juliet's friends are also given hidden lives behind the quick banter and the ways they are perceived at school. Ireland does such a great job of showing that everyone has stuff going on in their lives, even seemingly perfect Tara, and it's important to remember that.

I loved this book so much, and I can't wait to see it fly when it's published!

As someone who can suffer with their mobility, especially during my time through school, I really appreciated a female lead character that had a health issue that affected her mobility, and I only wished I’d have had access to this whilst I was in secondary school! I feel it’s important to shed light on characters that other teens can relate to that may not be as prominent in other works, and also some of the issues discussed with other characters opens up the bounds even more.
Ronan’s contained emotions, as well as his somewhat strained relationship with his mother, make starting at a completely new school daunting; the planning and approaching both his social life and school environment through chess makes for a niche but refreshing read, allowing more to be seen of his thought process as he references pieces moving or patterns/move sets of Grandmasters.
In some sections it was a little cheesy, but it is a teen romance novel so it’ll never go amiss!
Overall a good read, and one to recommend for teens with interests that aren’t defined by sports, or for those wanting characters who are easily to accept, as well as a representation of members of the disabled community.

I loved this book from start to finish - engaging characters with genuine issues and a sweet, romantic plot that had me rooting for Juliet and Ronan every step of the way. The chess game banter worked brilliantly too. A five star read!

The First Move is a book that reminded me of the power of love and the hope for the future YA embodies so well.

This was a pleasant surprise for me. It was a book that was slightly on my radar, but boy am I glad I picked it up. One thing I must commend Ireland for is the depiction of grief in its many forms. There is bereavement here and it is nuanced, devastating and impactful. But, there is also the grief for the life you could have had or the opportunities you have missed out on. It is so emotionally raw and tangible.

It is still so rare to see disability representation in YA and Ireland provides a vulnerable and honest look at it. There is frank discussion of the impacts it can have on everyday life and how it changes your entire perspective on life. However, this is no inspiration porn. Instead, Juliet lives with her disability, which does affect every aspect of her life, but she is not solely defined by it. She is a sweet, hopeful and somewhat naive teenage girl, learning to adapt to a world that does not want to adjust for her. It leads to some real moments of anger and frustration that hit home. Ronan is also a fractured, flawed and fantastically human character that I adored. His rage at the world reminds you how rarely you truly know what is going on with someone.

I absolutely adored how much of this book centred around chess. Often dismissed as a nerdy hobby, chess has enjoyed somewhat of a resurgence following the popular success of shows like The Queen’s Gambit. The mix of gameplay and realistically awkward teenage flirting on the online platform is brilliant. Ireland includes these chat transcripts that hold so much joy, hope and chemistry that just pops off the page. You cannot help but root for these two to work everything out.

Ireland combines a sweet and highly enjoyable YA romance with a raw and emotionally vulnerable look at grief, disability and the way your life can be changed forever by the tiniest thing. More people need to add this to their radar immediately.

I love contemporary YA romance and, because I have an invisible disability myself, I love books with disability rep. So I was always going to love this book where a teenager with arthritis and the mysterious new boy at school connect over the messaging section of a virtual chess app. And what a treat it was. The characters jumped off the page. The portrayal of Jules’ arthritis and the impact that has on her growing up as a disabled teenager is well written. There’s a swoon worthy romantic interest and a fabulously supportive best friend. I was hooked! I raced through this book and now eagerly await more from this author. It deals with some serious topics, including drug abuse and parental mental illness, but they are all dealt with very sensitively. All in all, I highly recommend this novel if you enjoy contemporary YA.