If I’m Being Honest By Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka Book Review

“You know being yourself isn’t permission to be a terrible person.”

(pg. 234)

About

Authors: Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance

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Synopsis

High school senior Cameron Bright’s reputation can be summed up in one word: bitch. It’s no surprise she’s queen bee at her private L.A. high school—she’s beautiful, talented, and notorious for her cutting and brutal honesty. So when she puts her foot in her mouth in front of her crush, Andrew, she fears she may have lost him for good. 

In an attempt to win him over, Cameron resolves to “tame” herself, much like Katherine in Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. First, she’ll have to make amends with those she’s wronged, which leads her to Brendan, the guy she labelled with an unfortunate nickname back in the sixth grade. At first, Brendan isn’t all that receptive to Cameron’s ploy. But slowly, he warms up to her when they connect over the computer game he’s developing. Now if only Andrew would notice…

But the closer Cameron gets to Brendan, the more she sees he appreciates her personality—honesty and all—and wonders if she’s compromising who she is for the guy she doesn’t even want.

Review

Spoilers Contained Below

To all those who are honest,

Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegmund-Broka had me from the first word: [Beach] 😂 or the swear word for beach, if you will.

There’s always this idea as a writer that you want your first word or sentence to be memorable. Oh, theirs sure was!

Anyway, Cameron Bright has been called a beach on multiple occasions, understandably so. I don’t know about you, but I had a real love-hate relationship with Cameron, more love than hate, of course. I didn’t really like who she was in the beginning of the book or any part she was acting to her given name by others. I think if everyone is calling you a [beach]—– close friends and family—–there really has to be something wrong with that. I know some people use the word jokingly, but to me, it never came across that way because Cameron genuinely was.

She also came across as a monster to me.

I absolutely detested the way she spoke to Paige when Paige accidentally stumbled in on her and Andrew. Like does she kiss her mother with that mouth? Obviously the parentals is something I have to talk about, but not right now. Because gosh darn, if I was her mother and I heard her talking like that, I would have thoroughly slapped her upside the head 🤪! I mean, what kind of garbage mouth did Camron have? It was good on Andrew that he walked away from her when he saw her for who she truly was that night because I don’t care how pretty or popular she was, calling someone else pathetic and worthless because they interrupted your make-out session, says a lot more about you then it does that person.

I wanted to thoroughly slap a beach 😆.

Then there was this whole fake persona she put on to save face with her trying to apologize to Paige the next day. Paige wasn’t dumb and I absolutely loved how she made Cameron work for it. And I loved how Paige called her out on just apologizing to Cameron because she wanted Andrew to see what a “good” person she was.

The whole obsession with Andrew—-him being the love of her life, the one she had been waiting for was utterly NONSENSE. I just kept shaking my head because you could tell that she didn’t like Andrew, but the idea of him. He just got on the soccer team, so he now had status. And they were older, so all of a sudden she allowed herself to say she could date him after all these years. She built up this perfect romance in her head that Andrew would solve all her problems and that they could be a perfect, happy couple. There was just a lot wrong with this mentality and I just wanted to hug her because she was looking for love.

So now we get to why I really don’t hate Cameron. I just feel she is a product of the messed up environment she was in.

“Everything in my life depends on two people too wrapped up in their own lives to spare a thought for my place in the middle.”

(pg. 88)

That in itself is such a loaded thought for a teen. Being a teen is hard already, but the burdens Cameron had on her wasn’t fair.

First, let’s talk about the dad.

Where do I even begin with that cold-hearted prick? 🤧

There’s just a lot wrong with him and this toxic relationship because that’s what it was.

From the very beginning, I detected a high case of daddy issues. I really felt the sense that Cameron was vying for her dad’s attention and love and she felt the only way to do that was to be the best, get into the school/program her dad went to, and all these things. Because in her mind if she got into the same school her dad got into and followed in his successful footprints, it would make the dad finally love her or be proud of her. And there’s just something so wrong with that. I WANTED TO HUG HER.

SHE DIDN’T NEED HER TOXIC DAD’S APPROVAL 👏🏼.

And you can tell she didn’t even like business, yet she signed up for all these courses because it was what her dad would want from her. HE doesn’t CARE!!! Not to be rude, but he doesn’t. Cameron had a passion for technology and creating websites and that’s what brings her love—-that’s what path she should be taking.

I also felt really bad the way the dad never even made time for her to respond to calls. She had to go through a freaking assistant to talk to her dad. And even then when she did talk to the dad, it sounded transactional and distant. It just hurt because Cameron has such a strong personality, but whenever she spoke to her dad or was in his presence, you could tell she retreated into herself a bit. She was conscious of how she acted and what she said because she didn’t want to do or say something that would drive him more away. Don’t even get me started on how TERRIBLE I felt for Cameron when she got denied to the program her dad ran. HER OWN DAD DENIED HER. And he accepted some low-grade jock instead of his own daughter because his daughter wasn’t what they were looking for, or how it was a “collective decision.” He didn’t even fight for his own daughter to be in this program of his. Even at that dumb dinner, he showed more interest in that male tech person than her. I’m sorry, how often do you see your only daughter? How often do you talk to her, sir?

Yea, that’s right, not a lot. I wanted to shove his face in a toilet to wake him up to how badly his daughter wanted his attention. WHAT A JERK 😡!

She didn’t deserve to push herself to impress a guy who would never be impressed by her anyway.

Oh, and don’t even get me started on this idea that she couldn’t cry 😫. MAN, I WANTED to reach through the pages with my tissue and sit with her so she knows she can freaking cry. It’s just so sad how she built this tough, strong facade because she was hardened by her dad and this situation was in. She thought that crying was a weakness. It’s not. I grew up with a single dad and there were a lot of times where he told me to suck it up and not cry and I think when you tell kids that it makes them feel like their feelings are invalid or wrong. So they do suck it up and when they feel any ounce of sadness, they feel it’s wrong. But you know when people bottle up so much, it’s bound to explode one day. I knew Cameron was going to explode one day because holding in her tears wasn’t healthy.

I also didn’t think it wasn’t healthy that she would literally run away from her emotions.

“I’m not going to cry, though. Crying is pathetic. I won’t help. It never does.”

(pg. 26)

Crying is not pathetic.

Heck, if it was pathetic, we’d all be pathetic 😅

Heck, I AM pathetic. AND I’m PROUD 🤪.

But whenever she felt like crying, Cameron would put on her shoes and run. I liked that she had an outlet to pour her anger/pain into because I know whenever I run it takes my mind off things. So it’s good she had that. But I think running doesn’t help entirely because when you’re done running, the problem is still there, you know?

There’s this saying, “Hurt people, hurt people,” and I have a whole blog post (I’ll link it) about it. But it’s the idea that people who are hurt, hurt others because they want them to feel the same pain they do.

Cameron was the living embodiment of this sentiment based on the hurt she felt at home.

There was one moment she lashed out at this girl after getting a hurtful call from her dad at track practice. What made this moment suck was how Cameron was doing well on trying to rectify situations, and then she had this one relapse moment when she lashed out at the nearest person because she just felt so hurt inside. To that girl, she probably thought, “Well, it’s just Cameron Bright being who she is: a beach,” but to the reader, you really understand it’s not her being a beach because that’s who she is, but it’s her negatively reacting and reflecting her feelings onto others. That girl just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time to hear that from Cameron.

When the dad denied her from his program, Cameron balled her eyes out and she was like:

“I don’t reach for my running shoes. I don’t stop myself.

For the first time in years, I cry.”

(pg. 310)

HOLD UP, SIS!!! WHERE YOU AT? I GOT MY 1000 pack KLEENEX and I’m ready to come cry with you!!! 🤧

My gosh, but before I go over to cry with Cameron, I need to thoroughly slap some sense into this prick of a father she had 👎🏼. I mean, he was gaslighting her all the way with saying how he provided for her and fixed all her problems and wah wah wah. BOO YOU!!! Don’t even talk to Cameron about how everything was her fault when she’s just a kid!

I want to slap a beach. I mean like father like daughter.

But Cameron, of course, was better.

I really liked that moment when she called her dad and, of course, the assistant answered. But that’s who Cameron wanted to talk to because she wanted to say sorry for taking her anger out on her. And I just really loved it when she asked the assistant her name because Cameron had been talking to this woman for years and had more of a relationship with her than her own dad. So it was cute when the lady was like, “I’m Chelsea.” And I liked how Chelsea told her how “[she was] nothing like [her] father.” You’re darn right she wasn’t. Or she was getting there and I think progress in becoming a better person is such a tremendous feat. Chelsea also had more heart in her pink than the dad has in his whole being because Chelsea looked out for Cameron and sent recommendations for an internship in California for her. His assistant has more love for Cameron than he did. There’s something wrong with that, but my gosh, it’s people like Chelsea that gives me hope that people can be loving and kind.

And you know we’ve been talking about the dad, but Cameron really was the middle of the Oreo. She had mommy issues too. Through Cameron’s eyes, you could really feel how Cameron felt like a commodity or a transaction to her mom rather than a daughter. This was just really wrong to me. The only reason that they were getting by was because the dad was giving the mom checks to help with Cameron and those checks would stop if Cameron moved out one day. So Cameron knew that the only reason her mom cared was because it gave her a steady income. As a child to know that, that HURTS.

When the mom needed a job, she called the dad and the dad got the mom a job and he threatened to stop giving them money. And then later on Cameron threatened the mom that she would move out because if she did, bye, bye money. It was just a complicated and harsh situation if you ask me. There really are no words to describe how bad I felt for Cameron. I wanted to HUG her.

Her mom failed at her dreams of becoming an actress, so she gave up and her mom never found another job. Her mom also went on all these fad cleanses that she always stopped after a while—-another thing she quit. Her mom was messy compared to Cameron, which, my psychoanalytic mind just found interesting because Cameron was soooo clean and for me, I think it was because she felt everything else in her life was a mess, so cleaning her room or the house was her way of having control over something. But they say what you feel on the inside is a reflection of what you feel on the outside. Since the mom’s life was a mess, obviously that reflected in how her environment was a mess. Cameron really resented her mom and I can understand that. Her mom was never trying hard enough to care for Cameron. Cameron’s only a teen, she shouldn’t be held responsible for the mom’s own messes or insecurities.

Over the course of the book, Cameron’s resentment becomes more tangible—-you can definitely feel it. Besides the money part, I also felt like Cameron saw her mom as everything she never wanted to be. She never wanted to be a weak, poor, helpless, confused woman who was still pinning for a guy who would never love her. Because boy did the mom pin for Cameron’s dad when it was clear he was never going to marry her. But that resentment also created a negative image of her mom all these years.

That’s why the ending part with the mom was one of my favorite parts. For sure. I loved how the mom set her straight by brining out the ring that the dad proposed to the mom with, but at the time the mom didn’t accept it because she wanted a better life for Cameron.

“He’s a cruel man, and I knew that—I’ve always known that. I wanted to protect you from the father I knew he’d be, from the pain and disappointment he’d bring you. That’s why I said no.

. . . “It was the strongest thing I ever did,” she says softly.

(pg. 328)

I wanted to HUG the mom!!!

Because like Cameron, we saw only one side of the story—this weak, pinning, woman—-when she was actually very strong. She was strong enough to say no to a man she loved and still loved, but she wanted her daughter to be happy, but instead, she didn’t really save Cameron from his hurt. But at the same time she kind of did because if had more of a presence in her life, I think Cameron would have turned out even more of a beach or she would have been crippled to the heart from the way her dad would treat her.

I think the mom should have told her this story a long time ago because it would have cleared all this resentment and made Cameron understand why her mother was the way she was. Because after hearing this, Cameron saw the truth of how bad her life would have been if her dad was in it and she wouldn’t have come to that conclusion if she never knew how strong her mom was.

It warmed my heart when Cameron hugged her mom because when they had that heart-to-heart you could tell Cameron felt like she was going to be fine. The only reason I felt like she chased after her dad’s love and approval was because she felt like her mom was too weak or far gone to give Cameron the type of love she needed. But this whole time she was looking for love with the wrong parent; it was always right in front of her eyes.

“But it’s not just about apologizing. It’s about forgiving.”

(pg. 329)

I loved that 💕.

Speaking of apologizing or rectifying situations, that’s what Cameron tried to do throughout this whole book in order to prove to Andrew that she was a good person.

First on her list was Paige.

I happen to really like Paige, she’s so spunky and funny. She also challenged Cameron in a good way because I think she’s the nicer female version of Cameron. I loved how over the course of the book they become best friends, starting with the moment Cameron walked into the bookstore with all of Paige’s friends, which included Grant and Hannah. Grant and Hannah used to date until Cameron had a fling with Grant and ruined that relationship. So Hannah swore to herself to never take him back, but it’s obvious they both like each other. It’s so funny though, how Cameron was introduced to their little friendship world of cosplay and books. You could tell she was out of her element compared to the way she hung out with Elle, the Youtube beauty guru or Morgan, the rich.

I also loved how Cameron went to that Rocky Horror Film show with Paige and her friends and how she kissed Paige as a joke. I also enjoyed their love-hate banter they had a lot in the beginning when they would say that they weren’t friends, but they were becoming friends. In an act of kindness, Cameron actually asked Elle to do their makeup for the show and it was such a sweet moment because it collided both of Cameron’s friendship worlds. Not in the best way if you ask me, but I still liked the sentiment that Cameron wanted everyone to have a good time.

The thing about their friendship that I enjoyed the most was how they were able to be real with each other. There was that moment when Paige felt at a low and she talked about how felt shadowed by her brother, Brendan, and so her dying her hair and wearing exotic clothes was her call for attention. And I liked how Cameron opened up to her too. It’s so different from the two girls who actively didn’t like each other in the beginning. Paige also knew that she was on this list Cameron had in making things right with Andrew, so she also questioned if their friendship was real. At first, I think Cameron wasn’t invested, but over time you really see her genuinely love hanging out with Paige and being her friend. And I disliked it when Paige questioned the authenticity of what they had because I think Paige was Cameron’s only real friend.

Elle and Morgan felt like status friends rather than actual friends, you know? They had high status—-the “popular” kids—–and they got along. But I don’t think they actually had a real connection as to open up to each other or talk about real things. We got to know more of Elle than we did Morgan, and I feel like Elle could have an interesting underlying story to her that may or may not be similar to Camron. There was this one moment when Cameron watched the way Elle talked to Jason, someone who she kissed even if he had a girlfriend. Cameron knew all too well what that was like because of Grant and Hannah, but seeing Elle go through it and the way she talked to him was so rude that it made Cameron see how her actions and words could be seen the same way—-in such a negative light. In that moment she also finally recognized how she hds been selfish, and coming from her, that meant a lot. But I think she really needed to see that so she knows her actions and words do hurt people.

Along with her list, Cameron needed to apologize to Leila, the girl she yelled on the track, and who was Jason’s girlfriend. To do that, Cameron gave her a hint about how Jason cheated on her because she didn’t want to completely throw Elle under the bus. But I loved how Cameron actually did that because it couldn’t’ have been easy to say to someone that they’re being cheated one specially when the person who he cheated on with was her best friend. But it highlighted how she wanted to change the situation and hoped Leila got the closure she needed or to know. And as much as sometimes a person should have a filter with things, this was one of the moments I actually appreciated Cameron’s honesty.

Then there was the whole blowup with Elle, which I was so HERE for. Elle was upset about Cameron telling Leila about the cheating and how she felt pushed to the side because Cameron had this new group of friends. Elle also felt very strongly that Elle was changing who she was and was more “timid.”

“Katherine’s not the villain of the play. It’s the people trying to change her.”

(pg. 233)

And this was such an interesting idea.

If there’s something Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka do well, it’s the parallels between Shakespeare and modern drama. For Cameron’s English class, they’re reading this Shakespeare book about a beach called Katherine and it leaves this whole debate in the air of if she’s the villain or not because of the way she is.

This was what really got Cameron to create this list to rectify things because during a discussion, Andrew said that Katherine was the villain because of the way she acted and so Cameron internalized this. Because if there’s one thing her dad taught her, it is to never give up. So she was going to prove to Andrew and others that she was more than a Katherine and that she was a good person. But in doing so, it begged the question, did she change who she was for a guy?

If I’m being honest, I think she did. But I also think that it led her to a good place. Because if she kept on acting like she did—-bluntly being rude or being a beach—-I don’t think he would have gone far in life nor do I think she would have had friends. But I think this journey was good for her to step outside of herself to know that her actions and words have consequences and to know that it’s not okay to hurt others because you’re hurt. I also thought this taught her to be kinder and to not judge others based on this idea of who they are because in high school, you have your crowds of the jocks, the outcasts, the tech nerds. And she was pegged as popular. But when she started to hang out with Paige and Brendan, she opened herself to the different worlds where she learned more about herself. I think she needed to go on this journey. In no ways do I think she turned into a timid version of herself, because heck, she still had an honest mouth when it came to things, but I think she learned to be kinder. I also want to say, it’s not good to change solely for a guy. But it’s good if a guy wants to make you a better person. I don’t know, this is a touchy subject because a lot of people have different ideas. But you know, people change people and I don’t think this was a bad thing.

I think Elle only saw it as a bad thing because she was the same. When Cameron talked to Elle to try to fix things, it didn’t go as planned. Honestly, as Cameron would approve of, I liked how not all of Cameron’s apologies worked out because in life, not all apologies do work. Because sometimes saying sorry makes the situation better, but it doesn’t mean things go back to normal. So I appreciated that. I also started to see how Elle felt in being betrayed when she needed her best friend. I also thought it was interesting how Elle said she felt like Cameron judged her and I get that. I went through a similar thing with a friend where I think we both judged each other hard because we knew what we were going through wasn’t right for either of us. And I liked how Cameron owned up to knowing that she was wrong for judging Elle. It really emphasized her maturity. Her maturity also came with being able to walk away from Elle in knowing that she did her part to make things better, but to not force someone to forgive her.

As for Hannah and Grant, I also enjoyed how Cameron went out of her way to make things right for them. She was playing little matchmaker there and Grant was here for it 😅. It was cute when Hannah and Grant finally did get together because it was bound to happen. Young love, am I right?

Young love and we still never got to Brendan!

BB, Barfy Brendan, because he barfed all the time as a kid because he had a stomach condition. But Cameron didn’t know that. Yet, that nickname carried with him throughout his life.

I mean being called Barf is not flattering.

If I’m being honest, 😉 Brendan’s such a good, cool, nerdy guy. Like he gives me Mcnerd vibes in the best way. His sense of humor is like no other and I’m here for it and I love the way he could take and make a joke with Cameron. But you know what got him more points in my book?

He was a freaking junior and Cameron was a freaking popular senior and he was able to hold his own!!!!! My gosh, when you’re a junior you’re going through the gutter, but man, did he have it together 👏🏼. At first, Brendan was very closed off to Cameron, which is understandable, but I liked how he slowly opened up to her and they flirted through text about his avatar video game with third grade colors. I mean, I don’t even know how to flirt as a sophomore in college, how does a hormonal teen boy know how to flirt better than me? 😂 I. AM. A MESS.

Anyway, I just loved it. I found it HILARIOUS how when Cameron was going to the Rocky Horror show with Paige, she went to Brendan’s room (Brendan’s Paige’s brother) and gave him a gold speedo and told him to come. She didn’t actually think he would come and I didn’t think he would go in a freaking goal speedo. BUT MY MAN, a freaking junior in high school, had the GUTS to go in front of a popular girl—–in front of the whole show—in a gold speedo 🤪! Where did this confidence come from? Definitely not something they teach in his computer room! I mean, he holed himself up in a computer room all the time because people teased him for being Barfy Brendan and all of a sudden he has the courage to walk out in a gold speedo 😆. Ummmm, I think he’s one of those Mcnerds who was just waiting for his moment to literally shine 😂.

What was funnier was Cameron’s reaction to him. I mean, both are highly hormonal teens. I really loved how they started to like each other and there was that whole moment when Cameron, being her, didn’t want to beat around the bush and just walked up to him in the tech room and kissed him. Like an idiot he thought that was her trying to make things right and get him to be popular. But to her it was her seeing if he liked her back. I hurt for her because boys literally need you to spell it out for them because they are the most clueless people on earth. SHE LIKES YOU YOU DUMMY!!!

I was upset at him. But for a guy who’s smart, he’s dumb at love 😆.

I mean, aren’t they all?

I’m joking! Not really, but yes really.

I also thought it was cute how he asked her on a date, but she didn’t know if it was a date at the time, but he wanted it to be a date. I mean, just tell her if it’s a date or not!

Ughh, there was that moment when they were in his room and he was like:

“I thought it was obvious how I felt when I asked you out on a date.”

(pg. 289)

I laughed at him! Obvious? OBVIOUS. Nooooooo sir.

When they started to make out, I was HERE for it. I’m still confused as to how he knows how to kiss as a freaking junior who’s never kissed in his life. Must be nice to have that skill because gosh knows not everyone is a natural good kisser. But they sure did get it on, kind of fast if you ask me.

It was really cute how excited and open he was about displaying his affection with Cameron at school. I still don’t know how he’s so confident. I need some of that 😆 I also just loved how well he treated her and how he could pick up if she was feeling down or not. Before the Winter formal, she got that denied letter from her dad and during the dance, she happened to see someone in the hall and I LITERALLY WAS LIKE, “Cameron walk away, walk away before you say something stupid.”

She didn’t walk away!

Like she did with Paige in the beginning of the book, Cameron went to town on displacing the hurt she felt in her heart on this poor girl namesd Bethany. Cameron was doing so good in being kind to people and here her dad got so into her head that she lashed out at someone. Her saying Bethany was pathetic, said a lot more about how Cameron felt. And I just was so conflicted because I get why Cameron acted the way she did, but I don’t think that justified it.

Brendan saw the whole thing and Cameron really sounded defeated as to who she was like she couldn’t change. Brendan knew that the person he saw wasn’t who she was, and bless his heart, for seeing the good in her, but I feel like Cameron saying that what they had wasn’t real, was her trying to push away the last good thing she had. Because she didn’t feel like she deserved it.

And this came after he said he loved her. If you ask me, I don’t know, but love? Already?! I don’t know man, but he just had his first kiss with his first girlfriend and he loved her? I don’t know about that 😅

Cameron knows she hurt Brendan badly and I’m happy Paige was still there for her when she had no one. I really liked how Paige told it to her straight when she read Cameron’s essay because, again, she’s like a nicer Cameron.

“Who’s good and flawed, who can recognize and right her wrongs while not giving up her strength and independence. Who’s kind without being weak, powerful without being awful.”

(pg. 338)

This goes along perfectly with Cameron’s whole story and her arc, which I loved. Like I mentioned before, I don’t think she changed the essence of who she was, but she learned to be kinder. She was still a strong person who was honest, but not in a completely awful way. Because Cameron was flawed and she can say things that are mean, but her recognizing her wrongs is the first step in being better to fix that. Her wanting to change for Andrew taught her she shouldn’t have even felt the need to change to fit the mold of what he wanted of her.

So obviously, Cameron no longer liked Andrew, whom she was trying to impress this whole time. Which is ironic because he started this whole journey. But I liked how she ended up with someone who appreciated her as she was. The way Cameron won Brendan back was really thoughtful because he talked about how he wanted someone to dress up as one of his web characters one day and she did just that. It was sweet that she remembered that and how she went out of her way to make a costume and get full glam.

“It’s come to my attention I’m not a perfect person,” I say, “I most likely never will be. But I’ve decided that’s okay. I’m going to make more mistakes in my life, and I’m going to apologize for them. If that’s a problem for you—-if you want me to promise to never mess up again, or if you just don’t like the flawed person I am—-then I would recommend you walk away right now.”

(pg. 347-8)

Sister, clap back! You don’t need to change for no man!

But a moment I liked even more was when she got accepted into her dad’s alma mater. In the moment Cameron didn’t feel the elation she thought she would feel, which is something I think we all can relate to. When we have a big dream or goal that we work tirelessly for, and then when we finally reach it or have it, it doesn’t live up to what we wanted and it just feels like, now what? Cameron wasn’t happy because she was chasing after her dad’s dream or this idea of what her dad would be proud of. So I was happy when she said she wanted to be honest with herself and how she wanted to go to UCLA to make websites. I told you that was her passion.

The ending itself four months later was worth the wait. I lived for how Andrew and Paige were together and had a double date with Brendan and Cameron to none other than a play put on by Owen and Megan!!!

Owen and Megan!!!! Love them 💕

I loved how Cameron was saying she would be great friends with Megan. I would love a novella please!

The whole book itself had such well-done parallels between Shakespeare and Cameron’s arc. You really got to see her change for better as a person while also staying true to who she was. I liked how she was able to find peace within all these relationships and people she hurt. I especially loved how her relationship with her mom was better and hopefully will be stronger. I hope Cameron cuts her toxic dad out of her life because she doesn’t need him. I also hope maybe one day Elle and Cameron can be friends again, but that’s okay if they don’t because people change and move on. And besides, Cameron had better friends. They should have invited Grant and Hannah to the play!!! What were they thinking? *Shakes head*

Anyway, if you read this book what was your favorite part? Least favorite part? Anything I talked about that you agreed with or disagreed with? Has there every been a time when you were brutally honest with someone or someone was brutally honest with you? Let me know below in the comments as I love hearing from you all 💕

I hope you have a beautiful day whenever and wherever you might be reading this.

And as always, with love,

Rating

4.67 Full Bloom Flowers

Characters: At first, you’re going to be like everyone and think Cameron Bright is a beach. But then you learn that beaches really are just people who are hurt on the inside and that their not really beaches, just brutally honest. Then you learn to love them for it because that’s who they are. So give Cameron a chance, you’ll like her 😄

Writing: If I’m being honest, it’s so easy to fall into a Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka book because it has so much depth to the story and the characters that it just keeps you engaged the whole time.

Plot: If there’s something Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka do well, it’s the parallels between Shakespeare and modern drama

Romance: I love a good Mcnerd and Brendan and Cameron together is like the epitome of nerd and popular and I LOVED it