Cover Image: The Exact Opposite of Okay

The Exact Opposite of Okay

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Member Reviews

Did not finish this book, and the website will not let me use the did not finish function. So I am attempting this instead, I hope that’s okay.

I’m sure the book was great but at the time I did not finish it and years have passed.

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Think this was trying to be a more modern Louise Rennison, Georgia Nicholson type of honest, funny narrating, but unfortunately it just didn't match up to it for me.

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Oh my god. I loved this book!!! I really don’t remember requesting this on Netgalley but when I read the blurb I knew I had to read it now! It was just awesome!!

I bought the audiobook because despite getting it on Netgalley I feel awful about how crap I am at keeping up to date, so I buy the audiobook or rent from the library or get the book from Kindle Unlimited just so the author gets something for my tardiness. Anyhoo…

This book! Just fabulous!

The narrator was great, although she did keep changing her accent and the character’s accents throughout which did get a bit confusing and I couldn’t figure out if it was set in the UK or US for ages. But ignoring those trivial things, I LOVED IT!!

I loved Izzy, daft but adorable Izzy. I found myself agreeing with a lot of what she had to say until she did something which was so reckless, more than the nudes!!! I just realised that she made a colossal mistake and that could cost her a friendship. It did for a while but still, silly girl!!

Otherwise, what happened to her was absolutely awful. Doesn’t matter if you are a bit free and you send pictures etc, it’s a violation from other people. And when there are awful death threats I was just disappointed and disheartened for her. Kids and adults really do let you down! At least she has Ajita. What a star of the book she was. We all need a best friend like her.

I loved that this book was basically a conversation with Izzy. She was cracking me up as we revisited her blog posts and she talked us through it. Her inner monologue was great and Grandma Betty, I want her in my life!

I just loved this book, said that already haven’t I? It is such a relevant book, with slut shaming and cyberbullying. It felt like a raw and honest book and it’s something I hope will never happen to you or your children. My mini-me will be locked up forever!!!!

I am so glad I read (well listened to) this book! The cover is eye-catching and well I said all the rest. It’s a book of the times we all need and I spied a sequel! Izzy, I am coming back for your escapades!!!

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I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher. This in no way impacted on my view.

Izzy O'Neill doesn't care what other people say about her, but when she becomes entangled with a local politician's son, and someone creates a blog calling her ever name under the sun, but most especially a 'Slut Extraordinaire', Izzy is angry. As the 'story' goes viral, and everyone from her local town, to across the country is talking about her, Izzy needs to use all of her bravado to make it through the end of school.

Well, this was a bit of a surprise. I didn't know what to expect going into it, but definitely was not expecting a book that discussed revenge porn, slut shaming, and the friend zone all in one. I loved how confident Izzy was, and how she embraced her life. Being raised by her grandmother, Betty, who worked two jobs to help support them, Izzy wanted to improve her life, and that of Betty. She had dreams of being a comic, and fully embraced her sexuality, and to hell with what others thought. I felt really sorry for her when the blog was posted, particularly when it started to include images and other details about her life. It was easy to guess at who the culprit was, though, and though the book is set in America, it was clear to see that the author was British - at least to me, anyway. All in all, though, a decent book.

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Am torn about this book. On one hand I want to send copies to all my nieces and nephews as they are more likely to acknowledge the books message than listening to grumpy curmudgeonly old aunt croaking "don't send nude selfies". But on the other hand, I am burning with furious anger that children need to be taught about the perils of revenge porn. FFS humans can be despicable cesspits of scum. The fact that this is a thing makes me think how much humanity is doomed. Bring on the next apocalyptic meteor, Universe.

Recommended for fans of Men Explain Things to Me,Moxie, The Hate You Give, We Should All Be Feminists, Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls

Thank you to Netgalley and Egmont Publishing for the copy.

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I ended up DNFing this book after a few chapters because I was struggling to get into it. I just wasn't connecting to the story or characters and eventually lost interest. The premise of the book was appealing at first but sadly, it just wasn't the book for me and didn't grab my attention from in the first couple of chapters.

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I really enjoyed this book! Despite covering some tough topics, pretty much head on, it was largely told in a lighthearted tone which helped the flow of the novel. I almost instantly fell in love with Izzy and the way characters moved around her and the way they featured in her life just felt really real.

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Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

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Fantastic read and addition for our YA sections across our libraries, very current and really will appeal to our readers. Second half of the novel seemed to really pick up the pace.

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DNF. Looking back at reviews and discussing this book with other reviewers, I've realised that this one just wasn't for me. There was nothing inherently wrong with it, but I just didn't feel amazed or in awe of anything that happened, and there was no real clear message, which is something which I think this book was striving for. I love the feminist themes throughout, but I don't think I got what I wanted out of this one. Thanks to Egmont Publishing for the chance to read and review.

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This was a great book that explored the timely topics of feminist and slut shaming perfectly. Really great story to follow the Me Too and Times Up movements.

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4.5

The only reason for .5 being knocked off is the way the main character speaks to the reader directly, "my publisher", "my manuscript".

Apart from that niggle this book is brilliant, a book for older teens about trust, consent and how one photo can be spread around the world. It's goes to a very dark place. I enjoyed the characters. I hope the supporting characters get a bit more fleshed out in book 2. I enjoyed the female friendship, although they talked about boys a LOT.

I was surprised to learn that the author is from the UK as the book is set in America, but reading a question on Goodreads, she set it in America because revenge porn is illegal in the UK.

There's some good essays at the end of the book and quotes throughout the book:

“Look at Vaughan. He's done everything I've done. He drank beer, had sex, sent a nude picture. And he just got an offer from Stanford. Why is his life worth more than mine, just because he's rich and male?”

Definitely a book similar to What's a Girl Gotta Do? and Moxie

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I unfortunately haven’t gotten around to reading this one yet. It’s been out to the back burner unfortunately.

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I was initially interested in reading this book, however my tastes have shifted and I do not think I will be able to get to it now. Many thanks to the publisher for sending me a digital copy!

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Superb contemporary YA which will be sure to appeal to fans of Moxie, The Hate U Give or Holly Bourne's Spinster Club series.

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Izzy O’Neill is in the centre of a scandal, she is used to people spreading gossip about her and she tries to laugh it off with making jokes. But when she is photographed sleeping with a politicians son, it soon becomes a national scandal.
This book touches on so many topics, that young people need to here about, especially these days.

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LOVED. Laura Steven tackles such taboo subjects with a mixture of genuinity and SASS. I sliced the main character and how she refused to be slut-shamed. The story reveals certain gender issues our society has when deciding what is inappropriate behaviour. Great debut and will definitely be keeping an eye out for future titles.

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*Disclaimer: I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a refreshing look at slut-shaming in a book that feels completely grounded in the 21st century. It is an honest and frank look at the culture of revenge porn, body shaming and the sexual double-standard between men and women. With a witty and sharp protagonist and written in blog posts, 'The Exact Opposite of Okay' is a quick contemporary read which is both hilarious at points and a rallying cry.

Izzy O'Neill started off irritating but grew into such a well-rounded person that I loved reading about. The problems she encounters are nothing that I've ever experienced personally but it reminded me of things that happened to other girls in secondary school and highlighted how these issues can affect women from a very young age. I loved Ajita as a side character and would actually read a book from her perspective. 

This is a much-needed read in today's climate and I would highly recommend it to fans of John Green and David Levithan.

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This is such an amazing book that I've had trouble putting into words how good it was. It brought me back to my teenage years and made me think of all the problems I've had and how I wish I was as strong as Izzy was.
Izzy is definitely one of my new favourite YA characters.
Definitely one to read, and can't wait for the next book.

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This book has been such a long time coming!! Izzy was such a relatable, confident character who does what every other person has done - gets drunk and sends a nude - but there is a huge backlash, and this book tackles the sexualisation and vilification of young girls, while guys who send pics suffer little or no consequence. Laura Steven also portrayed the difficulties of simply being a confident teenage girl who enjoys sex. It proves too much for Izzy eventually and her confident facade crumbles but her friends and family help her through it, whilst all the while society is vilifying her for participating in healthy, consensual sex.

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