I’m sorry but this is one of those books I couldn’t get very far into.  When the main characters sound like boy crazy ding dongs I just can’t.......   There is an audience for this type but not for me.  I will get it for our collection because I do know several who would love it.

Cute and fun, if not a little predictable. 

This was a great, light romance - but I felt like most of the secondary characters weren’t well fleshed out, and the story felt a bit shallow and at times, predictable. 

It was also a little frustrating because Merrilee was like the very definition of a manic pixie dream girl. She was a little *too* quirky, and her “ugh too bad I, with my classic standard Westernized version of beauty, am found to be adorable and cute by everyone - ugh I wish I was sexy” thing was majorly eye roll worthy.

It was great to read a cute, and lighthearted romance, and I really enjoyed the hint of magical realism. However, I definitely felt too old for this book, and had a hard time relating to Merrilee, and would have loved more insight into any of the secondary characters.

As cute and lighthearted as this story is, I found myself scanning a lot of it because it reads a little younger than I was expecting, though it’s understandable because the protagonist is a sophomore.  But it’s a lot of fun, and all the book allusions are a nice touch.  Thanks, Netgalley, for the ARC.

I DNFed this book. From the beginning the main character was just irritating constantly rating all of the male characters and feeling so low about herself but jealous of her best friend. Everyone seemed to want to talk to her and it just ended up reading like a romance fanfiction. I liked Toby and I wish the other characters had as much depth and mystery about them. There were parts of the book that I liked but the writing style, the awkwardness and the main characters just made me not want to invest in this book enough.

Merrilee is an adventure of a girl. As she starts her first year at a prestigious private school, she navigates relationships with her two sisters, best friends, new friends, and boys. Boys who eerily feel straight out of the classics. Her life follows the twists and turns of a couple very familiar plot lines, but we sit on the edge of our seats to see if she makes her own choices and writes her own story. I believe that Tiffany Schmidt has written a book that appeals to so many of us who love our stories and create them into our own. She portrays a realistic, yet whimsical main character who has all the quirkiness and attributes of a teenage girl and a heroine. I feel like Merrilee’s daydreaming and thought process was so fun to follow and that she is a teenage girl who finds her tropes and learns to embrace them. You don’t have to be completely familiar with the allusions to Pride and Prejudice or Romeo and Juliet, but it makes it so much better if you are. Even though it might have been predicatible at times, this story was truly heartwarming. If you’re looking for a quick read and young adult romance, this is such a fun story to pick up.

I had a hard time with polish Boyfrends at first. Marilee, the main character, is 15 and acts like one. While I appreciated how believable the 15 year old POV was, I easily became annoyed with Merilee instead of sympathizing with her. However, the book did get a lot better for me at the 60% mark, and I started t quite enjoy the book. Unfortunately, the last 40% didn’t quite make up for all the problems I hadn’t at first. 

3 Stars (full review to come)

A sweet story that combines well the angst and challenges of being a teenager who wants to find love, bookish-style, with the strength of women everywhere who learn to rise above their treatment as a lower-class gender.

This is a very sweet story about a girl who loves books and keeps comparing her life to some of her favourite novels. Romeo and Juliet and Pride and Prejudice make up Merri’s life in all kinds of fun ways. Merri is a great character who develops all kinds of interesting relationships as she takes on a new school, She grows with her friendships, familial relationships and of course romantic relationships, including a first love. I really liked that Merri felt she was living the different stories, that she must be Juliet or that her headmaster was Lady Catherine de Bourgh and that her English teacher is magic and behind it all. I loved that her best friend while being supportive, demanded they Merri cast the whole group as book character and when Merri couldn't, used this to prove her point that Merri was not living the book’s ( R&J and Pride and Prejudice)  plot.  I felt this book, while labelled Teen is more geared towards 13-15 year olds. They might not get the literary references but that’s what the writing felt like. It would be a great book to start the jump from 9-12 into Teen, but the audience would be girls who love books who would have at least heard about the classics.

Super cute and fun! I really enjoyed it. I liked all the characters, except one: Monroe. The others made me feel as though book boyfriends are truly attainable. 

I would also like to see a sequel to follow-up on the two best characters.

Oh my, where to begin. For at least half this book I wanted to DNF because I was cringing every few pages. That said, kudos to the author: if her goal was to insert you into the mind of a 15 year old hopeless romantic avid reader, she did a hell of a job and I assure you it's terrifying. I greatly appreciate the other voices of reason throughout the book to balance Merri's overenthusiastic opinions, like how Romeo and Juliet is not a romantic story to emulate. The story did get better the further I got in and the more doses of harsh reality Merri was prescribed. By the end it was still kinda cringy but in a manner I could tolerate. Definitely a younger YA target audience and I can see it doing well within that audience but it wasn't my personal cup of tea.

This story was cute, but too juvenile for my taste. I experienced the strangeness of a story being both fast, as I was inundated with a vapid barrage of clipped moments for the first half of the book, and also slow at the same time to develop any substance.

This  book is quirky and simply an easy read that touches on some serious issues that you could contemplate if you wanted to, but this story isn't really about that.

Rating: 2.5 stars

If there were half stars this would be 3.5!
I really enjoyed this romantic ya book, it’s perfect for anyone 12+, especially if they’re a fan of Cathy Cassidy or Holly Smale (and how could you not be!).

Merri is a transfer student to a prestigious prep school, & along with her bff & younger sister she must learn to navigate her way through campus, lessons and social interactions with her peers.

Merri very quickly becomes entranced by Monroe Stratford, who is basically off limits because his father and her older sisters new mother in law are political rivals... star crossed lovers in the making it would seem. This aspect very cleverly dived into Romeo and Juliet and critiques it by supposing it is a modern relationship - spoiler alert, Romeo is an arse and they are both stupidly reckless and should get a grip!
Luckily, fate intervenes (or common sense) and her new English teacher (who I adored!) provides Merri with a new classic to read; Pride & Prejudice.
If you’ve never read it seen it, it actually does a great job of recounting the story without giving away too much of the drama. Merri soon realised it wasn’t Romeo and Juliet she was living out, but Pride & Prejudice... what effect will this have on her love life, studies and future plans?
Well, you’d better read it and find out!

It’s well written, engaging and lots of fun!
I’d recommend reading this on a Friday evening and then spending all weekend watching leonardo DiCaprio in R&J, then Colin Firth in P&P and Bridget Jones, and then Lost in Austen with the awesome Jemima Rooper!

Thank you to Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Bookish boyfriend's is a book for any starry eyed reader. Let's be honest at some point in time every reader has thought "boys(or girls) are better in books". Or found ourselves imagining what it would be like to be the other person in the book getting a relationship with said amazing character. Well this book brings it to life. 
Merri gets to live her dream of book boyfriend's and finds out maybe we need to look deeper than just a first glance/dream idea. 
I absolutely adored this book, the character, the references, and that it wasn't just cut and dry predictable. I sincerely hope the author gives us a glimpse into another characters story in the future!

Hey guys, I'm back with another great book called, Bookish Boyfriends. Now the first thing I noticed was the cover. I mean come on it's a masterpiece. The next thing I noticed was the title, Bookish Boyfriends. Who here hasn't fallen in love with a fictional character? I mean in my head I'm married to Edward from Twilight. Who wouldn't want to be in love with a vampire? But all readers must face the awful fact once they turn the last page that these guys are just fictional characters and we will never be with them. Heartbreaking I know.

In Bookish Boyfriends Merrilee finds herself in a new private school. Most would be terrified but not her. She's hoping to meet her prince charming and get head over heels in love.

I love how the Author Tiffany Schmidt includes the classics of Romeo and Juliet and Pride and Prejudice. Something we notice is on the cover.

Merrilee is so eager to fall in love that she doesn't notice that there's so many things wrong with their relationship. But with the help of her English teacher she realizes he's not the one for her. At first Merrilee believes that they are Romeo and Juliet in real life but she soon realizes that the story of Romeo and Juliet was a tragic one and not a happy ever after. Her teacher tells her that her story is no Romeo and Juliet but Pride and Prejudice.
I feel instantly in love with the main character. I could relate to her so much because I've always been a lover of books and anything bookish. My Instagram is full of bookish accounts. But I could also relate to wanting to find that special someone who makes me feel the same way as my favorite characters.
I give this book five stars.

I recommend this book to any lover of the classics and anyone who has ever fell in love with a character from a book.

I liked this book. I didn't at first. I found the characters somewhat annoying. But, as the story went on, I liked them more and more. 
My favorite part of the book is the references to the classics. I'm always curious as a former English teacher about connecting today's readers with the classics. Novels like this one are one way to bridge the gaps. 

Overall, it's a fun read.  Great for upper middle school. 

I received this book in exchange for my review. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

There are so many wonderful things to love about this book. A main character that is smart, funny and likable, a great message, as well as swoon-worthy romance that doesn't make you blush. As a school librarian I am always looking for new stories that I can feel good about handing my students; I will be happy to recommend this to anyone looking for a beautiful, fun story!

I had a lot of fun with this. Tiffany has definitely worked out some good bookworm bait with this concept, but it was done well. Merrilee reads so many books and always swoons at her ‘book boyfriends’ so when she starts at a new (co-ed!) school, she’s in la la land. She’s a romantic at heart of course, but has never been kissed or had a boyfriend. So when she finds herself the object of a boy named Monroe’s quick obsession, she starts to realize that the perfect literary love story isn’t usually realistic. It gets wittier and cuter from there, so keep your eyes peeled and add it to your TBR! It’s also the planned first of a duology, so I’m happy I’ll get to read of Merrilee and her classmates again.

This is one of those YA contemporaries that you can't help but love even though it's predictable and cheesy. I haven't read a book with this young of a protagonist in such a long time, so it was different trying to get into the head-space for that. While I really love reading YA at the ripe ol' age of 23., I really think this one is targeted at young high school bookworms. Because of the petty friendship and childish actions, I couldn't really throw out my support like I usually would. That being said, I recommended the book to my sister who is 15, and I think she'll be obsessed with it when it comes out in May.

I'm going to be perfectly honest, I nearly didn't bother reading past the first chapter. I found Merrilee to be irritating and the kind of flighty us bookworms are always accused of being, her obsession with books I could handle, it was her boy-focused brain I found hard to accept. Her instant connection with Monroe was offputting and the rest of the character seemed so one dimensional that I almost stopped reading. I did carry on, however and I am so glad I did.
It took a few chapters but Merri grew less flighty, less annoying. Her sisters gained personalities and depth and the story really took off. There were a few moments where I was cringing at the tropes but on the whole it was really enjoyable. I loved how you could identify the characters with their own love stories (Rory picking up Little Women legitimately made me giggle out loud) but was still wondering how such a devoted reader as Merri had never come across Pride and Prejudice before. 
Also the naming of characters was a bit much. Merrilee, Monroe, Fielding, Seraphina, Aurora? Isn't anyone named Jack anymore?
That said I enjoyed it and would recommend. Just get past the first few chapters.

I received this arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

From a Jane Austen retelling to a book that completely flips the retelling genre on its head. I'm not reading very diversely in February, as it seems (although I'm not complaining, as I've loved both books).

Have you ever daydreamed about a handsome boy/girl from a book coming to romance you with their extravagant gestures and over the top declarations of love? Have you ever wished for a romance that goes beyond the boundaries of reality, and transcends into the realm of fiction? Have you ever wanted your own Mr Darcy, your own Romeo, your own Katniss Everdeen (is that last one just me...? Okay...)?

I guess what you're expecting, from my rhetorically driven list above, is that this is a book about a girl that falls in love with a guy from a book. And you would be correct. However, Tiffany Schmidt chooses to put an entirely different spin on what you would expect from a book with that kind of plot.

Merrilee is a normal sixteen-year-old girl, with a passion for reading, a best friend, and a new school to settle into. Hero High, at first glance, seems to be exactly the kind of high school comprehensive you'd expect from an American town. Except, fiction comes alive for Merrilee, the moment she steps inside.

And, of course, she falls in love. She finds her Romeo in Monroe, a mysterious and romantic boy who wants nothing more than to make her happy. But as things start to go sour for them, the ultimate question comes out: is Romeo actually the perfect boyfriend, or is he too good to be true?

I loved this book. I honestly cannot describe how much. I've read books like this before, of course, but the clever transition between the initial story Merrilee lives out and the second is impeccable and works so so well, that I actually found myself squealing at certain points in the book. The romance is adorable, and the message the book gave was one of the best I've read in YA fiction for a while.

Of course, I could also definitely relate to the protagonist. When I was sixteen (and even now) I used to spend most of my free time thinking about fictional boys and girls, so everything in this book was super relatable. Which probably contributed to why I loved it so much, honestly!

Overall, I gave this book five stars - so it hit that top tier of amazing for me. If you're a reader, and a daydreamer, then I can't recommend this to you more.