I really loved this book so much I couldn't put it down and went to bed way too late. It's so sex positive and deals with the internal phobias of the queer community and how "tolerance" is often synonymous of "as long as you act straight". I love how the book addressed these issues!

It was nice that this book showed how teenagers are horny and if you put them together in a camp where they can be themselves, what is stopping them from having fun with each other? I love how the adults weren't trying to stop them, but are instead promoting safe sex if they really wanted to do it. This camp sounded so perfect I hope something similar actually exists. I was sent to religious camp when I was a teenagers. It certainly wasn't like this camp, that's for sure!

Randal, the mc, has always been a theater kid since he started going to camp when he was twelve, but to gain the interest and love the player of camp Hudson, who changed boyfriends weekly, he reinvents himself as Del and becomes a jock, a masc, so the total opposite as he is. Hudson likes to be "straight-passing" and likes manly boys who pass as straight, too. I knew there was more to it but it still made me mad about the internal homophobia and all the judging. If you can't be yourself in your own community, how are you different from people who likes to refer to themselves as "normal"?

I really loved the side characters. They are diverse and interesting, with complex personalities and not just there to make the mc look better or to assist it, very likable even with their flaws. The camp was just like school and the kids were kind of divided into niches: the theater kids where our mc fitted before undergoing, the stoners, the jocks, etc. All the activities were so cool, I want to be a teenager again and go there and try everything! Even the gross food!

This is a YA book because it has young characters but just as YA series, it isn't censored. It's real and it's refreshing. So again, yes, I love that this book exists and I love that it exists for teenagers nowadays. It's fun, naughty, important, and all in all an excellent read written perfectly!

Camp is a quick and easy read with a cast of wonderful queer characters. I actually learned some stuff about queer history in the US that I didn’t know before. There were some really fun and entertaining scenes and I did laugh out loud a lot.

My only problem is that it took me a while to root for the romance. With Hudson being very anti anything stereotypically gay and Randy lying about who he was…it just sometimes seemed like too much. Even if it was only a summer romance how could it really work? But when they finally started to solve their problems, I’ll admit, they did become pretty cute. And they are teenagers, they’re gonna be dicks sometimes and make mistakes. So I can forgive them that.

Overall this is definitely a book that deals with toxic masculinity but it does it in a very fun and very queer way. I’d definitely recommend it.

3.5/5 Stars

As for Jack of Hearts, Rosen's previous book, I had much fun reading this novel! I enjoyed the setting, a camp where queer kids are free to be and express themselves how they want, it was such a nice thing to read and I very much appreciated every single counselor that helped and guided the kids, they were amazing.

The main themes of this book were very interesting, especially for a young adult novel. The book deals with toxic masculinity, gender-bending and gender roles and it does so in a clear, but also very effective way. I liked how everything was explained properly, also to the characters that didn't understand it at first.

So, why am I giving this 3 stars? Because I didn't like the main couple and I'm so sad about this! I wanted to like them, but something was just off. I was glad about the ending, but I think it was way too quick how everything was resolved. I think that some things just take a little more time, it felt a bit rushed to me.

If you're looking for a fun summery read about queer kids who get to come out of their shell and be their true selves, this is definitely the book for you!

This book cleared my skin, watered my crops, and whatever else comes next in that meme we've all seen.
After not being the biggest fan of Rosen's debut (it was GOOD but I just couldn't connect to Jack), going into this I was hesitant.
I didn't need to be.
Rosen created the most special and fantastic camp in the entire universe. I don't know if there's a queer camp like this in real life but I really wish there was - that there is a place like this for teens to know they can be themselves, can be out and proud, can be screaming from the rooftops that they're different or just blend in with the crowd.
Honestly, it's hard for me to review this book. I'm just way too emotional about it. It made my list of top 2020 reads easily.
From Hudson's internalized issues to the ace rep we got (hallelujah), everything about this was flawless. The musical, the support group Del has, the "catfishing" plotline - I just want to read this book over and over again for the rest of my life. It sounds stupid but I felt so seen while reading it. And I just want everyone else to pick up this book and feel the love within these pages.
Rosen has become an auto-buy author for me. What a blessing his writing is.

Camp is a charming YA novel set at a summer camp that looks at toxic masculinity, friendship, and being yourself. Randy is sixteen and the highlight of his year is spending his summers at Camp Outland, a summer camp for LGBTQ teenagers. He has his best friends, he stars in the yearly musical, and it's where he first painted his nails. This year, however, he's set his sights on getting his camp crush, Hudson, to fall in love with him, but Hudson is very masculine and seems to only like other masculine guys, so Randy reinvents himself as 'Del', a sports-playing guy with no interest in theatre or clothes. With his plan working, Randy has to work out whether his friends are right, and 'Del' isn't really who he is.

This is very much a romcom novel: fun, happy, and with a narrative that works to bring everyone together. The premise can make it a bit frustrating to see Randy making the choices he does, but that is part of the book's power, that Randy makes the kind of bad decisions teenagers (and indeed adults) make to try and impress someone. The range of supporting characters are great and it was a shame to not see more of a lot of the characters, partly due to the fact that Randy was so focused on Hudson that sometimes he forgot his friends. Showing the different friendships and the way the teens fell back into them each summer was a real highlight of the book, and it almost feels like Camp needs an ensemble-style sequel to give more of them a chance to shine. The setting works really well to highlight some of the issues around gender stereotypes and masculinity within a specifically LGBTQ space, but also make mention of other issues in a light way.

After Rosen's previous Jack of Hearts (And Other Parts), it's not surprising to see another YA novel that tries to address issues for teenagers but also be funny and modern. Camp is on the cheerful, romcom end of that scale, and the predictable happy ending is what you want from it. I could see it being adapted into a film (or a Netflix series expanding some of the supporting characters), as it feels like a very visual novel with a lot of colour and excitement, but also would benefit from a soundtrack (I finished reading it with The Shoop Shoop Song stuck in my head).

A quick return to the world of L C Rosen. I read “Jack Of Hearts (And Other Parts)” because I had this lined up for a pre-publication review. I did enjoy his YA debut but I had reservations. I felt a mismatch between the characters and important issues they raise with the plot which felt a little lacklustre in comparison. I think because of this and the focus on sex that it came across as somewhat brittle and what I felt was lacking was, on reflection, warmth. I mentioned at the end of my review that I felt Rosen had the writing talent to redress the balance a bit and that he has certainly done with his latest which is full of warmth and has a big, pounding romantic heart at its centre.
It’s summer camp for a group of LGBTQ+ teens, a time when they can be themselves, only this year main character Randy is going to be someone else, all in the pursuit of love. Since last year he has reinvented himself as Del, a sporty outgoing guy, to attract Hudson, a boy he has been besotted with for years who hasn’t given as much as a second look to musical theatre loving, nail polish wearing, fan snapping Randy. Del gets his friends in on the plan and decides to skip theatre for outdoor pursuits and attempts to reel Hudson in by being someone he’s not. It’s not going to go smoothly.
Why I’m giving this novel a bigger thumbs up than the celebrated “Jack Of Hearts” is here there are issues that all teens would need to consider but they more naturally evolve from the mix of characters. I felt last time having Jack as a sex advice blogger meant the issues came from outside through his column. I think it works better here and as a result I found myself really caring for this group of teens. There is a bit of an obsession with nail polish as a means of expression (is that a thing teens feel?) but this does shift away from the sex obsessions in the last novel which occasionally felt like it was teetering towards a dark place. Not that there isn’t sex here, it just feels more natural and considered in this environment. And I did love the environment. Last time round I said I’d turn down any offers to relive my teenage years in a NY high school like Jack’s but I’d certainly be happy spending time at Camp Outland. It is a pleasure to read YA novels of this quality and L C Rosen should certainly widen his readership with this.
Camp is published in the UK by Penguin on May 28th. Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for the advance review copy.

I am so grateful to NetGalley and the Publishers, Penguin Random House UK Children's, for providing me with a copy of Camp by L. C. Rosen.

This book was incredible, remarkable, amazeballs, and best of all PROUD. This is the second book that I have read by Lev Rosen - Jack of Hearts being the first in April. But I am struggling to decide which of the two is my favourite, I almost don't want to choose because both of them are incredible in similar ways: The humor, the intense way that I was kept on the edge of my seat, plus the queer cast is top notch in both books.

So CAMP, the characters are incredibly diverse from every point on the Queer spectrum. Randy/Del spends his year waiting for the four weeks that he spends at Camp Outland, a camp for queer teens were they can all be exactly who they want to be. For Randy that means make up, nail polish and theater, but this summer will be different as he plans to reinvent himself as Del: sporty, masculine, and everything Randy isn't. But people do crazy things for love, so when Del and Hudson grow closer, Randy has to ask himself if he has changed everything that makes him who he is - and is it really love, if Hudson doesn't know who he really is?

The main theme of this book is that toxic masculinity is exactly that, but other themes are gender expression, stereotypes, but this book is very necessary, and not just if you are queer. Lev Rosen also includes sex positive discussion around queer sex, in a liberating and healthy way.

I am here for the sleepaway camp vibe, I live in the UK so I didn't have a chance to go to a summer camp, but if I could have a do over life in America I would do it just so I could go somewhere like Camp Outland, they do the usual camp activities but it is the inclusiveness that I love.

This book had me laughing out loud, crying unapologetic tears, and grinning like a maniac at the romance. So if you want a book that makes you feel a hundred emotions at once whilst changing your life -this is the book for you.

I really wanted to like this book. I teach teenagers and young adults who are often questioning themselves and what they should or shouldn’t be comfortable with but I felt that it was quite ‘in your face’ from the beginning. I didn’t like the way the main character changed his personality to be with someone else. I can not bear this kind of message and for me it went on too long

I just didn’t enjoy reading this book and had to force myself to finish it.

Camp is a funny, engaging and extremely important read that tackles toxic masculinity within the lgbtq+ community. A highly recommended read.

This was just pure, unabashed queer joy and it was so lovely to read. Every page is full to bursting with pride and friendship and fun; a much-needed refreshing story!

The author does a fantastic job not just challenging toxic masculinity but dismantling the idea of what it means to be a gay man (or any sort of gender essentialism). There are all kinds of people represented here as well; I especially loved the transgender coach and her story.

This novel tackles some fairly heavy topics, like internalised misogyny and femme-phobia within the gay community but the author does a great job of handling them with care.

The romance started off on shaky grounds but became something incredibly sweet and wholesome; it was my favorite kind where both characters learn new things about each other through their relationship and influence each other for the better.

I also really appreciated the nuances of coming out shown here; that you should be proud of being who you are but at the same time prioritize your safety, especially if you're financially dependent on your potentially homophobic parents.

Overall, a fantastic, diverse, sex-positive queer rom com.

Thank you to Netgalley for the arc!

Camp is one of my most anticipated releases of the year, and after reading Jack Of Hearts (And Other Parts) by this author, I've been dying to see what he comes out with next. Is it really any surprise that this book has hit me in all the feels?

This book is set in a camp for all members of the LGBTQIA+ community under the age of 18, and follows our main character, Randy. Randy is out and proud, a talented theater kid who's attended the camp for years with his best friends. Camp is the one place you can feel safe wearing nail polish, dressing like your true self, and being exactly who've always been deep down - except this year, Randy's got a plan. For years, he's been in love with a butch, "masc4masc" guy named Hudson, and Randy's ready to take on the ultimate acting roll to finally make Hudson fall in love with him. As you might imagine... things don't always go to plan.

From the very first page, I knew this book would live in my heart forever. The core of this story is all about finding yourself, loving yourself, not changing who you are for anyone, and learning who you've always been deep down. The camp is the perfect setting for this kind of story - the ultimate safe space to be unapologetically you for a whole summer. And we get to experience this story with the signature complex, dramatic, and strong characters of L.C Rosen!

Randy - who goes by "Del" this year in camp - is so confident. He knows himself so well, and is willing to risk it all to make his dreams come true. What I loved most about him is that there are several times throughout this story when he's called people out for problematic things they've said or done off the bat, no hesitation. He never allows anyone to make excuses for their poor behavior, and openly accepts criticism of his own actions. He's aware that he's potentially setting himself up for failure, and although he's so sure of himself, he's only human - and everyone is blindsided by love at some point. Still, that boy has some unbreakable willpower, let me tell you. And romantic love aside, Randy is a fierce friend.

Speaking of his friends, George and Ashleigh are EVERYTHING. George is feminine and hilarious, and is so comfortable in his own skin. In another world, I like to think I was Ashleigh at her age. She's got her heart all caught up in the wrong places, but never when it comes to her friends. Randy's friend group consists of people from all spectrums of sexuality and gender, including someone with they/them pronouns. It made my heart explode to experience their little world where they all lived and thrived together without fear or judgement.
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The atmosphere of this book draws you right in completely. It was too easy to feel like you were a part of this little world and experience it all for yourself. Even the camp workers were so funny and supportive and spoke to the campers like human beings, not like kids. They knew exactly how to build each individual person up, and said exactly what they needed to hear, for good or bad.

Of course, being a teenager in a summer camp far away from your parents, there's going to be more than just kissing going on. What this author never fails to do is speak of sex and sexuality like its such normal, every day thing - because it is! The conversations, as well as the sex scenes themselves, are detailed and all about consent, and patience, and being open and honest with each other. This aspect of the story is so important, especially in YA literature, because it could make all the difference in the world to someone in the same age group or situations as these characters.

Camp tackles themes of homophobia, both open and internalised. While the camp is a safe space, everyone is still very much aware of how different things will be once they're back at home. The reality of going home to parents and friends who fully support you regardless of sexuality or gender isn't the same for everyone, and so the key message of being your true self and not changing for anyone, sadly can't apply to everyone. How this is addressed in the story is done so well, and the support between friends, partners, and the camp workers themselves brought me so much joy. Rosen's writing style has a way of capturing your heart, and his stories never fail to brighten your life. This novel is the safe space for everyone who hasn't found theirs yet.

I won't spoil anything about this plot, so all I'll say is that there are so many stories of coming out, being closeted, or partially-out in this book, and its such a beautiful reminder that no situation in your life is permanent. Even if you have to hide the brightest parts of you temporarily, you'll always shine where you're happiest. And you will find that safe space one day.

It's no surprise I'm giving this book 5 stars. Once the world has healed, I'll be ordering copies for my library, because everyone needs to read it.

A really fun, undemanding LGBTQ romance novel that also speaks some important truths about femme-phobia and associated misogyny in the gay community. As a young teen I was a massive fan of novels set at summer camps (which led to an unfortunate experiment with Christian summer camp on the north Wales coast - not quite what I'd expected from reading about American camps!) and I'm delighted that teens today have a great, diverse, sex-positive LGBTQ summer camp novel in Camp.

This is a simple and rather predictable story. Characterisation was clearly defined and each individual recognisable. Some effort was made at description of the environment, but I think it would be necessary to be familiar with this type of camp to fully understand location.

The story is largely told from the point of view of the central character who is naive and doesn't have the most likeable of personalities and yet he tries hard. The core individuals provide a wide gender balance.

Unfortunately, the book is rather preachy and this makes it less than enjoyable

Yes, Camp is a fun contemporary m/m story, but it's also a complex evaluation of queer culture and community. There are so many layers to this story, and L.C. Rosen has done an excellent job of blending identity and experience into the kind of fun rom-com that you see straight versions of constantly.

Randy (also known as Del) has attended a summer camp specifically for queer youths for the past several years, and over that time he's developed a crush on Hudson, who only ever dates very butch guys, which Randy is decidedly not. If I'm being honest, this bit was so heart-breaking for me to read, because it's so painfully true, especially how teenagers change for those around them. Randy as a character was also high-key relatable. There are many layers to his personality, but he's also got a really strong sense of self, even though he's adapting to appeal to the guy he likes.

Hudson was also a layered character, but in a different way to Randy. His experiences as a gay teen are unfortunately so common, but it was really nice to see him come out of his shell even all this time supressing himself. It was also so sweet to see his relationship developing with Randy (or Del at this point) and to see his interactions with not only Randy but his friends and the other campers, and the HAL incident was hilarious. One element of his characterisation that was notable to me was the fact that his experiences as gay and Korean weren't kept separate, because he's both at once, not just one at a time. Overall, Hudson could be a jerk at times because of all the messages that society was bombarding him with, but he's also still young, and so endearing.

There was a whole cast of other characters outside of Randy and Hudson, with an immense amount of the natural diversity of real experiences. Though Randy spends a lot of time with Hudson, as teens in a new relationship are wont to do, his friends are still a significant part of the story. George and Ashleigh especially were prominent characters, and even though they weren't the protagonists, they both still got proper arcs and weren't just cast aside. Their experiences were also valid and a part of the story, and I really loved them both. And basically all of the other campers, really.

What I especially appreciated regarding the background characters was the fact that there were so many queer adults who were there, existing and sharing their experiences and the history of the community. This is a kind of support that a lot of kids don't necessarily have, so it felt really important to me to see this in a book.

I'm a theatre kid, so Cabin Seven sounded like a dream come true to me. In fact, all of Camp Outland sounds like exactly the kind of place I would want to spend my summer. I would also absolutely love to be in the musical, it sounds like my idea of heaven to be cast in a production where gender doesn't matter the same way it so often does and to be able to interpret them in the way in this book. Camp Outland also felt like a family, where people are welcomed with open arms and can just exist.

Because the romance was still a fairly significant part of the story, it was most of the plot, but there were still other elements that made the whole thing feel so real. There was always a tense balance between wanting Randy to be himself again as he yearned to do the things he did in previous years, and seeing how much he liked Hudson and how their relationship was developing. But they were also just at camp, doing camp things and having a fun summer, which was enjoyable to read in and of itself. Even though some bits of the plot were predictable in a comforting way, I was still kept hooked the whole way through, and read the whole thing in one night because I couldn't bear to put it down.

One of the main themes that Camp deals with is the concept of being openly queer. Hudson is reluctant to associate himself with guys who are openly out and proud, because of the insidious and constant messages that he's been getting from society and his parents. Toxic masculinity has embedded itself into his self-image to the point where he's starting to project it externally, but the was that L.C. Rosen tackles this issue, which is still common, was careful and efficient. It also has the message that being out and proud is great if you're in a place where it's safe to be, but it's also entirely your decision whether you feel safe enough to. A lot of the time in queer communities, there's an idea that if you aren't proud and 100% you all the time, you're not doing it right, and it can be hard to see this message while in a place where that's not possible. These two themes are both really important messages, and I really appreciated how well they were worked into the story.

Camp is a book that queer teen readers, and those who don't read, need and deserve. To see my community like this, to see people like me going through the same experiences means so much to me. This is a book that brought tears to my eye, the good kind, and I would like to commend L.C. Rosen for writing it.

Thank you to Penguin Random House for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review. The review will be posted on my blog and Goodreads on May 24th and will be promoted on and around the release date as well.

When I first read that Lev A.C. Rosen's new novel was going to be entitled "Camp", I immediately thought of extravagance, glitter, riddiculousness and pure sass.

Then I read, that the book was going to be about an actual summer camp. Now that I have read it, I am very - very - happy to report that this is the campiest camp there ever has been and that can ever be.

Camp is all about being your true queer self - and owning it. It is about queer teens getting space to find themselves and to be unapologetically themselves without judgement from classmates, straight friends who just don't understand and most of all: parents. Camp Outland is a save space to question and to change and to just be.

It's about 16-year old Randy who butches himself up because he's fallen in love with a guy in the previous years at camp and wants to match Hudson's preference for a "masc" boyfriend. He chooses sports over theatre and mismatched clothing over glitter nailpolish and a fan, much to the disappointment and confusion to the rest of his friends (read: other theatre kids).

While Randy - who is now called Del - and Hudson get closer, Randy can't help but feel sadness at not being part of the annual musical show, especially since all his friends are and starts questioning "the plan" he had to get Hudson to fall in love with him. Can Hudson even fall in love with him if he doesn't even know him? As the summer progresses, it becomes harder and harder to keep the charade up and Randy starts to figure out that there is more to Hudson than a tough and hot exterior.

I read this book in less than 24 hours because I was immediately sucked into the world of Camp Outland. I fell in love with every single of the characters and I still cannot believe how lucky I am to have gotten to read this before it's official release date. Especially because this is one of my most anticipated reads in 2020. After reading it, I can confidently say that it is already one of my absolutely favourite reads this year.

We are introduced to camp kids in every shade of queerness and I was especially excited to see a demisexual lesbian as one of the main characters. The camp program is a mixture of queer history, fun nature trips and electives such as sports and musical theatre and I loved reading about every part of it. Of course, crushes and sex are a big topic for queer teens just as much as they are for straight teens and Camp is nothing but sex positive - in a safe way.

As I already said, Camp consists of a lot of different kids and I love how every kid gets a voice about their sexuality. I have briefly mentioned demisexuality, which I loved because I feel that it is underrepresented in fiction in general and it was lovely to read about the conversations Ashleigh had with her best friends Randy and George. George is Randy's other best friend and he is as fabulous as you can be. With a fan at the ready for dramatic effects and what feels like a thousand different shades of nail polish, he is here to slay. Besides our main trio, we are also introduced to an ex-olympist trans woman who coaches the kids in their sports electives, the musical theatre director who doubles as drag queen performer and so many more characters who will worm their way into your heart and STAY THERE.

The story itself is a whirlwind of emotion because I wanted Randy to be able to be himself, wanted Hudson to see him for who he is - the coolest kid on the block! - and for him to sing his heart out at the musical performance. At the same time, it was an absolute swoon fest. I am talking underwater kisses. I am talking kisses stolen at the back of the hut shortly between lights out. I am talking Hudson calling Randy "babe". And I am talking lots and lots and lots of hand holding.

Most importantly, though, and I know that a lot of my fellow reviewers have already talked about this: But Lev A. C. Rosen manages to take apart the concept of toxic masculinity within a couple of hundred pages. The idea that a man has to behave a certain way. The idea that the stereotype of the gay man with glitter and fans and tears and - god forbid - feelings, was something to be ashamed of. Toxic masculinity is one of the things deeply wrong with this world and with the world's society at large and here it is, a book that sings "Fuck all that" in a high note while dancing pirouettes around the haters in a bow tie and a tutu.

And while this book encourages you to search for, find and be your truest self, it also proposes to only do so "in public" when you're safe. Because safety always comes first. Camp is like a best friend who says: "even if you can't be who you are with anyone else, you can be yourself with me". Camp Outland is one of those fictional places that will always be there for the people who need a safe space to call their home, even when they're physically somewhere else.

Let this be my last point: This book should be read by everyone. I need this book to be read by everyone. I don't care about your gender or age or sexuality or beliefs: READ. THIS. BOOK. And tattoo it's message onto your heart: Everyone is valid just the way they are. Be unapologetically, proudly yourself. And most importantly: Let everyone else be their best self they can be in a safe and loving environment as well.

Lev. A. C. Rosen. Damn, what a book.

This was one of the most perfect books I have ever read!

I went into it curious about the author, expecting a cute “come-out, be proud, change the world” cute little love story. This was much more than that.

The queer community is finally getting some representation in YA but in most stories, even the ones that are #ownvoices, the authors seem to tell the readers that it is always better to be out and proud, and their being their true selves will make the world a safer world by default. Rosen is more realist. Living in the closet to protect yourself is not ideal but your security comes first and when you are a teenager and depend on others for food and shelter, then when to come out is about more than being able to live honestly, it is about surviving the bad times in order to be able to enjoy what comes next. And that’s sad, but it is more honest than telling readers that you know better.

I would very happily read a book about every character in this book, including the ones that didn’t even talk. The amount of diversity alone: native American, asexual, aromantic, trans, POC, demisexual, Jewish, non-binary, gay, lesbian, bi... and all of these characters are there for more than to fill the diversity quota, their storylines and their words matter!

Instead of having a main character that was fully actualized or having an adult or the internet explaining Randy what was the right way to think or feel, Rosen took advantage of his characters and their diverse life experiences and portrayed teenagers as thinking beings (!!). Through his characters, the reader gets to learn about how the same problem is able to affect different people differently. We get discussions about the racism and discrimination inside the LGBTQ community and how not being able to pass as cis(gender) or straight is even more dangerous if you are already inside a minority to start with or how important the place in which you live is.

I’m also really happy that two of the most important characters were extremely femme boys and how that was portrayed as desirable and beautiful instead of as a joke or something lesser. But their particular hardships were not ignored either.

Now for a slight spoiler...

There is a sex scene. Between two boys. We’ve read those before. What was truly REVOLUTIONARY, was that it was not treated as a straight sex scene. Most authors would write it with few details and have the experienced character take charge while the chapter is being told by the virgin who is completely passive...but not freaking L. C. Rosen or as he shall henceforward be known as “the king”. Yeah, I think I feel comfortable with that.

Having sex with someone of the same gender or someone that is trans or non-binary or identifies differently is not the same as a cis straight couple having sex and we all know how even that is covered by most SexEd classes (there is an entire show about it people, keep up!).

Books like these are sometimes the only way teens have to learn about consensual and safe sex so writing realistic sex scenes with realistic depictions of what to expect is even more important.

Boy, I’m glad books like these are finally being written and published.

Thank you to Penguin Random House UK Children’s and NetGalley for this DRC.

I really loved this book, it was everything I wanted it to be! Del/Randy is such an interesting protagonist, and I think that a lot of queer people especially queer teenagers will be able to relate to his plight to making the boy of his dreams to fall in love with him. Although it did put me on edge the entire time I was reading because I just wanted him to tell Hudson the truth! I loved them both so much I didn’t want either of them to get hurt.

This book was so easy to read, I flew through it because I loved and enjoyed the characters so much. It felt entirely believable and I absolutely adored the huge cast of queer characters. I’ve never read a book that featured so many queer people from the LGBTQIA+ acronym and it was truly brilliant to have them all in one place in this book. ‘Camp’ is extraordinary because Rosen creates such an incredible sense of place that I was immediately pulled back to the rural camp that I worked at, so not only did I enjoy the story but it created a sense of nostalgia and love – which I think is really powerful.

I’m giving this book 4 stars because it’s so funny, honest, and has wonderful characters who I want to be my best friends. I think this is an incredible story about being yourself, and letting people love you exactly the way you are!

I loved this. Such a readable and fun book that examines toxic masculinity within the lgbtq+ community.

I was really excited to read this, an unashamedly queer summer-camp rom-com. And it pretty much lived up to expectations! I particularly loved all the characters introduced around the MC, and how it didn't shy away from the awkward and messy first loves that are so relatable. It wasn't perfect though - the MC was quite often rather irritating and self-centred even if endearing, and I would've liked a bit more definition to the side characters, particularly one who was demi-sexual; this was mentioned a few times but never explored in depth. Overall, this was a humorous and enjoyable rom-com with an uber-satisfying resolution and I would love a sequel!

Thank you thank you thank you to Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the ARC of Camp by LC Rosen.

Camp is based at Camp Outland, a camp for queer teens, and every summer for 4 weeks, Randy has the time of his life there. Apart from one small detail and that is the love of his life just doesn't seem to know he exists. Which is where Del comes into play. Del you see, is like Randy but a different character and a whole lot more masc. And Hudson seems to quite like Del, sparks fly and the romcom of of Randy/Del's life is played out in perfection. Until it isn't. Only once both Randy and Hudson really come to terms with themselves and break down the barriers of toxic masculinity does this romcom finish in a blaze of something a bit more musical theatre.

What I absolutely loved about this book is that it so thoroughly explores a culture that often isn't portrayed in such length, breadth and depth, it busts so many stereotypes straight out of the park and is just supremely queer in every aspect. There is also a lot of support for the many issues that LGBTQ+ (and really any teens) can come across and each of the characters has their own story line that only improves the book. Really, it all boils down to creating a fictional community that I'm maybe a bit jealous of and I really hope that every queer teen manages to find a clan like it, somewhere.

Would recommend this to anyone that enjoys books where teenagers get to be teenagers, musical theatre and the good old American sleepaway camps (seriously, Britain, what happened?).