A sweet and easy to read YA novel, with great LGBTQ+ representation, relationship and family exploration, and friendships tested due to feelings and personal conflict. I really liked the characters, and seeing the relationship between Brougham and Darcy develop, while predictable, was really nice and natural feeling. I really liked the exploration of biphobia/internalised biphobia too.

Sophie Gonzales is one of my must-read authors. I don't even care what she writes next, I'm gonna buy and read it. POP is a beautiful, heart-warming read about navigating love, friendships, and relationships as a queer person who doesn't quite feel like they're queer "enough". So well done!

Really nice relaxing read, great for the summer holidays. Fun and quirky, easygoing style.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me access an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

Perfect on Paper is a perfectly hilarious, adorable, and sometimes angsty take on a YA contemporary!

Darcy Phillips, a junior in high school who happens to be in love with her best friend and runs an anonymous love advice business out of locker 89. Everything is going just fine until the day Darcy is caught removing the envelopes from the locker after school by the sarcastic and witty Aussie, Alexander Brougham. They make a deal: Darcy will help Brougham get back together with his girlfriend in exchange for his silence.

I really enjoyed the idea behind Perfect on Paper! Everything with the locker realistic enough to be feasible while still coming across as interesting and different. I particularly liked the discussion based around bisexuality and how it is still valid even when you are in a straight relationship. This spoke straight to me and almost brought me to tears.

Darcy and Brougham's relationship felt like it was developed naturally and didn't feel forced or pushed/hinted to as soon as they met which made it all the more enjoyable.

As a plus to all that - this book was absolutely hilarious! Darcy and Brougham's banter hit the mark but Darcy's (trans) sister Ainsley took the biscuit and had me howling.

This was a really enjoyable read and I especially appreciated the takedown of biphobia, and the discussions of sexuality. I enjoyed Darcy and Brougham's relationship- Brougham was a great character and I loved how Aussie he was!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Children's for an early copy of this novel.


Aaaaaaah, this was amazing! Proper bisexual representation, yay! A character standing up for herself and her bisexual identity despite being in a relationship with a guy. Woohoooo!

Okay, let's calm down a bit.

I loved Sophie Gonzales' "Only Mostly Devastated", and was really happy I got to read an early copy of Perfect on Paper.
Though there tends to be quite a lot more bisexual characters nowadays, it's still quite rare to see them represented in such a proud and honest way. Let's be honest – quite a lot of bisexual characters in other novels are in a same-sex relationship, and even though there's obviously nothing wrong with that, it's awesome to see a bisexual character being represented in that way too.

Darcy is a really fun and lovely character, who's not afraid to stand up for herself. She makes mistakes, yes, but that makes her more relatable, and it's hard not to find yourself rooting for her.
How about the mysterious bad boy, Alexander Brougham, you ask? Well, Brougham, though a true asshole at first glance, actually pretty quickly turns into this great guy that you're rooting for. It's great character development, and it happens in a way that truly feels natural.
The romance between the two of them felt real and definitely not cringe, so that's a big plus too.

And the plot? Well, maybe it's a bit simple and predictable, but dang, it's fun and really enjoyable, so really, who cares? Definitely not me!

Thank you, Sophie Gonzales, for another really enjoyable novel. I absolutely cannot wait to read your next one!

5 Word Review: Romance, friendship, relationships, family, love.

I utterly adored the rep in this book - it was done excellently and it wasn't afraid to confront problematic behaviour. It's such a fun read as well, it could have been really heavy with all that it was dealing with but it kept it light with some funny scenes and some great family interactions with Darcy and her sister.

I loved the exploration of love as a concept, and how messy relationships can be at any level, especially when attraction is added in to the mix. Darcy's secret keeping skills are something else, I don't think I could do it, and it does get her into some pretty messy situations. I loved seeing her trying to figure out what to do as an agony-aunt and what to do as a friend, as those writing assume they're anonymous. And I loved it when Darcy got it wrong.

Darcy and Brougham have a bit of a miscommunication-trope moment, and it kickstarts everything. I love this trope, and although it can be frustrating at times the miscommunication did not last long - Darcy is pretty good at saying what needs to be said some of the time.

I am here for this mess. I love it.

I liked that Darcy wasn't always right and that she sometimes acted emotionally. She had some pretty bad ideas and made some massive mistakes, but that's life and it's realistic. She can give excellent advice, but can struggle with it herself. I loved her stance on boundaries and consent and how this made her own actions a little problematic at times.

There were small moments where class discrepancies were explored and I really appreciated that. It was a whole deeper layer to the story and it hit me right in the feels.

This was excellent. It was beautiful. I want to read it again.

THIS BOOK!!! I honestly loved it ❤️ It was cute, hilarious and the banter between Brougham and Darcy was amazing. The representation in this book was unlike anything I’ve ever seen before not only did we have a Bi Main Character but we also saw pivotal characters that were Lesbian, Trans, Gay, Non-binary and Ace. The locker 89 bits were some of the best parts of the book not only were the questions often relatable but it also discussed some serious issues such as Biphobia and the lack of common knowledge about Asexual and Aromantic people and how they differ. I found this book not only insightful but also upbeat and it had no problems keeping me interested and invested in the characters throughout which is something very difficult to do ❤️ I absolutely adored Ainsley and the ending was just 🥰🥰 and for those who’ve read the book I genuinely started to tear up at chapter 20 ✨ There's so much more I could say about this book but I don’t want to spoil anything 🤍

I don’t know how much I can say I loved this book.

It was so diverse in a way that didn’t feel shoehorned or tokeny. The bisexual main character in particular resonated with me in a way that made me cry - I have been where she is, and still frequently am.

I loved seeing my own struggle of not feeling queer enough played out on paper - it made me feel seen.

All the characters were well written and believable. The plot managed to toe the fine line between romantic and corny. Overall, I think this book will be one of my favourite reads of 2021.

After reading Only Mostly Devastated by the same author last year, let me tell you that my expectations were high on this one. And yet, here we are, a strong 4,5 stars rating and my heart full of love. I don’t know when exactly it happened, but Sophie Gonzales really became one of my new favourite contemporary writers. She has a way of creating such vivid and real characters to whom everyone can identify at some point. It is what happened with the cute and messy Darcy Phillips. This teenager with a passion for relationships counselling and advice. What was truly relatable with her wasn’t her passion itself, because it is definitely a niche not many people know about, but the fact she is part of some kind of online community of people talking about that. Just like us, with books and other passions, we can have.

Putting her characters in such a relatable world and settings makes the whole story real and tangible, and touching. I adored every single character from this story, but not at first. And that’s the magic, because this is how life works, right? You meet people that you might not like at first – because you don’t know them – and then you start hanging out and realizing those people are cool, that you have something in common. This is the feeling I got reading this book.

I got scared for a moment when I thought the story was going a certain way that I wouldn’t like. So scared I stopped reading for a few days – oops. But the author didn’t take the path I was expecting AT ALL and I ended up absolutely loving the storyline, from A to Z. Because this book does imply a slow-burn-some-kind-of-enemies-to-lovers trope and it was everything. Because by taking her time developing those characters and the story, the author really is able to talk about bisexuality. And the fact a bisexual woman dating a guy will still be queer as fork because it does not change how you identify as a person. It deals with internalized biphobia as well-meaning the things we start to believe because of society, like not being bi by dating someone from another gender – and it was the first time I found this issue in a book. Such a great bi representation here.

Also, this story is a great reminder that nothing is set into stones. Your feelings, your life, your sexuality, your gender, everything will be fluctuating in your life at some points, and it is okay. This is something incarnated by every single character: Darcy with her bisexuality questioning, Alexander with his mixed feelings towards his ex, Brooke and her rancour for people who hurt her. Nothing is meant to stay this way forever, and I think this novel delivers the message in the most perfect way.

I think you got it: I loved this book. I reached a point at which I will read anything Sophie Gonzales writes because it is THIS good.

Known only as “Locker 89”, Darcy has been providing advice to anyone in her school who asks for it, through an anonymous dead drop and email. This has worked very well for her for more than two years, until a new student waits by the locker, hoping to pay for her services in person. Though Brougham effectively blackmails her, Darcy agrees and thus begins a strange partnership to get him back his girlfriend.

I loved the premise of this: agony aunt-style advice, relationships issues, secret loves, and bi rep. I was especially impressed with the psychological take on how Darcy gives advice; she researched and learned about different attachment styles, the needs and wants for different relationships and followed other advice gurus online. Honestly, she knew her stuff!

The story focuses on two main themes: Locker 89 and the advice service, and sexuality, especially as a teenager. The advice, both wanted and unwarranted, flowed throughout and Darcy, although she knew her stuff, did mess up when it involved her friends, especially her best friend Brooke. As for the sexuality, I was thoroughly impressed with the bi rep. I have a few friends and people I follow online that identity as bisexual and I recognised some of the issues that Darcy faced with her sexuality: feeling like she didn’t quite fit in a queer space, like she’s not “queer enough”. It was very respectively written, I think – although apart from appreciating the diversity and the issues it discussed, as a cis-woman, I don’t feel I can have a proper opinion, so I’ll just say I really liked it, both as a storyline and portrayed through Darcy’s character.

Speaking of: Darcy was all kinds of adorable. And Brougham was her opposite; closed where she was open, a little stilted where Darcy was emotional. I liked them together, though, they had very good banter and played off each other really well. By the end, I could see how they complemented and bought out the best in each other.

All in all, the kind of love/coming of age story that the genre needs and one that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Sophie Gonzales has done it again. I will admit I was a bit hesitant to get into this book, because of how much I loved Only Mostly Devastated (Gonzales' first book). The first two chapters made me a little nervous, but after that, I couldn't put the book down.

Perfect on Paper follows Darcy, a highschool junior who runs an "agony aunt" service out of a locker at her school. Enter a boy who blackmails her into helping him get his ex-girlfriend back, and shenanigans ensue.

This book was really cute. It made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, and sometimes that's needed. I had a hard time warming up to Darcy in the beginning, but she soon won me over. She's by no means unlikable, I just think she was a little naive. Brougham was a really fun character as well. His backstory made my heart hurt and he's really one of the sweetest Jock's you'll ever meet.

The friendships in this book are really great, especially between Darcy and Brooke. Things aren't always easy and relationships are messy. Friend breakups are the worst and I'm glad we got to see characters dealing with relationships that weren't romantic.

My one complaint about this book is the use of the miscommunication trope. It's by no means a big plot point in the book, so I can forgive it for that. But honestly, we should all just learn how to communicate.

The thing that made this book really stand out was the way it handled biphobia and internalised biphobia. People seem to think that when a bisexual person is in a straight-presenting relationship, they aren't bi anymore. Well here's some news: they are still bi even if they're not in a same-sex relationship. I would have liked more than one conversation on the topic, but the conversation we got was handled very well.

We don't get a lot of books that deal explicitly with biphobia, so remember; you are valid, even if you are bi and not in a same-sex relationship. You are still queer. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

Perfect on Paper is a heartwarming, feel good rom com that I’d recommend to contemporary lovers everywhere! With a perfect balance of lighthearted high school fun and nuanced exploration of important themes, Sophie Gonzales has created an utterly spectacular story.

I adored so much about this novel, in particular the writing style – it was quick and easy to read and gripped me from the first page. It also effortlessly conveyed the humour and emotions of the characters and carried the story perfectly. I loved the characters and their relationships with each other, especially Darcy’s bond with her sister. The novel also explored some more complicated relationships, such as the one between Darcy and her best friend which I really enjoyed reading about and felt was done so well. I really loved the relationship that develops between Darcy and Brougham, I felt that they just worked so well together and I was really rooting for them.

What really stood out to me was the discussion around bisexuality and, in particular, biphobia. I felt that these themes were handled with a lot of nuance and sensitivity and I loved how they played into the story and into Darcy’s internal conflict. There is an incredibly powerful scene where she discusses biphobia that I adored and I would recommend the book based on that alone. Darcy’s character development, both as she deals with internalised biphobia and not always knowing all the answers, was such a joy to read and made her easy to relate to and sympathise with and I absolutely loved her journey in this book.

Overall, I really just loved this one. Perfect on Paper is unapologetically queer and provides bisexual representation that’s going to mean the world to so many readers. It is the absolute perfect feel good read to curl up with if you’re feeling down or struggling to pick up a book, full of lovable characters you won’t be able to help rooting for and high school hijinks.

This YA Romance was a ray of light in the midst of lockdown. Classic teen drama with an interesting twist this book that shows the ups and downs of friendship, young love, and parent/child relationships.

Blurb: Darcy Phillips has secretly been running a relationship advice service through the mysteriously unassigned locker 89 in her school. Most of the time she uses the locker for good but when the advice requested involves her best friend Brooke she may let her hidden romantic feelings cloud her judgement. When swimmer and fellow student Alexander Brougham catches Darcy collecting the locker 89 letters after school, he blackmails her into becoming his personal dating coach so he can win back his ex. Darcy will do everything in her power to keep her involvement with locker 89 a secret so she agrees to Brougham’s terms. What could possibly go wrong?

With a bisexual main character (Darcy) and many other queer side characters the LGBTQ+ rep in this book is excellent! There’s also a scene focused on bi erasure and other prejudices specific to bisexuals that I was pleased to see included.

We get to see some of the letters and Darcy’s responses and the advice is something teenagers could use in their real lives. I also really enjoyed the focus on the different attachment styles and how people with different styles may need to compromise on certain things in relationships.

Perfect on Paper also serves as a window into the affect divorce can have on children and their relationships with their parents. Teens from split families will be able to relate to this in some way. I think this will also help children who don’t come from this kind of family have more of an understanding when it comes to supporting their friends.

Overall while I found the twists easy to predict I thoroughly enjoyed the journey to them. This book is a perfect fast-paced, wholesome story that addresses many important issues while maintaining a delightful romcom vibe.

I gave Perfect on Paper 5/5🌟 and would definitely read it again! It’s out on the 9th March in the US and the 11th March in the UK.
I received a free copy of this book through @netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

<b>Trigger Warnings</b>: alcohol abuse (parental), biphobia (internalised + comments directed at her. There is a discussion about how this is wrong), drugs (a character gets high), parental problems (both characters have rocky relationships with their parents, mothers in particular), vomiting (due to too much consumption of alcohol)

Dare I say <i>Perfect on Paper</i> is . . . <i>perfect</i> or would that be too cheesy?!

I had incredibly high expectations of this novel because of how much I love Sophie's other novel, [book:Only Mostly Devastated|45046743] (I believe it was my first 5 star read of 2020!). So, when she announced this, I was sooo excited, and fortunately, I managed to snag an ARC via Netgalley.

Our protagonist, Darcy, gives out relationship advice from locker eighty-nine. People submit letters, and she e-mails them back . . . anonymously. No one knows it's her, apart from her sister, Ainsley . . . until one day, after school when she's picking up the letters, she is caught by Brougham. He asks her to be his dating coach, so he can win back his ex-girlfriend, Winona (spoiler alert: I <i>do not like Winona</i>). Desperate to keep her identity as the person behind locker eighty-nine a secret - because God help her if her best friend, and current crush, Brooke finds out what she did via the locker. (It's later on very funny when Darcy confronts Brougham about his 'threat').

(Also I think the advice Darcy gives is really well done. A lot about setting boundaries etc. I also like that when Brougham is worried he might have a potential bad relationship with alcohol, Darcy supports him and encourages him to speak to someone. I think I saw on Twitter that Gonzales has a degree in psychology, which translates well, as we see a lot of terms defined, etc.)

I really adored the relationship between Brougham and Darcy. It started out a little rough, what with Darcy thinking she's being blackmailed and all, and Brougham being directly to the point that it first came off as rude. I liked seeing how they grew to know each other (what is a YA book without the classic 'let me check out your music taste' and 'secret spot' scene?!). I loved how they supported and encouraged each other, but also weren't afraid to call each other out on things (respectfully, too. It was like 'hey, you messed up here, you're not a bad person, let's talk about why you did it, etc).

Another great aspect of this book was the Queer and Questioning Club! A theme of the novel was dealing with biphobia, that which is directed at Darcy and what she has internalised. Darcy deals with biphobia directed at her from the people closest to her - her best friend, Brooke (who is also a part of the Q&Q club, she's a lesbian, and from her sister; a founding member of the club, and transgender). She often laughs off the comments, telling herself that they're not ill intentioned, but it is something that bothers her. And she internalises it, too. When having a crush on a male character, she feels as if she doesn't belong, as if she's not queer enough, and doesn't belong in spaces, or conversations like they have, in Q&C. She brings this topic up there, and a discussion follows, which confronts the stigma surrounding bisexuality. I think it was really well done.

Despite this having the miscommunication trope (not one of my favourites!), and wishing Gonzales spent a little more time on dealing with the make up after the fallout (I wish it didn't just jump ahead), I'm giving this 5 stars!

It was funny, adorable, had great representation, and was a really enjoyable read.

<b>Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder Children's Books for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review</b>

Perfect on Paper is a perfectly good YA contemporary. It has a cast you’ll love, a plot you’ll have a lot of fun reading, and much more besides. It’s just also a book that didn’t do a whole lot for me.

The story follows Darcy who, unbeknownst to anyone except her sister, runs a relationship advice service out of a school locker. But then she’s found out by Alexander Brougham who proceeds to blackmail her into helping him with his own relationship.

Let me start with where this book is at its best and that’s when it works on developing Alexander and Darcy’s relationship. Or just… lets them exist for a while, not doing a whole lot. I very much enjoyed the progression of their friendship and subsequent romance. That was my favourite part.

But, as much as I liked them, there were a few things that meant I struggled to do much more than just like the book as a whole. So, with the disclaimer that these were my personal complaints and that you may still love this book in a way I didn’t, here we go.

First things first: the writing always feels slightly preachy. Like everything is a Teachable Moment. Which is no bad thing, per se. I just happen to prefer my books that lean towards expecting you to pick up the lessons they want without explicating them. I don’t necessarily mind when they don’t, but in this case it definitely started to drag. I think the first time it stood out to me here was when Darcy made a comment about not assuming an individual’s gender. Which. Okay, sure. But it felt like I was being preached at, instead of it fitting more naturally into the scene. The same again later on, when Darcy’s talking about biphobia and so on. Like I said, this is an entirely personal thing. It’s just that here, it definitely started to grate (not helped by the fact that the whole premise is Darcy running a relationship advice service).

This ties into my enjoyment of Darcy and Alexander’s scenes I think. Because those are when the narrative moved away from the preachiness and felt a lot more natural, a lot smoother. Overall, it gave an impression of those scenes being shoe-horned in somewhat hamfistedly, which didn’t help my enjoyment.

And then there’s the fact that the advice Darcy gives out? Does not sound like a 17 year old could give this advice. I know that’s an author thing, it being her day job or something similar, but. I’ve studied psychology for 5 years or so and I couldn’t put these ideas into practice (namely because I have no psychiatry training) like Darcy does having just read about them and also lacking training. So, honestly, I just couldn’t believe that part. I know the whole thing was “she was acting unethically because she didn’t have the training”, but even taking that into account, she shouldn’t have been nearly so accurate with her advice as she was.

All of which I could probably have seen coming, not really having liked Only Mostly Devastated, but if you’re someone who did like that, or someone who hasn’t read it, I would definitely still say read this one.

Great YA romance.
Darcy gives really good advice to the anonymous letters she receives in locker 89. She is thoughtful, mature and perceptive. Until it comes to her own feelings.
The Queer and Questioning group is a great addition - every school should have one.
Thanks Netgalley for the gifted copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishing company for an eARC of Perfect on Paper!


This was definitely a "stay up all night to finish and find out what happens" type of book for me. I was a bit iffy during the first few chapters about the advice premise, afraid it was going to be too high school but I was definitely wrong. The way the storyline handled the advice column and Darcy's feelings (both good and bad) about it was really important and added a lot to the story. I also thought the representation was accurate, honest, and well thought out. This was especially important when the story dealt with biphobia and internalised biphobia. I'm panromantic so the struggle isn't the same, but is similar, and the way the characters and author navigated introducing biphobia & internalised biphobia and then talking about it was pretty accurate and helpful I believe.

This book is worth the hype and I think is going to be a top 2021 read for people at the end of the year.

I loved Only Mostly Devastated so much so was very excited for this book, especially after hearing the main character is bi, and it certainly didn't disappoint! The premise of this book is what teen rom-com dreams are made of, and this defintely has the vibes of To All The Boys I've Loved Before meeting The Half Of It. Darcy, Brougham and Brooke were all such well written and complex characters, but I think it was Darcy's characterisation that really made this book for me. The idea that Darcy isn't perfect and will make bad choices even when she's just trying to help people is something I think a lot of teenagers struggle with understanding, so it was great to see it discussed here! The other thing that really stood out to me was the bi representation in this book, it was just so brilliantly done and to see conversations about internalised biphobia and bi people in m/f relationships feeling like frauds was so refreshing and comforting. The only thing I will say is this book starts off a little slow and can take a bit of effort to get into, but PLEASE stick with it as I ended up loving it so much!

This book was super wholesome and unapologetically queer. I loved every single second of it.
First of all, I love Sophie Gonzales' writing style, but this is no surprise, since I really enjoyed Only Mostly Devastated before. She has the *perfect* sense of humor for me and I love to see this kind of writing in contemporaries. I feel she was born to write this kind of stories.
I also loved the two main characters, especially Darcy. I also decided that I am going to adopt Bro- I can't spell his last name, so we are going with Alexander here. They are a really well assorted couple and I love how the author tackled all different kinds of relationships during the course of this novel. The main pairing is awesome and I am deeply thankful that the main character is bi but the main couple is a M/F couple, since it is really rare to see it in medias. The way biphobia and internalised biphobia were tackled was also outstanding.
While we are at it, the queer rep in this book is just *chef's kiss*. It was so smooth and natural and everything perfectly fell into place in the story.
The plot device of the MC giving out relationship advice was also super cute and I loved it.
So, great plot, great characters, great rep and great writing style! I could not recommend this enough.