See You at the Summit

i received an advance copy of this book at no charge. this is my voluntary, honest review ✨ this book feels like a soul book. when it became available on netgalley for bisexual visibility day, my friend mary sent it to me, and i said “not this being my exact storyline”—i couldn’t have imagined how much i would connect with this book and our main character, simone. listen, being bi is kinda weird, and can be extremely confusing at times, and is a part of myself that i still find new things to figure out about every single day. there’s a lot tied into coming out, both in what it changes and what it doesn’t, and jordyn did an absolutely amazing job of highlighting both of these experiences and these feelings. i got read like a book by the book i was reading. bookception! coming out is freeing and beautiful and is also absolutely terrifying. it changes everything at the exact same time that it changes absolutely nothing. you’re still you—at your core, you’re the same human you’ve always known yourself to be, and you still struggle with the same things you’ve always struggled with, and you still enjoy the same things you’ve always enjoyed. it’s not some magic fix. you don’t immediately have everything figured out and everything is not fantastically perfect. and i really, really loved and appreciated that we got to experience that fact with simone. it was written so true to my own feelings. am i too queer or not queer enough? how do i fit into a community that i’ve felt a part…

Thank you Gallery Booksfor the gifted advanced copy of this book. I am so grateful! All opinions are my own. "Simone, the magical thing about being queer is that you don't have to follow the rules. You get to invent them. You get to follow your heart." As complicated and sometimes messy as this story was, I found myself really enjoying Simone's journey of self discovery and I absolutely loved the community of support and happiness she finds. Read if you like: ✩ Stories with queer representation ✩ Nemesis to Lovers ✩ Forced Proximity ✩ Snowed In / One Bed ✩ Stories of self discovery

This was a funny and, yes, very steamy romance that also touches on many important topics. It’s Simone’s coming-out journey, and in that, she must navigate exactly what it means to be bisexual, especially when she falls for Ryan, a handsome, but grumpy and straight man. Simone and Ryan’s chemistry, along with their banter, gave this its sizzling romcom feel. But when you add their vulnerabilities, identity exploration, coming out, family drama, and trust issues into the mix, this book becomes something bigger. I did think that Simone was a little too hard on Ryan sometimes. She wanted him to fit into her narrative, but after a wise mentor helped her see the light, she found her way. 🎧I had fun pairing my reading with the audiobook narrated by Lindsey Dorcus. Lindsey did a fantastic job with all the characters, especially Simone and Ryan, as well as many of the secondary characters, bringing out distinct personality traits and quirks.

I love when authors aren't afraid to let their characters be messy, and this book was a masterclass in characters being allowed to be messy, real, imperfect humans. Simone's journey of coming out as bisexual, figuring out what that identity means for her, and struggling with how who she dates impacts how people see her (and how challenging that can be even when you *are* secure in your identity) is so relatable. Highly recommend for all romance lovers, but especially those of us with complex feelings of where we fit into our queer community as bisexuals. Also - no spoilers - but a secondary shout out for the ways the book tackles the frustrating reality of discrimination and misogyny within the queer community.

This didn’t feel like a romcom to me. It felt a bit more serious and complex. The queer representation was authentic and multidimensional. The identity challenges were an eye opener for me and I’m glad to learn from it. I enjoyed Ryan and Simone, but I didn’t feel the connection as strongly as I wanted to and found myself a little frustrated at times. But overall I enjoyed the story. Thank you to Gallery Books for the gifted ARC!