About the Book
-
Author:
- Sophie Gonzales
- Genre:
- Contemporary
- Voices:
- Bisexual
- Cis Girl
- White (Non-Specified)
Cover Story: In the Middle
BFF Charm: Meh
Talky Talk: Contempt(orary)
Bonus Factors: LGBTQ+, Accents
Relationship Status: Two Roads Diverged
Cover Story: In the Middle
I’m a fan of the move toward illustrated covers, but it definitely feels like it’s a bubble that’s going to burst before too long—so many covers are similarly illustrated right now! This one’s cute, and I like the emphasis on the characters while also having a background. A lot of these types of covers have characters only. The characters themselves aren’t how I pictured them, at least two of the three, but I could have just misread.
The Deal:
Darcy Phillips is a relationship genius. She’s been running an anonymous advice line through locker 89 since she was a freshman, and prides herself on her 95% success rate. She doesn’t just make her advice up, either; she reads/watches/listens to a lot of older relationship experts and then distills their opinions down for her high school audience.
But then Alexander Brougham sees her getting letters out of the locker and makes her a deal: he won’t tell anyone who she is if she helps him get his ex-girlfriend back.
BFF Charm: Meh
Darcy’s the daughter of a teacher, she doesn’t quite fit in at her fancy private school, she’s in love with her best friend—her only friend?—and she prides herself on giving really good relationship advice. But she’s also extremely naive and doesn’t quite see the bigger picture. And very defensive when it comes to someone second-guessing her or trying to get her to turn her critical eye toward herself. I related to parts of Darcy, but they were, unfortunately, the less attractive ones. I don’t think I’d be able to stop myself from being honest with Darcy about certain faults, and she 100% would not take that well.
Swoonworthy Scale: 5
Darcy’s been in love with Brooke, her best friend, for ever. To the point where she’s named their future twins. (Austin and Ally, which does get called out for being a bad idea, thankfully.) But Brooke’s never really shown any sign of having reciprocating feelings … and Darcy has maybe used her gig with Locker 89 in a really sketchy way in the past, and isn’t exactly past doing so again.
On the other hand, there’s something about Brougham that Darcy finds appealing, even if he is standoffish and rude and not interested in Darcy at all.
Talky Talk: Contempt(orary)
Perfect on Paper, while inclusive and entertaining, doesn’t break too far from the standard contemporary mold—and, sadly, doesn’t do anything to move the genre forward, either. It’s predictable, surface-level, and frequently Roger Murtaugh-y. The inclusionary aspects (see Bonus Factor: LGBTQ+ below) felt a little flat and or token-y, and the consequences for certain character’s actions were overly lax. The relationships were devoid of chemistry, and it was hard to root for Darcy when she’s so oblivious about her own thoughts and feelings. I found it hard to connect with any of the secondary characters, too; they popped in and out when convenient for the story rather than feeling like they were really a part of things. Additionally, there were mentions of drug and alcohol use that, while possibly super accurate, felt like something out of a CW show rather than an honest portrayal of teens.
Bonus Factor: LGBTQ+
Darcy is bisexual, and part of the Queer & Questioning Club at her high school, along with a bunch of other folks who fall in various places along the queer spectrum. Ainsely, Darcy’s sister, is trans. There’s a lot of great inclusion of the sexual and gender spectrum in Perfect on Paper, as well as a discussion about internalized biphobia, which I think is an important conversation to have. (On the flip side, I’d be curious to know what queer folks think about the queer depictions in this book. Or if Gonzales had sensitivity readers. I’m not the right person to judge how correctly these folks were depicted.)
Bonus Factor: Accents
Gonzales speaks the truth about people with accents in Perfect on Paper:
“Today was apparently the first time I’d heard Alexander Brougham speak, because until now I’d had no idea he had a British accent. I understood his wide appeal now: Oriella, my favorite relationship YouTuber, once dedicated a whole video to the topic. People with perfectly good taste in partners historically had their senses addled in the presence of an accent.”
Please note: I pulled this quote from an advance review copy; the final text might be different.
Relationship Status: Two Roads Diverged
We had fun together, Book, but we’re at different places in our lives, and I fear we’re walking in very different directions. Let’s call it now before we get in too deep and things get messy.
Literary Matchmaking
For another “is this blackmail?” situation with queer characters, try Becky Albertalli’s Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda.
And if you want to dive into fluffy books with more accented boys, check out Laura Taylor Namey’s A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow …
… and Kristy Boyce’s Hot British Boyfriend.
FTC Full Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from Wednesday Books, but got neither a private dance party with Tom Hiddleston nor money in exchange for this review. Perfect on Paper is available now.
