Book Review: Come As You Are by Dahlia Adler

Official Synopsis: Hot on the heels of a broken heart, Everett “Evie” Riley arrives at Camden Academy ready for a new beginning - one far away from her cheating ex-boyfriend, the sister who stole him, and the best friend who let it happen. But her fresh start is stopped in its tracks when she's accidentally placed in an all-boys dorm, with no choice but to stay.

When rumors and gossip about Evie's housing predicament spread like wildfire, she decides the only way to survive is to lean into her questionable new reputation... but she's definitely going to require help. Her grumpy emo dorm mate Salem Grayson isn't exactly her first choice, but he does need her help to repair his relationship with his parents every bit as much as she needs his to learn how to be cool. And so they make a pact - he'll teach her how to be bad, if she teaches him how to be good.

It's a flawless plan, except while Salem thrives academically, even romantically, and - annoyingly enough - even physically, Evie's quest feels like one dead end after another, and the girl she's becoming certainly doesn't feel remotely cool. But when Evie realizes what she wants more than anything, she'll have to contend with her thrice-broken heart and figure out how to become someone capable of chasing happiness.

Evie Riley is trying her best to move on from not only a broken heart but also the betrayal of her sister, who kissed her boyfriend behind her back. She is sick of being the 'good' kid, the one that everyone thinks they can push over, so she decides to transfer to a boarding school, where surely things will be better than before. That is until she ends up in the boy's dormitory, with a male roommate she is confused. Turns out, they placed her in the wrong dorm, and there is no openings in the girl's one. So now, she has a private room in the boy's dorm, and the rumors run wild about how she did it on purpose.

When she decides she wants to give off a 'bad' girl vibe, she enlists the help of Salem, a bad boy who needs to be good to keep his place at the school. They decide to help each other out, completely platonically of course. Evie struggles with being bad, but Salem is shockingly good at fitting in with the cool crowd. The more they spend time together, the more Evie starts to develop feelings for Salem, who is not interested in her...right?

Evie and Salem have a really good vibe throughout the story, though there are definitely times where Evie's jealousy and also past make her a bit snappy at him. Salem is a really interesting male protagonist, since he seems like he doesn't care or try, but you learn throughout the story how caring her actually is. Plus the parent's weekend scene with him and his parents still has me giggling.

I really liked how this book panned out. There were a lot of background things going on for both Salem and Evie and it makes the story feel a lot deeper. There is also a handful of really great side characters within this story. Salem's sisters Sabrina is one of them, they are both complex characters with a deep sibling connection, which I really liked. I feel like sometimes in young adult, siblings, especially twins, don't get along. I also think that even though the groups of students feel more 'clique-y' they all get along well, which was really fun to see. Overall, the premise of getting stuck in the wrong dorm, making friends with some of the boys and finding a place after feeling so lost was really great.

My only real note is that I don't super love when the parents suck as much as Evie's did. They don't seem to believe her about things or care about how she is feeling. It's definitely an overall issue throughout the story, plus the whole family needs therapy, but I think if they were even slightly more supportive it would be difference in how Evie feels. Also, there is a lot going on for them, and her sister, as well, meaning that there are times you almost feel bad for them, but realize how much they've hurt Evie.

Overall, I really enjoy Dahlia Adler's writing style in their young adult books. This book isn't anything too crazy and almost an easy to get through young adult, even with it's more tense moments. I think its a good palate cleansing read for those who may have been reading some intense reads for a bit. It is a really sweet book, with some interesting characters in a fun, mostly adult-free, setting. There isn't a lot of time spent in classes and most of the time is spent learning about who the character's are socially which I really liked. Also, we love the Nirvana reference in the title and the description of Salem when we meet him. He has a great music taste.

I rated this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Come As You Are is out now!

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