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I Kissed Shara Wheeler
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
73 posts | 66 read | 31 to read
From the New York Times bestselling author of One Last Stop and Red, White & Royal Blue comes a fierce, funny, and frank young adult novel about breaking the rules, getting messy, and finding love in unexpected places.
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review
LittlebearReads
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

This one‘s cute, and a lot of fun! That being said, it‘s definitely YA and takes itself a touch more seriously than McQuiston‘s other books, so I‘d recommend going into it expecting less laughter and more “religious trauma, but make it PG.”

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Soubhiville
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

Venkman wouldn‘t even open his eyes when I disturbed him 😸.

While I think her adult queer romances are better, that‘s not quite fair since I‘m way beyond target audience for this YA. I still enjoyed this though. The almost scavenger hunt-like feeling of the letters was fun, and I thought the ending was strong. Great representation of diversity in the characters. A soft pick.

RaeLovesToRead Aww, Venkman you sweetie 🥰🥰 6mo
Leftcoastzen 😹 6mo
dabbe #velvetyvenkman 🖤🐾🖤 6mo
ShelleyBooksie Venkman ♡♡♡ 6mo
80 likes1 stack add4 comments
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Brooke_H
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Mehso-so

The first 25% was a quirky, fun mystery. But then it devolved into a too-long hot mess of a romance with too many characters.

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keepingupwiththepenguins
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

I Kissed Shara Wheeler would be the perfect pick for fans of Sex Education on Netflix, or anyone who considers Taylor Swift‘s Mastermind their personal anthem. I‘m even surer now that McQuiston has a great, long career of writing queer romances ahead of them. Full review: https://keepingupwiththepenguins.com/i-kissed-shara-wheeler-casey-mcquiston/

47 likes1 stack add
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Soubhiville
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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I received my #book2book packages from Katelyn and Ashley yesterday. Thank you both! Thank you @AllDebooks for organizing 😁

BookwormAHN You're welcome 😺 13mo
KateReadsYA You are very welcome. 13mo
55 likes2 comments
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BookwormAHN
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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These were the only two books with multiple interests and as you can see @Soubhiville got lucky both times.
I will post the other books and who they were claimed by in my next post.
#Book2Book @AllDebooks
@Bookish_Gal @Chrissyreadit @LiteraryinLawrence @Clwojick @Cuilin @bcncookbookclub @Tineke @julieclair @Catsandbooks @TheAromaofBooks @Lizpixie @KateReadsYA @TheBookHippie @dabbe @CSeydel

Soubhiville Wow, my lucky day I guess! I‘ll read them and re-list them for others to claim next time we do this 😁. Thank you! 14mo
julieclair Congrats, @Soubhiville ! 😀 14mo
47 likes2 comments
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Cupcake12
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Mehso-so

Chloe Green is on track to being valedictorian and only has her finals left to complete. She stays away from drama and gossip. But, she has one rival: Sharna Wheeler, the principals perfect daughter.
A well written book but the reading experience is subjective. The story was a mystery/rom com/high school drama and for me it just didn‘t work. I would have preferred multiple POVs throughout as the secondary characters were more interesting than MCs

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samantharoberts
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Mehso-so

This was a fun, easy read (which is just what I was looking for). But it was a bit too unrealistic and the characters were unlikeable, in my opinion.

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coffees
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

The story was very interesting. I actually wasn't sure what to expect next or at the end of the road. I was getting some tragedy vibes and idk, somehow it felt anticlimactic. The reveal. Which is something Chloe also mentions, LOL. But I also just really enjoyed the character relationships, not just Chloe's obsession with Shara, but also all of the other #queer characters that ended up using this time to explore their genders and sexualities.

2 likes1 comment
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coffees
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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I've updated my #reading thread on twitter!

And now I'm currently reading I Kissed Shara Wheeler which is doing things to me! Like, I wish I'd paid more attention to what the tws were at the start bc wow, I'm getting VIBES. But also I don't mind waiting to see what the reveal will be, the suspense!! #lesbianromance

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Kaarin
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

Loved it. Great characters and a fun, weird story.

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IndoorDame
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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#MayMontage #PublishedInMay Published a year ago today, by my favorite romance author (though not my favorite of their books, still a fun time). @Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Awesome cover 💗 2y
Eggs 💗💌💛 2y
51 likes2 comments
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IndoorDame
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Mehso-so

I was totally there for the first half of this which was essentially a rollicking high school scavenger hunt that maybe wasn‘t super realistic, but was definitely a good time. The story lost me in the second half which was more about character development and highlighting the pressures caused by not conforming in a strict evangelical Christian environment. The character development later in the story felt very YA, and I had a hard time relating.

IndoorDame BUT my upbringing couldn‘t have been further from this setting in deeply Christian Alabama, and I think there are a lot of LGBTQ youth who would relate. 2y
58 likes1 comment
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kissmehardy
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

The way it is literally impossible for me to be objective about this book, though. I love and understand Chloe and Shara so much, and I want more demon children like them in my fiction!!! And then all of the side characters - Georgia, Smith, Rory, Benjy, Ash - are so well-crafted and deep as well! AND it's funny! Everyone should read this book at least once. #yalit #yaromance #reread

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Ravenpuff
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

Shara runs away, but she‘s left some clues for the people she kissed. Chloe‘s determined to find her along with Smith & Rory. Her feelings for Shara change along the way. Is there something more to Smith & Rory? Will she find Shara before graduation?

This one had a slow beginning. However, I enjoyed all the characters‘ arcs. It certainly didn‘t end the way I anticipated, which is a good thing.

#lgbtqiabooks #yabooks

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RosePressedPages
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

This book has all my love. I loved the characters, the mystery, the character development, the romance, just…everything. What a perfect enemies to lovers! I‘ve been moving away from YA, but I devoured this book! I only wish we got more of the secondary characters perspectives. The other photo is the Valentine‘s Day book swap my cousin and I did together! Valentine‘s Day was also National Book Giving Day so we decided to celebrate together! 🥰📚

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GirlNamedJesse
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

You know, this may be over the top, but I loved how it all played out. I am grateful that the author didn‘t belittle the high school relationships, as so often happens. As someone who‘s high school relationship continued into a marriage and family it gets old always reading about how high school romances don‘t last. 🙃

I enjoyed the mystery, the obsession, and the fabulous cast of characters! The audio narration was absolutely perfect.

RosePressedPages I just picked this up at the library and I‘m so pumped to start it! 2y
11 likes1 comment
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Kat.Kao
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
Pickpick

I was a little let down by this book. There was a lot I liked about it—the premise and the relationships between Shara and the other characters were really interesting, for example. I think what stopped me from loving the book was that I found the main character too off-putting and I don‘t think she changed enough. I love unlikeable characters, but I had a hard time connecting with this one.

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Kaylamburson
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Mehso-so

I waffled about giving this a so-so or pick. I did enjoy it. I listened to it in a couple days on audiobook (while dying sola wood flowers for my wedding!), & I was interested in where it would all lead. It was an adventure, mystery, and romance in one. With that said, the ultimate direction felt unrealistic and a bit toxic. I didn‘t like the games of the main characters so SPOILER ALERT

I didn‘t want them to end up together. It felt childish.

Lauredhel Oh, hard same. There was a lot to like about it, but the toxicity of the main relationship left me cold. I would read the heck out of companion novels about the minor characters, though. 2y
Kaylamburson @Lauredhel I‘m glad it wasn‘t just me. It was a unique premise but the motivations just ruined it for me. I would love to read stories focused on Smith, Rory, Georgia, or Summer! 2y
55 likes2 comments
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ShyBookOwl
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Hmm.. I really wanted to like this but I'm finding it sooo predictable and juvenile, I just keep rolling my eyes. I may not be in the headspace for YA atm 🤔

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Cortg
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

Great YA story! Quite a few LGBTQIA+ characters at a private school in the south that reminded me of Footloose. Shara Wheeler goes missing and leaves clues for classmates, three that she kisses just before she disappears. Reminding me a bit of Paper Towns with the clues. Overall, this was a well done story that will really appeal to today‘s high schoolers.

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alisiakae
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Mehso-so

This is the first book by McQuiston that I didn‘t absolutely adore. It was really convoluted, had some gaping plot holes, and the side characters were more interesting than the main ones. It did get better in the 2nd half. I will still read anything they write, though!

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alisiakae
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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In a crazy coincidence. I read this page containing a Mean Girls reference, during intermission at a Mean Girls performance!

I love when bookish coincidences like this happen. 🤩

charl08 Fun! 2y
wanderinglynn 😆 that‘s awesome! 2y
Nebklvr I love book connections 2y
See All 8 Comments
Ruthiella Love it! Bookish serendipity! 🤯 2y
AmyG Ha! 🙌🏻 2y
peanutnine Love when that happens! How was the show? I wanted to go but the dates didn't work for me this time 2y
marleed That‘s such a fun thing! 2y
SomedayAlmost Cool! 2y
83 likes8 comments
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Eggbeater
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Mehso-so

To be fair, I am not a romance person. I read this for a book club. It was a little too catty and it didn't have much of a plot. It might appeal to real young readers. I did like this author's adult romance novels, this just wasn't my cup of tea. It's probably a case of it's not you, it's me.

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Shievad
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
Mehso-so

I can‘t put my finger on it, but for some reason this book didn‘t pull me in. Maybe it was too focused on Chloe and her POV. I know she‘s the MC but maybe multiple POV would have been better. Chloe is a smart character but she‘s not particularly interesting and she can be self-centered and single minded, which is addressed. The supporting characters are interesting and help balance out Chloe‘s character but I would have liked to see more of them.

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Graciouswarriorprincess
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Books 84 and 85 of the year.

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behudd
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Bailedbailed

Really disappointing because I loved McQuiston‘s Red, White, & Royal Blue, but I just could not get into this one.
The whole premise is that Shara Wheeler has disappeared & leaves clues for three people to find her. And I don‘t care where she is or if they find her or why she left, so I think that‘s it for me.

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behudd
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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“Chloe Green is going to put her fist through a window.”

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

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BookwormAHN
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

I enjoyed this book even though the story was a tad convoluted. So Chloe who has been in academic competition with Shara, gets kissed by her the day before she disappears. After that Chloe, Smith (Shara's boyfriend) & Rory (her neighbor) keep finding letters & clues to find her.
#Booked2022 #NewIn2022 @Cinfhen @4thhouseontheleft @BarbaraTheBibliophage
#Pantone2022 #AutumnBlonde @Clwojick
#BFC2022 @wanderinglynn
#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

merelybookish It's a very striking cover! 2y
BookwormAHN @merelybookish It is, I love the cover. 2y
Clwojick I enjoyed this one too! 2y
See All 6 Comments
Cinfhen It sounds fun and you explained it wonderfully 🥰 2y
TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!!! 2y
Besties4ever Can‘t wait to read it 2y
55 likes1 stack add6 comments
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Clare-Dragonfly
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

I wasn‘t too sure about this book for a while… it seemed needlessly convoluted, and I was skeptical of the high school girl being such an evil mastermind. But I ended up really enjoying it by the end. It‘s full of McQuiston‘s trademark quirky, lovable, relatable characters, and I appreciated the message of looking past the ways people conform to what their society expects of them.

Clare-Dragonfly Oddly enough, this is the second book I‘ve read this year in which the main character is a high school girl with two moms in the South who gets so incredibly caught up in something convoluted involving their rival-to-love interest that they ignore and are a huge jerk to their friends. But I think Chloe does a better job making it up to her friends than Shoshanna. 2y
shanaqui Interesting... I have it on my TBR! 2y
20 likes2 comments
blurb
Sharpeipup
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Off to an interesting start…💋💋💋
#underthecover

Soubhiville Fun cover! 2y
38 likes1 stack add1 comment
blurb
Clare-Dragonfly
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
This post contains spoilers
show me

I relate to Chloe Green. I, too, was a smart, bisexual high school girl with a crush (that I refused to admit was a crush) on a model-pretty popular girl.

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erank58
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

This is a tough one to rate. On one hand I really couldn't buy into the tone (now I get what other reviews mean by "John Greenish"). But there's still so much to love with this! Coming from a tight Catholic community where the archbishop has more political influence than the governer, I can tell you we need more books like Shara Wheeler. Not my favorite from McQuiston, but still relatable and lots of fun ?

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xicanti
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

The best YA is about young people figuring stuff out, and I KISSED SHARA WHEELER delivers. There‘s a fair amount of self-discovery here but, better yet, Chloe and her friends discover that other people are so much more than the stereotypes their regimented high school experience insists on. It‘s GLORIOUS and DELIGHTFUL and not at all nice but still ultimately kind to reader and characters alike. Each new scene made me love it more. 4.5 stars.

xicanti Also important: McQuiston‘s present tense prose never skews purple or takes a deep dive into the past perfect (my pet peeve; it‘s not even NECESSARY in present tense narration, just put the flashbacks in regular past tense, OMG). This is all too rare and precious, especially in the YA world. 2y
40 likes1 stack add1 comment
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xicanti
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Casey and his summer haircut are helping me read another Casey‘s latest book. So far, I KISSED SHARA WHEELER leans into a lot of the US high school tropes that annoy me, like rigid social structures and the who‘s-in-which-year obsession, but I like the characters, I‘m invested in the mystery, and it‘s early enough that I can still hope McQuiston ultimately aims to interrogate and dismantle some of this stuff. So.

rachelm I think it comes around 😊 2y
DinoMom Casey is adorable!!! 2y
xicanti @rachelm I‘m a little over halfway through now and I‘m really happy with what McQuiston‘s done here! 2y
See All 6 Comments
xicanti @DinoMom he has my very favourite face. 2y
rachelm So glad!! I thought it bucked a lot of stereotypes and really loved it 2y
xicanti @rachelm I‘m DELIGHTED. It‘s got me grinning away. 2y
36 likes6 comments
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rebbyj
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
Mehso-so

Great valedictorian speech at the end

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Nalbuque
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

Slow start but this is the best McQuinston yet! So much relatable content, I was just like these kids growing up. As a teen I felt confused, stuck, obsessive, curious, scared…and this took me back in a way that wasn‘t overwhelming or negative, but funny and hopeful 💕

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danimgill
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

There were some pacing things that could have been ironed out a bit better but overall this was an engaging, funny, incredibly queer YA contemporary mystery/romance that I really enjoyed!

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AvidReaderandGeekGirl
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
Pickpick

5 stars
The narrator was amazing! I loved all the voices. This story was cute and funny, but still had great statements on life, high school, and friendship. I love an enemies-to-lovers story. The characters were amazing, and I loved the mystery mixed with romance.

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Andrea313
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

This book had a bit of so-so about it for me, but I liked it more than I didn't. And this section from the acknowledgements is IT. We need more queer stories, especially for kids and teens, and especially for kids in spaces where queerness is rendered invisible, or worse, crushed and maligned. Give me all the Sharas and Chloes and Nicks and Charlies and Dantes and Aristotles, but more importantly - give them to kids.

alisiakae 🙌🏽🙌🏽 2y
Nutmegnc 👏👏👏🌈🌈🌈🎉🎉🎉 Yes!!! 2y
26 likes2 comments
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mgschu
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

This is everything my gay, recovering John Green stan and current Casey McQuiston stan heart could ask for. This is Paper Towns, but make it queer. Paper Towns, but make it the scary, shimmering, lonely reality of being a teenager in Alabama. Add in the scary, shimmering, warm reality of realizing actually, you are not as alone as you once thought. Add in queer rebellion and found family and mamas and high strung academic enemies to lovers. Loved

GondorGirl What a great review! 🧡🧡 2y
9 likes1 comment
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kissmehardy
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

I am OBSESSED with Chloe and Shara and their power trip of an unintended courtship. And their friend group! What an ode to finding/unrepressing yourself. #yalit

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Andrea313
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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My copy of this book got stuck in Chicago for about 10 days, but it was so worth the wait! I'm obsessed with the hot pink pages, and with Chloe's blatant love for The Phantom of the Opera, a completely stupid musical that I will love to my dying day. 😂 McQuiston's second book was a miss for me, but so far, I'm loving this one. #CurrentlyReading

LeahBergen I had a Phantom song as my wedding song … way back in the early ‘90s. 🤣🤣 2y
Andrea313 @LeahBergen All I Ask of You, I do so hope! ❤️ 2y
LeahBergen Yes!!! Our first song and waltz of the evening. We still get all misty when we randomly here it somewhere. 😆😆 2y
33 likes3 comments
blurb
willaful
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston

I'm screaming like I'm in a movie theater: “Stop! IT'S A TRAP!“

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sebrittainclark
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Pickpick

4/5

Freshman year, Chloe Green moves with her moms from LA to rural Alabama where she attends a private Christian high school. For four years Chloe has imagined herself and her friends as the only people who matter in this town, until Shara goes missing and leaves clues behind for Chloe to find her. It's a great book about realizing that people can be more complex than you've imagined them to be.

#netgalley

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sebrittainclark
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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1. I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuistin, The Un-arranged Marriage by Laura Brown, and Ambitious Like a Mother by Lara Bazelon

2. Gathering Moss by Robin Wall Kimmerer

3. Below Zero by Ali Hazelwood

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

32 likes1 stack add
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JoyBlue
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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Mehso-so

Casey McQuiston‘s latest is a light mystery involving LGBTQ high-schoolers at a Christian school in Alabama. Read my review here: https://debbybrauer.org/#i-kissed-shara-wheeler

TheBookHippie Wait what?! 🤯 2y
JoyBlue @TheBookHippie 😂 Let me know what you think when you read it. [On a completely unrelated note, I am aware that I am the worst pen pal ever. I haven't forgotten about you. I'm just hanging in there the best I can. I think easier days are coming soon. 💙] 2y
TheBookHippie @JoyBlue 😘 no worries I just sent you a new one, enjoy! This was in my hmmm list because religion and lgbtqia ! I may try it. 2y
41 likes2 stack adds4 comments
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Lauredhel
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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shanaqui I need to get hold of this book. 😆 3y
JoyBlue 😂 I just read this passage on the way home from the library today! 3y
Lauredhel @JoyBlue how are your going with it? I'm struggling to maintain focus but I think it's me - we are in a massive first covid wave and everything is terrible 2y
See All 6 Comments
JoyBlue @Lauredhel Oh, no—I'm so sorry! Hang in there and take good care.

I finished the book. It was OK. I really liked Red, White & Royal Blue (tagged), but haven't been such a fan of McQuiston's since. [If you want to read my review when you're done, find it here: https://debbybrauer.org/#i-kissed-shara-wheeler ]
(edited) 2y
Lauredhel @JoyBlue oh I loved One Last Stop. I think it's mostly just me 2y
47 likes3 stack adds6 comments
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Branwen
I Kissed Shara Wheeler | Casey McQuiston
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"Willowgrove is the first time she's been around Christianity, and so to her, that's what faith is: judgmental, sanctimonious hypocrites hiding hate behind Bible verses and charismatic white pastors with all the horrible secrets that money can protect. She's never even stepped inside a church where she felt safe. But she also knows that Alabama is more than Willowgrove. And if that's true, maybe faith can mean more too."

This had me bawling! ?