KATE IN WAITING

 

SYNOPSIS

[PRINCIPAL CAST LIST]

Kate Garfield

Anderson Walker

Best friends, and contrary to popular belief, not co-dependent. Examples:

Carpooling to and from theatre rehearsals? Environmentally sound and efficient.

Consulting each other on every single life decision? Basic good judgment.

Pining for the same guys from afar? Shared crushes are more fun anyway.

But when Kate and Andy's latest long-distance crush shows up at their school, everything goes off-script.

Enter Stage Left: Matt Olsson

He is talented and sweet, and Kate likes him. She really likes him. The only problem? So does Anderson.

Turns out, communal crushes aren't so fun when real feelings are involved. This one might even bring the curtains down on Kate and Anderson's friendship.

Title: Kate in waiting

Author: Becky Albertalli

Publisher: Penguin

Publication date: April 22, 2021

Becky Albertalli is the author of the acclaimed novels Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda (film: Love, Simon), The Upside of Unrequited, and Leah on the Offbeat. She is also the co-author of What If It's Us with Adam Silvera. A former clinical psychologist who specialized in working with children and teens, Becky lives with her family in Atlanta. You can visit her online at www.beckyalbertalli.com.

Social Media Links

Twitter: @beckyalbertalli

Instagram: @beckyalbertalli

REVIEW

RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

If there's a thing I regret not doing during my school years was being part of a Glee club or theatre club and it was not for lack of desire, but because Spanish schools don't have that kind of thing (I know, it sucks). If my school had had that my time there would have been much more thrilling. A Broadway diva lives inside of me (and pretty often outside too. You can ask my neighbors), so when I read the synopsis of Kate in waiting I knew I had to read it as soon as possible.

This was such a cute and fun read! Obviously I loved the musical theatre aspect and all the references as well as all the representation. There're black, gay, jewish, transgender, disabled characters, but they were not defined by that, it was just another piece of info about them. I hate when an author makes a character all about their sexuality, their race, their religion as if thinking "look how inclusive I am writing a (insert trait of choice) character!"

The story was all about relationships, with the group of friends, between siblings, with your "unrequited" crush... While I liked Kate's interactions with some of her friends, I thought her relationship with her best friend Andy was anything but healthy. Their crush with Matt was a bit overplayed, imo. We don't get enough information about him so it just seems they like him because he's cute and not a f-boy (excessive use of that and fuckboy, btw). Who cares about Matt when there's Noah in the picture? I loved his arc with Kate and would have liked to read more about them.

I'm not usually one for YA but, in this case, the musical theatre backdrop and some charming characters stole my heart.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Children's UK for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.