About the Book:

Title: Long Story Short 

Author: Serena Kaylor 

Publisher: Wednesday Books 

Release Date: July 26, 2022

Pages: 336

Genre: YA Contemporary, YA Romance 

Synopsis:

Growing up homeschooled in Berkeley, California, Beatrice Quinn is a statistical genius who has dreamed her whole life of discovering new mathematical challenges at a school like Oxford University. She always thought the hardest part would be getting in, not convincing her parents to let her go. But while math has always made sense to Beatrice, making friends is a problem she hasn’t been able to solve, so her parents are worried about sending her halfway across the world. The compromise: the Connecticut Shakespearean Summer Academy and a detailed list of teenage milestones to check off. She has six weeks to show her parents she can pull off the role of “normal” teenager and won’t spend the rest of her life hiding in a library.

Unfortunately, hearts and hormones don’t follow any rules, and there is no equation for teenage interactions. When she’s adopted by a group of eclectic theater kids, and immediately makes an enemy of the popular—and, annoyingly gorgeous—British son of the camp founders, she realizes that relationships are trickier than calculus. With her future on the line, this girl genius stumbles through illicit parties, double dog dares, and more than your fair share of Shakespeare. But before the final curtain falls, will Beatrice realize that there’s more to life than she can find in the pages of a book?

In this sparkling debut from Serena Kaylor, Long Story Short is a YA rom-com about a homeschooled math genius who finds herself out of her element at a theater summer camp and learns that life—and love—can’t be lived by the (text)book.

Review:

*I received an e-arc via Netgalley from the author and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for the opportunity!*

A YA summer romcom that gave me all the feels! This debut by Serena Kaylor was everything that I had wished for. There was friendship, romance, witty banter, a fun setting, and an unforgettable cast of characters! It should be noted that the main character has neurodiverse tendencies, although she’s not given a diagnosis in the book. The author tweeted that she herself is actually autistic and that nobody’s experience is the same. She also mentioned that a lot of the character’s behaviors and tendencies were mined from her own.

Sixteen-year-old Beatrice Quinn has grown up being homeschooled in Berkley, California. She’s a statistical genius and has dreamed of going to Oxford University to study math. She always thought that the hard part would be getting into this highly prestigious school in England, not convincing her parents to let her go. Math has always made sense to Beatrice, but making friends has been a problem she can’t solve, and her parents are worried about sending her so far from home. They decide to send her to the Connecticut Shakespearean Summer Academy with a list of teenage milestones to check off during her stay. She has six weeks to convince her parents that she can be a “normal” teenager and won’t spend the rest of her life hiding out, or she won’t be able to follow her dreams of attending Oxford in the fall, and will have to put off college for a year.

Upon her arrival at camp, Beatrice discovers that there’s no mathematical equation that can predict teenage interactions or relationships. She’s quickly adopted by some of the theater kids, but unfortunately makes an enemy of the very handsome, popular son of the camp founders, who also happens to be British. With her future on the line, she finds herself way out of her comfort zone and participating in things like double dog dares, and Shakespeare quote battles! Before camp ends, will Beatrice come to the understanding that you can’t learn everything in life from a textbook?

I was smitten with Beatrice! She’s so smart and quirky, and she had me in stitches. I loved that although she initially starts checking items off the teenage list to please her parents, eventually it becomes something she does for herself. The side characters are also amazing, and I’m so glad that Bea made some supportive friends. I also enjoyed the sweet romance in the story as well.

It was so difficult to put this one down, I loved it so much! A fun read that’s sure to put some sunshine into your summer! Available now, so be sure to pick it up or request from your local library. 

 

 

 

About the Author:

Thirty-something-year-old with a love of all things sparkly, over-dramatic, and pizza-related. Serena writes books about awkward teens, the chaotic world of theater, found families, Shakespeare himself, and a sprinkle of kisses.