Name: sarah's review of If I'm Being Honest by Emily Wibberley
Item: If I'm Being Honest
Rating: 4
Author: sarah

Emily Wibberley

Austin Siegemund-Broka

Mean Girls meets The Taming of the Shrew in this romantic follow-up to Always Never Yours Cameron Bright's reputation can be summed up in one word: b*tch. It's no surprise she's queen bee at her private L.A. high school--she's beautiful, talented, and notorious for her brutal honesty. But when she slips up in front of her crush, Andrew, any affection he may have had for her quickly fades. To win him over, Cameron resolves to "tame" herself, much like Shakespeare's infamous shrew, Katherine. If she makes amends with everyone she's ever wronged, Andrew will have to take notice. Thus, Cameron begins her apology tour with Brendan, the guy whose social life she single-handedly destroyed. At first, Brendan isn't so quick to forgive, but slowly he warms to her when they connect over a computer game he's developing. To Cameron's amazement, she actually enjoys hanging out with Brendan; he appreciates her honesty in a way Andrew never did, and she's left wondering: maybe you shouldn't have to compromise who you are for the kind of love you deserve.

If I'm Being Honest

sarah

at first, was skeptical of Cameron’s personality because she was so .. outspoken but slowly began to appreciate and love it. Brendon and Cameron’s dynamic had me smiling to myself, and definitely had me swooning. Loved all the characters!! I liked how this book really emphasized the growth of Cameron, she grew SO MUCH. the amount of self exploration and discovery she did in this book makes me almost read but tbh 😩😩 i did think some of the ending parts was a litttlleee unnecessary, def could have gone without some of the ending drama. Overall super cute and inspirational—really challenges readers to feel empowered and self validated.

celene

i felt like this is a teen movie that wasn’t done right,,,

Kailey Rios

i loved this so much!!

the characters were so well fleshed out as well as the different relationships between them.

i can’t remember the last time i loved a ya romance (especially a hetero one oops) this much i’m just so heart eyes right now.


  4.75 stars

Emi Gilmore 

Urghh I wish Goodreads had half star ratings, but this isn't quite a two star read, but it's definitely not a three.

Kendra Jones

This story follows Cameron, the resident mean girl. She's known for speaking her mind, even if it hurts others. Cameron finds herself liking Andrew, the new player on the school's Varsity soccer team, and they have a brief entanglement which ends with Cameron being nastily honest with a classmate and Andrew calling her a bitch. In order to rectify how Andrew sees her, Cameron decides to right the wrongs of her past by firstly apologising to the classmate, Paige, in front of Andrew. When this doesn't work, Cameron has to try harder to get the guy of her dreams.
The characters in this book are unflinchingly themselves, warts and all. There was one point at the end of the book where Cameron doesn't act like herself which had me confused, but other than that, she was consistently brutally honest with everyone. I liked her growth throughout the book, and how she acknowledges (eventually) that she shouldn't change herself for someone else, that changing for herself is the best option.
I love her friends, both old and new, though I sometimes had trouble with her friendship with Elle. Her new friends were a nice juxtaposition to both Cameron and Elle (not so much Morgan, who was already a sweet kid). 
The romance was adorable, and I liked how Cameron and her love interest balanced each other out. 
Cameron and her mother's relationship with her dad was emotionally abusive, I think, with the dad constantly calling her mother pathetic and making Cameron feel like she is undeserving of love. The scars that Cameron carries from this relationship help to round out her character from the beginning, making her not just some one-dimensional mean girl character.

laura

I really loved this book so much. I found this book to such a joy to read. I really loved seeing the lead character and how this book transformed her. I also really loved how taming the shrew was represented in the book though her english class. I thought the self discovery of the path in this book was so strong and really focused on so many issues not only cameron behavior but also her future paths. I really loved the romance and found it is be so refreshing and I really enjoy the boy in this book. The elements of friendship I also found to be super compelling. I can't not say enough motive things about this book. I also loved the always never yours cameo for those characters. This book was so much fun to read. I will be waiting for the third book!

Samantha Seeman

It was a roller coaster, that’s for sure. A really satisfying 4.5. There were things I liked and didn’t.
This was a bit of a slow burn. I won’t lie, I had some trouble staying interested at the beginning. The main character seemed just a bit too selfish and superficial to be someone I would be interested in rooting for. Once the plot got going, and Brendan was introduced though, it got really interesting. I loved Brendan’s sister, and their whole friend group. I really loved the added Rocky Horror element too, I thought that was fun and it reminded me of my friends getting excited about dressing up for Halloween and/or really getting into certain movies in high school (Dr. Horrible comes to mind). I loved that while it was semi predictable, it was still interesting. Brendan was easily my favorite character. I found his character arc to be the most believable and fun to watch unfold. It was nice seeing him come out of his shell and really own who he was. It was a pretty great “retelling” in my opinion, and now I am excited for their next book.

Lisa W.

I wasn’t sure what to rate this book. I could see how others would give it a 4/5 and there are a lot of elements that would suggest that. However the characters irritated me so much that a 3.5 is the best I can offer. 

Cameron’s parents were even more childish than Cameron. I couldn’t stand it. Even after her mom’s explanation I couldn’t see her for more. However it did explain why her father was such a tool to her. Bottom line, families are complicated. That’s the one message that rang clear through this story. 

Paige is ever endearing. I find it dope that she doesn’t resent her brother. It seems she loves him more in spite of her family’s treatment of them. She happens to be the one redeeming grace of this book. 

This book truly reminds me that this is high school. It was ever so fitting to read this on October 3 as Elle and Cameron (were/are) written versions of mean girls. Surprisingly I like the reality of what happened between Elle and Cameron. I can see the truth in the words that were spoken, the bond that was broken and realizing you cannot repair it and that you possibly have grown apart without wanting to do so.

Kymberly L McNabb

Loved this book from the moment it started! I loved how it reminded me of 10 Things I Hate About You without the movie predicting the story. The life lessons and the journey Cameron goes on is one that resonates with the reader as well as inspires the reader. A must read!!

Celia Adams

The last scene of this novel is clearly a cameo of former characters, so of course I was barely finished this book before I was off the the library to grab the first one. I LOVED THIS BOOK! Cameron is everything I want in a female character, and her strength and growth and really everything about her is amazing. I didn't think I'd be into the romance but I WAS!!! MY GOD I WAS!! It was perfect. Taming of the Shrew is not a play that translates well to modern times but this has got to be the most perfect take on it since 10 Things I Hate About You. I loved it, and now that I've read the first one I'll just be here, eagerly awaiting everything these two write for the rest of time.

tish

"This delightfully feminist rom-com has characters that feel like friends and will surely appeal to fans of Sarah Dessen."--Buzzfeed Cameron Bright is gorgeous, popular, and--according to her classmates--a total b*tch. But when her crush, Andrew, catches a glimpse of her cruelty up close, it's enough to drive him away for good. To win him over, Cameron resolves to "tame" herself, like Shakespeare's shrew, Katherine. If she can make amends to those she's wronged, Andrew will have to take notice. Cameron's apology tour begins with Brendan, the guy whose social life she single-handedly destroyed. At first, Brendan isn't so quick to forgive, but slowly he warms to her when they connect over a computer game he's developing. To Cameron's amazement, she enjoys hanging out with Brendan, who views her honesty as an asset, and she wonders: maybe you don't have to compromise who you are for the kind of love you deserve.

Helena

Tania Joana da Silva Monteiro

I am very different from the main character, but I still appreciate her arc very much. And I am a fan of the conclusions she came to. The story had a very good pace, the city was actually a part of it, not just a dull background and I was invested from start to finish! However, sometimes I felt like the characters were way too aware of their personal obstacles and reasons for their actions. Don't get me wrong: their actions made sense! It is just weird having characters analyzing themselves like a psychologist would, maybe. Still a great book!

Kayla | @thereaderkayla

THIS BOOK.

Why is this book not more popular??? Any book that can literally get me giggling like a little girl at the flirtations. I mean....I am just so in love.

Vanessa Bintou

4 stars

I'm a big weirdo. Honestly I'am not sure why I'm giving this book 4 stars and not 5. 
I liked both The Taming of the Shrew and 10 Things I Hate About You and this is a very good retelling of the original story. I am a big nerd and we have nerdy gamers, fans of manga and cosplay, so check.

The writing was good and I loved most of the characters, but something is missing. I think that what bothered me was the parents in the story and Cameron's original friends, who honestly were the kind of people who can make a person the worst version of themselves.. Cameron's parents were completely awful, her mother using her to get what she wanted from her rich father, and he was just an absolute a**** and Brandon's father was a little too controlling. I felt both angry and sad and it distracted me from how cute and charming the book was. 

My favourite characters were Cameron, Paige and Brandon. I adored all three of them and their relationships. As for Andrew, he doesn't deserve Cameron or Paige....

The book's main theme is how everyone deserves a second chance (or a third) and that we should learn to love both ourselves and others, despite our faults. Another thing I liked is how Cameron understood that she could be honest without being bitter or mean, and that she can fix her mistakes without compromising who she is! In the end she found a boyfriend, friends and her true goal, not when she was trying to change who she is, but when she accepted that she is not perfect and made an effort to be kinder.

All in all, I had a very good time reading it!

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If I'm Being Honest by Emily Wibberley

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