Emmett Arc Review

 Emmett by L. C. Rosen

YA romance

rep - queer & jewish 

pub day - Nov 7th

272 pages

little brown books for young readers

Synopsis - A modern-day gay  Emma , with the spikey social critique of Austen plus the lush over-the-top romance of  Bridgerton.

Emmett Woodhouse, handsome, clever and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence and had lived nearly eighteen years in the world with very little to distress or vex him.
 
Emmett knows he’s blessed. And because of that, he tries to give from charity work to letting the often irritating Georgia sit at his table at lunch, he knows it’s important to be nice. And recently, he’s found a new way of giving matchmaking. He set up his best friend Taylor with her new boyfriend and it’s gone perfectly. So when his occasional friend-with-benefits Harrison starts saying he wants a boyfriend (something Emmett definitely does NOT want to be), he decides to try and find Harrison the perfect man at Highbury Academy, the candy-colored private school they attend just outside Los Angeles. 
 
Emmett’s childhood friend, Miles, thinks finding a boyfriend for a guy you sleep with is a bad idea. But Miles is straight, and Emmett says this is gay life – your friends, your lovers, your boyfriends – they all come from the same very small pool. That’s why Emmett doesn’t date – to keep things clean. He knows the human brain isn’t done developing until twenty-five, so any relationship he enters into before then would inevitably end in a breakup, in loss. And he’s seen what loss can do. His mother died four years ago and his Dad hasn’t been the same since. 
 
But the lines Emmett tries to draw are more porous than he thinks, and as he tries to find Harrison the perfect match, he learns that gifted as he may be, maybe he has no idea what he’s doing when it comes to love. 
 
Modern and very gay, with a charmingly conceited lead who is convinced he knows it all, and the occasional reference to the classic movie  Clueless, Emmett  brings you lush romance all while exploring the complexities of queer culture—where your lovers and friends are sometimes the same person, but the person you fall in love with might be a total surprise.

Review - 3/5 stars

 I really loved all the queer & Jewish rep in this one!! However it really just felt like 200 pages of miscommunication and the dad creeped me out. Normally I love queer YA retellings but I didn’t connect with most of the main characters. I did connect with the demisexual rep. This one was a miss for me but I'd love to give another book by this author a chance.  I feel like this could've been better if it was longer