Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert Book Review

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The publisher kindly provided me with a digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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From the New York Times bestselling author of the Brown Sisters trilogy, comes a laugh-out-loud story about a quirky content creator and a clean-cut athlete testing their abilities to survive the great outdoors—and each other.

Bradley Graeme is pretty much perfect. He’s a star football player, manages his OCD well (enough), and comes out on top in all his classes … except the ones he shares with his ex-best friend, Celine.

Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed. Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption—yet, she’s still not cool enough for the popular kids’ table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that’s how Celine sees it.)

These days, there’s nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry. So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she’s surprised to find Brad right beside her.

Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past. And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed … or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute Review

After reading Get a Life, Chloe Brown and the other books in the Brown Sisters series, I fell in love with Talia Hibbert’s stories. I’ve been patiently waiting for the release of her young adult debut. While I enjoyed it, I didn’t love it as much as I thought I would.

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute follows Celine, who signs up for a survival course for a chance to win an academic prize. When she signs up, she’s surprised she has to deal with Brad, her academic rival and ex-best friend.

I enjoyed the characters in this book — they’re all so relatable and quirky. Celine is a great main character that has depth because of her personal past and her history with Bradley. I also love the LGBTQ+ representation that’s included, especially because it relates to Bradley.

The romance is sweet and entertaining. The rivalry between the characters adds a fun element to the growth in their relationship. I also love that they have history with each other — while there is some miscommunication, it’s nice to see them mature and grow.

I think where this book falls flat for me is because of the overall plot and storyline. While I expected the book to focus more on an outdoor survival course, it takes up very little of the plot. Since I’m a fan of books like Starry Eyes, this was a little bit of a let down for me.

Overall, Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute is a sweet and entertaining book. While I didn’t love it as much as Talia Hibbert’s adult romance books, it’s still fun and a solid read.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

About the Author

Talia Hibbert is a USA Today bestselling author who lives in a bedroom full of books. Supposedly, there is a world beyond that room, but she has yet to drum up enough interest to investigate. She writes sexy, diverse romance because she believes that people of marginalised identities need honest and positive representation. Her interests include beauty, junk food, and unnecessary sarcasm. She also rambles intermittently about the romance genre online.

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