Cute With Lots Of Real Moments
5 out of 5 stars
Having completely fallen in love with The Falling In Love Montage – I hoped going into this one that I was going to have the same feeling that I had when I finished that. It was a completely different book, and honestly a different feeling, but still that really good feeling I get when a story goes the way I not only wanted, but just makes you feel good.
Holy Crap This Was Cute was what I said about Falling In Love… and I feel similar to this one, but in Not My Problem, Smyth dives into some of the darkness of growing up with problems that you don’t want others to know. Aideen is such a likeable character even with all of her flaws. I quickly realized that most of the things that she was doing and the way she was acting was just her defense mechanism – and once she started letting people in, they realized it as well.
The story deals with some really deep and heavy stuff and I think Smyth absolutely nails it. She nailed Aideen’s reactions and the way that she felt. The scenes when she stays home to help her mom for a few days with her issue was heartbreaking but so realistic. The pain and pressure that it was causing… so real. Just know that if you have an alcoholic parent that Smyth did such a great job that you’ll likely have some flashbacks.
Honestly, I always enjoy audiobooks more than physical books now, but after reading Meabh in the synopsis, even though I’ve listened to the entire story – I thought, well I would have had to guess until I thought to look it up. But, with an audiobook – that research is done for you. The story is just the story. And I’ll give Sarah Jane Drummey credit where credit is due. She nails the performance here and does a great job becoming the characters that she was asked to becoming. You could feel the pain and suffering that Aideen was going through when things weren’t going well with her mom. You could feel the way that Meabh felt when she realized that people didn’t like her. Just… (slow clap) – well done.
Book Description:
Perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Nina LaCour, this queer coming-of-age story from the author of The Falling in Love Montage is wry, multilayered, and unflinchingly honest.
Aideen has plenty of problems she can’t solve. But when she stumbles upon overachiever Meabh Kowalska having a full-blown meltdown, she sees one that she can actually fix. Meabh is desperate to escape her crushing pile of extracurriculars. Aideen volunteers to help – by pushing her down the stairs.
Problem? Solved. Meabh’s sprained ankle is the perfect excuse to ditch her overwhelming schedule. But when one of their classmates learns about their little scheme, more “clients” start asking for Aideen’s “help” – kicking off a semester of traded favors, ill-advised hijinks, and even an unexpected chance at love.
Fixing other people’s problems won’t fix her own. But it might be the push Aideen needs to start.
Not My Problem by Ciara Smyth
Narrator: Sarah Jane Drummey
Length: 9 hrs and 38 mins
Published by HarperAudio on May 25th 2021
Genres: Romance, LGBTQ+, YA
Format: Audiobook
Buy from Audible
Also by this author: The Falling in Love Montage
