Review: Freshmen by Tom Ellen & Lucy Ivison

Freshmen
by Tom Ellen & Lucy Ivison

June 12, 2018

352 pages

Goodreads     Indigo

Goodreads Summary:
Getting in is just the beginning.

Phoebe can’t wait to get to college. On her own, discovering new things, no curfew…she’ll be free. And she’ll be totally different: cooler, prettier, smarter…the perfect potential girlfriend. Convenient: the only person from her high school also going to York is her longtime crush, Luke.

Luke didn’t set out to redefine himself, but as soon as he arrives on campus, he finds himself dumping his long-term long-distance girlfriend. And the changes don’t stop there. In fact, being on a soccer team is the only thing that stays the same.

Just when things start looking up (and Phoebe and Luke start hooking up), drama looms on the horizon. Rumors swirl about the Wall of Shame, a secret text chain run by Luke’s soccer team, filled with compromising photos of girls. As the women on campus determine to expose the team and shut down the account, Luke and Phoebe find themselves grappling with confusing feelings and wondering how they’ll ever make it through freshman year.

Review

I had a great time reading Freshmen! Honestly when I originally picked up the book I thought it'd be yet another typical drama-filled teen story. The humour in this one though really made it stand out.

Freshmen was a quick read in the most addictive way. The writing was easy to take in and the dialogues were laugh-out-loud hilarious. I was grinning madly and laughing away at/with the characters. It was impossible to peel my eyes away from the sh*t show happening on the pages. While things were a giant mix of madness and amusement the emotions involved, particularly the confusion, felt very genuine in a new-to-college and first-time-away-from-home feel.

The story really highlighted the different sorts of people you'll meet, in this case, at school. There was so much drama but it was all really fun to watch unfold. Some legit amazing friendships were formed. They started off in the weirdest and most random way but through the course of the book managed to smoothly morph themselves into meaningful relationships. The romance(s) were messy with complications everywhere. Yet each instance helped the characters grow a little more. I was surprised but also pleased with how things were handled at the very end.

I experienced a bit of a cultural shock with Freshmen. It opened my eyes to many English things I hadn't known or noticed before. I knew they drank a lot of tea but wow do they also eat a ton of toasts and play games called Sardines. It's basically hide and go seek but in reverse and it sounds fun! Last but not least, Frosh Week sounds bonkers! And that's all I'm going to say ;)

Freshmen was such a riot to read. With a wry sense of humour, larger than life personalities and the most surreal of moments, this is a book you'll not want to put down once you've got it in your hands. Go pick it up now!!

 

*I received an Advance Reading Copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and not affected in any way.