I also loved that Finn, who has a disability, got a love interest, and also he was just delightfully sarcastic and cynical. I like the focus on getting to really know people, like how Lissa realized that Ariel was actually a good person she’d judged unfairly. In general, I just don’t feel like I have a great handle on the different characters. I’d especially have liked to know more about how Lissa and Kate were before that party. Still, the streets and places remain!The characterization could use a bit of work, honestly. The book is a bit dated, however, because a lot of the restaurants and chain stores referenced are gone by now. I loved picking up on references to things from my area, even though she lives in the actual city and I’m in the burbs. Insults from anyone hurt, but you know better than to believe some random jerk insults from your friends wriggle their way down into your thoughts in a horrifically unhealthy way.Kissing Kate takes place in my home town (Atlanta). Basically, this broke my heart for Lissa, because things like that seriously destroy your self-confidence.

Most noticeably, the friends who treat you one way when you’re alone and another way when you’re in a group. At least, I recognize some of the poisonous social dynamics from my own past. It’s a really heartbreaking situation, and I like the way that Myracle resolves everything.Myracle has a really good hand on the high school dynamics. Lissa, on the other hand, refuses to ignore the spark that was between them. Kate has a boyfriend, and really doesn’t want to risk her popularity. Ever since, things haven’t been the same between them. Kissing Kate isn’t really a romance it’s an investigation of Lissa’s identity.Kate got drunk at a party and initiated a kiss with Lissa. All that really says is that she’s attracted to Kate, but it really doesn’t nail down her sexuality. All that the reader knows or Lissa knows is her feelings for one particular girl, her best friend Kate. I especially love that Myracle doesn’t close the door on Lissa’s sexuality. In general, I find that any LGBT fiction tends to be quite good, since it’s less likely to get published anyway, and Kissing Kate isn’t an exception.Kissing Kate isn’t a perfect book by any means, but, honestly, what book is? The important thing is that it’s a really thoughtful consideration of teen sexuality. Even if Kissing Kate was terrible, I wouldn’t write her off, but, if I liked it, then I could be even more excited to get to her better stuff. Sometimes it’s nice to start with a less well-known book by an author. Maybe I should have started with her most popular and lauded book, Shine, but hype and I really aren’t friends right now.

For more reviews, Cover Snark and more, visit A Reader of Fictions.Actual Rating: 3.5 starsObviously, I’ve heard the buzz about Lauren Myracle, but this is actually the first of her books I’ve ever read.

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