Title: A Date with Darcy (Bookish Boyfriends #1)
Author: Tiffany Schmidt
Genre: YA Contemporary
Format: Paperback
Length: 392 pages
Publisher: Amulet Paperbacks
Publish Date: May 1, 2018
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Recommend: Yes!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Technically, yes I did receive this copy from Netgalley a year ago, and I got so overwhelmed with life that I just stopped reading altogether. It was a rough time, one that I’m still going through today but I’m doing better at reading more and getting through my ARCs. So I’m considering this an ARC review even though it was published last year, since I still have to give feedback on Netgalley.

Moving on.

I thought this was one of the cutest books I’ve read this year. The main character Merrilee (Row, Row, Row your boat…) reminded me of me when I was her age – the young age of 15 – where I believed that books in general were way better than real life. In Merri’s case, guys were better in the books than they were in the real world. Which is why when she gets her “first boyfriend”, she thinks she’s living in a world of Romeo and Juliet.

It was actually really fun to see how Schmidt drew parallels from both Romeo and Juliet and Pride and Prejudice into this world, and how she made it in a way that would make total sense in the real world. Well, not to mention Merri was 15, and she saw the world through her books, so all she could see was how her life was mirroring those books (not at the same time, but you’ll see that when you read it).

In short, I can’t speak more on this without spoiling some of the novel, which is never my intention. Lilly was my favorite sister, being the oldest and one that I could relate to in some aspect. Merri was adorable with her love for books, and I do think she found her niche towards the end of the novel. Rory was the sister that just wanted to be included every once in a while, but also stood her ground on different things that happened, and I was very proud of her.

Toby was an amazing best friend, and part of my heart breaks for him. Eliza was the all star best female friend to Merri, but my heart breaks for her too for another reason. And of course the rest of the characters… well, you’ll see!