Title: Perfect on Paper
Author: Sophie Gonzales
Rating: ★★★★½

ARC provided by Wednesday Books through NetGalley.

It’s not often that a book meets all of your expectations so superbly, but that’s exactly what Perfect on Paper managed to do. From the protagonist, to the romantic tropes, to the excellent writing, this book was a wonderful little story that made me giddy with happiness.

Darcy Philips was the star of the book and I don’t have a single complaint about her characterization. She was relatable, flawed, remarkable, stood up for her beliefs, and had such tremendous growth throughout the novel. How could you not root for a heroine like that? I also really loved Sophie Gonzales’ commentary on the erasure of bisexuality when dating a member of the opposite gender. I’m not a member of the LGBTQ+ community and therefore have no authority on the matter, however, I thought the way the issues were brought up and handled were brilliantly done.

The romance was impressively written. Perfect on Paper somehow managed to combine my love of the fake dating trop a lá To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before with the sweet, slow-burn that starts as friendship that made me love If I’m Being Honest so much. I love watching a romance unfold through characters’ thoughts and actions and not just being told, and that’s exactly what we are given in Perfect on Paper. In short, it was spectacular.

Perfect on Paper checked all of the right boxes to make this a tremendously heartwarming and satisfying novel. I think this book will appeal to a lot of readers and I highly recommend picking it up in March!