Review: Kate in Waiting

Title: Kate in Waiting
Author: Becky Albertalli
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, LGBT
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: April 20, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Contrary to popular belief, best friends Kate Garfield and Anderson Walker are not codependent. Carpooling to and from theater rehearsals? Environmentally sound and efficient. Consulting each other on every single life decision? Basic good judgment. Pining for the same guys from afar? Shared crushes are more fun anyway.

But when Kate and Andy’s latest long-distance crush shows up at their school, everything goes off script. Matt Olsson is talented and sweet, and Kate likes him. She really likes him. The only problem? So does Anderson.

Turns out, communal crushes aren’t so fun when real feelings are involved. This one might even bring the curtains down on Kate and Anderson’s friendship.

Review:

Kate Garfield and her best friend Anderson Walker have always shared crushes. They also share a love of theatre. At their summer camp, they both crushed on Matt Olsson, who didn’t seem to know they existed. However, when they start their junior year of high school, they’re shocked to see Matt Olsson has moved to their school. Kate really likes Matt, but Anderson really likes him too. Their feelings are stronger than their usual communal crushes. They each spend time with Matt in different situations, but eventually someone will get the guy and the other will get their heart broken.

This story was such an emotional rollercoaster. Kate and Andy experienced the whirlwind of first love and first heartbreak. I loved both Kate and Andy, but I knew that only one of them could win Matt’s affection in the end. I was rooting for them both to win, even though that couldn’t happen. I will say that the ending was perfect!

This story had great diversity. Kate’s friends were gender diverse. Andy was gay and their friend Raina was trans. They didn’t know the sexual orientation of their other friend Brandie, but they were okay with that and didn’t force her to tell them. Kate was Jewish, which I don’t see a lot in YA novels. Even though there are many Jewish YA authors, they don’t necessarily put that into their stories, so I was glad to see this aspect of Becky’s life in this story.

This was a beautiful story about first love in high school!

What to read next:

Have you read Kate in Waiting? What did you think of it?