Title: Date Me, Bryson Keller
Author: Kevin van Whye
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, LGBT, Romance
Publisher: Penguin Random House
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback
Release Date: May 19, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
What If It’s Us meets To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before in this upbeat and heartfelt boy-meets-boy romance that feels like a modern twist on a ’90s rom-com!
Everyone knows about the dare: Each week, Bryson Keller must date someone new–the first person to ask him out on Monday morning. Few think Bryson can do it. He may be the king of Fairvale Academy, but he’s never really dated before.
Until a boy asks him out, and everything changes.
Kai Sheridan didn’t expect Bryson to say yes. So when Bryson agrees to secretly go out with him, Kai is thrown for a loop. But as the days go by, he discovers there’s more to Bryson beneath the surface, and dating him begins to feel less like an act and more like the real thing. Kai knows how the story of a gay boy liking someone straight ends. With his heart on the line, he’s awkwardly trying to navigate senior year at school, at home, and in the closet, all while grappling with the fact that this “relationship” will last only five days. After all, Bryson Keller is popular, good-looking, and straight . . . right?
Kevin van Whye delivers an uplifting and poignant coming-out love story that will have readers rooting for these two teens to share their hearts with the world–and with each other.
Review:
At a New Year’s Eve party, Bryson Keller, the most popular boy in school, is dared to date a different person every week until Spring Break. The catch is that they have to ask him to date on Monday morning until Friday afternoon. When there are just a few weeks left to go in the dare, Kai Sheridan is paired up with Bryson for a drama project. On a whim, Kai asks Bryson to date that week. The rules said that a person had to ask him, not specifically a girl, though that was assumed. The problem is that no one knows that Kai is gay, so Bryson and Kai have to hide their fake dating for the week. Their new relationship becomes more than just a dare when they have to explore their identities.
I loved this story so much! Kai and Bryson were adorable together. The first two thirds of the story were filled with fun fake dating, where everyone was happy. In the last third, there was more conflict, but it was unavoidable with so many lies about the fake dating.
Kai and Bryson were so cute, but there was also a layer of lies since no one knew Kai was gay. He had to hide it from his friends and family, because he didn’t think they would accept him if they knew. He had a bad experience with a friend that he told when he was younger, so he was afraid to share his secret. The story addressed the way that everyone is automatically assumed to be heterosexual. Kai figures that any guy who he likes won’t like him back, because they are straight. Sexuality shouldn’t be assumed for anyone, but we often automatically make a decision based on how someone looks or who they date. Though Kai’s story is fictional and has a hopeful ending, it’s important to recognize that there are many people who don’t have such a positive life when coming out.
This is such a great story!
Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie Gonzales
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han
Have you read Date Me, Bryson Keller? What did you think of it?
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