The perfect YA book concept doesn’t exi–
Okay, that doesn’t quite roll off the tongue, but you get my point. The premise for The Perfect Guy Doesn’t Exist sounded so wild and fun, I had to check it out. Protagonist Ivy finds that her favorite fictional hero Weston Razorbrook has come to life — but something’s off. It’s not just the character but the fanfic version of the character Ivy wrote. He’s literally made for Ivy, yet it doesn’t take too long for Ivy to realize he may not be exactly what she wants.
Needless to say, having a character like Weston in the house isn’t easy, and Ivy recruits her best friend Henry and ex-best friend/crush Mack to help. In the TV show Weston’s from, he has magical powers (think Avatar: The Last Airbender mixed with The Mortal Instruments), but Ivy’s Weston is magical in how freaking hilarious he is. I mean, he’s written by a teenage girl, so he’s ridiculously cringey. And I loved it. What I loved even more, though, was how the trio of friends reacted to the cringiness and how they scrambled to take care of him.
Meanwhile, Ivy’s feelings for Mack resurface, making for a sweet mended friendship and cute sapphic romance. There actually isn’t too much romance going on, which I was fine with, since the book is more about Ivy and her journey. She’s a super flawed protagonist, and she knows it. I related to her anxiety and insecurities so much, and I understood how it made her sink into fantasy. It’s comfortable in fantasy, but as she learns, her reality is the place to be.
**Much thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. The Perfect Guy Doesn’t Exist will be released on March 26.
Rating: ★★★★★
Sara Bechtol 