Grace and the Fever

(4.5 stars, rounding up.) It's still rarer than it should be to read a book that gets fandom culture in the Tumblr age right, but this one does and it really informs the entire book, from the characters down to the story. I haven't been in a boy band fandom, but I've definitely been in fandom and felt like I couldn't explain my “internet friends” or what I was doing online till 2:00 am to my family or “normal” friends. I don't know if you need that background to enjoy this book, but as someone who's been there and is still on Tumblr to this day, it's really nice to see an author get modern fandom.

On to the book - Grace is something of a passive character (and/or in her own head) for a lot of the book, so if that bothers you, this may not be your cup of tea. I really liked how the book explored the end of high school and gradually growing apart from your old friends but still wanting to keep those connections, even though you're not in the same place anymore. Some of the boy-band characters were a little vaguely sketched, but you may get more from them if you're fluent in One Direction (which I'm not, though I could still tell who most of the Fever Dream guys were analogues for). All in all, this is an excellent wish-fulfillment/coming-of-age YA novel and I devoured it in less than a day. After I finished, I flipped through and reread a bit, because yes. This book.

One spoilery thing, though: Grace, girl. Put a passcode or thumbprint lock on your phone, especially if you're at the center of a fandom scandal!