Books I've Loved: The Upside of Unrequited

I really enjoyed this one.  There are a whole bunch of reasons why I shouldn't have liked it so much, but somehow,  I still did.  I guess thats the sign of a good author, right?

It's the story of Molly, an almost painfully awkward seventeen-year-old twin who has had 26 crushes, but never been kissed.  She lives in the shadow of her more beautiful, glamorous sister, but doesn't resent it.  She and Cassie are best friends as well as sisters.

But things change when Cassie gets a girlfriend and Molly doesn't love the convenient best-best-friend-who's-a-boy.

The book primarily follows Molly as she struggles with the changing relationship with her sister.  The story of her growing crush on the nerdy guy at the store where she works becomes almost secondary to the family dynamics.

And what a family!  Molly and Cassie have two mothers, and as soon as gay marriage is legalized, they decide to get married.  This gives Molly lots to do as she indulges her crafty side making decorations for the wedding.

Normally I hate books where the main character only finds the confidence to be herself once she's in a relationship.  But even though this was sort of the case here, Molly was such an endearing character, and her struggle to understand who she liked and even if she wanted a relationship outside her imagination was so real, I didn't mind it the way I usually do.

Both Cassie and Molly are occasionally self-centered and bratty, but what teenager isn't?  I liked that they were realistically flawed and that their moms called them on it.

So while I can see how this book might anger some people, personally, I liked it!

But don't just rely on me.  Here's the blurb:

Seventeen-year-old Molly Peskin-Suso knows all about unrequited love—she’s lived through it twenty-six times. She crushes hard and crushes often, but always in secret. Because no matter how many times her twin sister, Cassie, tells her to woman up, Molly can’t stomach the idea of rejection. So she’s careful. Fat girls always have to be careful.

Then a cute new girl enters Cassie’s orbit, and for the first time ever, Molly’s cynical twin is a lovesick mess. Meanwhile, Molly’s totally not dying of loneliness—except for the part where she is. Luckily, Cassie’s new girlfriend comes with a cute hipster-boy sidekick. Will is funny and flirtatious and just might be perfect crush material. Maybe more than crush material. And if Molly can win him over, she’ll get her first kiss and she’ll get her twin back.

There’s only one problem: Molly’s coworker Reid. He’s an awkward Tolkien superfan with a season pass to the Ren Faire, and there’s absolutely no way Molly could fall for him. Right?