Blog Tour: You, Me & Letting Go - Katie Kaleski

You, Me, & Letting Go
Katie Kaleski
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Swoon Romance
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

A love so epic, no label is needed.

Van Sato’s got labels. Tourettes, ADHD, SPD - words that have defined his existence since the time he was old enough to know what they meant. Now, Van wants to prove he’s more than an acronym, a syndrome, a problem kid. He takes a summer job as a day camp counselor to prove he’s capable of independence and moving on to the next phase in his life. Maybe, he might even make a friend while there. Someone who’s got just as many or even more labels than him. Someone who understands what it’s like.

Tabby Dubanowksi wants to forget about everything, the hospitalization, the judgment, the whispers behind her back. As a camp counselor, she will be admired, looked up to, and able to help people who don’t know anything about her old life. Tabby wants a fresh start and a chance to re-ignite her passion for film-making, if only for one summer.

After running away from their pasts, Van and Tabby collide in a storm cloud of attraction laced with self-doubt, insecurity, shame, and blame. Now, with Van feeling like he might have to quit his job, and Tabby struggling to quell the urge to cut, they will struggle to find themselves in a world designed to keep them apart.

REVIEW

She was trying to forget about the past year and become "Tabby". He was trying to prove to his family, that he was able to independently navigate his life. After a rocky start, they find that their best chances of letting go may lie in each other.

The Characters

Both Van and Tabby were dealing with some major personal baggage. Van physically and mentally struggled with his Touretts, ADHD, and SPD. Though he was very aware of his tics, they were not always easy to manage. Part of his journey was coming to terms with his multiple disorders, and being more open about them.

Tabby also had some challenges to deal with. She was still in recovery following an inpatient stay for anorexia and self harm. She struggled with many of the triggers, and her inner pain and turmoil came across as quite authentic.

Van and Tabby had some great support systems. Kaleski gave each a stupendous best friend, and I especially liked the bromance between Van and Matt. Van suffered from some very major tics, but Matt was able to see past his disorder and see how wonderful Van was.

The Romance

Tabby may have been dealing with some major mental health issues, but most of her scars were on the inside. Van's disorders made themselves known in quite overt ways, but Tabby saw past all that, and was able to appreciate how sweet and funny Van was. I definitely smiled a lot as I read their interactions, but what really won my heart, was the time she took to get to understand him and his needs. I have been seeing this more in books featuring people with ASD, and it's an approach that can work with, and should be used more often, with all people, but especially people with special needs. The idea of someone putting extra time and effort into getting to understand what you need to be comfortable just touches me every time I see it in books and in real life.

All of this was accompanied by a fun day camp setting, a bunch of rom-com moments, interesting family dynamics, and a lot of self discovery, which left me feeling the feels and smiling from ear to ear.

* ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

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BOOK LINKS

GOODREADS | AMAZON 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Katie Kaleski has started down many career paths and held many jobs—indie craft store clerk, pizza maker, photo developer, shoe salesperson and cashier, dental assistant in the army, daycare teacher, student teacher—but her favorite one by far is being a writer. She’s originally from Chicago, so she says things like pop, gym shoes, and front room. Her favorite food
group is sugar, and she loves writing young adult novels.

WEBSITE | GOODREADS | TWITTER | FB | INSTAGRAM 

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