Overall: 5/5 Stars
Characters: 5/5
Setting: 5/5
Writing: 5/5
Plot and Themes: 5/5
Awesomeness Factor: 5/5
Review in a Nutshell: What If It’s Us is an adorable tale of love and friendship that will take you on a rollercoaster of emotion through NYC.

Release Date: October 9th, 2018
*Quotes are taken from the ARC and are subject to change upon publishing.*

“’But what if the story should quit while it’s ahead?’
‘How do you know unless you give the story another chance?’”

//Content Warning: Homophobia, racism, cheating//

– Premise –

What If It’s Us follows two guys in New York City. There’s Arthur, a Broadway musical fanatic interning for the summer before heading back to his hometown in Georgia. Then there’s Ben, a NYC native who just broke up with his boyfriend for cheating on him. When Arthur and Ben cross paths at the post office, they immediately click but are just a quickly separated. When they manage reunite, it seemed like a miracle, but the realities of being together can be just as hard as it was to find each other.

– Setting –

This book takes place in New York City. As someone who lives on Long Island and has been to New York countless times, I loved seeing the magic of it through Arthur’s eyes. He channels Elphaba and Glinda in the Emerald City. I was never a big fan of New York City (outside of Broadway, of course), but the way it’s described in this book, especially in the Arthur chapters, makes me excited for my next visit.

“I believe in love at first sight. Fate, the universe, all of it. But not how you’re thinking. I don’t mean it in the our souls were split and you’re my other half forever and ever sort of way. I just think you’re meant to meet some people. I think the universe nudges them into your path.” 

– Writing –

Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera cowrote this book, with Albertalli writing the Arthur chapters and Silvera writing the Ben chapters. Their writing styles really mesh well, feeling cohesive and flowing beautifully. Arthur’s chapters are a bit more lighthearted, since he’s a more relatable and entertaining person, while Ben’s chapters still made me laugh but were more focused on his growth and development. It ended up being a perfect balance. Also, who gave them the right to reference the musical Aida? There are so many musicals casually mentioned in Arthur’s chapters, but the Aida reference killed me.

– Plot-

The plot of this book is absolutely wonderful. It mostly revolves around the relationship between the two characters, and it’s so adorable and entertaining that not much else was needed. However, there are also a lot of great friendship and family moments that warmed my heart. Also, a lot of people are wondering how this will end – a Becky-Albertalli-Happily-Ever-After or an Adam-Silvera-Reading-Through-My-Tears-Ending. I won’t say what it was, but I will say that I was happy with it.

“I barely know him. I guess that is every relationship. You start with nothing and maybe end with everything.”

– Characters – 

This book is full of unique and well-developed characters. Arthur and Ben each were amazing, but their friends were equally awesome. I loved Ben’s best friend and their relationship so much. I just adored seeing an openly gay character and his straight best friend being so open and loving with each other and never getting weird.

– Conclusion –

Pros- Adorable and hilarious, with extremely relatable characters and more musical references than you could ever imagine
Cons- ???? There’s no sequel and I really want there to be
Overall- 5/5 stars.
What If It’s Us is a perfect cute read that will leave you helpless (the Eliza Schuyler kind, that is).

Add To Your Goodreads Shelf
Purchase on Amazon