Book Review: Been Here All Along by Sandy Hall

Been Here All Along by Sandy Hall
Review Copy: Provided by NetGalley
Pre-Order: Amazon
Release Date: August 30, 2016. 
Publisher: Swoon Reads

Description From Goodreads:
Gideon always has a plan. His plans include running for class president, becoming head of the yearbook committee, and having his choice of colleges. They do NOT include falling head over heels for his best friend and next door neighbor, Kyle. It’s a distraction. It’s pointless, as Kyle is already dating the gorgeous and popular head cheerleader, Ruby. And Gideon doesn’t know what to do.

Kyle finally feels like he has a handle on life. He has a wonderful girlfriend, a best friend willing to debate the finer points of Lord of the Rings, and social acceptance as captain of the basketball team. Then, both Ruby and Gideon start acting really weird, just as his spot on the team is threatened, and Kyle can’t quite figure out what he did wrong…

My Review:
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is the kind of book I wished that I'd had while in high school. It's one that I can easily relate to, and one that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. See, when I was in high school, I was going through my own questioning period like Gideon. I know what it's like to question yourself and your emotions, and Hall managed to perfectly encapsulate that.

This book was adorable and sweet. It was a cute romance story that just so happened to feature a LBGTQ couple, but never really seemed intent on making that the biggest deal. Which was a nice change-up. It's also the first book I've ever read by Hall, and I feel like it was the perfect introduction.

Unfortunately, as much as I enjoyed this, I couldn't give it five stars, and that''s simply because at times the character's sounded much younger than they actually were. Although Hall did a great job at giving each character their own distinctive voice - truly great job - the gang of characters (outside of Buster and Ezra) all sounded as though they were in middle school as opposed to high school. This took me out of the story from time to time.

Overall, I highly suggest this book. It's absolutely worth the read.

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