'Come As You Are' by Dahlia Adler

5 stars!

Book Blurb:

"Hot on the heels of a broken heart, Everett “Evie” Riley arrives at Camden Academy ready for a new beginning - one far away from her cheating ex-boyfriend, the sister who stole him, and the best friend who let it happen. But her fresh start is stopped in its tracks when she's accidentally placed in an all-boys dorm, with no choice but to stay.

When rumors and gossip about Evie's housing predicament spread like wildfire, she decides the only way to survive is to lean into her questionable new reputation... but she's definitely going to require help. Her grumpy emo dorm mate Salem Grayson isn't exactly her first choice, but he does need her help to repair his relationship with his parents every bit as much as she needs his to learn how to be cool. And so they make a pact - he'll teach her how to be bad, if she teaches him how to be good.

It's a flawless plan, except while Salem thrives academically, even romantically, and - annoyingly enough - even physically, Evie's quest feels like one dead end after another, and the girl she's becoming certainly doesn't feel remotely cool. But when Evie realizes what she wants more than anything, she'll have to contend with her thrice-broken heart and figure out how to become someone capable of chasing happiness.

Dahlia Adler’s Come As You Are is about refusing to accept less than you deserve, and realizing that the best relationships are with people who know exactly who you are."


My Review:

This is an absolutely fantastic coming-of-age story with a slow-burn YA romance and the best witty banter I've seen in a long time! Readers follow Evie as she starts her sophomore year of high school at a new school and finds her footing and her voice.

Back home, she was the perfect daughter, perfect sister, perfect girlfriend; and it was never good enough. Those around her treated her poorly. So when her fresh start begins with placement in an all-boys dorm and both administration and her dorm mates treat her like it's somehow her fault, she starts to think about how someone else would handle this. She hatches a plan to learn to become a badass who does not get walked all over by others.

She quickly meets and befriends her "grumpy emo dorm mate Salem" and they enter into a pact - Evie will help him improve his image with his parents, and Salem will help her learn "how to be cool." What ensues is so much witty banter and humor. It's a joy to watch Evie slowly find herself and build confidence and realize that she is seen, for exactly who she is, and that it is enough.

This is my new favorite Dahlia Adler book and one of my all-time favorite YA Contemporary reads. Highly, highly recommended!

Releases May 27, 2025 - preorder here.

#NetGalley - I voluntarily read a Review Copy of this book. All opinions stated are solely my own and no one else’s.