[Review] Prom-Wrecked by T.H. Hernandez; Jennifer DiGiovanni

Summary: When the principal announces prom is canceled this year, senior Riley Hart is determined to save it. Armed with little more than her own enthusiasm, she ends up working closely with Owen Locklear, who is more than completely off-limits. Because he’s the boyfriend of her ex-BFF, Catherine Reed. Still, Owen knows Riley better than almost anyone, and his charming ideas for turning the prom upside-down and backward win Riley over.

Catherine is willing to join Owen and Riley on the prom committee, but only because her legacy as prom queen is at stake. She’s already suffocating under the weight of her parents’ expectations for after senior year, and compared to that, ensuring prom happens should be easy. At least until everything starts to go wrong.

First they lose their deposit. Then they book a band full of octogenarians. And lose their venue... Twice.

Riley will have an unforgettable teenage experience, damn it, if it’s the last thing she does… (Pub Date: May 06, 2019)


This is a 3.5.

Narrated from two points of view, this is the story of how former best friends come together to make sure their class has a prom. And how things keep getting in their way.

I wasn't supposed to read anything else in May but I couldn't resist when I saw this story. The cover is super pretty, the title is powerful, but the summary is what did it for me. For once, an Entangled Teens without the couple narrating it. I love Entangled Teens, it's the thing to go to when I need a YA to refresh my mind. And if you're checking the review for a YA, you know what I mean. But the formula can get tiresome. Boy A and Girl B narrating a love story, everything is too obvious. When I noticed this wasn't the case, I had to check it out.

Don't be fooled, though. We still have a romance going on, actually two. And they're key points. Just the way I like my YA's.And both romances are super cute, look forward to having two book boyfriends!

I also enjoyed the side romances and characters. Hunter was my favorite, of course. I loved how close Catherine and she were.

But the central plot was making prom happen. I'm not so sure how getting abandoned by Cat made Riley so standoff-ish and the way both talked about their past I even thought something must have happened—and I was wrong. Either way, nowadays Riley was very relatable (so was Cat, to my surprise). She just doesn't like leading things even if she makes it happen, I understand that feeling though maybe for different reasons, and then she feels very passionate about prom and has no idea whether she can go ahead with what she started.

Almost forget to comment on there being two authors. Sometimes, it's very obvious where one passed the baton to the other but not in this case. I'm no expert, but the writing seemed linear. I have no idea how they made it but they did.

This is a great YA, but not as unique as to get a high rating. It was finally something different from Entangled, yes. I'd love to see them bet on more like it. But it's not unique enough in general. Still, way above average, and I recommend it to any YA fan.

Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.


Rating: 3 out of 5.