I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Lenore Bennett has always been a force. A star artist and style icon at her high school, she’s a master in the subtle art of not giving a . . . well, you know what. But now that graduation is here, she’s a little less sure.

She’s heading to NYU in the fall with a scarlet U (for “undeclared”) written across her chest. Her parents always remind her that Black kids don’t have the luxury of figuring it out as they go—they have to be 110 percent prepared. But it’s a lot of pressure to be her ancestors’ wildest dreams when Lenore’s not even sure what her dreams are yet.

When her family embarks on a post-graduation Mediterranean cruise, her friend Tessa is sure Lenore’s in for a whirlwind romance. But Lenore knows that doesn’t happen to girls like her.

Then she meets Alex Lee. After their parents bond over the Cupid Shuffle, she ends up stuck with him for the remainder of the cruise. He’s a hopeless romantic and a golden boy with a ten-year plan. In short, he’s irritating as hell.

But as they get to know each other during the picturesque stops across Europe, Alex may be able to help Lenore find something else she’s been looking for, even if she doesn’t want to admit it to herself: love.

Short and Sweet Review

Lenore is an artist she loves to create, but now that high school graduation is here she’s unsure about college. Lenore’s parents realize that Lenore is unsure and give her a deadline to figure out what she’s going to do in her future which puts a lot of pressure on Lenore.

Lenore and her family set sail on a Mediterranean cruise and Lenore’s friend Tessa is sure she’ll find romance, which Lenore scoffs at until she sees Alex Lee. Unfortunately their first meeting doesn’t go well and Lenore is sure she hates him, but their parents hit it off and now every where Lenore goes Alex is there too.

Lenore is almost like a free spirit she loves to create but she doesn’t really commit to anything for too long, which concerns her parents. Her older brother Wally is going to law school and her younger sister, Etta is already taking college courses. Whenever Lenore talks about college or what she wants to do in college she makes a stank face which everyone can read. Lenore and her family are going on a Mediterranean cruise and Lenore’s parents tell her that she has until the end of the cruise to come up with a set plan for her future. Before Lenore goes on the trip her best friend Tessa tells her that she should try to find some romance which is definitely out of the window for Lenore. Lenore ends up meeting Alex and they don’t exactly become the best of friends but their parents do and now they’re stuck together for the rest of the cruise. The more time they spend together the more Lenore realizes that Alex isn’t so bad.

I loved all the characters! Lenore is so realistic and it’s easy to connect with her. I felt bad that she was under so much pressure to find something she would be passionate about. I thought Alex was so sweet he’s like everyones dream guy, the amount of effort that boy puts into trying to make things amazing for someone *swoon*. Lenore’s brother Wally is also going through some things that we don’t really understand until the later half of the book but I kind of figured it out because he and I are in the same boat. Sometimes I didn’t like the pressure that Lenore’s parents put on her or sometimes how it felt like they would brag about what other people have accomplished and how she needs to do that in life.

The romance between Alex and Lenore was sweet, Lenore has a lot of walls up and doesn’t want to get hurt so it took a while for Alex to break them down. I didn’t like the little conflict that happened between them but I guess we needed something like that.

The setting was great I enjoyed reading about the places they went on their cruise and it didn’t get boring when they had sea days I was still captivated, it made me want to go on a cruise.

I loved this book! The characters were ones that you could connect with and feel for, the romance was so cute, and the dialogue had me laughing! I would definitely recommend this book!