Book Review :: The Upside of Falling by Alex Light

The Upside of Falling by Alex Light
ISBN: 0062918052
Published by HarperTeen
on 18 February 2020
Genres: Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 288
Goodreads

It’s been years since seventeen-year-old Becca Hart believed in true love. But when her former best friend teases her for not having had a boyfriend, Becca impulsively pretends she’s been secretly seeing someone.

Brett Wells has it all. As captain of the football team and one of the most popular guys in his school, he should have no problem finding someone to date, but he’s always been more focused on his future than who to bring to prom.

When he overhears Becca’s lie, Brett decides to step in and be the mystery guy. It’s the perfect solution: he gets people off his back for not having a meaningful relationship and she can keep up the ruse that she’s got a boyfriend.

Acting like the perfect couple isn’t easy, though, especially when you barely know the other person. But with Becca still picking up the pieces from when her world was blown apart years ago and Brett just barely holding his together now, they begin to realize they have more in common than they ever could have imagined.

When the line between what is pretend and what is real begins to blur, they're forced to answer the question: Is this fake romance the realest thing in either of their lives?

Last updated on 17 October 2023

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What is The Upside of Falling by Alex Light about?

The Upside of Falling by Alex Light is about Becca Hart, who hasn’t believed in love in many years. But when her former best friend playfully poked fun at her for not having a boyfriend, Becca found herself spontaneously inventing a secret romance. Classic.

Brett Wells was the embodiment of success at their school. He was the football team’s captain and one of the most popular guys around. Finding a date should have been a breeze for him, but he had always been more preoccupied with his future than with prom dates.

When Brett overhears Becca’s fib, he decides to step in as the mystery boyfriend. It seemed like the ideal solution: he could deflect the pressure to have a meaningful relationship, and Becca could maintain the facade of having a boyfriend.

“People always talk about falling in love but no one ever talks about falling out of it.”

Pretending to be the perfect couple is no walk in the park, especially when they barely know each other. But after spending time together and getting to know one another in a different way, they discover they have more in common than they could have imagined. As the boundaries between fake dating and reality blur, they face a crucial question: Could this fake dating game be the most genuine thing in either of their lives?

My thoughts on The Upside of Falling

The Upside of Falling was a cute read. It was fun to jump into a class Young Adult novel again after reading fantasy quite a bit of late, and the teenage drama and fake-dating thing was a nice light-hearted break from dragons and bloodshed.

Becca as a character, while a bit annoying at times (and she THREW HER BOOKS INTO A LAKE … traumatising. That’s what that was. Traumatising), has this love of romance books and references to things like Jane Austen, which is always fun to read.

“I mean, there’s a reason all books end right after the couple gets together. No one wants to keep reading long enough to see the happily ever after turn into an unhappily ever after. Right?”

Buuuuut she lacked depth. As did Brett, and that’s my main gripe about this book. While they had their moments, most of the time I just didn’t really care. They needed a little more depth to make the story, I think, and while it was an easy, super short, cute read, that was definitely a star-dropper for me.

While it is a Wattpad-originated story, it was pretty good. The writing could be a bit cringy at times, but overall, not bad. Like I said, I did enjoy it. Would I read it again? Nope. Should you read it? That’s completely up to you.

If you have already read it, what do you think?