Taking Down Evelyn Tait

 

By: Poppy Nwosu

Location: FIC NWO

Genre: Young Adult- High School

The door creaks open and standing in the entrance is my absolute worst nightmare.
Perfect hair, perfect teeth, perfect brain.
Perfect sneer.
Evelyn Tait.

Impulsive Lottie – heavy-metal fan, expert tomato-grower and frequent visitor to the principal’s office – is in even more trouble than usual.
Her best friend Grace has dropped an unlikely bombshell: she’s dating Lottie’s mortal enemy, good-girl Evelyn Tait.

Studious Jude, the boy next door, has the perfect war plan. Lottie will beat Evelyn at her own good-girl game, unveiling Miss Perfect’s sinister side in the process.

Taking life more seriously starts as fun, but soon offers its own rewards . . . so long as Lottie can manage gorgeous Sebastian’s sudden interest, Jude acting weird, and the discovery that she might actually be good at something.

Taking Down Evelyn Tait is a story about family, friends and embracing who you are. Even if that person is kind of weird.

This is the kind of story you can't help but fall in love with. It's full of mischief, messy family dynamics, chaotic friendships, and characters with pure hearts of gold. Lottie is mischief personified and she is a glorious blaze of magnetic energy on every page. Also her character arc? Love!

It really tackles the topic self-growth for the better vs the dangers of changing yourself to be someone you're not. (And how exhausting that can be.) Lottie is sick of being in trouble, but she also never means to be. And doesn't she deserve love for who she is right now too? (YES, LOTTIE, MY CHILD U DO.)

The whole story is gorgeously family-centric too and it balances the fun scenes with the emotionally vulnerable moments perfectly. It features a broken family being remade, and the ups and downs of figuring out life with a new step-mum and family. There's friction on both sides, but again, SO much love and growth. Kind of gets me in the feels when I see bitterness turn to understand and resentment turn to love.

And you NEED THE CUTENESS OF THIS ROMANCE. I can't even. Jude is the sweetest cinnamon son and he literally can't say no to Lottie's hairbrained scehmes. Also he's ridiculously in love with her. And she has no idea. We gotcha friends to lovers.

Basically this is the type of contemporary I love and it has such glorious chaotic energy that won me over instantly!  by G C Drews