READING: The Naughty List (The Naughty List #1) by Suzanne Young

Publication date: February 4 2019
Published by: Razorbill
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Mystery, High School
Rating: 

As if being a purrfect cheerleader isn't enough responsibility! Tessa Crimson's the sweet and spunky leader of the SOS (Society of Smitten Kittens), a cheer squad-turned-spy society dedicated to bringing dastardly boyfriends to justice, one cheater at a time. Boyfriend-busting wouldn't be so bad . . . except that so far, every suspect on the Naughty List has been proven 100% guilty! When Tessa's own boyfriend shows up on the List, she turns her sleuthing skills on him. Is Aiden just as naughty as all the rest, or will Tessa's sneaky ways end in catastrophe?

The Naughty List. Is your boyfriend on it?




Holy moly guacamole! This book was swell!

No joke, that is how Tessa spoke…

The Naughty List totally took me by surprise. I was in the mood for a light, funny high school drama (I’ve been binge-re-watching Veronica Mars and I am currently obsessed) and I thought I got that in spades at the beginning of the book, but as it turned out, not quite so.

Tessa was the teen equivalent of a 50’s Stepford wife. She was the head cheerleader, constantly perky, never swore, and a straight A student. I can confirmed she baked, but I'm pretty sure she did.
Her boyfriend Aiden was the most perfect, dreamiest boy ever and the captain of the basketball team. What Aiden didn’t know though was that Tessa had a secret, and that she was the leader of a group called SOS, dedicated to exposing cheating boyfriends.
Just as the perfect veneer of Aiden and Tessa’s relationship begins to crack, new kids Christian and Chloe are determined to give it the final blow.

So, pretty straightforward right? Tessa finds out after a series of misunderstandings that Aiden is not as perfect as she thought he was and is in fact a major dick, all with the help of her selfless sidekick Christian, who Tessa sees in another light and begins to like and fall in love with. 
I mean I have read hundreds of the type of books and they are all the same, an overdone trope which I don’t particularly mind as long as I’m in the mood for it and it is done well.
Turns out, I completely pre and misjudged the Naughty List. I thought it was just another of those cookie cutter teen angst high school dramas but it was the opposite of that. I have to give mad props to Young, she fooled me in the best possible way.

I liked how she showed that Tessa was more than met the eye and that yes, she was exhausted from trying to be perfect all the time and balancing school and relationships and cheerleading and SOS and how she desperately wanted a break from everything. But at the same time and even after that realisation, Young didn’t completely change Tessa by removing every part of her that made her, well, her. Tessa just transformed to a more “mature” person (just a little, let’s not get crazy) who has learned a lot from past mistakes and most importantly how to cut herself some slack occasionally.

As for Aiden, he was the perfect boyfriend. I mean, he was. I am trying to find a fault in him and I can’t. I totally expected him to be a douche but he so wasn’t. It was really nice to see both him and Tessa come to a mutual understanding in the end, even though it would momentarily and knowingly suck for them. The lack of unnecessary over the top drama and angst was refreshing.

I can’t reveal much about the plot I’m afraid even though I really really want to. My advice is to go into the Naughty List spoiler free and give it a chance to pleasantly surprise you. As funny and preppy as should be, I guarantee it will appeal to all YA high school fans out there!