Smash It!

By: Francina Simone

Narrated by: Zakiya Young

Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

Refreshingly authentic and bold.... Don’t miss this smashing novel from Francina Simone, filled with heart, humor, and a heroine to root for!

Olivia “Liv” James is done with letting her insecurities get the best of her. So she does what any self-respecting hot mess of a girl who wants to smash junior year does....

After Liv shows up to a Halloween party in khaki shorts — why, God, why? — she decides to set aside her wack AF ways. She makes a list — a F*ck-It list.

1. Be bold — do the thing that scares me.
2. Learn to take a compliment.
3. Stand out instead of back.

She kicks it off by trying out for the school musical, saying yes to a date and making new friends. Life is great when you stop punking yourself! However, with change comes a lot of missteps, and being bold means following her heart. So what happens when Liv’s heart is interested in three different guys — and two of them are her best friends? What is she supposed to do when she gets dumped by a guy she’s not even dating? How does one Smash It! after the humiliation of being friend-zoned?

In Liv’s own words, “F*ck it. What’s the worst that can happen?”

A lot, apparently.

#SMASHIT

“Smash It! smashed it." (New York Times best-selling author Christine Riccio)

©2020 Francina Simone (P)2020 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited

Good Coming of Age Story

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Chapter 1 was a bit too much or just off at first. That's when I thought the narrator's voice didn't fit. As I continued to listen, it became more dramatic. I think I like the love story in this novel & point of view of sex. it was refreshing and relatable.

Perceptive, funny, human, and bold!

Part ode to theatre kids, part romcom, and with a pinch of magic, SMASH IT! is the perfect storm of messy, funny, perceptive, horny (definitely very horny), and bold.

SMASH IT! is that good kind of YA that reminds me of the best and worst of high school in the most nostalgic way. The angst, the curiosity, the constant yearning for a better and more established sense of self—this book captures all of it. Not to mentioned that heightened sense of daydreaming that only comes from being involved in musical rehearsals.

I really enjoyed following the ride of this novel: a deeply human, deeply flawed journey toward confidence and self-love. It never condescends, showing earnest compassion toward each of its characters. Every moment is profoundly human.

From its clever, thematic parallels to Othello, to its perfectly paced plot, to its spitfire dialogue, I deeply enjoyed this book. Go buy it!