10 Truths and a Dare, Ashley Elston - Redemption, Family, and Identity

Summary: 10 Truths and a Dare

10 Truths and a Dare is the companion to the cute 10 Blind Dates which I read and liked a couple of years ago. In this book, Sophie’s cousin Olivia is set to graduate in a week (after all the pre-graduation parties, of course) — as class salutatorian no less. That is until she discovers that flaking on her off-campus P.E (golf) means she doesn’t have enough credits to graduate. Desperate to fix things without letting her entire large close-knit family know, Olivia comes up with a plan to redo the class. But she has a few problems.

First, she can’t tip off her mom who is monitoring Olivia’s phone’s location while she’s away — and expecting grad party pictures. Then, she runs into a childhood acquaintance, Leo, who’s friends with her least favorite cousins (the evil Jo’s). Although there are sparks between them, she’s worried about what her cousins will think about Leo and his camaraderie with the evil Jo’s. Can she successfully graduate without tipping off anyone else in her big (nosy) family?

The Good

Like its companion title, this was a fun book! I listened to the audiobook galley and I really enjoyed it. It’s one of those books that is truly just fluff. I couldn’t tell you one serious issue addressed besides the stress of academia and figuring out one’s path in life (which is a theme in all YA books). It was nice to see Sophie and Wes again and of course, their big Italian-American family. Golf is also a big theme since Olivia is on the golf course a lot and her love interest is a golfer. I did learn several things about golf that I didn’t know of before.

More than its companion, though, this book is funny! I laughed out loud at several of the situations Olivia, Wes, Charlie, and Sophie got into while trying to keep up the charade for Olivia’s mother. I also empathized with Olivia as someone who was “good at school” and thought she had her path figured out at the end of high school too. The love interest was not the most appealing, but I find that these books are more family-focused than romance-focused, so it was alright.

Overall: 10 Truths and a Dare

10 Truths and a Dare is an entertaining, fluffy YA novel about family, repairing mistakes, and finding oneself outside of their familial identity (especially in a large family). Just like its companion title, this book delivers on the fun and humor, but don’t expect any heavy topics or serious issues to be explored. If you love cozy YA stories with a hint of high school antics and a dash of humor.