REVIEW: Kissing Max Holden by Katy Upperman

**I received an ARC from Netgalley. These are my honest opinions, and in no way was I compensated for this review.**

Kissing Max Holden by Katy Upperman

Release Date: August 1, 2017

My Rating: 2.5 stars

Summary: Kissing Max Holden was a terrible idea...

After his father has a life-altering stroke, Max Holden isn't himself. As his long-time friend, Jillian Eldridge only wants to help him, but she doesn't know how. When Max climbs through her window one night, Jill knows that she shouldn't let him kiss her. But she can't resist, and when they're caught in the act by her dad, Jill swears it'll never happen again. Because kissing Max Holden is a terrible idea.

With a new baby sibling on the way, her parents fighting all the time, and her dream of culinary school up in the air, Jill starts spending more and more time with Max. And even though her father disapproves and Max still has a girlfriend, not kissing Max is easier said than done. Will Jill follow her heart and allow their friendship to blossom into something more, or will she listen to her head and stop kissing Max Holden once and for all?

I did not enjoy this book very much to be honest. It had a lot of harmful tropes that to me weren't resolved and could've been at least lessened, but I'll get to that later. Kissing Max Holden was enjoyable at least, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it. (Usually I would include a short summary of the plot, but you can just read the publisher's.)

First off, I feel like Jill spent way too much of the book excusing Max's actions, actions that he never really apologized for. They used to be best friends, but she's always had a bit of a crush on him (or maybe not, I really cannot remember). Anyway, Max would be really rude or he would get drunk, and Jill would just think, Oh! he's going through so much right now, it's understandable why he acts this way. And, honestly, at first it was fine, but the longer I read in the book, the more it felt so fake. I'm sure Max apologizes at some point, but it never felt real, which is probably why I don't remember it tbh. Jill just seemed so blinded by her capital-L Love that she never called any of these actions out. Not that Max is verbally abusive or anything. It just felt like everything he did was fine to Jill. Like??? He's with his girlfriend for almost more than half the book and doesn't break up with her yet kinda messes around with Jill. They do recognize this, but I spent so much of the book thinking, why doesn't he just break up with Becky? They're almost never together, so they could easily break up tbh. His relationship with her just served as an unnecessary obstacle for Jill and Max to me.[Like??? He's with his girlfriend for almost more than half the book and doesn't break up with her yet kinda messes around with Jill. They do recognize this, but I spent so much of the book thinking, why doesn't he just break up with Becky? They're almost never together, so they could easily break up tbh. His relationship with her just served as an unnecessary obstacle for Jill and Max to me. (hide spoiler)]

Another thing that probably bothered me most, especially towards the end, was the portrayal of the female characters. Becky was extremely aggressive towards Jill, which was understandable at some points, like yeah, she's making a move on your boyfriend so you can be upset. But she has virtually no other characteristics than being bossy, manipulative, and controlling. Basically, Becky was The Ex-Girlfriend who You Have to Fight and Be Better Than. It was unnecessary to me, and I could've looked it over if she had literally any other aspect to her character that didn't serve to make her an antagonist.

I had a problem with another female character, but it's very spoilery, so don't click if you don't want to read it. So. Turns out Jill's dad was cheating on her stepmom, Meredith, WITH THEIR NEIGHBOR AND MEREDITH'S FRIEND. The cheating part was hinted at throughout the book, so I wasn't surprised, BUT I was surprised by Jill's reaction. She's understandably upset, but her dad basically bribes her to pay for her culinary school if she doesn't tell Meredith. AND JILL ACCEPTS. And then later when she finds out who the other woman is? She calls her a bitch, a homewrecker, etc. I totally understand that she would be upset. I don't have a problem with Jill being mad towards the neighbor. What I do have a problem is that Jill never seems to hold her dad fully responsible; I felt her hate towards the woman (in three pages, mind you!) twice as much as her gradual dislike of her dad ending in anger (throughout the entire book). I know that her dad raised her and everything, but she was angry with him for like 10 pages, and then just kind of cooled off. But she despises the other woman. So yeah, did not enjoy that part.[So. Turns out Jill's dad was cheating on her stepmom, Meredith, WITH THEIR NEIGHBOR AND MEREDITH'S FRIEND. The cheating part was hinted at throughout the book, so I wasn't surprised, BUT I was surprised by Jill's reaction. She's understandably upset, but her dad basically bribes her to pay for her culinary school if she doesn't tell Meredith. AND JILL ACCEPTS. And then later when she finds out who the other woman is? She calls her a bitch, a homewrecker, etc. I totally understand that she would be upset. I don't have a problem with Jill being mad towards the neighbor. What I do have a problem is that Jill never seems to hold her dad fully responsible; I felt her hate towards the woman (in three pages, mind you!) twice as much as her gradual dislike of her dad ending in anger (throughout the entire book). I know that her dad raised her and everything, but she was angry with him for like 10 pages, and then just kind of cooled off. But she despises the other woman. So yeah, did not enjoy that part. (hide spoiler)]

I really do feel bad rating this book so low, but the more I think about the book, I realize how little I enjoyed it. I feel like it could've focused more on Jill's dad's disapproval towards her and Max's relationship or her sudden struggle with where to go to college or even her cooking and baking (which already took up a lot of the book okay) rather than the three things I mentioned above. This is actually the first time I've rated something two stars that I actually finished; I usually only rate two stars or below with books I didn't even finish. However, this is my opinion, so you can use your own judgment on whether to read the book or not.

Some of the things I did like were Jill's friends, her happy moments with Max, her growing relationship with her stepmom, and her baking/cooking. But overall, there were too many things I didn't like.