He’s So Not Worth It by Kieran Scott

Things aren’t looking so great in Orchard Hill for either Ally or Jake. Finding out that the guy she really liked had been keeping secrets about the whereabouts of her previously absentee father can really take a lot out of a girl, and Ally is tired of having to deal with Jake’s shortcomings. It’s not even like he tried to call her after she was completely humiliated in front of all her former friends and then some. So when Ally’s offered the chance to spend the summer at the Shore, she agrees even if it means keeping close quarters with her mother’s icky new boyfriend. Meanwhile, Jake would be at the Shore with his family except for the fact that his mother has grounded him for bad grades. Jake can’t really complain because it gives him a good excuse to avoid the friends he’d rather not see, even if it means not seeing Ally and being forced to get a job—with Ally’s father of all people. With constant drama, secrets, and botched attempts to fix relationships, it’s going to be a very interesting summer.

Scott writes her books in such a way that after reading one book, you want to run out immediately and get the next. Usually this irritates me, only because sometimes the sequel doesn’t live up to my expectations or is not available. Fortunately, He’s So Not Worth It, the sequel to She’s So Dead to Us has recently been released and most definitely was worth waiting for. I devoured this book. It’s hard to not be sucked into Ally’s and Jake’s lives and empathize with their problems even though it is clear that they are just a train wreck waiting to happen. I’m not suggesting that the self destruction is what makes this novel appealing; rather, the humanity that is evident in these characters makes them very worthy of the reader’s undivided attention in spite of the socially appalling situations they find themselves in. This is a book that I’d love to hate but just can’t; Scott’s spot-on writing and realistic portrayal of both the male and female perspectives elevate He’s So Not Worth It way beyond just a summer guilty pleasure.

Fans of She’s So Dead to Us will not want to miss its fantastic sequel in He’s So Not Worth It, nor will readers who also enjoyed the Private series, also by Kieran Scott under the pseudonym Kate Brian.

Rating: 4.5

Review copy from Simon & Schuster Galley Grab