Top Ten audiobook

Katie Cotugno’s books always have a way of surprising me. She develops these realistic and flawed individuals and we follow them through their daily lives. We see the beauty, tragedy, and monotony of their lives and get to experience it along side them. Top Ten is another solid installment that showcases the importance of friendship, what it means when that friend becomes more, and what happens if it doesn’t work out. Things I Liked :There was this overwhelming nostalgic feeling, while being so incredibly realistic, that made reading the story incredibly easy. It was nice looking back and reminiscing about Gabby and Ryan’s friendship with them as we see some of the more pivotal moments of their high school experience. There were some surprises that I was not expecting. I loved how Gabby and Ryan’s relationship develops. It seems so organic, because we have followed them all this time and come to really know them. For me the absolute highlight of this book was the friendship in Gabby and Ryan’s relationship is so open and honest. They have one of the most genuine friendship I’ve seen in a long time. You couldn’t help but root for them and wish them all the happiness. Things I Didn’t Like :I wasn’t the biggest fan of how time was framed. I really like that the story was bookended, but in between there was a lot of back and forth and could get confusing. Especially with the second-half of the school year coming before the first-half. Overall this was a really satisfying and unique contemporary. I loved the focus on friendship and it’s importance. And how friendship are just as important as romantic relationship, and can be more meaningful. Gabby and Ryan’s story was beautiful and heartbreaking and loving. I expect nothing less from Katie Cotugno.

Full Review on The Candid Cover3.5 StarsTop Ten is exactly what is sounds like—a nostalgic recap of a four year friendship told in a top ten list format. This story is realistic and contains two opposite main characters. The non-sequential writing style is inventive, but does get a bit hard to follow. I still enjoyed the story, and it truly is an emotional rollercoaster.This book recaps the friendship of two teens about to head off to college. It focuses on their top ten moments, some good and some bad, but all of which define their relationship. It is so entertaining watching Gabby and Ryan’s relationship develop and experiencing their best moments along with them. Top Ten has everything—a bisexual main character with anxiety, her friend who plays hockey, and an amazing family. For those looking for a cute and realistic story with representation, I would definitely recommend this one.Gabby and Ryan are both ideal characters for this story. Gabby is more introverted and suffers with anxiety while Ryan is on the wilder side. They are both so different, but their friendship works out. I really enjoyed how the book actually focuses on their friendship, and there isn’t much romance between them. I personally preferred Gabby’s character, since Ryan’s recklessness got a bit frustrating sometimes, but Ryan also had his moments. The story is told in multiple points of view, so the reader is able to experience both characters equally.The way Top Ten is written is super unique, but I can see how it can turn some people away. Since the story is told as a top ten list, the plot isn’t chronological. As a reader, I had to be super aware of the year before starting each chapter. For me, it was a bit confusing at first, but I got used to it. I’m still not quite sure how I feel about this format, since it is creative, but hard to follow at times. I would have preferred chronological order, but I guess the story wouldn’t be the same.Top Ten is an original story featuring the top ten moments of a friendship. I enjoyed the main characters’ opposite personalities and how realistic they are. The format of this book is unconventional, which is interesting, but also a bit confusing at times. I still found the book to be enjoyable, and classic Katie Cotugno.

wow. I really didn't have high expectations for this book, but I just appreciate it so much. I'm so glad I did give this a chance.

I want more Gabby and Ryan.

Rating: 4.5 StarsI really loved this one, but you know, endings. I really loved this book, and as an homage to Ryan, Gabby, and their lists, I will give my top ten reasons why I loved this book.1. Ryan, on the surface, appeared to be this happy-go-lucky jock, who was super popular, could have any girl he wanted, and thought life was a great big party. In reality, he felt alone in crowds and yearned for one-on-one interactions, he felt abandoned by his super-critical father, and he spent most of this book pining for the girl he didn't think he could have. 2. Gabby had to struggle every day with her anxiety. She was plagued by panic attacks, and they kept her from letting her true and awesome self shine though. I was beyond elated that she found comfort and solace in Ryan. He was one of the few people, who could talk her through an attack, and he accepted her panic attacks and all. 3. Friendship is the heart of this story, and it was a very beautiful friendship. It had it's ups and downs, and I like that the challenges particular to a female/male friendship were addressed, because they were so realistic. I was just so happy that they found each other, when they really needed that "person" to count on. This friendship may have had a super awkward start, but it blossomed into something really special. 4. Family played a huge role in Gabby and Ryan's lives. Gabby's family was beyond wonderful. I loved playing Monopoly with them and couldn't wait to see what appetizer Dad made from his cookbook. They were open about most things, and the love just enveloped me every time we encountered a full family scene. It was no surprise why Ryan opted to spend his Friday nights with the Harts. 5. Romance was present throughout the book. Gabby and Ryan both explored serious relationships with other people. I won't lie, I was sort of sad that they were sharing experiences with other people and not each other, but I have to say, Cotugno did such a wonderful job with them. They were very special moments and they felt very special to me. 6. So many emotions! I actually have tears streaming down my face as I write this review, because I felt way too much as I read this book. There were so many ups and downs, which happen with long friendships, but there were also a million things that made my heart soar. I am crying, but I am smiling too. 7. Four years. We get to be part of Ryan and Gabby's lives for four years, and I go gaga for books that let me watch the characters change and grow over an extended period of time. 8. I loved the format of this book. Since this is essentially a list of the top ten moments in Gabby and Ryan's relationship, it skips around chronologically. I liked it, because things would be hinted at, which had not been revealed to us yet. It created a little bit of mystery and made me eager to find out more. The way Cotugno laid out the top ten was not random, they put in an intentional order and each vignette fit logically in its place. It also let me compare and contrast the Gabby and Ryan at different points in time, and I loved making note of all the changes they were experiencing. 9. Post graduation struggle. A lot of books hype graduation as the most marvelous thing ever. Everyone is so excited and ready to move on to bigger and better things, but I do not believe that is how every senior/new graduate feels. It's scary and a huge life change. For some, it entails moving away from the safety of their home and they have to start over from in a new place. I liked that Gabby and Ryan had these fears and shared them with us. 10. This near-perfect story of friendship, family, and love made me so happy. I was totally invested from the very beginning, and although the ending left me a little wanting, I still will sing its praises, because it delivered an incredible reading experience for me. Read these quotes and feel some feels with me: "Celia called him the Great Equalizer. He was Gabby's social security blanket, her failsafe against miserable, crippling anxiety; she had no idea what she was going to do without him come fall.""You're just embarrassed that all the most important moments of your adolescence include me.""Two months. The thought of it gave Ryan that same uneasy feeling from earlier, like everything was about to change whether he wanted it to or not and he couldn't do one single thing to stop it.""She was a really good question-asker. She remembered all the weird, random stuff he said. She had an opinion about literally everything..""literally no one there would notice if I fell of the face of the earth.""I'd notice," Ryan said immediately."He was homesick, he realized. He was homesick for her.""but the only person he knew for absolute sure he still wanted to be around after graduation was - Well. Gabby, actually.""He was her most important person, the one she told things to so that they would be real. So that she would be. HIs friendship was the best thing in her life.""She missed his loud, stupid laugh. She missed his hands and his mouth and the steadiness of his best friendship but worse than ll that's the undeniable fact that some very important, tethered part of her had shut down when they broke up and now she seemed to be hurtling off through space at a million miles per hour, her oxygen tank rapidly emptying out.""He was scared too, to be honest: of who he might be now that he wasn't who he'd been planning, of the future and whatever it held. But sitting here with Gabby made him feel like he could handle it. Sitting here with Gabby made him feel weirdly brave.""This is it," she said, swallowing her heart back down into her chest where it belonged. She wanted to reach into her rib cage and hand it to him for safekeeping, wanted him to know he had it no matter what else happened next. **I would like to thank the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. BLOG | INSTAGRAM | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS

MY RATING: 4/5I received an arc from Harper Collins in exchange for an honest review. Let's start this review off with me saying that I love Katie's works. I adored How to Love, and yes, 99 days was kind of problematic, and I didn't really read her other release from this year, Fireworks, yet but I still hold onto the fact that she will be one of my automatic buys. Have you seen the cover designs of her books? Granted, I shouldn't be purchasing a book based on it's cover art because the graphic designer does not affect the contents of the book but fellow booknerds, we know we're on the same page when we say a prettier cover definitely holds our interest. I received this arc maybe five days before the expected publication date and I would have finished this one way sooner if I haven't been so busy simply because the story and writing was addictive. I couldn't put it down for the majority parts of my afternoons after work because I wanted to know the story of Gabby and Ryan, two best friends who seemed to be perfect for each other except for the timing. Yes, folks. Top 10, is a love story about two best friends who have feelings for each other throughout their high school life but don't have the courage to admit it to each other and to my annoyance, they are pulled apart because of timing and miscommunication and lack of communication. But hey! It won't be an interesting tale without some angst and some adversities to make these two people be apart from each other. Let's discuss more about our hero and heroine, Ryan and Gabby. Gabby is a bisexual character who suffers anxiety and symptoms of depression. She's basically the poster child of inclusiveness in a young adult novel. I don't mean to sound like a cynic but if you're tired of a cookie cutter character, Gabby is the one for you. For me personally, I loved Gabby for being bisexual and suffering anxiety because these are two very important things we need to address more in popular culture. And I'm not saying, Gabby was a better character because of these two factors. No, no, no, no. I'm just saying it made the story more interesting in a way. For the most part, Gabby was quiet, afraid, and not really a true version of herself unless she was with Ryan. She suffered panic attacks and discomfort in social situations and because of this, it was a major factor in her romantic and unromantic relationships. Often at times, for people like me who don't suffer social anxiety disorder, it could be frustrating to see Gabby not take chances. It's like, if I can do it. You can too! And we see this side from other characters like myself. Ryan, Gabby's sisters and peers, etc. But that's not how people function and it's good to be more understanding and sensitive to topics like this.Ryan, on the other hand, was a complete opposite of Gabby. They're both two types of people. Ryan enjoyed the thrill of a wild night out and thrived being an extrovert. He made friends easily and people just knew him. He was the star of the hockey team, making him basically the most popular boy in school. But he's not a golden boy. He comes from a single parent family so he has the pressure of a coveted hockey scholarship because he knows that the only way he could attend a higher level of education was through that means. And remember how I said he's from a single parent family? Well, his dad was a prick. So filled with pressure from hockey, family issues, and oh yeah, being constantly injured from said sport, Ryan was definitely not perfect. And they both weren't. Katie Cotugno made characters with flaws. The conversations they had with each other were real and raw. The things they said meant to cut. Deep. Because it was meant to depict how humans were when they were emotional and hurt by the ones they loved. So yes, Ryan and Gabby said some pretty mean stuff that really made my gut churn because why can't these two lovebirds just love each other but real life isn't like that and I applaud Katie for writing these compelling dialogues. Okay, so now that we're done discussing the characters. It's time for me to discuss the little things that irked me. This book was written under two categories: Gabby and Ryan's.  It really didn't need to be separated like this because most of the time, it wasn't told through the respective perspectives and it wasn't like during Gabby's time, it was majorly focusing on her thoughts or feelings. I felt like there was really no difference. The second thing that irked me was that this story isn't told from beginning, middle, end. It started with the end, and kind of went to the beginning, and worked it's way backwards till you get to present day end? So it was super confusing to say. Like you were watching things on rewind and the thing is that if you paused to read the book like I did, you would be super confused for at least a good ten pages before you remembered that this story is not linear. It was interesting. I remember I enjoyed this art of story-telling because I was just so invested in knowing how Gabby and Ryan fell in love but it got unnecessary and freaking confusing when parts didn't follow the structure anymore towards the end. UGH. Okay, and now moving onto the plot. It really hurts me to say this but it was like watching a car speeding through the race tracks and then watching it burn. I cannot stress this enough because this review is already super-freakin long but the ending. Man. Honestly, it burned so fast and I tried holding onto it, believing that maybe Katie didn't mean to do this and she'll fix it by the end but dear readers, the ending. It was underwhelming, messy, and disappointing. I'm not going to spoil it for dear readers but if you want to know what's happening, just message me and I'll let you know. MY RECOMMENDATION The book was a solid 5/5 when I first started reading it. It was captivating, interesting, and the romance was impeccable. I suggest to read this book with caution and knowing that the ending may be a bit disappointing but. The journey is more important then the destination right? Right, guys?

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight I read this book in one day. In fact, I kept reading chapters on my phone every chance I got, because it was so good. So let us discuss! The Things I Loved: Such a realistic portrayal of how different people anticipate the college situation. So many books present characters who all just want college to come ASAP, there's no worry about it, it's all positive. But hi, that isn't life. I was freaking terrified about college. So it's nice to see that portrayed so realistically in a main character. Also a realistic portrayal of anxiety. I could absolutely relate to some of Gabby's anxieties, and even those that I couldn't relate to seemed very well portrayed. Sex positive. I... don't think this requires an explanation? But also, Gabby is bisexual and sex is handled positively across the board. Family is a big focus. Gabby's family especially was so awesome. And the great thing is, her family's closeness wasn't something to be made fun of; Ryan liked their closeness too and wanted to be a part of it. I shipped the thing so damn much. I just adore the friends-to-lovers trope, okay? And they were just so damn cute together. As friends, certainly, and I wanted it to be more too. The timeline jumping format really worked for me. This probably isn't true for everyone, but I loved that the story jumped around from time to time while still feeling very cohesive to me. Not all books can or should pull this off, but it really worked for this book. I just flat out loved the story. The characters were relatable, I enjoyed seeing the important, stand out moments of their high school lives, and I loved reading with the knowledge that soon they'd be moving on to their next life adventures. The only downside: I wanted a little more from the ending.  I'm starting to think that's just how the author rolls, but it's still difficult for me as a reader. Bottom Line: I loved the concept of looking back on high school highs and lows, and I adored the characters' stories, both as their own people and their friendship together.*Copy provided for review

Let's talk about how amazing Top Ten was shall we? I loved 99 days by Cotugno so I was really looking forward to reading another book by her, I was not disappointed at all with Top Ten! I got this book from the library and I fully intend on buying my own copy of it, that's how much I loved this book. I loved the characters, the way Cotugno told the story, the choices she made for both Ryan and Gabby in the novel, I loved every second of this book so much so that I didn't want it to end! Longer review coming soon! :)

1. Voice, voice, voice. Katie Cotugno always nails her characters' voices in this enviably effortless way that makes me want study her books after my initial read. 2. Unidealized portrayal of friendship. Main characters Ryan and Gabby's friendship is solid, but it's far from perfect. I loved seeing the highs and lows, and how both characters grew and stretched with their relationship. (Their off-and-on romantic feelings for each other, too, are so well written.)3. Positive representation. Gabby battles social anxiety, and she's bisexual; I appreciate how rather than using these attributes to define her, Katie Cotugno weaves them into the fabric of Gabby's character, allowing her to be a fully fleshed out person instead of a cardboard cut-out.

Just a perfect real life book. Review to come way closer to release date.

This review also appears on Happy Indulgence. Check it out for more reviews!Thank you to HarperCollins Canada for providing a review copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.Top Ten is a novel that exceeded all of my expectations. I was not a fan of Katie Cotugno’s 99 Days at all (in fact, I pretty much hated it) so I tried to go into Top Ten with an open mind and ended up really enjoying it. It’s also no secret that I love the ‘friends to more’ trope so that probably explains some things :). Here are ten things you should know about the novel:1. FRIENDSHIP STORYWhile this book is marketed as a “can a boy and girl be best friends without being more?” story, the novel was much more focused on the friendship aspect than the romance, which I really appreciated. The novel starts off with the possibility of the main characters, Gabby and Ryan, becoming more than just friends but then spends the majority of it taking us back to the past and exploring their friendship and how they ended up where they are now. I really enjoyed their friendship immensely and thought that their characters worked perfectly together. It was definitely a relationship that I wanted to read more about.2. LIKEABLE CHARACTERSThis is an important point for me. It’s no secret that the characters make or break the story for me when it comes to contemporaries and I thought both Gabby and Ryan were relatable and interesting. I found it easy to connect with them and the dual perspectives in the novel really allowed me to get into their heads. I also liked that Gabby and Ryan’s characters were really different and seeing how their friendship came together despite their differences made the novel even more interesting.3. DIVERSITYGabby is bisexual and this was explored quite well in the novel. I also liked that the novel was really sex-positive and the author wasn’t afraid to go there. Gabby also has social anxiety and I thought this came through in the novel. I’m not sure that I was explored as much as it should have been and I felt like the author rushed through some things that I would’ve liked to have seen a bit more of.4. TEN CHAPTERSThe novel is split into ten chapters to go along with the title of the book, with Gabby and Ryan’s perspectives changing throughout each chapter. Each of the ten chapters represented a certain period of their lives and I really liked this format. The first and last chapters of the book were set in the present during the summer after their senior year and the other chapters explored their earlier high school years. What I wasn’t a fan of was that these chapters in the middle weren’t chronological. The story would jump from the spring of their junior year to the winter of their junior year, which led to a lot of confusion… and let’s be real, I really don’t pay attention to chapter headings.5. CHARACTERS WITH REAL PROBLEMSI loved that the book explored a lot of real problems that teenagers often face. I liked that there was a lot of focus on college and the problems and difficulties that can come with that, including being separated from loved ones, having to rely on sports scholarships to afford college, and being too anxious to try out new experiences.6. FAMILIES THAT ARE PRESENTI absolutely loved Gabby’s family. I thought they were so quirky but also just a normal family. They play together Monopoly every Friday night and her dad makes a new party-pleasing appetiser from his book of 1001 recipes. I also really liked Ryan’s family and how the dysfunction of it contrasted with Gabby’s.7. A LITTLE RUSHED AT THE ENDI thought that the book was really well-paced for the majority of it. But the last 50 pages of the book felt extremely rushed and I think some of the issues were resolved a bit too quickly. I wanted to savour the ending a little bit more but the novel ended pretty abruptly.8. UNEXPECTED ENDINGThe novel answers the question of whether a boy and a girl can just be friends, but it might not end the way that you’d expect.9. BEAUTIFUL WRITINGI was much too filled with rage at the plot of 99 Days that I didn’t really get to take in the writing. But the writing style of Top Ten really blew me away. There was just something so easy about the way that it flowed and I absolutely flew through the book (when I was actually reading it and not rolling around in my slump).10. THIRD PERSON OMNISCIENTThis probably explains why I loved the writing so much. Third person omniscient will always be my favourite narrative style.

Loved itJust so amazing and smart and heartfelt. Gorgeously written. I loved these characters, especially prickly, lovely Gabby, and loved reading their story.

Review can also be found here: https://samanthascw.wordpress.com/201...I finished this book in a sitting (actually two sittings) and I really enjoyed it, but not for the typical reasons you’d think it was for. Yes, like any other YA novel, it was cute and swoon-worthy and I loved that part of it, but mainly, I loved the book for the topics that were discussed in it.First up, this book gets points for the mental health spotlight. One of the main characters, Gabby, suffers from social anxiety and because of that, I was able to sympathize and relate to her a lot. Her reluctance to socialize and crippling self-doubt were, unfortunately, very familiar to me, and that’s part of what made me love this book as much as I do. I’m just glad that Katie Cotugno decided to shine a light on mental illness.The other main character in Top Ten, Ryan, is a hockey player who has had several concussions in a short span of time, which opened up the discussion of how far one should go to pursue sports. Is it worth risking one’s health for it? What are the chances of one succeeding if one decides to make a career out of it? This topic is especially relevant to me as I have siblings who are passionate about the sports they’re playing and often dream of playing professionally. So, in my family, this topic has been brought up multiple times and we’ve had debates on whether or not it would be worth it in the long run, whether they have what it takes to survive among their competitors, so on and so forth. My favourite thing about this discussion in Top Ten is the part where Ryan was told that sports doesn’t define him as a person, because this is exactly what my mum has been trying to get my siblings to understand since Day One. Just because you’re good in something doesn’t mean that it’s the only thing you’re good at. I could go on and on about this, but that’s content for another blog post.Another thing I like about Top Ten is that it reflects reality. None of that ‘happy ever after’ bullshit that doesn’t even last half of the time. I appreciate the fact that the prevalent issue of domestic abuse was brought up in the book. It was shown that abuse does not only mean physically hitting someone, that it can happen very subtly and that the victims might not even aware of it, just because they’re so used to it. This is an important issue to talk about, in my opinion, especially in a YA novel.The ending (which I will not reveal, because spoilers) also painted a pretty accurate picture of real life – to me, anyway. I know that a lot of people were upset over the ending and that it ruined the entire book for them, but to me, that’s how life works. Not everything has a fairytale ending, and you know what? That’s completely fine.The only complaint I have about this book is the timeline of the plot. Because the book is essentially a Top Ten list of Gabby and Ryan’s lives together over 4 years, stories are told in chunks based on their Top Ten moments instead of in chronological order. That threw me off, especially since I’m personally unfamiliar with American school years, but hey, I’ve also read reviews where people loved the format of the story so who knows, you might be one of them.I was sent an ARC upon request via Edelweiss in exchange for a review. Special thanks to Edelweiss, Balzer + Bray, HarperCollins, and Katie Cotugno. This is my honest review.

Man, Katie Cotugno’s books are painful. I mean that in a positive way, kind of...not like painful to read because they’re so bad. I mean that they hurt my heart repeatedly and I wonder what I’m doing with myself. TOP TEN sounds like a cute friends-to-more story but there’s a lot of other things brewing. I’m not going to say anything else about romance and/or the ending because reading vaguely spoilery reviews before starting ruined things a bit for me. The non-linear format of “stories” from their friendship was overall really intriguing. It caught me off-guard sometimes because it definitely is super out of order. I wasn’t able to get to know a lot of the characters, including the main two, because of the format. Regardless, add another solid book by Cotugno to my list.

This book is partly about passion (sports/photography) and friendship. Caring for someone often means you have to tell them something they dont want to hear.Not exactly what I was expecting but so refreshing in its take. It mirrored parts of my life in highschool and often that you dont see guy girl friendships in books that are so powerful but just that friendships. How things turn out eventually in the future is different but during the course of the book it was really about the focus on the friendship which was a nice change.The explanation of holding such friendships over the course of time and complications of having others involved was very well explained.I would definitely recommend this book to anyone and ended up liking it much more than I had anticipated it.