2 girls + 3 guys + 1 house – parents = 10 things April and her friends did that they (definitely, maybe, probably) shouldn't have.
If given the opportunity, what sixteen-year-old wouldn't jump at the chance to move in with a friend and live parent-free? Although maybe "opportunity" isn't the right word, since April had to tell her dad a tiny little untruth to make it happen (see #1: "Lied to Our Parents"). But she and her housemate Vi are totally responsible and able to take care of themselves. How they ended up "Skipping School" (#3), "Throwing a Crazy Party" (#8), "Buying a Hot Tub" (#4), and, um, "Harboring a Fugitive" (#7) at all is kind of a mystery to them.
In this hilarious and bittersweet tale, Sarah Mlynowski mines the heart and mind of a girl on her own for the first time. To get through the year, April will have to juggle a love triangle, learn to do her own laundry, and accept that her carefully constructed world just might be falling apart . . . one thing-she-shouldn't-have-done at a time.


possible spoilers



Just a quick review! 

I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book. This is a hard one to review because I can't work out if I liked it or not, but maybe once I've put my thoughts down, I might finally come to a conclusion at the end of the review. I've only just finished it so it's still fresh in my mind.
I just want to put this thought forward first - I knew I didn't like Noah. From the first time he appeared, I knew something was off about him, and I'm pleased I was proven right. Victory! The "twist" about him cheating - I knew this would happen. He was slightly shifty and the way he'd respond to her, avoiding to answer her properly, was so obvious to me. But how she found out - wow. I've been reading this more and more often in YA books, the main girl contracting chlamydia, and I'm okay with it because it does give the story more of a push into the realistic category. It will teach young readers about safe sex because that's really important. This does happen to people., and just because you're young, it doesn't mean your invincible. Also, this story proves that even though you're 16 and you think you're in love with someone, it's probably best to wait. That's the reason I didn't rate it 1 star. 
Also, none of the characters in this book really stood out to me. They were all a bit too immature, a bit exaggerated and got away with way too much considering their situations. It was a bit too unrealistic for me, and I know they're about 16/17 but they didn't really handle a lot of the situations very well. I just found myself rolling my eyes or saying 'like this will ever happen' 

 I seem to find it hard that an 18 year old would have a spare, what, 3 grand or so, to help the main character's injured kitten. That's a lot of babysitting! I would honestly have had the cat put down, imagine spending 3000 on a cat that has the possibility of dying on the surgery table. 
This story also went on forever with hardly anything really going on too,  it was just party after party, then April with her boyfriend, or them just sitting in the hot tub talking about sex. I just lost interest. There were times when I'd be like 'actually it's not so bad'  but then I'd eat my words. If more things were going on, I might have enjoyed this but then again, what else would they do? They did lots of  "crazy" things that, to me, weren't all that mad anyway. Buy a hot tub? They're more common than you think. About 5 parties? H'okay. Skipping school? Yeah, I'm too old for this kind of book. I think this is more towards teenagers (I know, I know. It's YA, but I''m talking more for 15 year olds and not people about 18+), it was just a bit too immature for me.

 The flipping backwards and forwards to the past was okay but they weren't really anything important to the story in any way, only one or two times were they somewhat interesting or relevant to the story. Most other times, they weren't really that interesting. I also couldn't have listed the 'ten things they shouldn't have done' because they weren't really memorable enough. 

 The family aspect to the story wasn't that interesting either, and April's reaction to things they said to her or had happened to her were either strange or really stupid. Why would she not take up the chance to live with her mother in Paris. Paris! I'd be there in a heartbeat!

 Overall, I didn't like it much. It's a shame, it has a good potential storyline, but this just wasn't for me. The first YA book that I've read which I thought I was too old for. 


I never thought I'd see the day. Reading a YA book and saying 'well, shit. I'm too old for this one' but it's happened. I wouldn't let this review put you off though, it's all based on taste and this one was just not for me. This review contains spoilers, so it's likely that you've read it or have no intention of reading it, so let us know what you think of it! We'd love to hear from you! Below are the many ways to contact us or you can leave a comment.