I am a bit behind on reviewing the books I read recently, so this week will be all about book reviews! The first review of this week will be on Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli, which is the sequel to Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda.

I actually read this book before The Upside of Unrequited because Leah on the Offbeat is the sequel Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda, but the events that take place in this book occur after the events in The Upside of Unrequited. I definitely recommend you to first read Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda followed by The Upside of Unrequited then Leah on the Offbeat. Leah on the Offbeat is told from the perspective of Leah Burke, who is the best friend of Simon Spier, and the story follows Leah through her senior year in high school. To begin with, I did not like Leah in Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda, and I felt the same way about her in this book. Leah is very sarcastic and avoids situations because they are too difficult and she never knows what to say. Leah seems like a negative person because she is rude to people like her mom for no reason. Leah does have some good qualities about her, but her negative qualities are more in your face, and for all these reasons, she is an unlikable character. However, the rest of the characters are the same from Simon vs the Home Sapiens Agenda including Simon, Abby, Nick, and Bram. I loved Simon as a side character and it was nice seeing how things have progressed since the end of his book. Even though Leah is an unlikable character, I thought the plot was interesting as it revolves around their senior year and includes another school play, spring break, and prom. Like with the ending of Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda and The Upside of Unrequited, the ending of Leah on the Offbeat was sweet. After the story ends, the book concludes with an email from Leah to Simon while they are in college, and it wraps up most of the loose ends by summing up what happened to the other side characters. Even though I enjoyed the plot, having the story told from Leah’s perspective made me not like this book as much as Simon vs the Sapiens Agenda.

Overall, in Leah in the Offbeat, Leah is an unlikable character, but the plot was entertaining and included all of the old characters from Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda.

$12.14 at Book Depository

Rate: 6/10

Have you read or would you like to read Leah on the Offbeat?