I really really loved this. For a lot of reasons, but I'm going to walk you through a few of them.

First and foremost, I love how Sage and Noah's competitive history is established immediately. You get their history in a way that's natural and interesting, but it also lends itself so well to building both characters. Noah is someone who's always been told that her interests are not valid, her job isn't valid, and she's not enough to be the best, so she's very determined to prove herself, no matter the costs. Sage, on the other hand, is a loner and a fixer - she swoops in to help her family with their finances, but she also pushes people away constantly so she can never be hurt. At the start, they're both so into the art to cope with everything else, they don't see anything else around them.

Their characters develop so well, and as they become lovers you really get to see how they respect, support, and challenge each other. How this impacts their peripheral lives (friends, family, etc.) was also very telling for their growth and development and I feel like every secondary and tertiary character had their purpose. Nothing felt extraneous, and I loved that.

The subject of web comics and comic publishing was so much fun too. I don't know too much about that side of publishing, but I loved learning about their art and interests and getting to know their coworkers. It definitely helped flesh out the main stage (their workplace) and the looming deadlines added stakes and intensity to every moment spent there.

As a bonus, a sapphic sex scene on page?? So rarely do I find books that have that and in such a way the fits the characters so well in their teasing, competitive, yet also soft manner?? Perfection.

I love how every moment in this book matters - not that it's heavy, but that it adds value to the characters and their stories. This book really came to life for me and loved every moment!

Rep: Black bisexual MC, Black lesbian MC with chronic pain (carpal tunnel)

TW: sexual content, chronic illness, burnout, mental illness, suicidal thoughts, abandonment; mentions lesbophobia, biphobia, car accident