Wow, I actually had no intention of writing so much, but the book is just that good! Call It What You Want is a heartfelt and beautifully written story about friendship, overcoming adversity, and making amends. I know Kemmerer’s fans are going to love it, but I’d highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a moving read.

When the story opens, Rob and Maegan are both just in survival mode, each trying to lay low and get through the school year drawing as little attention to themselves as possible. When Rob and Maegan get paired up on a project in Calculus class, however, everything changes. When your dad stole half the towns investment money and everyone thinks you were in on it — no one really wants anything to do with you. No longer the High School Golden Boy, Rob is reminded everyday of the crimes of his father and is hated for it. He is filled with anger regarding his deteriorated circumstances and begins lashing out at those around him. You’d think being a mom he would have listened to me but noooo! He did his “thing” and I was really stressed and disappointed. Fearing the worse for him. It was like witnessing a car collision in the making. You want to prevent it yet you know you are too slow or too late. Powerless.I honestly didn't care that much about James. He was fine, I guess. I liked when he put those ignorant employees in their place, though. I mean, he straight-up fired one of them for being homophobic, as he should. Ait didn't bother me much, but he was a little annoying at times. Like in the final episode. He seriously thought being jealous of James and Marco when Bas was pouring his heart out was appropriate. That felt off to me. Also, he asked James whether he actually loved him. I don't think you should have to ask that. That seems like you have such little trust in your partner. He should stop doubting James all the time. James never showed any indication of having an interest in anyone else than Ait. Through a random set of circumstances, Rob takes on the persona of Robin Hood, by taking from the rich and passing on the spoils of his plunder to the poorer kids in their high school. Owen - the poorest kid in town - provides some much-needed comic relief and willingly assumes the role of Will Scarlet to Rob's Robin Hood. He joins Rob in his attempts to redress the economic imbalance. He and Rob become increasingly entangled in the ethics of Rob's illicit actions. Mainly a character driven story, the plot is not to be underestimated as there is a twist to that story. Something not really hard to guess (I guessed and I am not the best at this game) that will add a layer of drama to the story.

A Thai BL that wasn't problematic? Michael's acting was phenomenal. He really portrayed Bas's character so well. The others were also good. Michael's acting just felt particularly real, so the others didn't stand out as much in comparison. Bas's story was simply heartbreaking. I felt awful for him. Tee was a despicable man. He broke Bas and deeply traumatized him. It made me want to cry. It must have been hard for him to keep it all to himself. This book makes you think, question your rights and wrongs, clench your fists and hit against the walls, curse heavily, ache for the characters, cry for the unfairness but finally smile because karma always does its work impeccably. I called it: “Unique”, “emotionally overwhelming”, “heart wrenching”, “provoking”, “strong”, “powerful” , “realistic” , “dysfunctional” , “raging”, “sad” , “wake-up call” , “depressive”, “questioning”, “tearful”, “challenging” and finally “so much beautiful” Everyone knows some secrets are heavy to bear when they concern your loved ones and the only thing you’d like is help them.Maegan, a classic overachiever, has been living in her older sister's shadow for years. Feeling pressured to succeed, Maegan cheats while sitting for her SAT, causing consequences for everyone in the room. In a time of typewriters and steam engines, Iris Winnow awaits word from her older brother, who has enlisted on the side of Enva the Skyward goddess. Alcohol abuse led to her mother’s losing her job, and Iris has dropped out of school and found work utilizing her writing skills at the Oath Gazette. Hiding the stress of her home issues behind a brave face, Iris competes for valuable assignments that may one day earn her the coveted columnist position. Her rival for the job is handsome and wealthy Roman Kitt, whose prose entrances her so much she avoids reading his articles. At home, she writes cathartic letters to her brother, never posting them but instead placing them in her wardrobe, where they vanish overnight. One day Iris receives a reply, which, along with other events, pushes her to make dramatic life decisions. Magic plays a quiet role in this story, and readers may for a time forget there is anything supernatural going on. This is more of a wartime tale of broken families, inspired youths, and higher powers using people as pawns. It flirts with clichéd tropes but also takes some startling turns. Main characters are assumed White; same-sex marriages and gender equality at the warfront appear to be the norm in this world. I always love the star-crossed lover books where a popular guy is paired with an unpopular girl, or vice versa, on a project, so this was right up my alley. Except, here, we have two totally different social groups coming together…but they’re both now outcasts, and I loved the twist on that trope I love so much. And, even more than that, I love that Kemmerer could explore trust among two ‘wrongdoers’, along with betrayal, friendship, attraction-and standing up for what you believe to be right. I loved it. It’s all so convoluted and twisty and turny in the sense that Maegan doesn’t know what to think about Rob, whether he was involved or not, and where his morality is questioned as he finds himself turning into a modern day Robin Hood. This book was basically like a modern day retelling of Robin Hood. A big theme of this story was ‘what is right and wrong’. And it was something that I haven't read about for a long time in YA.

Everyone LOVES Kemmerer's contemporaries. Everyone. I mean, I feel like every single review on this book is 4 or 5 stars. Same for Letters to the Lost and More than We Can Tell. But for some reason...they're well-written, they're well-paced, they've got interesting characters, but there's something MISSING, at least for me. Maegan and Rob make an unlikely pair. The daughter of a cop and the son of a criminal. And they meet via a favourite classic YA trope — the teacher pairs them together for a project. People who genuinely care about you will refuse to make you feel you confused about how they feel and will want to be as clear or transparent by sharing their intentions and actions to you. And if your parents have committed a crime are you guilty by association? Were there signs you did not see? Could you have prevented it? Does it fall on your shoulders to compensate the families who have been wronged? And does it make them bad parents? Are you still allowed to love them? To admire some of their facets? Brigid Kemmerer is able to seamlessly intertwine both Rob’s and Maegan’s storylines together. It’s always something that I’ve liked about her writing and she has done it again in Call It What You Want.The audience is able to tell who with are with any time and that makes reading the novel so much easier.What I like is that by the end of it, these characters aren’t healed. But they are on their way to carving their own path after having been beaten down and harshly and unfairly judged. Maegan is the daughter of a cop. Half the school hates her for getting caught cheating on the SATs and forcing everyone else in the room to rewrite.