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Adorkable

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Adorkable (ah-dor-kuh-bul): Descriptive term meaning to be equal parts dorky and adorable. For reference, see Sally Spitz.

Seventeen-year-old Sally Spitz is done with dating. Or at least, she's done with the horrible blind dates/hookups/sneak attacks her matchmaking bestie, Hooker, sets her up on. There's only so much one geek girl and Gryffindor supporter can take.

Her solution: she needs a fake boyfriend. And fast.

Enter Becks, soccer phenom, all-around-hottie, and Sally's best friend practically since birth. When Sally asks Becks to be her F.B.F. (fake boyfriend), Becks is only too happy to be used. He'd do anything for Sal--even if that means giving her PDA lessons in his bedroom, saying she's "more than pretty," and expertly kissing her at parties.

The problem: Sally's been in love with Becks all her life--and he's completely clueless.

This book features two best friends, one special edition Yoda snuggie, countless beneath-the-ear kisses and begs the question:

Who wants a real boyfriend when faking it is so much more fun?

283 pages, ebook

First published March 31, 2016

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About the author

Cookie O'Gorman

15 books995 followers
Cookie O'Gorman writes YA & NA romance to give readers a taste of happily-ever-after. Small towns, quirky characters, and the awkward yet beautiful moments in life make up her books. Cookie also has a soft spot for nerds and ninjas. Her novels ADORKABLE, NINJA GIRL, The Unbelievable, Inconceivable, Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder, The Good Girl's Guide to Being Bad, The Kissing Challenge (YA novella), WALLFLOWER, CUPCAKE, FAUXMANCE, and BOOKWORM are out now! She is also the author of NA sports romances The Best Mistake, The Perfect Play, and The Sweetest Game. Her newest release The Total Knockout came out on September 28, 2023!

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,488 reviews
February 10, 2017
“But why? I don’t get it.”
“You don’t have to.”
“But Becks,” she whined, “I don’t understand. Why her?”
“Nothing to understand really,” he said, smiling down at me. “Sal’s my girl. Always has been.”


Adorkable is one of those books that just LOOKS like it’s going to be, well, adorable. Yet, every time I saw it and what people were saying about it, I thought it was going to be cheesy as hell. So, for as long as this has been out, I have passed it up and never marked it on my TBR. Stupid, really, considering all I’m ever looking for is my next addicting YA contemporary that makes me happy even on the saddest of days.

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So it wasn’t until recently that my good friend, Jen, read it and told me my preconceived notions were not only false, but that it was actually better than one of my favorites. To this, I thought, bring it on. Why not? What do I really have to lose in the grand scheme of things. My most anticipated releases of the year are rolling out at full steam (always spring time and early winter, why is that???) and I’m just reading fun books during the week to pass the time. If I didn’t like it, the worst that would happen is that I get to pick up an anticipated release right after. Not a shabby deal.

So I picked up this book immediately, heavy on skepticism, low on give-a-shit. I truly didn’t expect much. But from the moment I picked this up, I knew it was just what I needed. Light-hearted, funny, heavy on swoon…I really had no complaints. Sure, there was a little cheese factor, I mean, all the best books have a little bit of cheese when it comes to teen romance, right? But there was just something so sweet and special about this book. I can’t even begin to explain it.

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It’s definitely the purest form of ‘first love’, the kind where you pine for your best friend (or, I guess, just your guy friends since that’s how I felt in High School) and just know he couldn’t possibly feel the same about you. Cue the eye roll, I know. But that’s what’s so sweet. How couldn’t it be? Aren’t these sometimes the best forms of YA romance, if done correctly? Well, they are to me. And, even better, we get to add in the ‘fake relationship’ trope and this book just got a whole lot more interesting.

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What starts out as a ploy to get her other best friend, Hooker (sigh), to stop setting her up on blind dates becomes much more real, much quicker. Becks does everything in his power to be the alpha boyfriend, the ‘don’t touch my girl’ boyfriend, the one who is wanted by everyone and yet doesn’t want her to grab anyone else’s attention. I mean, we’ve all seen it, right? Hell, that was my husband and I in High School (though, I’d say we were on a pretty level field of ‘don’t you dare fucking look at my girl/guy, takennnnn’). Totally believable.

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As everyone knows, this is like my favorite thing ever, so I was all SQUEEEEEEEs and EEEEEEEEEs as I read, loving every little look Becks gave Spitz (AGAIN, sigh), every secret emotion he revealed not-so-subtlety. Sally was a moron for not seeing it, sorry, but it’s true. And that might be my largest gripe for the whole book. And, come on, why not just say something!!! What’s he going to do, dump your ass as the best friend he's ever had since SECOND GRADE?! Not hardly.

“There’s only one thing I know—have always known—that I wanted out of life. And it’s you.”


And, for those of you wondering if this just might suit your fancy enough to be your next ‘mindless YA romance’, here are the only triggers I can think of that people get all fussy about (obviously not me. Girl please, I could care less):

-Girl on girl crime, ie, slut shaming
-An extension of that might be calling other girls names (I think? I can’t remember completely)
-Oblivious to the obvious true love thing they have going on
-I suppose everyone has different opinions on cheesiness, so I’ll say that is one thing
-Jealousy where there shouldn’t be, on her part
-A little back and forth (but honestly, this is my biggest pet peeve and I barely think it applies, that’s up to you)
-Dramatic scene before they make up, like every other book

I mean, I feel like I lost my steam there, forgetting what I was going to say for those of you that get bothered by such things (damn pregger brain), but that just goes to show you how little it bothered me. If you know me, and somewhat agree with me on most things, I imagine most of this doesn’t bother you. But for those of you who do get bothered by slut-shaming and have never read my reviews before, I guess I’d say be very aware of that factor…meaning: don’t blame me, ye be warned.

So, I can’t say I disliked anything about this book. From the moment I met Becks, he stole my heart and I ached for the moment I could pick the story up again just to see how much he loved Sally. It was addicting, heart-warming, and, without a doubt, an instant favorite. And, even though it’s completely cliché….this book was absolutely adorable.

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For more of my reviews, please visit:


Profile Image for Darla.
3,519 reviews621 followers
August 28, 2023
Adorable! Sal is happily settled in her geek lane and enjoying having Becks as her best friend. When her best friend and mother keep ambushing her with bad prospective boyfriend match-ups, she hatches a plan to make Becks her fake boyfriend (FBF) for one month and avoid all the awkward blind dates for awhile. What will Sal do when the fake relationship surpasses any previous dates? Is Beck really that good at pretending to be her real boyfriend--can he really be her huckleberry? There is a lot to love about this book: the Tombstone and Star Wars references, soccer, so romantic without being sleazy, the playlist at the end. Fans of Kasie West and Jenny Han will enjoy this one.

Thank you to Entangled -- Teen and Edelweiss for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for peachygirl.
268 reviews676 followers
September 19, 2020
Just as the title suggests, Sal is dorky and Becks is adorable and they make the best *fake* couple of the century!

"Her name is Sal. I hope one day she’ll be my gal"

Penning down pretty poems for his bestfriend since 7, Baldwin Eugene Charles Kent aka Becks is crazy about Sal and just as clueless as she is! (which does get annoying at times)
And there's Sally Sue Spitz, certified dork who quotes movies fluently and talks all the stuff 'that matters' in German, has been in love with her best friend all her life and watches him getting groped by the entire female population of the school from the sidelines. Nosy mother and a matchmaker best friend threaten sal's single status and she so desperately needs a fake boyfriend to escape all the shitty dates thrown at her and here's the perfect solution - Fake date your best friend - Tada!
We get the cutest love story ever!

Undeniably mushy at places, this book took me through a sweet little love ride, throwing in a love triangle along the way.
Ash was super cool though, your loss Sal!

So a definite 4.5 stars for this adorkable duo and their adorable love story.
Profile Image for ambsreads.
656 reviews1,393 followers
October 16, 2016
For half an hour I've been attempting to write a full review for Adorkable, which is usually how long it takes me to write a review. Due to this, I have forfieted any formating ideas and am just going to babble, so, this is a forewarning.

Adorkable has to be one of the cutest books I've read of 2016. I got some crazy Kasie West vibes throughout the story, but what more can you expect from an author named Cookie? The book was an adorable contemporary that is all about childhood best friend's being in love, but with a whole lot more Harry Potter references thrown in for good taste.

There isn't much more to say about this book, unfortuantely. I smiled, I laughed, I cried. I felt emotion for the characters who I felt were absolutely adorable and relatable. The author did a spectacular job of pulling me out of a slump I had been nearing, so I can't help but recommend this book to anyone in a slump kind of mood or just wants a fast read.
Profile Image for Jen ♥Star-Crossed Book Blog♥.
540 reviews332 followers
December 16, 2019
Adorkable was filled with laughter, butterfly and smile inducing moments, and I couldn't get enough of it! The characters quickly found a place in my heart, and the story-line was so cute! It involved the fake boyfriend trope, and it was done in a way that felt fresh and fun. So this addicting book easily made its way onto my favorites shelf!
I was so tired of surprises. If I had to meet one more blind date, I would literally go insane.

The nicknames in this book were hilarious ! Our heroine is Sally Sue Spitz and her classmates call her Spitz. And her best friend is Lillian Hooker, who Sally calls Hooker. Loved it! So Sally was forever single and Hooker, trying to be the best friend ever, always set Sally up on blind dates. But these weren't regular blind dates. Or even regular guys it would seem. Each and every interaction Sally had with them had me laughing, groaning or doing both out loud. After a horrible double-double date (you'll see what I mean lol) gone terribly wrong and a misunderstanding, Sally comes up with the idea that she needs a fake boyfriend. It was the only way to stop Hooker's attempts. So she begged Becks, her best friend forever who's been in her life since grade school, to be her fake boyfriend.
Ducking, he placed a lingering kiss on the spot right below my ear. The move made my hand shoot out to grip his jersey. Becks laughed silently, little puffs of air hitting my neck, as I shivered.

Becks. Oh Becks. He was one of my many favorite things about this book. The way Becks looked at Sally, the way he claimed her as his, the way he protected her, his jealousy, oh my gosh even the way he touched her, it all made my heart beat so fast. But here's the confusing part, I had NO clue what he thought at times. You see, he would say and do these things that would imply that he liked Sally more than just friends, but then again he was just playing a part. And his words would reinforce that idea. So I desperately wanted to get in that sexy head of his and know all of his thoughts. Especially when he suggested that they should start practicing....hello butterflies!
“But Becks,” she whined, “I don’t understand. Why her?”
“Nothing to understand really,” he said, smiling down at me. “Sal’s my girl. Always has been.”
As he squeezed my hip, I swear I stopped breathing.

So not only did I adore Becks, but Sally too. I loved how Sally easily sprinkled Harry Potter, Star Wars, Star Trek etc into her daily life. She embraced her geekiness, and I loved how she didn't second guess herself in that regards. But at the same point, she could be self-conscious. Especially when it came to her feelings towards Becks. You see, while Becks was her BFF, he was also beautiful, smart, a player, a jock and everyone easily loved him. Including Sally. Knowing that Sally wanted to be more than friends with Becks put my heart on the line right with her. I flipped through the pages as fast as possible for both of our stakes!
“Spitz, the guy’s wearing Chinos, and he tried to shake my hand.” She tugged at one end of her bob. “I found him bent over a book bigger than my head in the sci-fi/fantasy section at Barnes and Noble.”
That sounded suspicious. “And what were you doing in Barnes and Noble?” I asked.
“Isn’t it obvious?” she laughed. “I was looking for the male version of you.”
I laughed despite myself. - Spitz (Sally) and Hooker

The side characters not only helped round out this book, but they felt so real to me. Hooker, oh my gosh, I wanted her to listen to Sally at times. But we all have our flaws, and what Hooker thought was best for Sally wasn't always what was truly the best for her and it led to hilarious moments. My favorites were Ash, Becks' fellow soccer teammate and Sally's fellow classmate, and also Clayton, Becks' oldest brother. I could easily and happily read a book about each of them!
This one could only end badly, and when it did, it was going to hurt.
A lot.

So if you're a fan of cute books that leave you with the hugest smile ever, or if you adore the fake boyfriend trope, then I highly recommend you pick up Adorkable! This is the second time I've picked up this book and I loved it even more the second time. I even cried at the end this second time around, it was just so perfect. So yes, I loved this book with my whole heart! Cookie O'Gorman always creates characters that are so easy to connect with and love, and of course. I can't wait for you to meet them too!

For more of my reviews, please visit:
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Profile Image for A_Ryan.
621 reviews178 followers
March 15, 2021
5+++++++ TOTALLY AWESOME HUCKLEBERRY STARS!!!!!!!!

ADORABLE. FUNNY. SWEET. ROMANTIC. PAGE-TURNING. FANTASTIC. LOVED EVERY MINUTE.

ONE OF THE VERY BEST NA ROMANCE I'VE READ THIS YEAR!

To be honest, there is a plethora of 5 star reviews about this sweet little gem about two best friends who fall in love. And I agree with all of them so I won't repeat anything here.

Suffice it to say, I LOOOVED ADORKABLE.

6 Blew me away stars!!!
Profile Image for Tweebs♥️ .
184 reviews836 followers
October 30, 2016


Let's start by stating the obvious fact that I READ THIS BOOK SO FREAKING QUICK AND I FREAKING REGRET IT. I have no one to blame, but myself so, shame on me. Lately, I've been reading books that are focused on heavy plots that involve a lot of thinking so, I was like " I NEED SOME LIGHT-READS NOW!!" and DING DING DING! I found this book.






Adorkable, is told by Sally Spitz (Yeah, you'll get used to it) who is our main female character. Her friend, Lillian Hooker, is a matchmaker in the process who is determined to find Sally a boyfriend. EVEN HER MOM IS ON BOARD! She sets her up with horrible blind dates, hookups, and sneak attacks. I'm not lying guys, she would get all these boys from lord knows where. THEY JUST KEEP COMING!!

She has this best friend named Becks (His real full name had nothing on Sally) and they basically grew up with each other. Okay, I'm about to drop several clichés so, HERE I GO! Becks is a popular soccer player, everyone loves him, girls want him, and he's smart. You guessed it right! Sally loves him but doesn't know if he feels the same way so, she buries it deep within her. He knows all about her horrible blind dates and teases her about it. Sally came up with this plan to get herself a F.B.F (Fake Boyfriend), to get her friend off her ass with the never-ending horrible blind dates. Wow, you guessed it again!! Becks becomes her F.B.F.


I don't want to ruin it for you guys but, seriously, I recommend this book. I thought it was a cliché book and yes I predicted half of the shit but honestly, it'll make you laugh. The dialogue between the characters is so entertaining, actually, scratch that, THIS WHOLE BOOK IS SO ENTERTAINING.

Lowkey, I love this book because Sally is a huge fan of Harry Potter and Star wars. She doesn't care like she'll wear a Harry Potter t-shirt to a date and be like "Whaddap".

I absolutely loved the opening of this book, it was hilarious as hell and immediately sinks it claws into you. Seriously, I read this book within 24 hours like THAT SAYS SOMETHING. The writing was fun and easy to follow. If you ever need a good laugh guys, just hit this book up.

Anyway,

Profile Image for Scrill.
408 reviews204 followers
November 19, 2017
“He was my Huckleberry, my Han Solo, my one, but most of all he was my Becks and I was his Sal.”

Sally Spitz hasn’t ever had a boyfriend, and her good friend Hooker is bent on playing matchmaker by setting her up repeatedly on blind dates – that go pretty bad. In an attempt to dodge more awkward moments with boys she’s not into Sal adopts the plan to use a fake boyfriend as her get-out-of-blind-date card. Fortunately, her best friend Becks would do anything for her. Unfortunately, she has been in love with him since they met in elementary school.

The Story- To start, I’d like to point out I think it’s stupid that her friend and mom are in cahoots to set her up over and over with boys. Like seriously? She’s just 17, let her meet boys on her own. The premise that started the whole book was funny yes, but I just wanted to push her friend down a very long flight of stairs (see below).

Anyway, if you are a cliché trope devourer then this book is probably for you. I love that stuff. But the entire time I was reading this book I was wondering, why did I pick up this garbage?. Super cute popular boy? Love triangle? Misunderstanding? Girl who melts at the touch of said cute popular boy? Happy ending? Yes, it’s got all this and more. I am totally okay with all of this, I especially love the hidden feelings best friend trope that it is centered on. Even though I am okay with all of it, I sort of feel like when you’re doing a same ol’ story you still have to bring something fresh to the table….also those characters. I am not sure how by the end though I thought, dang that was cute. I think it’s the grand gesture….it has to be, because who can get over that?



Another thing that just sort of bothered me on a really small irrational scale. Each character was introduced with a first and last name (except the brothers because duh, they have the same last name). I don’t even know why it bothered me so much why each character’s full name had to be pointed out.

The big problem I had with this book was how it took peoples names and made it a point to make fun of them. MAINLY SPEAKING when my name, Priscilla, was changed to Pisszilla. GTFOH! I'll never get over that.

The Characters-
Sal-So Sal was supposed to be a dork right? She as obviously beautiful without really knowing it, because she is repeatedly told she is good looking throughout the book, but at least she wasn’t Debbie-downer about herself either. But really, the things that made her a dork I didn’t personally think was dorky. Like really, I’m pretty sure guys think it’s pretty cool when a girl can be into things like Star Trek or Star Wars. Liking Harry Potter? Pretty sure that’s not dorky at all – there’s an entire theme park and franchise dedicated to its fan base, what other book series ever got its own theme park?!. This girl is sort of rude though. For example, she’s a Griffindor so she had to go and bash on Slytherin – not cool in my book at all.

Becks-Oh Mr. Perfect? He’s incredibly good looking and just so amazing at soccer. He’s pretty much the prince of the school. What bothered me about this book was that he was making out with half the school, and of course is spared the man whore card, all the while his best friend Sal is judging every girl for going after him. Like I know you’re jealous and all, but quit objectifying the girls vying for his attention.

Hooker-Can we just talk about how much she pissed me off? If I had a friend that acted like this I would bitch slap her to Antarctica where she can set up some penguins. Seriously, screw this chick. No means no doesn’t apply to just sexual situations….so when your “bestie” says to please stop setting up her with blind dates because she’s not interested and only 17…then you should probably stop. She had zero personality and added nothing but premise to the story. She could have easily been taken out of the story all together and been set up by guys her mom randomly bumped into. Really, half the guys that she was sending to Sal was her cast offs. What kind of friend does that? He wasn’t good enough for me, so you can have him. Hooker you are awful.



The Soundtrack-Okay, now since I wanted to punch a hole through this book, I have a few qualms about assigning some good jams to this book, alas, it cannot be helped.
Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons – Can’t Take My Eyes of You (because big gestures in stadiums make me think of Heath Ledge & 10 Things I Hate About You)
Backstreet Boys – Quit Playing Games with My Heart
Jimmy Eat World – Carry You
Civil Wars – Poison and Wine

More reviews can be found at:
Profile Image for Chelsey Connor.
330 reviews117 followers
May 10, 2017
This book is going into my favourite shelf. This book is exactly how I wanted to meet my husband, be best friends first then blossom into more.... it hasn't happened. I really felt Sal's heart ache but just wanted her to tell Becks how she felt. It all worked out in the end and loved how he proved to Sal that he really did love her. People need to read this book
Profile Image for Viri.
1,163 reviews407 followers
October 16, 2016
Demasiado. Me gustó demasiado.

Una historia dulce, un poco geek y totalmente divertida que te hace pasar un rato muy agradable leyéndola. De las que se disfrutan aunque estén llenas de clichés y ya sepas lo que va a pasar. Y es que era obvio que me iba a gustar el libro porque veamos.

Amigos que se enamoran
+
Romance falso
+
Protagonista deportista (futbolista... estos me vuelven loquita)
=
4 SÚPER ESTRELLAS.

No voy a decir que es un libro lleno de dramas y emociones. No. Este es un libro SIMPLE. Cero historias rebuscadas pero con una narración súper ágil que hizo que lo acabará en un día... Que es justo lo que estaba buscando. Las 4 estrellas son porque me gustó demasiado y punto. Ahhaha
Profile Image for Grecia Robles.
1,526 reviews367 followers
November 4, 2022
ESTÁ BIEN CUTE!!!

Friends to Lovers
Fake Dating
Sport Romance


Eso es todo lo que está bien en la vida.

Dame un Friends to Lovers y yo I´M IN, pero agrégale Fake romance en donde te firmo, era obvio que me iba a gustar y aparte con unos protagonistas tan adorables.

Es de los young adult más adorables que vas a leer, sin drama ni pretensiones, únicamente con una historia simple de dos mejores amigos que siempre se han amado que lo han ocultado y que las circunstancias los han hecho que finjan una relación que no es tan fingida pero ellos no lo saben.
Tiene escenas bien bonitas, románticas.

El único pero de este libro es la amiga metiche

RELECTURA
Lo volví a leer porque leí el libro de su hija y necesitaba recordar su historia de amor y amé que formaran una familia y les haya ido tan bien.
Profile Image for Jacqueline's Reads.
2,842 reviews1,483 followers
June 13, 2016
3 Adorkable Stars

I picked up this book because it seemed like a sweet YA read and that’s what I got. I really liked the premise and I love the sweet innocent high school setting.

Sally is a single girl and she has been this way her whole life. Her best friend and mom thinks it’s time for Sally to not be single anymore so they set her up with lots of random dates.

I thought Sally to be a sweet, charming and a very nerdy girl. She makes a lot of Harry Potter and Star Wars references and she even dresses up in her favorite characters. I can’t relate, but I found it very endearing to read and well, it’s refreshing to read a nerdy girl than a sluty one to be honest.

I found Sally’s best friend Hooker and Mom kind of annoying. It’s one thing to set up your friend on one or two random dates, but sometimes three a day? I think it’s a little excessive and obsessive in my opinion and no wonder Sally needed a fake boyfriend.

Sally’s best friend is Beck and yes, he’s the star athlete and player guy. I’m on the fence with Beck. At times he’s very sweet and nice to Sally and at times him checking out other girls kind of made my eyes roll, but he didn’t do anything to really upset me.

I really liked Sally and Beck’s relationship. It’s cute and tamed. I wanted Beck to be a little bit more flirtatious with her because that is what I crave, but I keep on reminding myself this is a YA read. Sally asks Beck to be her fake boyfriend for one month to get everyone off her back because she is single and of course the handsome jock agrees.

Overall, it’s an easy and sweet read. I think for once I **GASP** could have gotten a little more angst but I liked it, I just didn’t love it.
Profile Image for ♛ may.
806 reviews3,840 followers
October 28, 2016

You know the feeling when you’ve had enough of heartbreaking dystopian/fantasy books and you seriously just need a cute contemporary to serve as the perfect pick-me-up, well that is this book.

Adorkable is about Sally Sue Spitz and her eternal struggle of warding off blind-dates (set up from her lovely-but-kinda-annoying besties, Lilian). Lillian believes she is destined to be a matchmaker and Sally’s mom is a wedding planner, so things are not looking bright for Sally. The problem isn’t just the mysterious and strange dates that Lillian sets-up, the problem is that Sally has been in love with her (other) best friend, Becks, since forever.
But she’d rather die than let that be public knowledge.

I must admit, I am a sucker for the ‘best-friend’ love stories so I’m probably going to be biased in this review (judge me). I don’t know what it is about them, they really just fricken cute. Albeit, Sally did do the whole ‘I’m-not-like-other-girls’ cliche and also the ‘I’m-super-cute-in-a-dorky-way-but-i’m-oblivious-to-it cliche and Becks had the whole sweet-best-friend-who-is-athletic-and-literally-the-most-beautiful-person-in-the-world cliche, but I’m so blind to all that because this book was so. fricken. cute.

But I have to say, I’m really disappointed in this Lillian character. I totally get the considerate bestie who’s trying to play matchmaker, but this girl has gone way too far. It’s like her sole existence on earth is to hook Sally up and she’s fricken annoying about it. Sally’s always telling her she’s not interested or that she’s feeling down and what does Lillian do? Not comfort her or eat three tubs of ice cream with her, no she sets her up with a blind date. *sighs*

So basically Sally gets Becks to be her pretend boyfriend to ward off Lillain’s matchingmaking attempts and yada yada yada but this story had the perfect touch of hilarity and sweetness and fluff and frustration. I just really enjoyed it in comparison to all the heart shattering books I’ve been reading lately.

And Becks is not a football player, no sir, he is a soccer player and I could cry from joy because thank you, I really needed this addition. Raised the book so much higher in my eyes.

“He was my Huckleberry, my Han Solo, my one, but most of all he was my Becks and I was his Sal. That was the truth.

Somewhere between 3.5 and 4 stars!!
Profile Image for Melissa (thereaderandthechef).
532 reviews176 followers
October 22, 2018
LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH. Typical pretend-dating book, but the way it's executed and the characters's personalities is what really makes it stand out. SO ADORKABLE. I WANT MY OWN BECKS, PLEASE! ❤❤❤❤

Review on The Reader and the Chef!

Gosh, a few days before I read this book I was really wishing for a contemporary book that would give me all the feels, that would make me fall in love, laugh out loud, grin like a fool, and after reaching the end, wish to read it all over again.

ADORKABLE turned out to be EXACTLY what I wanted and possibly even more. I had no idea I was going to love it as much as I did. But after reading the first page, I knew this book would be my kind of read. I immediately liked the characters and their personalities. They are so much FUN. Everyone.
I know that this book sounds like the typical YA book where the guy best friend agrees to pretend-date the girl and they both end falling for each other, but this book is hands-down one of the best I have read of its kind. It’s so well done, not at all cheesy, and best of all, has a lot of HP references! Okay, maybe that’s not like the best reason, but the geek in me totally fangirled over this. So adorkable! (Pun intended)

I don’t have a single bad thing to say about Sally. I really liked her and I wish I had a friend like her. We would have HP marathons, I would let her introduce me to the Star Wars & Star Trek fandom, and of course, hang around in geeky clothes!

Hooker, Sally’s best girl friend, and Sally’s mom, were hilarious. I can’t believe they worked so hard together behind Sally’s back just to try to set her up with guys. And the type they would set her up with? So not Sally’s type! Except that one geeky guy who was rather intense and falls in love quickly LOL. Like the dog in UP!

But my Becks, omgggg. I want a boyfriend just like him! He is so sweet and funny and so hoooot. His dating lessons OMGGGGGGG. *le swoon* My cheeks refused to relax from their extreme grinning the whole time I was reading. And Becks’ brothers! Their teasing was so amazing, and more how they were all on Sally’s side, instead of his. Agh, loved it! I loved Becks! I SHALL MARRY HIM.

So as you can see, I really loved this book. If you are looking for a contemporary read that will make you have a great time, introduce you to a new book boyfriend worthy of your swoons, and lots of dorkiness, then you will surely enjoy Adorkable! ♥
Profile Image for Syndi.
2,993 reviews690 followers
September 3, 2020
Just like the title... this book is so adorable. Dorky and adorable. This is my first read by Miss O'Gorman. The intended audience is YA. I usually read adult theme romance with relationship of convenience. So it is a breath of fresh air reading similar topic but for YA.

I do like Beck. He is sweet and clueless when comes to Sally. They are best friend since birth. Reading their chemistry, their interaction and their banter makes me wish to have male BFF. Who knew having male BFF can be as much fun. I also like Sally. She is snarky. And yet dorky. Her German is just... adorable. I do not understand any of her conversation in German but she makes German sounds cute.

The writing is simple and light. The romance is appropriate for YA. Safe and no trigger.

4 stars

Profile Image for Didi.
865 reviews287 followers
June 10, 2016
Really cute friends to lovers! YA friends to lovers always comes off sweeter than adult ones...maybe the innocence and naïveté of the world is still there? The only issues I had was with how Sal and Becks kept their feelings from each other, and Sal's bestie. I related with Sal because I went through the same thing in high school...the difference being, my friend knew, he totally knew. You can't hide strong feelings like that for long.
So my issue is, 'how did you guys manage to stay so oblivious??' Didn't make sense to me..someone who related and was there. Also, Sal's friend, Hooker? She was a bit of a nagging weirdo. She was so insistent on hooking up Sal that she didn't stop to see what was right in front of her all along. I'd know if my bestie was crushing on her hot soccer man best friend.
Aside from that, I loved the sweet story line, the tension between Sal and Becks, and of course Beck's big display of affection at the end. Love friends to lovers!!

Thanks for the rec, A! You know what I like, girl! Lol ;)
Profile Image for Lili  Marcus.
715 reviews406 followers
January 30, 2018
I am your Huckleberry.

Woah....That is so sweet. What fun, fluffy, snuggle-worthy read. :) I love Sally and Becks so much, though at first, i wanted to smack Becks for being too slow. because it's very obvious he's in love with Sally, why not just man up, y'know?

Anyway, I love him still...
Also I kinda hated Hooker, she's being too much. Like really too much. And personally, my favorite is Ash, he made the story more alive, funnier and better. I would want him a story of his own.
Profile Image for Mairenn.
45 reviews6 followers
October 30, 2016
True to it's title, this book is the dorkiest and most adorable cliche of all cliches. PERFECT. And since I love good cliche contemporaries, it's no wonder this book was shelved to my All-Time-Favorites.

It's your typical bestfriends-turned-lovers story and it's quite predictable too! As I said very cliche but it's one of those feel-good books that will leave you smiling after you've reached the last page. Heck! I became a giggling mush all throughout my read! IT WAS THAT ADORABLE! If this is a movie, I would surely watch it every week. No kidding!

I would like to write a review but I feel like I shouldn't. Why? Because, I swear, it would just contain all my ramblings about how I enjoyed every chapter of this book. My friend already suffered from it so I'll spare you, my dear Goodreads friend ;)

There's one thing I just want to say. READ. THIS. BOOK. xD
(Again, I shoved it to my friend's face but she'll thank me after she's done.)
Profile Image for Rose.
421 reviews590 followers
May 8, 2017
my heart is melting

i repeat my heart is melting

ohmyogdhavhj it has been WAY too long since a book has made me feel like i have butterflies in my stomach. I mean, seriously, this book was absolutely adorable. I did expect cute, but I was not expecting that tension between Becks and Sal??? Plus so much kissing and holding each other and jdndbdk im a mess a mess.

anyway full review is coming~
Profile Image for Sophie's Reading Corner .
829 reviews331 followers
December 3, 2019
🤩 4 ADORKABLE STARS 🤩

Sally is seventeen years old and has never had a boyfriend. Her mother and her best friend, Hooker, want to change that situation so they keep trying to hook her up with people and force her to go on dates with them. Sally seems fed up about it and she thinks that to escape them all she needs is a fake relationship.

There comes in Becks, Sally's best friend since they were babies and one of the hottest and most popular guys at school. He gets on board with her plan of F.B.F and agrees to be her fake boyfriend. There's a problem though and that's the fact that Sally has been secretly in love with him all these years and never expressed her feelings so she wouldn't lose him.



This was so cute!!! I adored the relationships in this one, even if some of them were giving me headaches - like the fact that her mom and friend were relentless, would make me get a headache and I wouldn't take it as well as Sally did. I mean she's only 17 you guys. Why the pressure to get a boyfriend?! And to force her into this, not just annoy her about it. Also there were a bit over the top scenes, but overall I really enjoyed this book.


And that kiss..
Yeah, my brain responded, but it wasn't real.
But it felt real.
Yeah, but it wasn't.

If you're a fan of the trope friends to lovers and fake relationship, this is the perfect combination of both and you should give it a chance. This is also a YA so don't expect any risky business, but it was so cute and indeed adorkable - loved the references of Harry Potter & Star Wars (even if i'm clueless with the last one) I definitely recommend this if you need something light and funny.



ARC was received as an exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for Ashley.
667 reviews715 followers
April 10, 2016
Adorkable had a lot of potential.

Nerdiness
Cute idea
Cute romance

But there were a few big problems I couldn't get over.

Sally could be annoyingly self deprecating. Like, "Oh he'd never love me." Well why the hell not?

Hooker and Sally's mom were INFURIATING. Even with the explanations provided, I still couldn't understand why they were CONSTANTLY setting Sally up on dates. It was just blatantly rude. Examples (paraphrased):

Hooker: "Sally, want to go to the movies?"
Sally: "Yeah! Just us, right? I really don't want you to try to set me up again."
Hooker: "Of course. Just us. Girl's night."
...and then Hooker surprises her with a date anyway...

Or

Hooker: "I know you just broke up with someone, which is why I've invited this guy over to be your date. Time to get back on that horse!"

OMG.

I would literally stop being friends with Hooker. Blatantly lying, endless pestering even when I tell her to cut it out.. Hell. No.

And finally, I couldn't stand how the entire book was so solidly built on a failure to communicate... on BOTH sides.

Yes, I expected a certain amount of that going in, but there were so many details that made this book 100x worse than it needed to be. There were so many moments when Becks would say something nice/flirty to Sally totally genuinely, and Sally would LOOK for reasons to discount them and assume they're part of the fake boyfriend thing.

I guess this just ended up feeling too childish for me. Lack of communication plus playing mind games instead of just telling people like it is. I get that it can be scary to be so honest and put yourself out there, but oh my god... I just couldn't stand this after a while.
Profile Image for Fanny.
2,208 reviews54 followers
June 13, 2017



Adorkable es una novela escrita por Cookie O´Gorman y narra la historia de Becks y Sally, ademas de ser mi primera experiencia con el trabajo de la autora.

Lo primero que me llamo la atencion al conocer el libro fue la portada ( obvio ), no se porque pero tengo debilidad por las portadas con parejas en ella y esta en concreto tiene un no se que que me enamoro a primera vista.

Ya cuando lei la sinopsis lo tuve claro, era la historia que estaba buscando desde hacia un tiempo, es cierto que suelo leer libros en el que la pareja protagonista es un poco mayor que la de Sally y Becks pero tenia ganas de leer algo como este libro : tierno, ligero y romantico, ya que ultimamente estoy un poco harta de leer tantas lecturas " adultas ".

Adorkable fue mucho mejor de lo que imagine y eso que mis expectativas eran bastante elevadas ( sobretodo despues de leer varias reseñas ), ademas me engancho tanto que lo devore en una tarde y eso que iba con la idea de tomarmelo con calma pero fue imposible dejar de leer hasta que lo termine.

Esta lectura es perfecta para relajarte una tarde, aun no se que es exactamente lo que la hace tan especial pero la historia enamora desde el primer capitulo.

4 Estrellas!!
Profile Image for Michelle_Mck.
63 reviews34 followers
August 12, 2016
I'm not sure how I discovered Adorkable, I am guessing that it came up as a "you added this to your shelf you might like this" or something like that. I found it on special in the Kindle store so I popped it into my cart.. Can I just say, the $1.99 specials can end up being an expensive little look in the store when you buy 20.. But I digress.

Our main character and narrator is 17 year old Sally Spitz, she is a spunky, alternative pop culture kind of girl. She loves Harry Potter and other wizardy things. Her best friend Becks is obsessed with setting Sally up on dates, and she fails to tell Sally sometimes that she is setting her up on a date. She might just be about to have dinner with her Mum (Mom for the Americans) and a date will just turn up at the door. None of these dates turn out so good and she is sick of the stress of these guerrilla style dates so she hatches a plan.

What Sally needs is a FBF (Fake Boyfriend) who better to turn to than her oldest friend Becks, he is the star of the Soccer team and hot as hell. Oh and also, Sally is in love with Becks. You know what happens after this, it is a well tested plot device and it works.

Sally is adorable, she is quirky, smart and a bit weird, though not in a strange or annoying way. Becks and Sally are in their final year of high school and the pressure of college and those adult type decisions are coming at them and its interesting to see how that plays out. A sub-plot I enjoyed was Sally's Dad and how is/or isn't involved in her life.

Becks is a great character, I enjoyed getting to know his family and learning more about him as the book developed. I think 17 year old me would have had a massive crush on him.

This was a quick, easy lovely read. It was like the first tim tam you get out of the packet, its so good, fresh and full of chocolate goodness and you know you shouldn't have another one but you end up having 2 more.. Its a guilty pleasure of the best kind if you love you some YA.
Profile Image for Ninjaflower.
32 reviews27 followers
October 28, 2016
Since I finished this stupid ass book at 5am and spent my day tired and annoyed I decided this deserves a proper review.

This is a cliché story about a dorky nerd called Sally (She's actually really pretty but sssssh) and her best friend Baldwin Eugene Charles Kent, otherwise known as Becks. Becks is a popular soccer player of their high school with plenty of girls at his side

Tired of her mother and girl best friend Lillian "Hooker" scheming up to find her a lover, she uses Becks to enter a fake relationship so that they will stop matchmaking.

But love's complicated, especially when it's fake.

I thought that I would hate the kind of book that Disney turns into a for the tv movie but suffering through the first parts of the novel and getting to know more characters had me cheesing.

Recommended for: Anyone who needs a break from scary thrillers, likes cliché, likes relationships/love, and can ignore the blatant homophobia at the start and the cheesiness.
Profile Image for Shatarupa  Dhar.
615 reviews80 followers
December 6, 2019
Synopsis:
Sally Sue Spitz is your average dorky girl-next-door who's yet to fess up about why she wasn't really into dating. But that doesn't deter her mother and her best friend from setting her up with all the boys (and even a girl) that are available. When their matchmaking starts to get on her nerves, she comes up with a perfect plan. Sally asks her childhood friend, Becks, to be her fake boyfriend. After all, she wants the almost always terrible blind dates and shocking setups to stop. But all that faking is making Sally realise what she's been missing since she's been hiding her secret.

Review:
This was my first title by Cookie O'Gorman and this wouldn't definitely be the last. Also, I don't think I could've picked up a better book than this one to start my journey in YA romance. I love stories which have fake to real relationships and a lot of dorky things in it and not to forget, my favourite fandoms. As the blurb promised all those things, I jumped right into reading the story and giggled away.

Adorkable. The author defines the term at the outset as "a descriptive term meaning to be equal parts dorky and adorable. For reference, see Sally Spitz." And I liked that. Liked that term, I mean. This is an adorkable story.

Narrated in the first person, in Sally's voice, at one point Sally's mother thinks she's a lesbian. So she even sets her up with a girl. Well, she isn't dating and she doesn't seem to hit it off with any of the boys that her mother and her 'want to be a professional matchmaker' second best friend Lillian Hooker set her up with! Her first best friend would always, of course, remain Baldwin Eugene Charles Kent aka Becks. Martha Nicholls is a wedding planner and she couldn't help but try to plan the first step towards a happy ever after for her soon to be the eighteen-years-old only daughter.

Sally and Becks both are so adorable, and their friendship is even more so. I wish I had a best friend like that. Sigh! Though Lillian too is a gem and their solid friendship stemming from sharing weird surnames was cute, I couldn't help but feel a bit annoyed with her at first for setting up Sal left, right, and centre. But, as they say, without her push, Sally and Becks would have taken longer to get together. Haha! Me getting emotional over a bookish couple. Also, Sally being angry in German was so funny.

Set in the small town of Chariot, the Kent family is delightful. Especially the brothers, Leonard, Oliver, Thaddeus, Clayton, and Baldwin (our Becks). I wish all of them to get their own stories, especially Clayton.

The fandoms had me in such awe that I can't even... There was a little bit of everything, from Harry Potter to Star Trek to X-Men to Star Wars, so much so, that it made me want to watch Star Wars. Have only seen Star Trek till now and that too the recent ones. And if the Kent family name wasn't a Superman reference, then I'll be damned. Ha! I love how the author has named the characters. There's an Ash Stryker too, though he's not an out and out villain here.

All in all, this was a sweet romantic story of Sal and Becks that I'll definitely recommend to everyone who loves to read from this genre!

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for an e-ARC of the book for review purposes and the blog tour.

Originally posted on:
Shaina's Musings
Profile Image for Pime.
65 reviews7 followers
October 17, 2016
3 ADORABLES ESTRELLAS!!

Es una lectura que me duro una sentada,porque es corta y adictiva!! Pase un muy buen rato con este libro. No es nada GUAAU ni espectacular, pero estaba necesitando sumergirme en historias así!!
Súper recomendable!!
Profile Image for bookaholic_kim.
418 reviews50 followers
September 6, 2017
First and foremost, let me express how I really like this book’s title. “Adorkable” it is very cute and captivating isn’t it? So yeah, the title got me to read this.

I posted a review here in goodreads when I saw this book on the “Readers also Enjoyed” section of goodreads. I am glad I checked it because if not? Then I won’t be able to know that this adorable book exists.

The characters in this book are lovable. I swear! We have Sally Spitz, a senior student who never had a boyfriend and it worries her mom and best friend leading them to set her up in blind dates multiple times and of course no one would get her attention because she has always had feelings for her best friend, Becks, also a senior and a hottie.

Sally cannot take the blind dates anymore so she needs a solution to stop it ASAP. As a solution, she needs to find a fake boyfriend and Becks, surprisingly her best friend willingly agreed to it. Will Sally be able to control her feelings? Will this fake relationship affect their friendship? Well, read it to know the answer. Like right now!

I think Sally represents most of us here in the goodreads community because she is also a nerd who loves reading, quotes star wars and does things dorky. She is a relatable character and Adorkable as well.

Highly recommend this book to contemporary readers.
Profile Image for Rê .
455 reviews57 followers
March 31, 2016
4.5 “Fantastic BFF to Lovers” STARS

ADORKABLE is adorable (cheesy, I know), but I’m writing this review the morning after staying up until 1 a.m. because I could not, simply COULD NOT stop reading. Yep, I devoured all the pretty words and I did it with a smile. A big smile. Trust me, this book is that good.

You know how sometimes you just read one paragraph and you know you’ll fall hard for the rest of the story? That’s what happened here. Cookie O'Gorman’s (love the name, BTW) writing was addictive. The voice… the MC’s freaking voice?! Yep. I’m in love. I am completely aware I’m babbling but that’s what good writing does to me.

I wasn’t exactly planning on starting ADORKABLE yesterday. I’d just gotten the digital ARC and had sent it to my Kindle – though I have to admit I was looking forward to reading it since the day I joined the cover reveal blog tour a few weeks ago. But I opened the Kindle app as I was leaving work and thinking about what book I’d start next, and somehow I clicked on it and the first sentence was right there. I read it and the next paragraph and thought “wow, I’m gonna like this one”, and I didn’t stop reading until I hit the end. The power of a good first paragraph, ladies and gentleman.

And an excellent book, of course. Otherwise I wouldn’t have sacrificed precious hours of sleep to finish it.

Now that I’m done rambling, you can come meet Sally (or Sal), the Harry Potter fanatic who stole my heart. Sally is funny. Like real funny. She made me smile and laugh countless times and I love her for that. See, Sally has a great mother and two super awesome best friends. Trouble is, one of those BFFs is always setting Sally up on blind dates, hoping she’ll find her the perfect match, and Sally is sick and tired of it all. The other BFF, adorable and hot soccer star Becks is Sally’s secret crush. Too bad he only sees her as a friend – and doesn’t even notice she’s a girl at all.

When Sally gets tired of all the matchmaking fiascos, she comes up with a plan to convince her friend she doesn’t need her services anymore: all she needs is a fake boyfriend. The only person she can see playing that role is Becks, and surprise, surprise he quickly says “yes” when she asks him to be her fake boyfriend.

What Sally doesn’t realize is how dangerous pretending to be in love with a guy you’re actually in love with might be.

I have to say that I’m addicted to “best friends to lovers” & “fake boyfriend/girlfriend” tropes. Obsessed. So you put those two together and you bet I’ll be dying to read it. So I went into this expecting to like it, but I was surprised at how much I LOVED it.

Like I said before, Sally is a great character. She’s smart, geeky, weird in a funny and adorable way and being inside her head was highly entertaining. Plus, she made sense. The way she reacted to the guys (and girl) she met through her friend’s matchmaking attempts told me a lot about her. She was never mean to them, even though some were real jerks, and even when she was trying to make them dump her, she was nice and adorable. Her relationship with her mother was another plus. I could tell they loved each other and tried to be there for one another – especially since they had to deal with all that crap from her father.
But obviously the relationship I loved the most was the one between Sally and Becks.

They were more than just cute together. They were hot – as hot as YA Contemporaries normally get (I know there are exceptions). From the first touch to the kiss, the chemistry between Becks and Sally was off the charts. I swooned every time Becks, using the fake boyfriend plan, showed her his true feelings. Sally, being used to him treating her as just friends for their entire lives, refused to see the truth, but as a reader it was clear from the start that Becks’ intentions weren’t just friendly. He tried everything he could to make their fake relationship last as long as possible and I love him for that.

Becky and Sal had a lot to lose if they confessed their feelings and got a “sorry, but we’re just friends” response from the other person, so it made a lot of sense that they remained silent. Plus, for best friends they did really suck at communicating. LOL. But it worked. In this case, it worked really well.
I savored every scene between these two – when they were just friends, when they became more, when they were jealous of each other… everything.

The only thing I wasn’t a huge fan of was Sally’s relationship with Ash. I didn’t mind the temporary love triangle, but it felt like she was replaying the same situation that had happened with Becks and getting into another “fake” relationship. I guess I wish it’d been handled differently.

Other than that, everything else was pretty fantastic and I’m so, so happy I got to read this book before the rest of the world. I can’t wait to take a seat and watch while other people fall in love with Becks and Sally like I did.

-----
Before reading:

This sounds gooooooodddd! Can't wait for it.
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