Review Detail

This is a fun read involving a game called Howl, which is basically a twenty-four hour long scavenger hunt for the seniors graduating high school. Due to the limited timeline, it feels like something is always happening, making for a fast-paced read. Solomon makes use of the enemies to lovers trope most effectively by placing Rowan, the female MC, and Neil, her male rival in everything, in a situation where they need to team up to outsmart a team that wants to get them.
Solomon is an awesome author who consistently writes books featuring strong and diverse Jewish representation, along with other diverse characters and forms of representation that are worked into the story in a way that feels natural, and never as if she’s checking off a representation checklist. Rowan is biracial with Jewish and Mexican heritage, there is representation for being a first-generation American, I love how she includes some diversity in economic situations in the story, where one character’s family is dealing with financial insecurity and how that is when living in an area where that isn’t the norm. There are beautiful touches of Jewish culture and beliefs throughout the story, as well as what it’s like being a Jew in modern times—casual antisemitism comes up the story more than once, and while the characters are proud and comfortable with their Jewish heritage, they also have to deal with how others treat them as a result.
While this book is recommended for ages twelve and up, there is some profanity in the story. Characters do curse on occasion, and Rowan discusses her love of romance novels multiple times. The conversations stay PG, but Rowan talks about her personal brand of feminism and how romance novels have helped her advocate for her needs and be more comfortable talking about her body and consent. Younger readers might not be mature enough for these discussions, so be aware that this story may be a better fit for older YA readers.
Overall, this story reads a lot like a love story to the city of Seattle, Washington, and a love letter to romance—both the genre of literature and the romance that grows between Rowan and Neil. Throughout the game of Howl, readers learn a lot of hidden history about Seattle, and it was really interesting to get to know the city almost like another character in the story. Watching the dynamic grow and change between Rowan and Neil was a really interesting aspect of the story, since Solomon did such a great job with the trope of enemies to lovers, making it feel organic and comfortable as their connection developed naturally, and never came across as forced.