Title: Smash It!Author: Francina Simone
First Published: September 22, 2020
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Pages: 336
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romance, Young Adult
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Rating:
Synopsis:
Olivia “Liv” James is done with letting her insecurities get the best of her. So she does what any self-respecting hot mess of a girl who wants to SMASH junior year does…
After Liv shows up to a Halloween party in khaki shorts—why, God, why?—she decides to set aside her wack AF ways. She makes a list—a F*ck-It list.
1. Be bold—do the thing that scares me.
2. Learn to take a compliment.
3. Stand out instead of back.
She kicks it off by trying out for the school musical, saying yes to a date and making new friends. Life is great when you stop punking yourself! However, with change comes a lot of missteps, and being bold means following her heart. So what happens when Liv’s heart is interested in three different guys—and two of them are her best friends? What is she supposed to do when she gets dumped by a guy she’s not even dating? How does one Smash It! after the humiliation of being friend-zoned?
In Liv’s own words, “F*ck it. What’s the worst that can happen?”
A lot, apparently.
#SMASHIT
Get the Book: AmazonReview
Smash It! is a messy, imperfect, but fun contemporary high school romance centering on Shakespeare, body positivity, and taking the leap to reach for the things you want. Liv is a shy girl that decides to take a page out of Shonda Rimes “year of yes” to start overcoming her insecurities to become a “cool girl.” She’s hopelessly in love with one of her best friends, but finds herself getting tangled up with several cute boys, all were swoon-worthy. Many of the side characters reminded me of people I knew in school, especially Jackie and Lennox.
The book tackles themes of body and sex-positivity, single parenthood, race, and personal identity. Liv is often extremely selfish, centering every event on herself and taking things personally. She is wrapped up in what other people think of her and she has a tendency to assume the worst. Though I didn’t like how Liv and other characters dragged on adults for having issues or not “getting it” I had to chuckle at how true this attitude was for teenagers. Liv is flawed but believable, late teen years are filled with angst and a search for self. I took some issue that Liv doesn’t start putting herself together until her almost non-existent sister shows up and tells her what to do.
The book is also an Othello re-telling, but Simone aims a lot of criticism at Shakespeare that felt childish. There are also several racial “jokes” in the story, specifically toward Hawaiians and Palestinians, that failed to land. Several readers have found these inclusions offensive and in 2025 the Palestinian comments especially have aged poorly. There is a lot good in this book and an honest attempt at diversity that is unfortunately tarnished by insensitivity and it’s honestly a shame.
Quote
“Good judgment comes from a string of fuckups.”
Content Warnings
View Spoiler »About the Authors
About Francina Simone
Francina Simone is the author of The Guardians Trilogy, a young adult urban fantasy that explores the strength of love and lost. She was born in Germany, spent her childhood in hot the urban jungle of Orlando Florida, and now resides in the Rockies where she spends more of her time far away with her characters in their quest to make the right decisions in worlds brimming with romance, moral ambiguity, and often times, a touch of magic.
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