I Kissed Alice

June 1, 2020
Two art students collaborate anonymously on a queer fan comic while clashing in real life over a prestigious scholarship. To high school senior Iliana Vrionides, the Capstone Foundation Award represents opportunities that her affluent and well-connected peers at the Alabama Conservatory of the Arts and Technology take for granted. Iliana's determination to win the award is intensified by her desire to beat her classmate and nemesis Rhodes Ingram who, in Iliana's eyes, exemplifies the highbrow snobbery that art competition juries favor. Iliana often vents her frustration to I-Kissed-Alice, a friend she met on fandom database Slash/Spot and with whom Iliana co-authors "Hearts and Spades," an Alice in Wonderland fan comic. Little does she know that I-Kissed-Alice is actually Rhodes, whose struggle with depression and familial pressure to succeed has rendered her unable to create artwork for school. As the deadline for the Capstone project proposal draws near, the animosity between Iliana and Rhodes comes to a peak even as they make plans online to meet in person. With a premise based on the "secret identity" trope, this novel could have fallen into clich�. Instead, it digs into the messiness of relationships colored by personal bias and misunderstanding. The protagonists are alive with emotions and flaws, and their chemistry as both enemies and allies crackles off the pages. Iliana is white, bisexual, and fat; Rhodes is white and queer. Come for the rivalry, stay for the romance. (Romance. 13-18)

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June 8, 2020
Through alternating chapters, the first thing readers learn about Iliana Vrionides and Rhodes Ingram is that they hate each other. Seniors at a prestigious Alabama arts high school, they have a history (Iliana blames Rhodes for the loss of Iliana’s college scholarship) and they fight over who’s closer to Sarah (Iliana’s childhood friend and Rhodes’s roommate). Both talented, they’re competing for the big Capstone Award, though Rhodes is struggling with an artistic block related to her mother’s overinvestment in her success. About the only time the two aren’t sniping is when they’re—separately—on fan fiction site Slash/Spot. Little do they know that under the cloak of usernames Curious-in-Cheshire and I-Kissed-Alice, they’re actually collaborating on a queer Alice in Wonderland comic, Hearts and Spades. As they get closer to the award announcement, things become more strained IRL, while online, Cheshire and Alice agree to meet up. Enemies-turned-lovers is a well-traveled premise, but author Birch keeps the tension high, presenting everything—love, hate, class differences, scheming mothers, backstabbing friends—at a fever pitch. Though scenes sometimes lean into melodrama, the characters’ ability to make things hard for themselves and others on the road to self-discovery makes for roller-coaster reading. Ying’s (City of Secrets) paneled illustrations of Iliana and Rhodes’s collaboration add a romantic fanfic flair. Ages 14–up. Agent: Victoria Marini, Irene Goodman Literary.

Starred review from September 1, 2020
Grades 8-12 *Starred Review* In her debut, Birch heads down the rabbit hole of teenage friendships and romances. Rhodes and Iliana can't stand each other, but the two girls try to play nice for the sake of their shared best friend. They get a break from each other on an online fanfiction site, each happily forming anonymous friendships. Iliana and Rhodes both enter a potentially life-changing contest, and things become even more complicated when Iliana discovers her online cowriter (and probable soul mate) is actually Rhodes. Told with rich detail, this revels in fandom culture while capably drawing teen-girl relationships, keeping a sharp eye on general and moral grayness. Ying's illustrations add a special touch and let readers immerse themselves in Rhodes and Iliana's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland fan comic. With their distinct personalities, the characters create a dynamic and compelling chemical reaction that's only heightened by the boarding school setting and one commuting main character. The story addresses themes of jealousy, ambition, and pride, depicted in scenarios many readers will find familiar. Told in a relatively fast pace, this is bound to be a hit with fans of Cherie Priest's I Am Princess X (2015) and Nina LaCour's Everything Leads to You (2014).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)