Girl Crushed

By: Katie Heaney

Narrated by: Caitlin Kinnunen

Leah on the Offbeat meets We Are Okay in this pitch-perfect queer romance about falling in love and never quite falling out of it--heartbreak, unexpected new crushes, and all.

Before Quinn Ryan was in love with Jamie Rudawski, she loved Jamie Rudawski, who was her best friend. But when Jamie dumps Quinn a month before their senior year, Quinn is suddenly girlfriend-less and best friend-less.

Enter a new crush: Ruby Ocampo, the gorgeous and rich lead singer of the popular band Sweets, who's just broken up with her on-again, off-again boyfriend. Quinn's always only wanted to be with Jamie, but if Jamie no longer wants to be with her, why can't Quinn go all in on Ruby? But the closer Quinn grows to Ruby, the more she misses Jamie, and the more (she thinks) Jamie misses her. Who says your first love can't be your second love, too?

Katie Heaney is a full-time senior writer for the Cut, a former editor at BuzzFeed, and the author of the memoirs Never Have I Ever: My Life (So Far) Without a Date and Would You Rather? Girl Crushed is her YA debut.

Critic reviews

"The pacing is spot-on, and the exploration of lesbian relationships—particularly post-breakup—is handled deftly. Fresh and charming." —Kirkus Reviews

"This charming romance also addresses the all-too-common practice of discounting or ignoring the queer identity of people in hetero relationships, the complicated road back to friendship after a romantic relationship ends, and the importance of adjusting expectations as you go." —SLJ

“Hilarious and heartbreaking, often all at once. I loved Girl Crushed, which radiates with humor, awkwardness, and heart. It’s a joy to have Katie Heaney’s voice in young adult literature.” —Amy Spalding, bestselling author of The Summer of Jordi Perez

“Girl Crushed is the perfect book about queer longing, immediately relatable for anyone who’s ever obsessed over someone impossibly cool. I’m smitten.” —Britta Lundin, author of Ship It

I need a sequel!

I loved this book. The story was incredible. The reading was incredible. The awkwardness and uncomfortable moments were something I could feel in my bones so much that I physically cringed at moments when I thought back to doing the same awkward things. I wish it had a billion more chapters!

Bestseller

I loved this book very much It’s an amazing book and I love it so much good job writer

Still loving YA as not a young adult

Listened to this book on audible to try something new, I usually buy Katie Heaney’s books but the narration really took this to the next level. I’ve read many a straight high school romance story in my younger years, and as a queer adult this *obviously* blows them all away. This book has the duality of focusing on contemporary topics (such as Quinn’s obsession with the USWNT), while also coupled with timeless storylines of young queer love and sexual tension. So yeah, this was awesome. Props on writing another great story that my 17 year old self would’ve swooned over, and my 25 year old self still did.

Cute

I was expecting more of a rom-com type feel this book, but I’m not unhappy with what I ended reading. Even though it wasn’t lumity type chemistry and you would sacrifice your very life for, the relationships are pretty darn cute. The characters were interesting enough and believe. Quinn’s point blank sarcasm was very relatable. It very different from other realistic fiction novels I read in that it felt more like a memoir then a novel. Sweet though. And poignant, would be a good way to describe it I think. The time line could have been much more clear, but other than that I quite liked it.

It certainly a story.

I can not tell if I relate to these characters or not. Not to mention they feel realistic in weirdly specific ways and it comes with a bit of whiplash from scene to scene. Also I could not tell you if I like these people or not.

It's not a bad story, and it's kinda covering important experiences. People actively dealing with insecurities and expectations, but in realistic ways. (Definitely not healthy ways.) I think it has a lot of good in it, but at the same time I'm like "What is the point?" Cus it's not like the love interests seem all that compatible with the main character, and she borderline lies to them about the smallest most unimportant things seem so unneeded. It's just a lot of the small stuff that leaves me conflicted. I just got mixed feelings, even if it isn't a bad story.