Never Been Kissed
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-06-22 07:51:36
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Timothy Janovsky
- ISBN：1728250587
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Dear （never-been-quite-over-you） Crush，
It's been a few years since we were together， but I can't stop thinking about the time we almost。。。
Wren Roland has never been kissed， but he wants that movie-perfect ending more than anything。 Feeling nostalgic on the eve of his birthday， he sends emails to all the boys he （ahem） loved before he came out。 Morning brings the inevitable Oh God What Did I Do？， but he brushes that panic aside。 Why stress about it？ None of his could-have-beens are actually going to read the emails， much less respond。 Right？
Enter Derick Haverford， Wren's #1 pre-coming-out-crush and his drive-in theater's new social media intern。 Everyone claims he's coasting on cinematic good looks and his father's connections， but Wren has always known there's much more to Derick than meets the eye。 Too bad he doesn't feel the same way about the infamous almost-kiss that once rocked Wren's world。
Whatever。 Wren's no longer a closeted teenager; he can survive this。 But as their hazy summer becomes consumed with a special project that may just save the struggling drive-in for good， Wren and Derick are drawn ever-closer。。。and maybe， finally， Wren's dream of a perfect-kiss-before-the-credits is within reach。
A feel-good summer LGBTQIA+ New Adult RomCom， perfect for fans of Red White & Royal Blue， Boyfriend Material， and What If It's Us。
It's been a few years since we were together， but I can't stop thinking about the time we almost。。。
Wren Roland has never been kissed， but he wants that movie-perfect ending more than anything。 Feeling nostalgic on the eve of his birthday， he sends emails to all the boys he （ahem） loved before he came out。 Morning brings the inevitable Oh God What Did I Do？， but he brushes that panic aside。 Why stress about it？ None of his could-have-beens are actually going to read the emails， much less respond。 Right？
Enter Derick Haverford， Wren's #1 pre-coming-out-crush and his drive-in theater's new social media intern。 Everyone claims he's coasting on cinematic good looks and his father's connections， but Wren has always known there's much more to Derick than meets the eye。 Too bad he doesn't feel the same way about the infamous almost-kiss that once rocked Wren's world。
Whatever。 Wren's no longer a closeted teenager; he can survive this。 But as their hazy summer becomes consumed with a special project that may just save the struggling drive-in for good， Wren and Derick are drawn ever-closer。。。and maybe， finally， Wren's dream of a perfect-kiss-before-the-credits is within reach。
A feel-good summer LGBTQIA+ New Adult RomCom， perfect for fans of Red White & Royal Blue， Boyfriend Material， and What If It's Us。
Reviews
Nicholas Owens
，
A very cute and wholesome gay romance novel。 Easily one of my favorites I’ve read ❤️
Mark
，
I must say， this book had a rocky start to it。 The flashbacks were sometimes difficult to follow but once you get into it and past the first few chapters， you really do get sucked in。 The story is about Wren and Derrick， with a few sidekicks thrown in。 Wren is the main narrator to this novel so only shows one perspective to the story and you don’t get to see it from Derrick’s point of view。 Though， saying that， it was a great read。 Wren has graduated from University and has never been kissed。 Th I must say， this book had a rocky start to it。 The flashbacks were sometimes difficult to follow but once you get into it and past the first few chapters， you really do get sucked in。 The story is about Wren and Derrick， with a few sidekicks thrown in。 Wren is the main narrator to this novel so only shows one perspective to the story and you don’t get to see it from Derrick’s point of view。 Though， saying that， it was a great read。 Wren has graduated from University and has never been kissed。 This opens himself to discover different things about himself and the journey was a pleasure to read。 The first contact between Wren and Derrick was a little， cringy。 I say that because I think it would be something I see myself doing。 But never the less， it was funny。 Wren is due to work at Wiley’s Drive-in for the summer as he has done for a few years already and has been promoted to the manager。 He finds out Derek， his old classmate that he ALMOST kissed， is volunteering at Wiley’s as a digital content creator to boost sales… Or is he？ I really enjoyed the film aspects of the book， along with the storyline with Alice。 It was very interesting to read about her and the journey she has been through – from a very successful film producer to being kicked to the curb。 The way Janovsky describes and writes about her is hilarious and absolutely realistic。 Unsure why， but I pictured my grandmother in that role。 The sense of family and friendship in the book is an absolute treasure。 The way they all come together for a greater purpose had my heart screaming。 Avery and Mateo always being there for Wren， even through difficult times。 The way Derrick is so patient with Wren just shows you how much love is there。 Also， the way Janovsky builds the relationship between Wren， Derrick and Alice。 Honestly， I think my favourite side character was Alice！The writing is great but， as I said， was difficult to follow at the beginning。 The progression of the characters is easily followed and you’re right there with them along the way。 The use of acronyms throughout the book was sometimes difficult to follow， but most young adults now-a-days do like a good acronym， making the characters more realistic and believable – spot the old man。 I have rated this 4/5。 。。。more
Kate
，
I must be on a roll of 'meh' reads -- very similar to "Conventionally Yours" - cute premise， but too long， repetative -lots of telling things over and over， lots of little things like a 'gallon' bucket when washing a floor （that's pretty small！）， 'points' in a baseball game， the whole 'win Alice over to show her movie' plotline didn't feel super believable， nor did the random podcaster in a fancy NYC office （do podcasters make that much money？）， the 'how are we going to save the drive in， oh 'so I must be on a roll of 'meh' reads -- very similar to "Conventionally Yours" - cute premise， but too long， repetative -lots of telling things over and over， lots of little things like a 'gallon' bucket when washing a floor （that's pretty small！）， 'points' in a baseball game， the whole 'win Alice over to show her movie' plotline didn't feel super believable， nor did the random podcaster in a fancy NYC office （do podcasters make that much money？）， the 'how are we going to save the drive in， oh 'social media' - like it's some miraculous answer that no one thought of before then。。。。eh， I finished it but skimmed a fair bit。。。 。。。more
melodie | readingwithmelodie
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 somewhere between 3。5-4 stars， this book was sweet but nothing like， special？ like things happened but it was just all so， lowkey… maybe I’m too used to books filled with drama and stuff but this felt so emotionally flat。 like the emails Wren sent out- that entire matter was just *solved* within like， the first 10th of the book。 and whatever arguments they had just felt a little pointless and absjdjdjd at the end of the book， I didn’t really feel impassioned either way if Wiley’s （was that the n somewhere between 3。5-4 stars， this book was sweet but nothing like， special？ like things happened but it was just all so， lowkey… maybe I’m too used to books filled with drama and stuff but this felt so emotionally flat。 like the emails Wren sent out- that entire matter was just *solved* within like， the first 10th of the book。 and whatever arguments they had just felt a little pointless and absjdjdjd at the end of the book， I didn’t really feel impassioned either way if Wiley’s （was that the name？ I audiobooked it） stayed open or not。 same with the whole Alice thing。 like the concept was great but I didn’t really feel connected with either。 also as literally the only book I can find with demi rep in it， I don’t really know how to feel about it。 I loved Wren for his “a kiss isn’t just a kiss” plot， it is SO rare that we see that in YA， but I do wish it was explored more。 like we sort of got it at the start， and when he was just getting to re-know Derick and then he just， dropped the matter？ and for the book literally being called never been kissed， I expected a bit more build up for the kiss scene， because after the first 30% or so it’s barely about it anymore。 maybe I just had too high expectations for this book， but it was just a bit flat for me。 not bad as such， but I rate books on how emotionally attached I get， so this was a hmm good writing， good idea， enjoyed it， but not really exciting 。。。more
Megan Baxter
，
Some thoughts in no particular order:✨ Pretty clunky plot-wise but it was still a pretty satisfying narrative arc。 The pacing was just way too fast for me。 Everything felt very surface-level and superficial。✨ The setting was lovely！ Very cutesy， summertime vibes。✨ I would have liked more focus on the drive-in than on the other side plot with the actress。 I thought she was a fascinating character， but her part in the plot really didn’t need to be there for it to work。 More focus on the financial/ Some thoughts in no particular order:✨ Pretty clunky plot-wise but it was still a pretty satisfying narrative arc。 The pacing was just way too fast for me。 Everything felt very surface-level and superficial。✨ The setting was lovely！ Very cutesy， summertime vibes。✨ I would have liked more focus on the drive-in than on the other side plot with the actress。 I thought she was a fascinating character， but her part in the plot really didn’t need to be there for it to work。 More focus on the financial/age of the drive-in versus the contractors wanted the lot + the second-chance romance would have been enough。 Would have allowed more time for character and relational development， too。✨ This。 needs。 to。 be。 a。 movie。 The author’s love for the that medium shines， and the book thus reads more like a script than a novel anyway。 Give me the cheesy drive-in rom-com of my dreams on screen， please！✨ Wren and Derick were freaking precious。 I loved that Derick accepted Wren’s questioning/demisexuality and adjusted their relational pace accordingly。 Very， very sweet。 ❤️It was fun overall， the atmosphere was summery-sweet， but it was definitely pretty messy。 I’d still pick this up if you just need a fun， cutesy， trope-filled rom-com， though！ I needed one， and still had a good time despite its flaws。 。。。more
Lauren Duty
，
So adorable， fluffy and sweet！！ Highly recommend
Caleb Finley
，
During the month of June， I’ve been trying to read all my queer rom-coms that I’ve acquired/pre-ordered and have had on my TBR for a while。 I saw ‘Never Been Kissed’ in passing on Goodreads and immediately added to my list of must reads， along with getting my local indie bookshop to order it for me。 This was a cute， queer rom-com that truly hit all the right notes and had me smiling like a fool throughout。 Wren hasn’t had his first kiss yet and is determined to change that， so one drunken night During the month of June， I’ve been trying to read all my queer rom-coms that I’ve acquired/pre-ordered and have had on my TBR for a while。 I saw ‘Never Been Kissed’ in passing on Goodreads and immediately added to my list of must reads， along with getting my local indie bookshop to order it for me。 This was a cute， queer rom-com that truly hit all the right notes and had me smiling like a fool throughout。 Wren hasn’t had his first kiss yet and is determined to change that， so one drunken night he sends emails out to the almost-first-kisses in his life。 He receives a reply from Derick， who ends up being a new hire at the drive-in that Wren manages。 As their friendship rekindles， Wren’s movie perfect kiss may be on the horizon！This book has so much more than just a romance; it is a story with a lesson on living in your moment， making the most out of what is in front of you， and the importance of stepping into the sometimes scary unknown！ Plus， theater and movie references that I absolutely adored！ 。。。more
Marquis
，
4 Stars！This is a really cute story centering around a character， Wren， that accidentally releases emails to the boys he almost kissed in the past and has to deal with that as well as managing a local drive-in theater。 Wren was an absolutely hilarious protagonist， and he and Derick have my heart。 When I tell y'all this book had me hollering laughing， I mean that。 The humor in this is so quick that I had to rewind the audiobook several times to make sure I heard correctly。 This book packed a bunc 4 Stars！This is a really cute story centering around a character， Wren， that accidentally releases emails to the boys he almost kissed in the past and has to deal with that as well as managing a local drive-in theater。 Wren was an absolutely hilarious protagonist， and he and Derick have my heart。 When I tell y'all this book had me hollering laughing， I mean that。 The humor in this is so quick that I had to rewind the audiobook several times to make sure I heard correctly。 This book packed a bunch of heart， an engaging plot， and a lot of healthy discussion of asexuality and demisexuality。The book read a lot like a young adult novel， which put me off slightly， but overall， this was a great reading experience。Timothy has instantly become an author to check out in the future for me。 。。。more
Caitlyn A
，
I really enjoyed this book！ It was a bit of a slow start for me but once things picked up a little， I was invested and couldn’t put it down。 I loved the chemistry between Wren and Derrick and really just with the whole group。 It had a good cast of characters and I loved how it dealt with figuring out your identity and understanding that there’s more under the queer umbrella than just gay and bisexual。 The poor communication （from multiple parties but especially Wren） grated on me but not enough I really enjoyed this book！ It was a bit of a slow start for me but once things picked up a little， I was invested and couldn’t put it down。 I loved the chemistry between Wren and Derrick and really just with the whole group。 It had a good cast of characters and I loved how it dealt with figuring out your identity and understanding that there’s more under the queer umbrella than just gay and bisexual。 The poor communication （from multiple parties but especially Wren） grated on me but not enough to ruin the rest of it！ 。。。more
Jessie H。
，
4。5/5 StarsReview to Come*ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley
Amanda
，
I went the audiobook route instead of the physical copy for this one。 Cute， light enough without getting too cheesy。 My favorite character is Alice out of the entire cast。 This is suited for your typical ya audience。 I thought the ending wrapped up a little too nearly and put together， was expecting more angst and separation but alas there is a hea as most rom com books tend to lean towards instead of a slightly sad but more real ish？ ending。 Then again， Wren is 22 so I guess it was to be expect I went the audiobook route instead of the physical copy for this one。 Cute， light enough without getting too cheesy。 My favorite character is Alice out of the entire cast。 This is suited for your typical ya audience。 I thought the ending wrapped up a little too nearly and put together， was expecting more angst and separation but alas there is a hea as most rom com books tend to lean towards instead of a slightly sad but more real ish？ ending。 Then again， Wren is 22 so I guess it was to be expected the ending would be pleasant to soothe the romantics （ I’m more of a cynic ） 😉 。。。more
Hannah
，
This was such a cute story！ This is a coming of age story more than it is romance， you watch as Wren figures his identity out and I loved it。 I loved the movie aspect of this made it really good and the epilogue was perfect。
A
，
A strong note of melancholy runs through this story。
Sue
，
Cute contemporary MM romance， new adult， no steam。 Set in a drive in theater！ Great for movie buffs。 Fun audiobook。 My only complaint is some odd language use。 It is definitely my preference more than incorrect usage in some cases， to be fair， but for example the word "bespoke" is used to describe a suit when the author means off-the-rack。 I don't like policing grammar and small editorial errors but it was consistent enough to be distracting。 Mild spoiler: protagonist is demisexual。 Cute contemporary MM romance， new adult， no steam。 Set in a drive in theater！ Great for movie buffs。 Fun audiobook。 My only complaint is some odd language use。 It is definitely my preference more than incorrect usage in some cases， to be fair， but for example the word "bespoke" is used to describe a suit when the author means off-the-rack。 I don't like policing grammar and small editorial errors but it was consistent enough to be distracting。 Mild spoiler: protagonist is demisexual。 。。。more
Alison Shely
，
Very fun and cute。 Perfect summer read！
Michael Kerr
，
3。5 stars。 Wren may have had more to drink than he actually needed at his 22nd birthday soiree， and while drunkenly scrolling through draft emails to lads he'd crushed on， he decides to send the messages。 The next morning one responds。。。。 Sexual politics， film studies， family， and coming-of-age feature in this novel。 This is a sweet， light summer read。 3。5 stars。 Wren may have had more to drink than he actually needed at his 22nd birthday soiree， and while drunkenly scrolling through draft emails to lads he'd crushed on， he decides to send the messages。 The next morning one responds。。。。 Sexual politics， film studies， family， and coming-of-age feature in this novel。 This is a sweet， light summer read。 。。。more
Lee Petterson
，
so so good！ i checked it out from the library and halfway through reading it i decided to order my own copy to annotatesad to finish it but am so freaking excited to read it again！
Agalactiae
，
2，75/5Voilà un roman qu'il me tardait de dévorer avec ce résumé vraiment alléchant ！Je ne reviendrai pas sur l'histoire， le résumé présentant très bien les choses。 Pour être honnête j'ai eu un peu de mal avec ce roman。 J'ai eu du mal à accrocher au début， puis j'ai eu le petit déclic， qui fait que je me sentais investie dans les personnages， avec Wren， son cruch de retour。。。Mais malgré tout， cela n'a pas suffit à m'embarquer， car le rythme s’essouffle。。。 J'ai eu un peu de mal aussi avec la relat 2，75/5Voilà un roman qu'il me tardait de dévorer avec ce résumé vraiment alléchant ！Je ne reviendrai pas sur l'histoire， le résumé présentant très bien les choses。 Pour être honnête j'ai eu un peu de mal avec ce roman。 J'ai eu du mal à accrocher au début， puis j'ai eu le petit déclic， qui fait que je me sentais investie dans les personnages， avec Wren， son cruch de retour。。。Mais malgré tout， cela n'a pas suffit à m'embarquer， car le rythme s’essouffle。。。 J'ai eu un peu de mal aussi avec la relation entre Wren et son coloc Mateo。J'ai eu vraiment l'impression d'être restée en retrait tout le long et c'est dommage car le pitch de départ était top。 。。。more
Wesley Thomas
，
Cute。 Sweet romance for movie lovers :）
Bri
，
Actually more like a 1。8/5。 One of the most obnoxious MCs I’ve ever read。 And not even in a way that was humorous and/or redemptive to me。 （If I had to hear about how film is superior to everything else one more time…）I’m a character-driven reader and it honestly doesn’t take much for me to get heavily invested in characters but I genuinely disliked almost everyone in this book。 The love interest is the only person I vaguely liked/had interest in and he wasn’t really present enough to save this Actually more like a 1。8/5。 One of the most obnoxious MCs I’ve ever read。 And not even in a way that was humorous and/or redemptive to me。 （If I had to hear about how film is superior to everything else one more time…）I’m a character-driven reader and it honestly doesn’t take much for me to get heavily invested in characters but I genuinely disliked almost everyone in this book。 The love interest is the only person I vaguely liked/had interest in and he wasn’t really present enough to save this book for me。 I think the plot itself could've been good。。。just with different characters。 。。。more
Fernanda Granzotto
，
*Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book for review， all opinions are my own*3。5 starsThis was a very enjoyable book to read。 I liked the story and the characters。Is a really cool novel， easy and quick to read。 Is a book you can read in a day if you have the time。 I recommend it if you want a cute novel to read in a day。
Nicole
，
Aww this was really cute。 I always love media about the movies， it always feels nostalgia no matter the decade it takes place in。 I loved the rep we get （aspec Demi MC！） It’s great getting to see less common sexualities more often。 I adored the boys and their developing relationship and that they were a little older， just out of college， rather than your typical just out of high school age。 They were old friends vein reacquainted after too long apart after a disastrous almost first kiss。 Friends Aww this was really cute。 I always love media about the movies， it always feels nostalgia no matter the decade it takes place in。 I loved the rep we get （aspec Demi MC！） It’s great getting to see less common sexualities more often。 I adored the boys and their developing relationship and that they were a little older， just out of college， rather than your typical just out of high school age。 They were old friends vein reacquainted after too long apart after a disastrous almost first kiss。 Friends to lovers is the ultimate romance trope and you can fight me on that。 4。5 stars！ 。。。more
Kaapro
，
I enjoyed reading this as an audiobook， but I felt that the plot was quite predictable and overall this wasn't a memorable read。 I enjoyed reading this as an audiobook， but I felt that the plot was quite predictable and overall this wasn't a memorable read。 。。。more
Blue
，
This was a really fun and very sweet read。 I loved the characters， I loved the plot， and it had the right amount of angst added in。 Honestly I loved wrens growth and journey， not just in him discovering what it was that he wanted to do with his life， but who he was。 Again， very sweet book。
Krissi Sloma
，
Very cute story。 I really enjoyed the characters and subplots to the story。 Also， the queer rep and explanation throughout the book was very cool to see。
Cait
，
This was so cute。 I loved Wren’s self-discovery journey。 Even though this book is sort of centered around Wren’s romantic interests and potential interest， his personal story arc was what really resonated with me。 Were the romantic aspects of this book adorable？ Of course they were。 Did the representation of demisexuality and Wren’s path to knowing himself feel infinitely more important？ Yes。
Calum Ezar
，
3。75
Helen Harper
，
Such a cute story。 Very real and relatable。
Katherine Decker
，
This is a tale of multiple summer romances。 Wren and Derrick。 Wren and Wiley’s。 Everyone and movies。 Wren is working at Wiley’s drive-in for the eighth time， first time as a new manager。 His loves of movies is what drives him。 He’s also still on the lookout for the perfect kiss， which will also be his first。 Derrick is an almost-kiss， a boy he loved before coming out， the guy who ghosted him following the near kiss。 Now they are working together and trying to save the historic drive-in with the This is a tale of multiple summer romances。 Wren and Derrick。 Wren and Wiley’s。 Everyone and movies。 Wren is working at Wiley’s drive-in for the eighth time， first time as a new manager。 His loves of movies is what drives him。 He’s also still on the lookout for the perfect kiss， which will also be his first。 Derrick is an almost-kiss， a boy he loved before coming out， the guy who ghosted him following the near kiss。 Now they are working together and trying to save the historic drive-in with the launch， or rather re-launch of a movie that never made it’d premiere。 This is a story about figuring yourself out。 About the love of others and love of history。 The love of a good movie。 This was a throughly enjoyable read。 。。。more
Lynn
，
My first queer rom-com—and it made me cry！ Such a sweet story。 A little bit “To All the Boy I’ve Loved” with a lot of movie references and deep characters。 Great summer read that I quickly devoured in one sitting （ok I fell asleep and had to finish in the morning…）。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Never Been Kissed
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Never Been Kissed&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Never Been Kissed&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0