A queer Sliding Doors YA rom-com in which a girl must choose between summer in NYC with her dad (and the girl she’s always wanted) or LA with her estranged mom (and the guy she never saw coming).

In Dahlia Adler’s Going Bicoastal, there’s more than one path to happily ever after.

Natalya Fox has twenty-four hours to make the biggest choice of her life: stay home in NYC for the summer with her dad (and finally screw up the courage to talk to the girl she’s been crushing on), or spend it with her basically estranged mom in LA (knowing this is the best chance she has to fix their relationship, if she even wants to.) (Does she want to?)

How’s a girl supposed to choose?

She can’t, and so both summers play out in alternating timelines – one in which Natalya explores the city, tries to repair things with her mom, works on figuring out her future, and goes for the girl she’s always wanted. And one in which Natalya explores the city, tries to repair things with her mom, works on figuring out her future, and goes for the guy she never saw coming.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the eARC of this delightfully split narrative with so many possibilities wrapped inside! I had read the synopsis for this novel once the invite to read it had been sent over to me; so I knew there would be alternating timelines– but I had no idea how such an endeavor would play out! Much to my awe and enjoyment, it was absolutely seamless and perfectly easy to keep both plots in mind. You even get to choose your own ending, which thrilled me to bits. It’s such a fun conclusion to a very cozy read, and I literally could not put it down.

This novel centers around Natalya, a bi and Jewish young adult who comes from a bit of a broken home. The warm season has reared its shining head, and as such, Nat must make a choice. She can either stay with her father in New York or visit her mother in California. She is torn, and Dahlia Adler lets her be torn. What follows are two stories of summer love that I absolutely loved to watch unfold. In one, Nat finally makes a move on her crush; the Redhead. Also known as Elly, the Redhead opens up a world of music, art, and sapphic romance. In the other, Nat goes to intern for her mother’s company and meets Adam, a chef-in-the-making. He shows her the vibrant social scene of Los Angeles, and they make an incredible team in the workforce. Outside of these things, he also finds his way into her heart.

in each timeline, Natalya not only finds lasting flirtations, but also a deeper connection with her estranged mother and a path to pursuing her gift of art. It’s not just a book about love– it’s also a coming of age story that shows how everything happens for a reason, and that if it’s meant to be, it will be. I fell in love with the cast of characters here; how diverse they all were and how full of life. I could imagine these people being my own friends, my own family. Dahlia has crafted a beautiful YA novel that is going to be the pride of Pride Month. I can’t imagine an easier or more fun read. I am looking forward to seeing which ending everyone decides on! For me, as Camila says, “Por que no los dos?”

5/5 stars