Straight Expectations
by Calum McSwigganPublished by: Penguin on May 4, 2023
Genres: Young Adult, Romance, LGBTQ
Pages: 336
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
The brilliant debut novel from author, presenter and LGBTQ+ advocate Calum McSwiggan!
Seventeen-year-old Max has always been out, proud and just a little spoiled. Frustrated by the lack of romantic options in his small-town high school, during an argument with his lifelong best friend Dean, Max lashes out and says he wishes he had never been born gay.
Max gets more than he bargained for when he wakes up to find his wish has come true - not only have his feelings for boys vanished, but so has Dean.
With his school life turned upside down and his relationship with his family in tatters, Max sets out on a journey of rediscovery to find a way back to the life he took for granted, and the romance he thought he'd never have.
Perfect for fans of Adam Silvera and Sex Education.
Content Tags:
Perfect for readers who want:
- Adorable will they/won’t they pining and romance between cinnamon rolls
- Coming of age and self-acceptance
- A very queer-positive story
- Relatable teens trying to figure out who they are and who they want to be
- “Be careful what you wish for” type of cautionary tale
- Fans of 13 Going On 30 and Freaky Friday type stories
Many thanks to TheWriteReads and Penguin for an eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
I know we’re not meant to judge a book by its cover (though I don’t know who in their right mind would come up with a rule like that). But when you see a cover as fabulous as the one for Straight Expectations, you necessarily throw all caution to the wind and pick it up anyway. Because have you seen the cover?! It’s colorful and wholesome and so freaking cute.
Straight Expectations is an adorable queer romance wrapped in a “be careful what you wish for” package that is filled with self-acceptance, strong friendships, coming of age, and an incredibly positive message.
I went into this book not really knowing much about it, though a little leery because, pffft, romance, am I right? Who wants wholesome goodness? As it turns out, I do . . . sometimes. Because the will they/won’t they sort of romance in this book was so freaking cute and relatable. Not only for me as a 30-something-year-old, but inner teen me who remembers these feelings all too well. Despite some rocky moments (because what’s a book without conflict), the overall story is so wholesome and queer positive that by the time I closed the book, I was left with a warm, bubbly feeling that I rather enjoyed.
Meet Max, who is only really sure about two things in his life: he’s gay and his best friend is Dean. Everything else (including what he wants to do with his life) is a rather confusing haze of uncertainty and hormones.
And if that doesn’t just sum up the teen experience in general, I don’t know what does. The first thing that struck me about Max is how freaking relatable he is, even though our stories and backgrounds are quite different. Max is struggling to decide what he wants to do after school (a daunting task if ever there was one), trying to get along with his mother’s boyfriend (who isn’t a bad person, per se, but annoying all the same), and pining endlessly over a boy. In fact, I had terrible flashbacks to my own teen years during Max’s pining episodes. I’m fairly certain my friends even said to me some of the things his friends say to him, which . . . yikes. (Don’t worry, my story also has a happy ending. The boy I was pining over and I will be celebrating our 14th wedding anniversary in July, so hey, pining isn’t always bad, okay?!)
I feel like the heart of Max’s struggle, the attempt to find and understand one’s self, is something that anyone (especially teenagers) is likely to relate to. Sure, Max messes up and makes mistakes along the way (and don’t we all), but he’s genuinely a good kid who’s just a bit lost and trying to find his way.
“It’s like he’s already carved out of marble.” She’s practically drooling. “You know he’s captain of the football team? What more could a girl want?”
“Decency? Kindness?” I check them off on my fingers. “The ability to count to ten?”
“He can count to ten,” she says, rolling her eyes.
“And that’s the benchmark, is it?” says Dean, laughing.
Despite being confused about who he is, Max has no confusion at all surrounding his friends, who he sees as ridiculously talented, unlike him, and actually going places. Which terrifies him.
It’s hard when you have a friend group and you feel like the only one without any talent or promise. I get it. I think many people can relate to that. Max’s best friend, Dean, is amazingly talented at theater, and Max assumes it’s a given that he’ll get into acting school and go on to be famous. His other friend, Alicia, is an astounding artist, and of course she’ll get into art school. In Max’s mind, these are a given, even though his friends have doubts.
I really appreciated the way Max and his friends are so supportive of each other. It’s obviously a tight-knit friends group, and very wholesome. However, it does raise some really good discussion about the fact that Max takes things for granted and doesn’t always listen to his friends. Especially when they’re voicing legitimate concerns about their futures, whether Max considers them to be or not.
“A giant squid?” I say. “No, a sperm whale!”
“A sperm whale!” Alicia says, laughing. “A great big gigantic one.”
“Absolutely full of sperm spaghetti!” I add.
Alicia squints at me. “I’m sorry, what did you just say?”
“Sperm spaghetti,” I repeat, pulling up Wikipedia. “Sperm whales’ heads are full of a mysterious substance called sperm spaghetti.“
“It does not say that!” Alicia snatches my phone away from me. “Spermaceti,” she says. “Not sperm spaghetti.”
“Tamayto, tomahto.” I shrug. “The point is that Dean’s full of sperm.”
“That literally could not be further from the point at all,” she says. “Or the truth.”
The basic premise of this story is similar to 13 Going On 30 or Freaky Friday, where a wish is granted to offer a new perspective. Because, you know, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
Being queer is hard. I do not speak from experience in that, but I’ve known enough queer people and have seen enough things to know that’s true. Max doesn’t necessarily regret his queerness, but he does think it’d be easier if he were just straight, like everyone else. Like “normal” kids. So in a fight with his friends, he makes a wish he doesn’t really mean, and wakes up the next morning straight. Seems almost like a dream come true, right? Except that being straight doesn’t magically fundamentally change who Max is (surprise!), and being a straight teenager is still freaking hard. This is such a fun premise, though, and one I enjoy thoroughly.
“Ow!” I say as Oliver rushes over to help me up. Please tell me that Straight Max isn’t known as an all-star footballer because, if that’s the case, I may as well quit this charade now. The jig is up. Max is gay and can’t catch a ball to save his life.
“I’m so sorry,” Oliver says, laughing and offering his hand. “Are you OK? It’s really amazing how you’re so bad at sports. It’s like you’re broken or something.”
Phew. That’s good to know. I guess I can’t blame my lack of sporting ability on my desire to kiss boys after all. It’s almost as if those two things have absolutely nothing to do with each other. Who’d have thought?
Despite instances of homophobia, this book is by and large extremely queer-positive, with Max having a large support net of LGBTQ+ friends and allies.
I absolutely love seeing any sort of strong support group, especially in young adult books. This is such a formative time for this age group that they need to know there are people out there that will support them, even if they take them for granted. Like parents! Max definitely takes his parents for granted, but they support him no matter what’s going on, and that doesn’t change.
Perhaps the most eye-opening and startling realization is the way things can change if there isn’t the support network, as Straight Max is quick to find out. When there isn’t a supportive atmosphere where people can be themselves, they tend not to be themselves. Which is not only heartbreaking, when you know they just don’t feel comfortable or safe being authentically themselves, but it’s such a toxic atmosphere. It reminds readers why it’s so important to build a space where people can just be who they are, without fear of repercussions!
“I smell children!” she says, projecting her voice. “On All Hallows’ Eve, when the moon is round, a virgin will summon us from under the ground!“
“Er, why did you look at me when you said ‘virgin,’ miss?” I say.
“And why are you dressed as Barbra Streisand?” Dead adds, mischievously.
“You two have to ruin everything, don’t you? It’s a special skill you’ve developed.”
About Calum McSwiggan
Calum McSwiggan is a British YouTuber, blogger, and online radio presenter. McSwiggan creates video content on LGBT+ issues, mental health, and sex and relationships. He began creating YouTube videos in 2013 and began hosting The Calum McSwiggan Show on Fubar Radio in 2017.
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