You Won’t Believe Me by Cyn Balog

Interesting ending!
17yo Willow wakes up chained to a bed in a house she doesn’t recognize. She doesn’t understand her circumstances or surroundings but her memories come back a little at a time. Her captor tells her the pandemic has gotten worse and created zombies and the only way they can stay safe is to stay away from the rest of civilization, if there’s anyone else alive. Willow goes along with it all until things don’t seem to be adding up. When Willow makes a few discoveries of her own, she becomes determined and desperate to escape.
Likes/dislikes: I enjoyed the details about the Everglades. This is a quick read book. The storyline is interesting, especially the ending.
Language: R for 62 swears and 1 f-word.
Mature Content: PG for kissing.
Violence: PG-13 for abduction, gaslighting, catfishing, bloody deaths, electric shock.

Borrow My Heart by Kasie West

Pets, D&D, and real life!
17yo Wren is waiting for her friend Kamala to finish her shift at the coffee shop when Asher and Dale arrive to meet a girl that Dale assumes is catfishing Asher. Dale wants to document Asher’s disappointment when the girl doesn’t show up but Wren steps in and pretends she’s the girl that Asher is waiting for, in hopes of sparing him the humiliation. Wren and Asher hit it off and she actually starts to like him. He shows up later at the animal shelter where she works and the dog that hates everyone except Wren ends up liking Asher too. The charade keeps going until Wren is afraid to tell Asher the truth because she likes him and it’s mutual.
Likes/dislikes: An absolute delightfully fun read. I like how Wren had to deal with real life issues because of her mom abandoning them when she was ten and having to work with trust issues by learning to set up healthy, realistic boundaries. Bean is the funniest dog.
Language: G for no swears.
Mature Content: PG for kissing.
Violence: none
Ethnicity: Asher is white, Kamala is Indian, Wren is white.