REVIEW: Hot Dog Girl by Jennifer Dugan

**I received an ARC from a festival. These are my honest opinions, and in no way was I compensated for this review.**

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Book: Hot Dog Girl by Jennifer Dugan

Release Date: April 30, 2019

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Rep: bisexual protagonist, lesbian side character/love interest

Summary: Elouise (Lou) Parker is determined to have the absolute best, most impossibly epic summer of her life. There are just a few things standing in her way:

* She’s landed a job at Magic Castle Playland . . . as a giant dancing hot dog.
* Her crush, the dreamy Diving Pirate Nick, already has a girlfriend, who is literally the Princess of the park. But Lou’s never liked anyone, guy or otherwise, this much before, and now she wants a chance at her own happily ever after.
* Her best friend, Seeley, the carousel operator, who’s always been up for anything, suddenly isn’t when it comes to Lou’s quest to set her up with the perfect girl or Lou’s scheme to get close to Nick.
* And it turns out that this will be their last summer at Magic Castle Playland–ever–unless she can find a way to stop it from closing.

Jennifer Dugan’s sparkling debut coming-of-age queer romance stars a princess, a pirate, a hot dog, and a carousel operator who find love — and themselves — in unexpected people and unforgettable places.

Read my reviews of other books by the same author:

Verona Comics

Some Girls Do

Hot Dog Girl was such an unexpectedly wonderful read! I’d heard talk of it having LGBT+ rep, but I was uncertain because of the summary (my fault, really for not reading close enough). However, I still picked it up at a festival I recently went to, and I am so, so glad that I did. Hot Dog Girl is everything you want in a rom-com, and then some.

The writing in this book really made me fall in love with it even more. The dialogue is hilarious, and the author sets up the backdrop of a small-town amusement park without any superfluous information. I really felt like I was at Six Flags (the only amusement park I’ve been to), sweating my ass off in the unending heat, just like Lou. Also! All of the characters, especially Lou, actually read like teenagers. Sometimes I find that some books either present characters as either way more mature or immature than teens today often are. (Of course, this is also realistic, as teens everywhere are maturing at different times.)

I adored our main character, Elouise, or Lou. She’s a schemer; right now, she’s trying to keep the amusement park she’s grown up in and currently works at open and to get a new girlfriend for her best friend, Seeley, who’s a lesbian. She’s also bi, and she definitely doesn’t hide it, other than from her dad, but that’s only because she doesn’t want to bring up dating, or sex, or anything along the same lines to avoid any cringey-ness or embarrassment. Which, frankly, is such a mood.

She’s talking about my dad not knowing [about me being bi] . . . I mean, I don’t hide anything, I just haven’t said the words. Not because he’d care, just because it’s super icky to talk to my dad about things like sex and dating and whatnot.

Oh yeah, and Lou’s trying to break up her crush and his girlfriend, while Seeley helps despite heavily disapproving. Her scheming is definitely entertaining, but also definitely unhealthy, and I loved that she eventually recognizes this and apologizes. Her crush, Nick, is also still a good guy and still remains friends with her when he finds out.

Seeley is Lou’s voice of reason and is really just along for the ride. They’ve been best friends for their entire lives, and I love depictions of strong female friendships. But you know what I love more? When we take the “doesn’t realize they’re in love with their best friend for so long” trope, but make it gay. And, oh did we get a nice helping of this. This book is possibly one of my favorite YA novels with a f/f relationship.

And it took me a long time, but I figured it out. The difference between liking and loving, the difference between make-believe and what’s real, the difference between right now and please, please, let this last forever. So this is me telling you that I would rather have my heart broken by you than anybody else.

(Tell me you can’t read that quote ^^^ and not cry!! I’m still crying honestly!!)

If you like In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan (and you all know that I do!), then I definitely recommend this book. Hot Dog Girl has a witty, scheming protagonist, who’s absolutely delightful. Lou’s honestly such a disaster bi, and I LOVE HER. It also balances heavy topics, such as an absent mother and a death of a family member, with the overall lightheartedness of the novel. Pick this amazing rom-com up April 30, and you won’t regret it, trust me!

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About the Author: Jennifer Dugan is a writer, geek, and romantic who writes the kinds of stories she wishes she had growing up. In addition to being a young adult novelist, she is also the writer/creator of two indie comics. She lives in New York with her family, dogs, and an evil cat that is no doubt planning to take over the world.

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