As someone who absolutely fangirls over any book that gives me an emotional rollercoaster (and is also a proud situationship survivor), Call It What You Want by Alissa DeRogatis had me hooked from beginning to end. Itâs one of those books that draws you in because of the captivating cover, yet turns out to be a truly great read. Call it What You Want made me feel everything â love, frustration, and hope â sometimes all within a few pages.
Alissa DeRogatis first began advertising her novel on TikTok, where it first blew up, before being published in 2023. Call It What You Want is a coming-of-age love story, but itâs much more than just a romance novel. The story follows Sloane Hart, a college senior and hopeless romantic â much like myself. From the beginning, I related very much to Sloane. She was an aspiring writer, swore off dating for much of her life, and dreamed of moving to New York. Essentially, DeRogatis took my life and turned it into a character.Â
Sloane meets Ethan Brady, and well, her life flips a bit upside down. Sloane and Ethan begin what much of Gen Z refers to as a âsituationshipâ, a what-if relationship. DeRogatis handles Sloaneâs journey, dealing with her emotional baggage, loss, insecurity, and the messiness of love with nuance and care. While I donât want to give too much away (because trust me, this is a book youâll want to pick up yourself), I will say that DeRogatis translates the challenge of finding yourself and moving on from whatâs not meant to be quite perfectly.
As a geek over any type of writing, Call It What You Want wasnât the most intellectually impressive novel Iâve read, but it simply wasnât written for that purpose. DeRogatis gives Sloane and Ethan a space to be messy, and that seemingly âchildishâ vulnerability is what makes their story so relatable. One of the things I loved most about Call It What You Want was how real the characters felt. Sloane and Ethan arenât perfect. They mess up, miscommunicate, hide when they should open up, and they hold on too tightly when they should move on. But I truly think thatâs what makes them so relatable, and what led me to fall in love with the novel.Â
DeRogatis doesnât shy away from darker themes like grief, mental health struggles, or trust issues. She also writes in a certain lightness that keeps you hooked. There is a balance that feels so honest, acknowledging that heartbreak still exists, even without any true labels or title. I appreciated how DeRogatis wrote with such a clear intention of telling her own story.Â
If youâre a fan of authors like Emily Henry or Taylor Jenkins Reid â authors who know how to blend heartache with humorâ then you need to add Call It What You Want by Alissa DeRogatis to your GoodReads âwant to readâ list.Â