The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang was originally published in June of 2018 but has only recently in the last year hit the shelves of big retailers and booktok. This heartwarming awkward novel shares the growing relationship between the main protagonist Stella Lane, and her possible suitor or should I say escort Michael Phan. It doesn't help that Stella has Asperges and thinks french kissing is like a shark getting its teeth cleaned by a pilot fish. So her conclusion is she needs practice and a lot of it.
The novel is slow-moving but sweet, and the idea that Michael needs and wants to do this for Stella, in the end, is next level. At first, he was doing it for the money and a lot of it I might add. However, as their relationship progressed so did his feelings. The fact that he didn't realise she had Asperges was not surprising, her actions were normal to him.
This crusade to fix herself was ending now. She wasn't broken. She saw and interacted with the world in a different way, but that was her. She could change her actions, change her appearance, but she couldn't change the root of herself.
All in all this book is about coming one with yourself. Learning that even though you are different, and you may not learn or think the way others do doesn't mean you are not amazing and wonderful in more ways than one. Stella in particular learns that she doesn't have to change herself and that doing so means she isn't staying true to herself.
MY THOUGHTS
The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang is an all-time favourite of mine. Reading about Stella's road to discovery has me overthinking and rethinking my own life. Do I really have to change? I think this story answers the question, but having this romantic slow burn really does give me the courage to go out there and try new things whilst also being myself. I don't have to change, and you don't either.
Relating to the character was also a strong technique Hoang created in this story. So many novels explore the simplest of tropes, but this one delves into all corners of Stella and shows us the struggles she entails on her journey.
"I think if you want a novel that gets you all warm and fuzzy inside. Then the Kiss Quotient is for you" - Lily Harman
Heart-warming | Strong | Romantic | Slow-burn
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