“This is part of growing up. You’re not always going to be able to please and protect everyone you love. The best thing you can do when life is hard is try your best.”
Last we heard of Ben and Arthur, they amicably said goodbye as Arthur headed back home and Ben stayed in New York, both promising to stay in touch. Now, two years later, Arthur’s about to return to New York for the chance of a lifetime—interning for a Lambda Award-winning playwright and finally living his Broadway dreams. The only downside is having to leave behind his super sweet boyfriend Mikey. While Ben has been busy working on his fantasy manuscript in college (and getting busy with his writing partner Mario), he can’t help old feelings rising up when he finally sees Arthur again. Two years, multiple heartbreaks, missed chances and yet, the universe seems determined to drive them back together time and again. As Ben and Arthur try to focus on their respective future, they can’t help contemplating the past. Things didn’t work out the first time for them and anyway, they’re happy now. Really happy. Yet, the thought still keeps popping up: what if they’re actually meant to be? And what are they going to do about it? Is a future even worth pursuing when they can’t help being stuck in the past? Or is it time to give their epic love story one more chapter?
After all, what’s fate really worth if you don’t have enough faith in it?
After bingeing this book in one sitting, all I can say is: gosh, I really missed Ben and Arthur. These characters are so real to me, reading Here’s to Us felt like catching up with a friend you haven’t seen since university. It’s weird to say that I have a soft spot for both Ben and Arthur, but that’s the way it is. I loved how their individual energy once again worked harmoniously with each other. Arthur is so obsessed with firsts—from first loves and first heartbreaks, to first impressions with new bosses. His anxiety to be worth the time people give him is something so visceral, you can’t help wanting to hug him and tell him that everything is going to be alright. Meanwhile, Ben’s financial struggles already made him way too relatable in the first book but in this one, the feeling of kinship was even stronger. Without spoiling too much, we really get to see Ben maturing, not only from his stance on money, shame of not having enough, and pursuing his novel publication to get his big break, but also in how stuck he feels in New York, this city that seems like a dream to tourists but to him has, over the years, often felt like something that’s actively trying to hold him back. Tied into that is the fact that Ben tried and is stilly trying to navigate being a white-passing Puerto Rican and feeling ashamed for not knowing how to speak Spanish or more about his roots. In Here’s to Us, this is wonderfully explored and adds so much to the overall story.
Ben and Arthur’s support system is also as lively and lovely as you expect them to be. From Dylan being, well, Dylan, to Samantha and Jessie and even Ben’s parents, you can feel the love (and exasperation) that comes with knowing someone for that long. There’s also a plot twist regarding said friends which I did not see coming but, which in hindsight, was so blaringly obvious that I want to reread it already just to feel like more of a dumbass. Ben and Arthur’s respective partners Mario and Mikey are absolute sweethearts. Like, the kind of partners you wish for and the kind of generous souls you don’t think you ever deserve. There are small and grand gestures that, whether you’re a Ben/Arthur shipper or not, will steal your heart.
As you can tell, all the elements that made What If It’s Us such a raging success are alive and kicking in Here’s to Us and yet, this book manages to somehow put a cherry on top of that and make the story even grander.
At its core, Here’s to Us is about transitions and transformations. It’s about growing up and realising that the scariest thing is that, while some things are meant to be, some things are meant to fall apart. If you head into this book expecting a picture-perfect second-chance romance with all the fluff and no conflicts whatsoever, you might not be getting what you wished for. Instead, Albertalli and Silvera offer up something even more compelling: an unflinching portrayal of what it means to grow up and re-evaluate your life choices in terms of what will make you happy, not everyone around you.
Anyone who’s ever tried to stay friends with an ex—in particular those you still have some unresolved feelings for—will undoubtedly relate to Ben and Arthur’s struggles throughout this novel. It’s a difficult balance, trying to be happy for your ex for having found the kind of love you wished for the both of you without feeling like you were somehow inferior to the new partner because, if it works out for them, why didn’t it work out for you in the past, am I right? It’s an entirely other level of emotional anguish to liking your ex-boyfriend’s new partner yet quietly wondering what that means for the worth of your past relationship. Albertalli and Silvera already excelled at this heady potion of anxiety, excitement and contemplation of self-worth in What If It’s Us, but in the sequel, it’s almost like they let go of whatever ties held them back and dove straight into the depths of emotions a young person in love can have, where every choice feels monumental and every heartbreak feels more like an ongoing condition than a clean cut.
What is going to probably be an unpopular opinion is that I really loved that the authors didn’t give their characters a pass when it comes to certain choices they make. The authors put a lot of focus on Ben and Arthur learning that you can’t please everyone and that, even with the best of intentions, you won’t always be able to walk away from a conflict or life choice without hurting someone you care about. It’s scary to realise that, as you grow older, the decisions you have to make get tougher and that, even when you do the right thing, it’s going to hurt like a bullet.
There is also something to be said for timing in this story. Sometimes timing just isn’t on your side—whether it’s about getting the person you want, the job you desire, or the big break you so desperately seek. Albertalli and Silvera don’t cut corners for Ben and Arthur and their ambitions and, yes, while that may be hard to read at times, it’s also what makes the payoff when something great happens for either of them that much more impactful. It’s a hard lesson to learn that you sometimes can put in all the effort and things still won’t pan out. But it’s how you deal with that failure, with the mistakes you’ve made, that counts.
While I won’t spoil the ending, I will say this: there is so much heart in the last few chapters. It’s a satisfying yet inherently realistic ending, which, given the authors, should come as no surprise. And, as a long-time fan of both of them, all I can say is: no matter how they get there in the end, Arthur and Ben’s story (and conclusion) is one that will stay with readers for years to come. And I really, really hope this isn’t the last time Albertalli and Silvera team up because those two are a powerhouse.
An emotional tale of growing up and holding on to the people that matter, facing debilitating choices and trying your best, Here’s to Us delivers an unflinching yet hopeful follow-up to an unforgettable story.
Here’s to Us is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of December 28th 2021.
Will you be picking up Here’s to Us? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
Ben has spent his first year of college working on his fantasy manuscript with his writing partner Mario, who is a great Spanish tutor, and an even better kisser. So why can’t he stop thinking about the fact that Arthur’s back in town two years after they called it quits?
Arthur is in New York for a dream internship on Broadway, with a boyfriend back at home that he couldn’t be happier with. But when he comes upon Ben cuddled up with a mystery boy, he starts to wonder if his feelings for Ben ever truly went away.
Even as the boys try to focus on their futures, they can’t seem to help running into each other in the present. Is the universe forcing them to question if they’re actually meant to be?
Possibly not. After all, things didn’t work the first time around.
Possibly yes. After all, the sparks are still flying.
Sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith and raise a glass.
Here’s to celebrating old friends!
Here’s to embracing new beginnings!
Here’s to believing in second chances!
DO THEY END UP TOGETHER IN THE SECOND BOOK? my heart is too weak to read a break up again.
I found the first book very interesting. I wish their were more books out there that were like this. I haven’t been able to read the second book yet because I am not allowed. To me the book is a great love story!