Book Review: Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl by Joya Goffney

I am pleased to be welcoming Joya Goffney to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for her novel, Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl. 

Monique lives a perfect life as a preacher’s daughter, and girlfriend of the town’s golden boy. But its not that simple. She’s torn between her parents, who want her to remain their pure, virginal daughter, and her boyfriend, Dom, who wants to explore the more intimate side of their relationship.

Tired of waiting, Dom breaks up with Monique, spurring her to discover she has a medical condition that make her far from perfect. With the help of Sasha, an overly zealous church girl, and Reggie, the town’s bad boy, she concocts a plan to win Dom back. But along the way, she must face some home truths: maybe she shouldn’t be fixing her body to please a boy, maybe Sasha is the friend she needed all along and maybe Reggie isn’t so bad after all…

*****

Monique has the perfect life. She’s the Pastor’s daughter and is dating the town’s golden boy, Dom.

However, her life is more complex below the surface.

She’s torn between the promise she made to save herself for marriage and Dom’s wish that their relationship become more intimate.

After many failed attempts at sex, Dom breaks up with Monique. In trying to understand why, she discovers that a medical condition may be to blame.

With help from her new friend, Sasha and bad boy, Reggie, Monique tries to cure her condition in the hope that she gets Dom back.

When I read the blurb for this book, I found it very intriguing, so I was excited to be invited onto the blog tour.

First, I love the cover. It’s so vibrant, interesting, and colourful.

Although this book is marketed as YA, I got a lot from this book, and I feel teenagers and adults alike can relate. It has many levels to it.

Monique is suffering with a condition called Vaginismus. This novel faces that subject head on and not only did I find this refreshing, it also raises awareness of the condition whilst having a plot that moves along well.

Joya Goffney doesn’t shy away from letting her characters talk about big issues including sex.

If I had to compare it to a favourite author from when I was growing up in terms of its honesty, it would be Judy Blume.

Monique is a sweet girl and a compelling main character. I felt empathy for her. She doesn’t want to let her parents down but at the same time, she’s struggling with their expectations, the pressure put on her by society and the double standard that many girls still face. She finds herself trapped.

It took me a while to warm to her parents and as for Dom, hmm, well, I will let you make up your own mind.

I loved Sasha. She was a strong female character. Reggie was wonderful. I love the three of them as a group. They bring out a lot in each other. I love how they discover things about themselves and in the end, it’s not just a case of them helping Monique.

OK, I won’t say anymore.

Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl is a life affirming tale of self-discovery that also tackles themes such as peer pressure, double standards, consent and sex education. In my opinion, books like this are so important.

There is a great feeling of friendship and family with a fantastic dollop of girl power thrown in.

I loved it.

Thank you to Hot Key Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the review copy in exchange for an honest review. 

About Joya Goffney: 

Joya Goffney grew up in New Waverly, a small town in East Texas. In high school, she challenged herself with to-do lists full of risk-taking items like ‘hug a random boy’ and ‘eat a cricket,’ which inspired her debut novel, Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry.

With a passion for Black social psychology, she moved out of the countryside to attend the University of Texas in Austin, where she still resides.

Say hello to Joya on Twitter and Instagram. 

Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl was released by Hot Key Books on 3rd May 2022. Click here to buy 

by

Laura

I’m Laura. I started Novel Kicks in 2009. I wanted a place to post my writing as well as give other writers like me the opportunity to do the same. There is also a monthly book club, a writing room which features writing prompts, book reviews, competitions, author interviews and guest posts.

I grew up by the sea (my favourite place in the world) and I currently live in Hampshire. I am married to Chris, have a cat named Buddy and I would love to be a writer. I’m trying to write the novel I’ve talked so much about writing if only I could stop pressing delete. I’ve loved writing since creative writing classes in primary school. I have always wanted to see my teacher Miss Sayers again and thank her for the encouragement. When not trying to write the novel or writing snippets of stories on anything I can get my hands on, I love reading, dancing like a loon and singing to myself very badly. My current obsession is Once Upon a Time and I would be happy to live with magic in the enchanted forest surrounded by all those wonderful stories provided that world also included Harry Potter. I love reading chick lit. contemporary fiction and novels with mystery.