Fifth book of the Heartstopper series

Originally Published: December 7, 2023

By: Alice Oseman

The beloved romance of Charlie and Nick is back in the fifth volume of Alice Oseman’s groundbreaking LGBTQ+ graphic novel series Heartstopper.

Nick is nervous about starting university in a year and potentially becoming long distance with Charlie. Meanwhile, Charlie feels extremely self-conscious about his body as he hopes to become more intimate with Nick.

At this point in the series, Nick and Charlie’s relationship has become very open and normal amongst family and friends, which is something not often found in a positive way in queer novels. It’s great to see them go through typical high school romance struggles.

There’s growth in the main characters but we also continue to see new LGBTQ+ relationships. Mental health continues to be a strong topic and is seen both strongly with Charlie but also with an undecisive Nick.

Final say: Exciting normalcy. ★★★★★