Gr 8 Up--Beck Brix has been known as the Pizza Princess or the Hot & Crusty Bathroom Baby ever since she was unceremoniously born in the bathroom of the local pizza parlor--at which point the owner offered her free pizza for life and a guaranteed job when she turned 16. It's a destiny that Beck has been trying to escape her whole life, especially when she falls in with the popular crowd at her high school. How will being the Pizza Princess, or her obsession with a vintage sci-fi show, help her catch the eye of her baseball star crush? Or help her to avoid the snide remarks of the queen bee of their group? But when Beck turns 16 with no other job offers on the horizon, she reluctantly starts work at Hot & Crusty, only to discover that it's one of the few places where she can truly be herself. As Beck begins to make friends with the Hot & Crusty crew, she finds herself drawn to Tristan, the broody delivery boy. This is, as the title describes, kind of a cheesy love story. Though there's not much groundbreaking about the book, it hits all of the familiar romantic comedy notes with a good deal of warmth and heart. The majority of the cast appears to be white, except Tristan, who is biracial. VERDICT Readers who appreciate the wholesome romances of Emma Lord, Kasie West, and Morrill's other books will find simple comfort food here.--Mimi Powell, Lib. Systs. and Svcs., Kissimmee, FL

Sixteen-year-old Beck Brix has the dubious distinction of having been born on the bathroom floor of the Hot 'N Crusty Pizza restaurant. This accident of birth causes her no end of unwanted publicity, not to mention making her the butt of endless bad cheese and pizza puns. Despite being given free pies for life and an offer of guaranteed employment by the manager of the restaurant in return for the excellent publicity Beck and her family unwittingly provided, she is thoroughly tired of her ill-fated connection with Hot 'N Crusty. Beck yearns to escape her mundane hometown existence and sees her new friendships with popular, pretty people--including her crush, Mac--as a way out. Her resentment at having to work while her friends hang out is compounded by discovering a painful personal betrayal. When disaster strikes the restaurant, Beck's unusual connection to her workplace gives her a unique opportunity to help. Beck's family's dynamics, her self-deprecating personality, and her mental anguish around relationships, together with some hilarious high school scenes, a priceless dumpster fail, and the typical roller-coaster ride of teen drama, all contribute to a heartwarming story that is a quick and thoroughly enjoyable read. Main characters are White. Tasty and not too cheesy: all the ingredients for a satisfying read. (Fiction. 14-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Being the "Hot 'N Crusty Bathroom Baby" is 16-year-old Beck Brix's claim to fame, and the bane of her existence. Even the local news covered her birth on a pizza parlor ladies' room floor, and "no one grows out of anything in a small town"--especially when she takes a job at the Hot 'N Crusty to cover gas, car insurance, and her fancy friend group's weekend shopping trips. But it's not so bad; she starts to feel more comfortable with the pizza crew than with her cool school friends, and more able to let out her inner nerd. Plus, the brusque delivery guy, Tristan, is kind of cute. Morrill (Better than the Best Plan) makes Brix believable and likable, and gives her a distinct voice (she nearly "melts into a puddle of Beck" when her hunky crush sits next to her), even as she knows she should say hello to her co-worker at school--and doesn't. It's unfortunate, though, that Beck's big lesson on being true to herself is largely courtesy of Tristan rather than her own exploration. Ages 14--up. Agent: Stephen Barbara, InkWell Management. (Mar.)