Review: Just One Year by Gayle Forman (Just One Day #2)

Title: Just One Year by Gayle Forman

Published: October 10^th, 2013 by Dutton

Source: Purchased

Format: Hardcover

Genre: Contemporary romance

Age group: Young adult

Challenge(s): Finish the series

Grade rate: A+

When he opens his eyes, Willem doesn’t know where in the world he is—Prague or Dubrovnik or back in Amsterdam. All he knows is that he is once again alone, and that he needs to find a girl named Lulu. They shared one magical day in Paris, and something about that day—that girl—makes Willem wonder if they aren’t fated to be together. He travels all over the world, from Mexico to India, hoping to reconnect with her. But as months go by and Lulu remains elusive, Willem starts to question if the hand of fate is as strong as he’d thought. . . . The romantic, emotional companion to Just One Day, this is a story of the choices we make and the accidents that happen—and the happiness we can find when the two intersect.

My Review

Once in a while a story comes along that is, without exaggeration, perfection.  That story is Allyson and Willem’s.   Thus I did something that I rarely do and it’s to write a review right after finishing a book.  I usually wait a few days to digest what I read, ruminate in the meaning of this and that, come to terms with the outcome or lack thereof.  Also, never in my life have I ever wanted to read the ending of the book so badly before. I had to practice extreme restraint for sure! (NOTE: If you haven’t read Just One Day, most of the review might make no sense to you)

Oh, Willem. We get to meet Willem in the first book, but briefly. For the record, even though I had the suspicion that he was a “player”, I never thought that he had just run off.  While Just One Day is the story of Allyson and her growth as an individual, Just One Year is all about Willem. 

It is amazing how one day in the lives of two individuals changed them both so completely.  Willem has many problems and he reacts to anything that he doesn’t want to face by running away from it.  He always looks for the easy way out and not necessarily by facing anything head on. He went through a big personal lost and had other family issues.  There is a lot of traveling, due to his ‘running away’ syndrome.  His story is heartbreaking in a different way that Allyson’s was.

The most amazing and probably the most important part is that Willem never forgets Allyson.  She is ever present in his life and he shares their story with the important people in his life. He looks for her and came close a couple of times.  That is not to say that he was celibate, because he wasn’t, but he does slow down and thinks things with more clarity. 

We get to meet other people in Willem’s life.  His mother, Saba, and his best friend.  He makes and loses friends very easily, but manages to keep a few good ones.  I’m glad that he found someone to tell him how it is, and that won’t allow him to keep running away from life.

I wasn’t expecting the story to start from the very beginning and it tore me apart.  As I kept getting closer to the ending and the pages kept dwelling I came to the realization that the moment (you know what I mean if you read Just One Day) was almost there and there weren’t enough pages left.  I had a moment of panic, what happens after Willem opens the door?  Are there enough words left?

Gayle Forman: please hear the pleas of your readers (I’m talking for everyone here, I hope you don’t mind) and give us a bit more.  I’m not asking for a whole book or even a novella, but an epilogue or a short story, SOMETHING would be better than nothing, because I NEED to know. 

The writing, as always, is so good. It’s insightful, delightful, and beautiful.  The plot is not all that dissimilar from Allyson’s story.  Of course, his problems are different and the way he deals with them it’s too. 

I will read anything that Gayle Forman writes. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next.  Just One Day / Just One Year is an amazing story of two strangers that have such an impact in each other’s lives in the very short time that they knew each other.  Would they had stayed together if they things would have played differently? Probably not.  I think that this “accident” happened for a reason and it allowed both Allyson and Willem to grow, to appreciate themselves and each other and the magic that One Day created in their lives.

Some quotes for you:

“There’s a difference between losing something you knew you had and losing something you discovered you had. One is a disappointment. The other feels like losing a piece of yourself.”

“Sometimes fate or life or whatever you want to call it, leaves a door a little open and you walk through it. But sometimes it locks the door and you have to find the key, or pick the lock, or knock the damn thing down. And sometimes, it doesn’t even show you the door, and you have to build it yourself. But if you keep waiting for the doors to be opened for you... I think you’ll have a hard time finding single happiness, let alone that double portion.”

“I miss my father. I miss my grandfather. I miss my home. And I miss my mother. But the thing is, for almost three years, I managed not to miss any of them. And then I spent that one day with that one girl. One day ... It was like she gave me her whole self, and somehow as a result, I gave her more of myself than I even realized there was to give. But then she was gone. And only after I'd been filled up by her, by that day, did I understand how empty I really was.”

About the cover:  Beautiful :)  I know this is now what Willem really looks like, but I like the playfulness and the lightness of the couple.

Review: The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Scheneider

Title: The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Scheneider

Published: August 27^th, 2013 by Katherine Tegen

Source: ARC from BEA

Format: Paperback

Age group: Young adult

Genre: Contemporary romance

Challenge(s): none

Grade rate: A-

Golden boy Ezra Faulkner believes everyone has a tragedy waiting for them—a single encounter after which everything that really matters will happen. His particular tragedy waited until he was primed to lose it all: in one spectacular night, a reckless driver shatters Ezra’s knee, his athletic career, and his social life. No longer a front-runner for Homecoming King, Ezra finds himself at the table of misfits, where he encounters new girl Cassidy Thorpe. Cassidy is unlike anyone Ezra’s ever met, achingly effortless, fiercely intelligent, and determined to bring Ezra along on her endless adventures. But as Ezra dives into his new studies, new friendships, and new love, he learns that some people, like books, are easy to misread. And now he must consider: if one’s singular tragedy has already hit and everything after it has mattered quite a bit, what happens when more misfortune strikes?
 Robyn Schneider’s The Beginning of Everything is a lyrical, witty, and heart-wrenching novel about how difficult it is to play the part that people expect, and how new beginnings can stem from abrupt and tragic endings.

My Review

I’m not going to lie and tell you that this is a cute romance with a happy ending.  If you want that type of story, this is not for you.  In contrast, The Beginning of Everything is a bittersweet story about tragedy, how to rise above it, friendship and love.

It has been difficult for me to seat down and write this review because I have ambivalent feelings about the book.  On one end I loved Ezra’s voice.  He is a bit lost at the beginning of the story.  He goes through a terrible tragedy and he feels abandoned by his group of popular friends.  He needs to learn how to adjust and come to terms with his new physical limits and how to act around his former friends and ex-girlfriend.  I think he makes some terrible decisions, both in the past and during the story; pretending to be someone else and adapting your personality just to fit is never sustainable.  True friends love you and accept you for who you are.

The overall characterization is done rather well.  Cassidy is very flighty and almost manic in her behavior.  She does help Ezra a lot in his road of self-discovery, but at the same time she was cagey, secretive, and distrustful, which is no way to behave with friends or in a relationship.  Of course, there is also the fact that she hurt Ezra rather badly.  My favorite character (after Ezra) is Toby; his childhood friend.  He is a true friend and is there when Ezra needs him the most; he forgives him for his prior abandonment and refuses to fade into the background when things go bad between Ezra and Cassidy.

On the other hand I didn’t particularly like the ending.  Yes, I know that The Beginning of Everything is about Ezra and his evolution and the beginning of his life AFTER.  I’m not so naïve that I expect a happily ever after in every young adult book that I read, but it felt incomplete and too open for me.

Scheneider’s writing style reminds me a lot of Sara Dessen’s; what is to say that it’s beautiful.  They are both full of self-discovery, introspection and unadulterated beauty.  The plot had plenty of conflict and a few unexpected turns.  Overall, I liked The Beginning of Everything

P.S. – I love all the Harry Potter references!

Some quotes for you:

“And that was when I saw what Cassidy had done to herself: the gold and red ribbing on her sweater-vest, the matching stripes on her tie, the gray uniform skirt, and the navy blazer draped over her arm...

"Is that a Gryffindor tie?" I asked.

"And an official Harry Potter Merchandise sweater-vest," she confirmed smugly.”

“There's a word for it," she told me, "in French, for when you have a lingering impression of something having passed by. Sillage. I always think of it when a firework explodes and lights up the smoke from the ones before it."

"That's a terrible word," I teased. "It's like an excuse for holding onto the past."

"Well, I think it's beautiful. A word for remembering small moments destined to be lost.”

“She tasted like buried treasure and swing sets and coffee. She tasted the way fireworks felt, like something you could get close to but never really have just for yourself.”

About the cover:  To be honest this cover is vaguely relevant to the story but I don’t really like it.

**About the UK cover and title: (see the cover below)  I’m not sure I like this cover either, but the title makes more sense to me that the US title.

Review: This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith

Title: This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith

Published: April 2^nd, 2013 by Poppy (Little, Brown and Company)

Source: Library

Format: Hardback

Group age: Young adult

Genre: Contemporary

Challenge(s):  None

Grade rate: B-

If fate sent you an email, would you answer? When teenage movie star Graham Larkin accidentally sends small town girl Ellie O'Neill an email about his pet pig, the two seventeen-year-olds strike up a witty and unforgettable correspondence, discussing everything under the sun, except for their names or backgrounds.
 Then Graham finds out that Ellie's Maine hometown is the perfect location for his latest film, and he decides to take their relationship from online to in-person. But can a star as famous as Graham really start a relationship with an ordinary girl like Ellie? And why does Ellie want to avoid the media's spotlight at all costs? 

My Review

I really enjoyed Smith’s The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight (see my review here) and I’ve been eagerly waiting for the opportunity of reading her latest book. 

The story begins with a series of emails exchanged between Ellie and Graham, after Graham sends an email in error about his pet pig.  Ellie replies and thus the couple communicate anonymously with each other the span of a few months.   The advantage of not knowing the person at the other end of the country is that they both got to be themselves, and they genuinely liked each other.

For some reason I couldn’t identify that well with Ellie.  It seems to me that her mother transferred her paranoia and negative experiences with the press to Ellie and in turn, made her feel the same way.  I think she gave up too soon on a potential relationship because of that fact, even if it made her miserable.  On the other hand, I love Graham!  No because he is a handsome and famous actor, but because he is so sweet and considerate in spite of that fact. Although he loves acting, he had a very difficult time adjusting to the fame and what that means.  In part, this is a great coming-off age story of self-discovery and on how to set new boundaries that feel comfortable with the person they were becoming. 

The plot is simple and believable.  Nowadays couples and friend meet all the time through the Internet.  Graham did all he could to make sure he could meet Ellie in person because he felt a real connection to her and also because he was so lonely.  I felt bummed by the fact that Ellie gave up so quickly (before getting her common sense back), and that Graham allowed it.  It slowed the pace of the story considerably, in my opinion.  The escapade on the boat was a little weird to me as well.  The writing is good, and easy to read.   The story is told on the third person and we get to ‘be’ in both of the main character’s minds.

Now we come to my biggest ‘issue’ about this book: what is going on with the ending?  To me, it’s a non-ending!  Way to open for my comfort.  I’m sure other readers will make their own happy endings, but my imagination is not that good.  Couldn’t we get an epilogue, a new string of emails after they met? 

In the end This is What Happy Looks Like turned out to be an enjoyable light contemporary romance, but not as good as Statistical Probability.

Some quotes for you:

“Childhood memories were like airplane luggage; no matter how far you were traveling or how long you needed them to last, you were only ever allowed two bags.”

“He could see her, and it was just like he’d thought. It was just like being punched in the stomach.”

:…How can you know if makes you happy if you never experienced it?”

“There are different kinds of happy,” she said. “Some kinds don’t need any proof.”

“Like sunrises?”

 About the cover:  It’s lovely and appropriate as the story takes place in a beach town in Maine. 

Review: Just One Day by Gayle Forman (Just One Day #1)

Title: Just One Day by Gayle Forman

Published: January 8^th, 2013 by Dutton Juvenile

Source: Library

Format: Hardcover

Challenge(s):

Grade rate: A+

When sheltered American good girl Allyson "LuLu" Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there’s an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines.

My Review

I wish there were words to express how outstandingly-awesome this book is.  I know that the year has barely started and it might be premature to say that this is the best book of 2013, but I can safely say that it is one of the best books that I’ve ever read and that it will remain a favorite for years to come.  You might think that I’m exaggerating, but I truly fell in love with the story and the characters, I hope you do too.

I put Just One Day on hold at my local library at the beginning of the year and was pleasantly surprised when I was notified that it was waiting for me.  I proceeded to devour the book as fast as I could.  What an amazing journey it has been!  Just One Day is many things rolled into one; it is a romance, a tale of self-discovery and a journal of an incredible ‘road trip’.  Allyson is infuriating at times because she is full of doubts and insecurities, but this is due to her upbringing (more about that later).  In trying to please her mother and be the best daughter she could be, she forgot who she was and how to be happy. Her encounter, her time with Willem was brief but it had a profound effect on her life.  At first I was really upset that she seemed to listen to everyone else’s advice and opinions instead of following her heart and forming her own opinions.  As I said, all the angst and even the depression that she went through were necessary for her to really see what her life had become and how to fix it.  I was immensely happy that Allyson grows so much in the span of a year.  At the end she became “Lulu”, a more confident and carefree person.  I think I see a little bit of my 18-year-old myself in Allyson.

Willem deserves his own paragraph.  Although Just One Day is Allyson’s story, we get the gift of knowing Willem for one day, which of course is not enough (don’t worry, we get a whole book from Willem’s POV soon!).  Willem’s philosophy about life and accidents resonates with me and with Allyson; the biggest problem is that he was so carefree that it made it nearly impossible for them to find each other after their one day together.  Even though all the evidence pointed to a deceitful young man, I just couldn’t reconcile Willem with that image and was quite upset that Allyson believed the worst so easily.  Oh, and we share a mutual love for Nutella!

On to Allyson’s parents and more specifically her overbearing mother.  Now, I’m a mother of three and my aspiration in that difficult role is to raise my boys to be independent, self-sufficient, honest, happy, and ambitious individuals.   The goal is to prepare them to choose their own path equipped with the best tools I can provide for them.  However, this is not the case with Allyson’s mom.  She leaves no room for guessing, for exploration, for individualism at all, therefore, poor Allyson doesn’t know how to do anything for herself.  That, people is a tragedy!

I adore Dee, the first friend that Allyson ever made on her own because he is not afraid to be who he is and he opened his heart to Allyson.  I didn’t care much for Melanie, I think she encouraged Allyson to be stagnant on her growth, when she spend a lot of time finding herself.  We meet many memorable characters through Allyson’s journey that are good, bad, gentle, wise, and more.

From having read If I Stay (although Where She Went is still waiting on my shelved to be picked up), I knew that any book from Gayle Forman was destined to be amazing and I was not disappointed, if anything she surpassed my expectations. The story is simple, a couple meets and travels to Paris for just one day, they separate after an unexpected event (not yet totally explained) and the girl spends a year dealing with the consequences of the encounter, and later trying to find said boy.  Oh, but the story is so much more.  The writing is exquisite, lyrical and picturesque.  The settings go from Pennsylvania, to New York, Boston, Paris, Amsterdam, and England and each place was amazing, especially Paris. 

Overall, Just One Day is an outstanding story, I hope you love it as I did and accompany me in the wait for Just One Year, Willem’s story due out in October of this year.

Here are some quotes: (they might be a bit spilery, so read at your own risk)

“It’s something that never comes off, no matter how much you might want to” [Willem describing what love is]

“When he finally kisses my mouth, everything goes oddly quiet, like the moment of silence between lighting and thunder. One Mississippi. Two Mississippi. Three Mississippi. Four Mississippi. Five Mississippi.

Bang.”  – Allyson

“… that whole day, being with William, being Lulu, it made me realize that all my life I’ve been living in a small, square room, with no windows and no doors. Then someone came along and showed me there was a door in the room. One that I’d never even seen before.  Then he open it more me. ..” – Allyson

“No it doesn’t.  You’re just trying on different identities, like everyone in those Shakespeare plays.  And the people we pretend at, they’re already in us.  That’s why we pretend them in the first place” – Dee talking to Allyson

About the cover: The cover is gorgeous!  The back cover has a sidewalk with little tables and chairs, charming. 

Have you read Just One Day?  What did you think?  Do you like 'road trip' books?  How about contemporaries?

Blog Tour, Review and Excerpt: Any Other Night by Anne Pfeffer

Title: Any Other Night by Anne Pfeffer

Published: May 19^th, 2012 by Bold Print Press

Format: eBook

Source: Provided by the author for review

Grade rate: B+

Any other night, Ryan Mills would have driven his best friend, Michael, to Emily's sweet sixteen party at the Breakers Club. Instead, determined to win over the birthday girl, he goes to the party early and alone, setting off a chain of events that ends with a car accident in which Michael dies. Ryan blames himself for what happened to Michael. As far as he's concerned, he doesn't deserve to have love or ever be happy again. Then he learns Michael left a secret behind. Ryan feels compelled to take on his friend's unfinished business, and in the process, changes his life forever and becomes a man. A NOTE ABOUT CONTENT: in this book, some characters use profanity, engage in nonexplicit sexual activity, or take illegal drugs.

My Review

I previously participated in the tour for The Wedding Cake Girl (see my review here) from this author and I was happy when the opportunity presented for the tour of Any Other Night.  I really enjoyed this book.

You can get the gist of the plot by reading the synopsis.  The story is told from Ryan’s point of view; I always enjoy when the male character has a strong voice in the story and Ryan was no exception.  I really like Ryan’s character and even though he is a boy, it is very easy to identify with him and his angst and tribulations.  Michael was more than Ryan’s best friend; he was like a brother, being raised almost together by the Mill’s housekeeper and his death leaves Ryan feeling guilty and responsible.  At the same time Ryan’s relationship with Emily starts to develop into something real and new for both of them. 

Ryan is such a good person.  He is really good with kids and almost acts as a father figure to his little sisters.  He is also loyal and loving and tries to do best he can at everything he does.  Emily is a very smart girl that brings out the best in Ryan.  As a gentle warning I have to let you know that the book contains non-explicit sexual scenes and other sexual content, it also talks about drugs. 

Overall the characterization is well developed.  We learn more about Michael from the times he is remembered by Ryan.  Ro (the housekeeper) is a good influence for the kids and tries to do her best to fill in for their absentee parents.  Chrissie is a riot and Jonathan is a good friend too.  Ryan’s parents are not exactly bad people but they do have their priorities all messed up.

The setting of the story is very interesting since it takes place in LA and at the heart of Hollywood royalty.  This opulent lifestyle is what the stuff of dreams, but the Mill family has the same problems as other families do; lack of communication and time together as a unit.  The plot is simple and well carried out.  The pacing of the story is good and the writing flows very easily.  Ms. Pfeffer is a great story teller; her writing in Any Other Night is bursting with felling and at the same time very funny and realistic.  The ending was kind of open, as we don’t know what the future holds for Ryan and Emily.  I think this story lends itself for a sequel (*hint*)

Where to find it: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble  

I leave you with an excerpt from Any Other Night:

  It's almost four o'clock by now. The hallway's empty, except for Emily, who has followed us and sits waiting for me on the long bench across from the Admin Office door. She wears one of those short, tight skirts that all the girls have and is sitting the way all the girls do, with her knees pressed close together. Her hair's pushed off her face, which is pale and serious.

Even in my state of total misery, I think she's beautiful. I'm afraid she thinks I'm an ass, but then she pats the place next to her on the bench. Like a dog, I scramble over to sit beside her.

She puts her hand on my arm. "That was …. eventful."

"Yeah." I touch my temple, where Chase hit me and wince. "I don't usually go around jumping people."

"Just people who deserve it, right?" She leans toward me a little, and I catch the scent of lavender. Her eyes sweep my face, taking in my injuries. "You might have a black eye tomorrow."

                 "I feel like an idiot."

"Don't. You were amazing!"

"Really?"

Her lips are the perfect shape and color. I can't stop looking at them.

My head begins to pound, and suddenly, all I can think of is Michael, taking off on his cosmic rocket ride into death. Inside me, I feel a tearing, as if something huge and made of steel—a battleship or a skyscraper—is being pulled apart.

And Emily sees the expression on my face and doesn't ask a bunch of dumb questions about how I feel, but just looks at me, and I say "It's Michael," as the pain rips into me.

                  She puts her arm around me and squeezes—hard. Her hand, which grips my right shoulder, is surprisingly strong. I can almost feel strength flowing out of her fingers and into my shoulder, straightening my back. I feel myself relax.

                "I miss him," I say.

The sympathy in her eyes is like a warm bath.

                If girls were flames, most girls would be a single match, a mere Bic lighter. Emily, on the other hand, would be an inferno—a raging, thousand-acre forest fire.

About the Author:  Anne Pfeffer is the author of Any Other Night and The Wedding Cake Girl.  She lives in Los Angeles, CA.

Website | Twitter | Facebook 

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I am a member of Reading Addiction Blog Tours and a copy of this book was provided to me by the author. Although payment may have been received by Reading Addiction Blog Tours, no payment was received by me in exchange for this review. There was no obligation to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are entirely my own and may not necessarily agree with those of the author, publisher, publicist, or readers of this review. This disclosure is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commision’s 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides Concerning Use of Endorcements and Testimonials in Advertising*

Review: It’s Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han (Summer #2)

Title: It’s Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han

Published: April 27th, 2010 by Simon & Schuster

Source: Library (I also own the book)

Format: Audio book

Challenge(s):

Grade rate: B

Can summer be truly summer without Cousins Beach? It used to be that Belly counted the days until summer, until she was back at Cousins Beach with Conrad and Jeremiah. But not this year. Not after Susannah got sick again and Conrad stopped caring. Everything that was right and good has fallen apart, leaving Belly wishing summer would never come. But when Jeremiah calls saying Conrad has disappeared, Belly knows what she must do to make things right again. And it can only happen back at the beach house, the three of them together, the way things used to be. If this summer really and truly is the last summer, it should end the way it started--at Cousins Beach.

My Review

Shortly after finishing The Summer I Turned Pretty (review here) I started It’s Not Summer Without You, I have to say that I enjoyed it better than the first book. 

This books starts about a year after the ending of The Summer I Turned Pretty.  For the first time Belly is spending a summer in her hometown and not going to Cousins beach and she is dreading it. When Jeremiah calls Belly asking for help finding Conrad, she jumps at the opportunity.  There are some misguided choices here, but the bottom line is that everyone is dealing with the grief of Susannah’s death in a different way. 

The story is told from Belly’s point of view, with some chapters from Jer’s point of view, which was refreshing.  Belly (I still can’t stand that name) is a bit more mature here and she is trying to get over Conrad and the hold that he has on her.  Conrad is infuriating!  I know is the dark, handsome, smart one, but he is so darn mysterious that I can’t tell what he is thinking about or why doesn’t he admit that he cares about Belly.  Why is he leaving the field open for Jer to more right in?  Don’t get me wrong, I like Jeremiah, he is everything Conrad is not, he is considerate, loyal, a true friend and he really cared for Belly and it’s not afraid to show it.  

The plot is simple and uncomplicated, focusing in the relationship between Conrad, Belly and Jeremiah, and also the events before, during and after Susannah’s death.  The writing is easy to understand and the story flows effortless throughout.  We are left - yet again - with a huge cliffhanger, and confess that I can’t wait to read the next and last book in the series.

About the cover:  I really like the breezy, light feeling that the cover evokes.