Monday, March 23, 2015

Review: The Start of Me and You

THE START OF ME AND YOU
Emery Lord
Contemporary Young Adult
384 pages
Bloomsbury
Available Now
Source: ARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads):
It’s been a year since it happened—when Paige Hancock’s first boyfriend died in an accident. After shutting out the world for two years, Paige is finally ready for a second chance at high school . . . and she has a plan. First: Get her old crush, Ryan Chase, to date her—the perfect way to convince everyone she’s back to normal. Next: Join a club—simple, it’s high school after all. But when Ryan’s sweet, nerdy cousin, Max, moves to town and recruits Paige for the Quiz Bowl team (of all things!) her perfect plan is thrown for a serious loop. Will Paige be able to face her fears and finally open herself up to the life she was meant to live?

MY THOUGHTS
There’s never a shortage of trepidation to be had when picking up the second novel by an author who blew us away with their debut, anxiety as to whether or not we’ll fall as hard for it as we did for its predecessor wreaking havoc on our insides as we crack the spine. What we find immediately with The Start of Me and You however is that our fear and anxiety are unnecessary, Ms. Lord’s sophomore novel a delight in every possible way as it proves that young adult friendships and romantic relationships don’t have to be full of angst to be thoroughly memorable and compelling.

Ms. Lord has a gift for writing teenage voices that are so genuine and believable that we immediately flashback to our younger selves, remembering the exact moment when we had the chance to show our high school crush just how cool we were by letting loose a remark so charmingly witty that they'd have no choice but to fall in love with us, only to be horrified by the inanity that escapes instead. Paige has more than a few of those moments, endearing her to us forever as we nod along knowingly and smile in shared embarrassment when those small moments don’t go as planned.

What’s so beautifully perfect about this tale–in addition to a standout protagonist who exudes warmth and the type of every-girl normalcy to which so many can relate–is that Ms. Lord has every opportunity to follow a familiar path with regard to the friendships and romance in this story, but at every turn she chooses to highlight the positive over the negative. The friendship between Paige and her three closest friends has moment after moment where things could easily turn sour, the relationship deteriorating into cattiness and jealousy as life happens, but instead the four of them prove that the strength of a friendship is proven in every day moments as much as it is in those of consequence.

The romance is adorably low-key, refusing to shift even slightly in the direction of a love triangle despite the presence of both longtime crush Ryan and perfectly nerdy Max. Ms. Lord once again chooses to portray teenagers with a maturity and humor that has us wishing we could bestow upon her the gift of speed writing so the wait for her next book might not be quite as long.

Rating: 5/5

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This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review
I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.

22 comments:

  1. you're right we're always anxious when we try something else by an author we love because we don't k now if it can be up to the other one we had read but it's wonderful when it's the case like in your case! I'm really curious about this book! Lovely review!

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  2. That blurb kind of annoys me, oh the drama of joining a nerd club and dating a nerd

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  3. Yay! So glad you loved this one, Jenny! I adored Open Road Summer and can't wait to read this! :)

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  4. "What’s so beautifully perfect about this tale–in addition to a standout protagonist who exudes warmth and the type of every-girl normalcy to which so many can relate–is that Ms. Lord has every opportunity to follow a familiar path with regard to the friendships and romance in this story, but at every turn she chooses to highlight the positive over the negative." Yes! Your statement is exactly why I loved this one so much, Jenny!

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  5. I'm all, "Oh, I dislike when there are two guys involved, even though it's not a love triangle" but I'm pretty sure that's a bunch of BS, especially since I find myself writing a book like that. o.O

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  6. Yay! I am so glad you enjoyed this book. Open Road Summer was so awesome and I was worried about this book following in its footsteps, but it seems that it didn't disappoint. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy. Great review, Jenny!

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  7. I still haven't read Open Road Summer despite it being on my TBR pile, but I'm glad to hear that the second book doesn't disappoint at all!
    And even happier to hear that there is not cliche love triangle and that the girls friendship stays strong!

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  8. YAY, Jenny! I'm so happy you loved this one as much as I did! I thought it was a wonderful book!
    "Ms. Lord has a gift for writing teenage voices that are so genuine and believable"
    YEP! I completely agree with you. She really does such a great job at making her characters' voices so genuine. As much as I loved the romance, I have to say my favorite part was the friendship. Like you said, they were a strong group together! I loved that.
    Lovely review, Jenny!

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  9. I'm so happy you enjoyed the second book as much as Open Road, Jenny! Although I've never read this author - I'm going to make sure to have her on my tbr list after read these thoughts from you: "in addition to a standout protagonist who exudes warmth and the type of every-girl normalcy to which so many can relate–is that Ms. Lord has every opportunity to follow a familiar path with regard to the friendships and romance in this story, but at every turn she chooses to highlight the positive over the negative." That's a rarity amymore in YA it seems, so I'm excited to check her books out.
    Lovely review! :)

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  10. YES! Her characters are so normal, so relatable, it's hard not to fall in love with them. And, even though it doesn't seem like there'd be much a story with such everyday characters, there really, really is. And those stories are unputdownable. Loved this one. Can I just give you a high-five on this one, Jenny? *high fives*

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  11. I know exactly what you mean about picking up a second novel, I feel that way all the time! I am so glad this lived up to your expectations Jenny! I adored Max in this, he just made this whole novel for me.

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  12. Another positive review for this one :) I think I'll start with Open Road Summer (since, apparently, I'm the only person left in the universe that HASN't read it) and take it from there. It's rare to come across an author with a gift for authenticity, dialogue-wise. I'm very intrigued. An interesting review.

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  13. I am reading some excellent reviews for this one and it has been awhile since I have seen a five on your blog. I read Open Road Summer and enjoyed it, but I think this one sounds better.

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  14. Wow, 5 stars from you means that I need to get this book asap! I keep reading awesome reviews about this one. I love the character growth in self confidence which always wins me over. Plus a sweet low key romance doesn't hurt either. ;)

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  15. Oh you have me! I want this book! Love the sound of the characters! Oh and no love triangle despite having 2 options? :) Yea, I think I'll add this author to my must read list!

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  16. 5 stars?! Oh I so have to read this book!!!! I haven't read her first book but I may have it on my kindle. I'll have to check.

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  17. Wow Jenny beautiful review. You really now how to entice me and this is YA contemporary..something I generally avoid.

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  18. So happy you adored this one Jenny. I'm currently reading it myself and am really enjoying it so far.

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  19. Happy for you this was a big WIN! :-) Great review.

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  20. I enjoyed this too. What I loved the most was the friendships, and like you said, made them positive. Girl power! Even the guys. ;)

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  21. I'm reading this one next and I'm really excited for it! I loved the romance and friendship in Open Road Summer and keep hearing it's great in this one too.

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  22. Wow this one sounds like it really is a good book that bring something new to the scene. Like it shows us there is more than problems and angst to being a couple. I like the sound of that.

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