Review: How Hard Can Love Be? by Holly Bourne

Title: How Hard Can Love Be?
Author: Holly Bourne
Edition: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 2016

Rating: ★★★★★ ★

Synopsis

All Amber wants is a bit of love from her estranged mum. And she's hoping that a summer together at Mum's Californian kids' camp will help patch up her shattered heart. But then she meets Prom King Kyle - and offers her heart up for breaking all over again. Even with BFFs Evie and Lottie's advice, Amber's finding love hard. Is it worth the fight? (Taken from Waterstones.com)

Review

Well. I was slow starting it but I flew through the last half. I really think I must just be falling in love with Holly Bourne books in general as this was just as amazing as Am I Normal Yet? (which for some reason I always want to call How to be Normal???) 

For starters, I loved the setting. If I had the guts and the time and the money, I would definitely have to give the counselling thing a go. Maybe I'll settle for writing a book about it (shamelessly using a friend who has done it as a sort of research guinea pig). I loved the cabins and the woods and the lake, the sun and the campfires. It was a summery read, but so different to the summer books I normally read, where the characters are just spending summer in their not-so-dreary home towns. In my head, I think I pictured it as a mix-up of Camp Rock and the camp from The Parent Trap, which shows you the sort of things I like to watch. 

I'm a sucker for a road trip, so when I realised this book included not one, but TWO, I was ecstatic. And can I just say, I really want to go to Yosemite now, if Holly Bourne's descriptions of it are accurate. Even if they aren't, the chapters set there were perhaps my favourite, being someone who loves writing descriptions as well as reading them.

I liked that Lottie and Evie took a back seat. While I feel this series is about their friendship as much as anything else, it was nice to have them come to the foreground when they had something really important to contribute, not only to support Amber, but to push the plot along. I really loved the Skype scenes where Lottie was shoving her face in the camera, and the emails where she would take over the keyboard. Those moments felt so realistic to me as I remember that horrifying yet hysterical feeling when your best friend hijacked your phone or email. 

I also really enjoyed the introduction of Whinnie and her knowledge of Winnie the Pooh's philosophy. I love Winnie the Pooh and his little ramblings on love and friendship, which at first you might dismiss (I mean, he's a fictional bear) but if you read them a little closer they have a subtle but profound wisdom in them.

While the title suggested otherwise, I didn't find this book to be all about love. To me, it was more about Amber's relationship with her mother and how that had affected other parts of her life. The moment Amber finally stood up for herself was great, and I could almost feel the same relief she must have felt at that moment, like she'd been set free. 

And, I can't forget to mention, that gold star, up there. While the love story didn't take the spotlight, it's simplicity and the chemistry between Amber and Kyle, did make me want to write, and that's what the gold star is all about: words that inspire me to write my own. There was one moment in the most dramatic part of their relationship, which is my favourite quote, that really made me want to grab my notebook (old school, I know) and get writing. 

I don't have a bad word to say about this book and I highly recommend it, to everyone. This book, and in fact, Holly Bourne herself, are just one example of why I get so angry at people who dismiss and look down on YA fiction. 

Favourite Quote

"There was the love in life you couldn't choose. The love you just felt, that you couldn't let go of, that tortured you and messed you up and made you sometimes too screwed up to let the other kind of love in. The other kind of love, was the love you did choose. The love you didn't have give, but you gave anyway." 

May TBR

May has come round so quickly, I can't quite believe it. But there's no time to slow down. I've got more deadlines, more visitors, more reading to do. So here's what I have planned for this month.

How Hard Can Love Be? by Holly Bourne

I'm already coming up to a third of the way through this book, and I'm enjoying it so far. Work and uni, and all those fun things, have got in the way of me really getting into it, but I hope I'll find a few hours somewhere to finish it in one go...a girl can dream...

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

I am both hugely excited and utterly terrified to read this book. There are so many questions to be answered and I am trying very hard to prepare myself for how this epic series is going to end. I'll also be extremely sad to leave these characters behind.

Cruel Crown by Victoria Aveyard

Yes, I know, I know, my special Glass Sword review isn't up yet. You can blame that on my partner in reading crime who STILL hasn't finished it yet! (Edit: She finished, finally!)
Having seen a lot of Farley already, I'm most excited to learn more about Queen Coriane.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Since this series is now five books long, I am fully aware how late I am to jump on this train. It's shocking, really, given my love for fairytales, that I haven't read this sooner. Better late than never, right?
(Edit: Winter is 700 odd pages. What have I got myself in to?)

Reading Roundup

I was very disappointed in myself last month and I made a promise that April would be better. It had to be if I wanted to keep on track with my Goodreads challenge. April has been a fantastic month for reading, despite having more deadlines looming, people visiting and starting a new job. So, here it is, my roundup for April, a record breaking month (for me, at least).

 My Life Next Door

Rating: ★★★★

I was expecting some Sarah Dessen-esque vibes, and I definitely got that. It was summer, it was romance, it was dramatic. It was everything I love in a book, with a gorgeous cover to match. 



Peter Pan

Rating: ★★★★★

I completely understand why my friend is so enchanted by this book. It's the kind of magic that isn't in your face. It's easy to accept and it pulls you in to a world that holds so much potential. It's an adventure you want to go on time and time again. I really enjoyed it, and can't believe I've only just got around to reading it properly.


Think Twice

Rating: ★★★★

I waited so. Long. For this book. And it snuck ahead of the next books in my TBR list. It was always going to be hard for Think Twice to live up to Don't Even Think About It. The initial experience of the unusual point of view and intriguing premise was gone, lowering the impact of this sequel. Despite that, I still thoroughly enjoyed revisiting all the characters. 




Am I Normal Yet?

Rating: ★★★★★

I'd heard very good things about this book, and can honestly say that it really deserves every good review it gets. If you're a fan of YA fiction this is a must-read. 





Those are all the books that got reviews this month, but for uni, I also got through Millions by Frank Cottrell Boyce, and Coraline by Neil Gaiman, both in one day I might add *beams with self pride*. And the quickest read of the month was The Sleeper and the Spindle, also by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Chris Riddell (who, fun fact, I've been told is the first Children's Laureate to be both a writer and an illustrator). It's a beautiful little fairytale, a very subtle retelling of Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. 

So that brings my total this month to seven. SEVEN books in a month...not to mention the quarter I've already read of How Hard Can Love Be? 

Review: Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne

Title: Am I Normal Yet?
Author: Holly Bourne
Edition: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 2015, UK

Rating: ★★★★★

Synopsis

All Evie wants is to be normal. And now that she's almost off her meds and at a new college where no one knows her as the-girl-who-went-nuts, there's only one thing left to tick off her list...But relationships can mess with anyone's head - something Evie's new friends Amber and Lottie know only too well. The trouble is, if Evie won't tell them her secrets, how can they stop her making a huge mistake?

Review

When I finished this book, I logged straight into Goodreads – it's like a ritual now. I sat there, Goodreads in one hand, this book in the other, being asked what rating I would give it. Initially, I was thinking four stars, but then, out loud, I asked myself "what's wrong with this book?" The answer? Nothing. So five stars is what it gets. 

April TBR

1st of April is here. Which means, obviously, a new TBR! Well, half a new one anyway. Since March didn't go as planned, the last two books of my March TBR are now the first two books of my April TBR. Does that make sense? Well, take a look and maybe it'll be a little clearer. 

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

I've actually already started this one – see? Didn't I say April would be better? – and it's going pretty much as I expected. It feels a little Sarah Dessen, which is great, because she's my all-time favourite author. I have a feeling it'll remind me of the sort of stories I want to write, and hopefully inspire me.

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie

On my March TBR I said not to google Peter Pan book covers. But, I did it again. And found this one. Fun Fact: since then, the friend in last months TBR has purchased this edition. I don't even know how many copies she has now. Fun Fact #2: A different friend has also received a fancy edition of Peter Pan. I really need to read this. 

Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne

Because I am weak and have no self control, I bought more books which means my TBR pile is getting bigger, rather than smaller. This was one of them. I have a good reason though. I bought How Hard Can Love Be? a while ago without realising it was the second book in a series of sorts. I couldn't bring myself to read it before the first. 

How Hard Can Love Be? by Holly Bourne

And here it is! That 'second book in a series of sorts'. And I shall be reading it in the appropriate order. I've seen so much about this book online, I'm excited to read it and find out what the fuss is about.