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." 

Review: My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

Title: My Life Next Door
Author: Huntley Fitzpatrick
Edition: Electric Monkey (Egmont), 2016

Rating: ★★★★

Synopsis

Addictive, dreamy and contemporary YA romance at its very best! It is perfect for fans of Morgan Matson, Stephanie Perkins and Rainbow Rowell. The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, numerous, messy, affectionate. And every day from her balcony perch, seventeen-year-old Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them...until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs the trellis to sit by her and changes everything.

Review

April is off to a flying start; book one done in 5 days. And I totally called it on this one. My Life Next Door definitely channels some Sarah Dessen vibes, but it reminds me of Morgan Matson and Stephanie Perkins too. All of whom, I LOVE. 

I'm going to start with the Garretts, because, wow, I love them all. I've always wanted to write a story that involved a big family, and I almost did. But I ended up feeling like there were too many unnecessary characters. Having read about the Garretts though, I'm thinking I should try again. Each member of this family is so distinctive and I didn't lose track of who was who. I think it worked so well because some of them played bigger roles than others but still all had a purpose. I think my favourite Garrett was probably George. He was adorable and I loved his interactions with Samantha. 

Jase. I loved how down to earth he was, and how hard he worked. The way that he and Samantha got to know one another felt really easy and seamless; they felt like friends as well as more than that. I thought the scenes that handled the sex part of their relationship were written so well. They were realistic and honest, with just the right amount of detail. 

I loved the summery feel of the whole book, the descriptions, the summer jobs, the romance, and, to a point, the slow sort of pace. However, the last third or so was full to the brim with emotion and intensity, which was great, and kept me up half the night reading, and I wish there'd been a little more of that a bit sooner. 

There were also a few strings that weren't really tied up for me. Like, Nan? (I don't want to spoil it so I won't say anymore) I would have liked a bit more of a wrap up at the end in terms of what happens to Sam's mum and Jase's dad. 

This book was so close to getting 5 stars, but those few things brought it down. Having said that, I would definitely read this book again and look forward to picking up more of Huntley Fitzpatrick books in the future, and not just because of the pretty, stripy spines.

Favourite Quote
"All around me are summer voices. The lap of the shore far away, the roar of a motorcycle coming up the street, the shhhh of the wind in the dogwood trees."