Review: To All the Boys I've Loved Before
16:24
by Jenny Han
Source: Personal purchase, paperback
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance,
Goodreads Synopsis:
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is the story of Lara Jean, who has never openly admitted her crushes, but instead wrote each boy a letter about how she felt, sealed it, and hid it in a box under her bed. But one day Lara Jean discovers that somehow her secret box of letters has been mailed, causing all her crushes from her past to confront her about the letters: her first kiss, the boy from summer camp, even her sister's ex-boyfriend, Josh. As she learns to deal with her past loves face to face, Lara Jean discovers that something good may come out of these letters after all.
My Review:
This book was definitely a cover buy for me - I had heard a bit about the book, and people had told me that they enjoyed it, but when I saw it in the bookshop, the cover was too nice not to have (the spine on my copy is bright pink too, so it looks amazing on my shelf!). I had been told that it was cute and not too heavy, so I read it to get me out of my massive book hangover from I'll Give You the Sun, and it worked! It was just the book I needed - it was really short and sweet, and I really enjoyed reading it.
At the start of the book, Lara Jean (the main character) was a bit annoying - she was moaning about really small things, and making them into a huge deal, when really they could have just been overlooked. But, she did change during the book - she turned out to be a really strong character, and really interesting to read about - I actually cared about her a lot at the end (which I didn't expect to, as I hated her at the very beginning!). It's no spoiler that Lara Jean's mum is dead (we find out at the very beginning), but she didn't go on about it too much in the book, which surprised me a lot, but it pleased me too.
Although Lara Jean was quite innocent, she wasn't easily pushed, which I liked. She was a really strong protagonist, even though she wasn't shouting in everyone's faces all the time. She handled things well I thought, but the whole book is based around these letters she writes, and they get sent out. It was stupid of her to write them - it caused her loads of pain and embarrassment when they got sent, so why would you write lots of personal things in them? It was just idiotic of her, but it wouldn't make a good book if she didn't.
The ending was terrible. It felt really rushed, and didn't give me closure at all. I know there is a sequel coming out in May (according to Goodreads), but it doesn't feel like one is needed. If the author just added a bit more, it would be a great, 1 book contemporary. I guess she just wants to make more money, but it's really not necessary - I will buy the next book, but I really don't think it will be that good.
I did really like this book - I was gripped from the start, and wanted to read on. It was such an easy read, I could really relax while reading it, which is definitely what I needed when I read it.
My rating:
Hello! I'm D - a dog-loving feminist from the UK. You'll probably find me with my nose in a book or playing my clarinet
4 comments
Hey! I really loved this. Now I want to read it!!! Also, I am on instagram and you read my blog too. Thanks so much and I look forward to continue reading it!
ReplyDeleteI nominated you for the Liebster Award.
ReplyDeleteRules are here: http://diariesofabooklover.blogspot.com/2015/02/liebster-blog-award.html
Thanks so much for the nomination! My post will be up on Tuesday :)
DeleteYES! I love this book. I found that the chemistry between Lara Jean and Peter was awesome, especially because it was very slow burn. The whole plot was a lot of fun and even though it's character driven, I still found myself interested in what WASN'T a lackluster plot!
ReplyDeleteGreat review, I really enjoyed this book too <33
Thanks for commenting! I read and respond to every comment, so make sure to check back to see my reply. Have a nice day! ☺♥