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I really enjoyed Letters to the Lost and have been looking forward to reading this companion book with crossover characters. Love that these two books portray strong male friendships, which is something I think we don’t see enough of in YA! Check out my review of More Than We Can Tell below!
If you’re in your 30s or older, you might remember Felicity with Keri Russell. Inspired by the show in more ways than one, this book is part of a new trend (at least I hope) in YA set in college. Read my review of Finding Felicity below!
To be published on March 20, 2018 by Simon and Schuster
Source: eARC for review from the publisher
Synopsis adapted from Goodreads: Caroline Sands has never been particularly good at making friends. And her parents’ divorce and the move to Arizona three years ago didn’t help. Being the new girl is hard enough without being socially awkward too.
So out of desperation and a desire to please her worried mother, Caroline invented a whole life for herself—using characters from Felicity, an old show she discovered online and fell in love with.
But now it’s time for Caroline to go off to college and she wants nothing more than to leave her old “life” behind and build something real. However, when her mother discovers the truth about her manufactured friends, she gives Caroline an ultimatum.
She has to prove she can make friends of the nonfictional variety and thrive in a new environment. Otherwise, it’s back to living at home—and a lot of therapy. Armed with nothing more than her resolve and a Felicity-inspired plan, Caroline accepts the challenge.
While I thought this book had a lot of strengths, I also think it was trying to be a lot of things at once. It’s an homage to the show, a story about the transition to college, and the story of a girl having some very real social (and perhaps psychological) issues.
As the synopsis describes, Caroline had a tough time after her parents’ divorce and a move. She struggled to make friends and started describing imaginary friends to her mom, friend she’d borrowed out of the 90s show Felicity. But then her mom plans a surprise graduation party. Uh-oh!
Maybe you’re like: “Felicity what?” Okay. It’s a late-90s/early00s show about a shy, somewhat socially awkward girl who, after her high school graduation, follows this guy to college based on the fact that he wrote “I wish I’d gotten to know you better” in her yearbook. Then she proceeds on a whole journey of self-discovery.
But back to Finding Felicity. After the graduation party fiasco, Caroline’s mom forces her see a therapist who clears her to go away to college, not knowing that — like Felicity — Caroline is also following a guy she has a crush on to a small liberal arts college in the Midwest. Whoops!
So that’s a lot – the show, Caroline’s past social issues, her conflict with her mom, and then her new journey to college.
First off, I am THRILLED to see more YA set in college.
It makes SO much sense. Popular wisdom about teen readers says they “read up” in age. Thus, many YA readers who are 15 and older often aren’t all that excited to read about other 15 and 16 year olds. (Except that many YA 15 and 16 year-old characters act about 30, but that’s a topic for another post.) Yes, there’s NA, but most of that is clearly targeted toward readers who want a very specific type of story focused on sex and angst (also for another post.)
Secondly, I know from much personal experience that the whole “reinvent yourself in college” IS a thing.
At first I thought Caroline’s adjustment to college, given her extremely introverted nature and prior difficulty making friends, was too easy. Fortunately, the book soon gives her a bunch of bumps in the road. I thought many of the themes and aspects of this book felt realistic – the desire for reinvention, college roommate and friendship and romance problems, navigating drinking and sex.
Here are my other random thoughts in no particular order:
This is definitely a quieter, more contemplative and less plot-heavy book.
If you’re a huge Felicity fan, the book didn’t have a ton to do with the show except borrowing the premise of following a guy to college, and showing a girl adapting to college. (But if you have zero familiarity with Felicity, that could be a positive.)
My recommendation: definitely try this if, like me, you’re excited about YA set in college. Check out my full list of books like this!
After a bit of a book slump, this contemporary YA about family, friendship and backpacking put a smile on my face. Read my review of Starry Eyes below!
I thought Amber Smith’s (2016) The Way I Used to Be was a really strong book, so I had high hopes for her second. Check out my review of The Last To Let Go below!
When this popped up on my kindle I looked at the weird title and thought: “did I MEAN to request this?” Check out my review of STAGS below.
I’m not always a fan of a book with more than two or three narrators, so I was a bit wary of this story about a group of teens at a crossroads before and during New Year. But I ended up a fan, and recommend this to those who enjoyed another popular YA book. Read more in my Review of Together at Midnight below!
Published on January 2, 2018 by Harper Teen
Source: eARC from publisher
Synopsis from Goodreads: What does it really mean to be kind ? High school senior Kendall, who just returned from a life-changing semester in Europe, and Max, who is drifting his way through a gap year before college, struggle with these questions when they witness a tragic accident in New York City.
Wracked with guilt, the two accept a dare to perform random acts of kindness to strangers. The challenge pulls these two teens, who have a history together from back home, closer and closer as they explore a vibrant city filled with other people’s stories and secrets.
Kendall and Max can’t deny their growing bond, even though they both have other romantic entanglements and uncertain futures. As the clock counts down on New Year’s Eve, will they find themselves together at midnight?
There’s something fun about reading a book that’s set during the same time you’re reading it. I started this right before the New Year, which is when the story takes place. It also takes place in New York (where I am!) during a snowstorm (check!)
That said, it did take me a while to adjust to this story. There are multiple narrators, a romantic set-up which could have felt rectangle-y, and a plot involving random acts of kindness that zigs and zags a bit.
Kendall has spent a semester away from high school and is gearing up to head back to high school midyear as a senior.
The day after Christmas, she impulsively follows her older brother and his boyfriend to their apartment in New York.
She’s hoping to connect with Jamie, a guy she likes. Max, who’s staying with his grandfather in New York, also seems a little adrift. He’s deferred his enrollment at Brown because his ex-girlfriend needed him, and he seems afraid to move forward, toward college and away from her. Kendall and Max have a bit of history, having shared a kiss back in high school.
Kendall and Max cross paths in New York because Jamie is staying with Max. After their group witnesses a tragic accident, Kendall and Max accept a stranger’s challenge to perform random acts of kindness. These acts, and the very slow-burn romance between the two of them, drive the story forward.
As I said initially, I’m usually not a fan of stories with too many narrators. This story is told in alternate chapters by Kendall and Max, with snippets of narration from the people they encounter in their project. If you’ve read Nicola Yoon’s The Sun is Also a Star, it’s a bit like that. I also thought the two books have a similar feel – New York setting, a compressed timeline, a bunch of serendipity, and some random narrators thrown in the mix.
Together at Midnight was a great book to kick off 2018. It had an optimistic, altruistic vibe that I liked. Though I think a short epilogue after the ending would have been nice (I wanted updates on Max, Kendall, Emerson and Andrew!) But overall I really enjoyed this and definitely recommend it to fans of realistic YA.