Review: The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli

Seventeen-year-old Molly Peskin-Suso knows all about unrequited love-she's lived through it twenty-six times. She crushes hard and crushes often, but always in secret. Because no matter how many times her twin sister, Cassie, tells her to woman up, Molly can't stomach the idea of rejection. So she's careful. Fat girls always have to be careful.

Then a cute new girl enters Cassie's orbit, and for the first time ever, Molly's cynical twin is a lovesick mess. Meanwhile, Molly's totally not dying of loneliness-except for the part where she is.
Luckily, Cassie's new girlfriend comes with a cute hipster-boy sidekick. Will is funny, flirtatious, and just might be perfect crush material. Maybe more than crush material. And if Molly can win him over, she'll get her first kiss and she'll get her twin back.

There's only one problem: Molly's coworker, Reid. He's an awkward Tolkien superfan, and there's absolutely no way Molly could fall for him. Right?

Review: This is such a cute and easy read and I enjoyed it so much. I loved the fact that the storyline deals with real issues that teenagers have to deal with. I remember feeling left out when my friends were in relationships. I remember counting the crushes I had had and I remember feeling like the only person in the world who looked different from other people. I can only imagine all of that must be 10 times worse when it is your twin who is counting your crushes and getting with somebody else and looks perfect. 

Then there is the fact that these twins have two Moms. Again this is something that is coming up more and more in YA fiction, and adult fiction for that matter, and I love the fact that people are getting more real about this sort of thing. I also really liked the fact that neither of the parents is evil or dead and the girls get along with their family so well. We don't always have to have conflict in that kind of way to have a good time in a book. There are also issues like getting your first job as a teenager, having your first drink and dealing with the difficulties of growing up! These are all dealt with incredibly well by Becky Albertalli in this book and were a pleasure to read. 

In terms of the characters. I really loved getting to know these sisters and their lives. I found them easy to like and easy to empathise with and I really cheered Molly on the whole way through this read. I loved getting to know their friends a family too, especially Reid. I had a real soft spot for Reid and I would dearly like to keep him for myself because he was just lovely. This book was definitely a feel-good read, it had interesting characters, a strong storyline and an interesting setting. I would definitely recommend giving this one a go, especially if you are after something optimistic to add to your TBR!

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Review: One Italian Summer by Keris Stainton

Milly loves her sisters more than anything - they are her best friends. But this holiday is different. The loss of their dad has left a gaping hole in their lives that none of them know how to fill.

Heartbreak is a hard thing to fix ... Still, there is plenty to keep the girls busy in Rome. A family wedding. Food, wine, parties and sun. And of course Luke ....

Luke is hot, there is no way around that. And Milly will always have a crush on him. But this summer is about family, being together, and learning to live without Dad.

It isn't about Luke at all ... is it?

Review: this was such a sweet and lovely read. The main thing that has stayed with me about this book is the setting. The very beginning of this book is set in the UK and then we travel over to Italy to enjoy a fabulous summer holiday, some Italian food and drink and an Italian wedding-I just loved it. The way that Stainton describes these Italian scenes, you can feel the heat of the pavement, the sun on your face and the gentle breeze coming in from the Med! I loved her descriptions of the food and the coffee too of course and I just really wish I was sitting in a Piazza right now with an espresso, a glass of wine and some little Italian snacks!

Of course this book isn't just about Italy, it also features gorgeous family relationships between sisters Milly, Leonie and Elyse, as well as their mum and their family in Italy. I loved reading about the dynamic between these sisters, not having any siblings of my own, I always love when a book features this kind of relationship. Since losing their Dad, things have been a little strained between the women and they all have burdens, and secrets, of their own to bear. The story is told through Milly and I really enjoyed her as a character, I could relate to her fears and insecurities and I liked watching grow over the course of the novel. 

There is also a little romance in this novel, and not just for one of the characters. The romance isn't a key features but carries a few of the lovely secondary story lines. This is definitely a warm and fuzzy feeling, but of course not everything runs smoothly for everyone involved. This was a great read and I loved getting to know these sisters and their family and spending the summer in Italy with them. As I said, this is a great book for escapism and it's no co-incidence that I'm making pasta right now. This is definitely a summery book and something which fans of Keris Stainton or other contemporary YA romance writers are sure to enjoy!

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Review: The One We Fell in Love With by Paige Toon

Phoebe is caught between a rock and a hard place. Settle down and get married, or return to the French Alps to pursue her passion?

Eliza is in love with someone who is no longer hers. In fact, he probably never was… And her dream of becoming a musician seems to be spiralling down the drain.

Rose is out of a job and out of a boyfriend. To make matters worse, she’s been forced to move back in with her mother…

But these very different girls have one thing in common. Angus. The one they fell in love with…

Review: Oh i loved this book so much so just be prepared for a gushy review! I loved the premise of this book the moment I heard it, identical triplets and all of them falling in loved with the same guy-how awesome does that sound, but once you actually get to reading it, it is so much deeper than this! I laughed, i cried, I never wanted it to end!

So the characters, the triplets, although identical are very different people and they each get a turn at a chapter in this novel so the reader can see just how different each of them are. I loved that I got to hear about things from their points of view and I think that this made the novel even more pacey because something would happen and you would have to keep reading to find out what someone else thought of this happening or how they would react to an event. I really related to each of them in their own way but I think that Eliza strikes me as the strongest of the three even though she isn't seen that way by most of the other characters in this novel!

I loved the relationship that they had with each other and I loved that each of the triplets have a different relationship with Angus as well. There were parts of the novel where I thought that Angus was a little weak, that he knew he was loved and he was capitalising on it, but we only get to heard about what Angus thinks through the other women's chapters and so his story unfolds slowly, layer after layer being revealed and so I really changed my opinion about him by the end of the book!

There is so much to say about this book but so much of it would give away far too much. I was very lucky that I didn't hear any spoilers about this novel and I want to keep it that was for other people. I read this in a day, it is a proper page turner. Paige Toon writes the perfect length of chapter and the subject matter here lends itself well to a short chapter. I defy anyone not to love this and if you haven't already, this needs to be added to your TBR now!

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