Something Beautiful - Amanda Gernentz Hanson

Synopsis:

Cordelia and Declan have been best friends since they were three years old. By the time they hit middle school, Cordelia—Cord, to Declan—is already feeling the blackness in her life as depression takes hold. Their mutual attraction to each other leads to a serious high school relationship, one with their foundation of friendship at the forefront. Cordelia seems to have her mental health under control. All appears to be well.

However, when Declan starts to accept his own fluid sexuality, it sets something in motion in their lives that is both beautiful and tragic as they learn to love each other for who they are.

Review:

I received this book as an e arc from Insta freebies, the synopsis just made me want to read it so I couldn't resist getting a copy.

In the book we follow Cordelia and Declan who have been friends since they were 3 years old and they are the best of friends, sticking with each other through thick and thin through the hard times and the good. You can easily see that their bond is unbreakable. I fell in love with both character instantly and so easily, they were innocent and adorable and its beyond adorable.

We follow the couple through time switching from the present to the past to present and so on until we reach the future. It's a perfect mix of past and present which helps you as a reader understand the characters and their lives and actions. We see Cordelia through breaking her arm, moving to England for months leaving Declan behind, then coming back and rekindling her friendship with him and then fall in love, there are so many more moments we witness all of which are beautiful. It was hard to stay dry eyed throughout this book it just poked so many times at my heart I could just about manage it.

The plot is beautiful, showing how fluid love and acceptance can truly be. Everything was incredibly hard to see coming, I was so emotionally attached to the characters I just wanted everything to be okay in the end. The plot was well thought out and written, the switches between times helped you as a reader understand what was happening at the present time and it was just a perfect read. I guarantee you as a reader will not be able to stay calm or dry eyed throughout the story, even as I finished I had burst into tears and just had to lie down for 5 minutes to collect myself.

I can't give this book anything less that 5/5 it was just perfect in everyway and a true representation of so many things. I recommend this book to anyone who can handle it, any YA lovers, anyone who wants a LGBTQ+ to read and pretty much anyone else. You experience happiness, love, acceptance and tragedy and to put it simply this book is exactly what the title says, Something Beautiful.         

Chasing Eveline - Leslie Hauser

Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Ivy Higgins is the only student at Carmel Heights High School who listens to cassettes. And her binder is the only one decorated with album artwork by 80s band Chasing Eveline. Despite being broken-up since 1989, this rock band out of Ireland means everything to Ivy. They’re a reminder of her mom, who abandoned Ivy and her dad two years ago. Now the music of her mom’s favorite band is the only connection she has left.

Even though Ivy wavers between anger and a yearning to reconnect, she’s one-hundred percent certain she’s not ready to lose her mom forever. But the only surefire way to locate her would be at a Chasing Eveline concert. So with help from her lone friend Matt—an equally abandoned soul and indie music enthusiast—Ivy hatches a plan to reunite the band.

The road to Ireland won’t be easy, though. And not just because there is no road. Along the way they’ll have to win over their Lady Gaga-loving peers, tangle with some frisky meerkats, and oh yeah, somehow find and persuade the four members to play a reunion gig. It’s a near-impossible task, but Ivy has to try. If she can’t let go of the past, she’ll never be able to find joy in the present.

Review:

Chasing Eveline is the story of a 16 year old girl named Ivy, one day her mother got up and just left her, leaving her to be raised by her father even though he himself is dealing with the loss and abandonment.

Ivy has only 1 connection  with her mom and that is through her mom's favourite band from the 80s called Chasing Eveline. All of the songs take her to a place with her mother where the memories are fresh and they are happy.

Together with her friend Matt who himself is struggling with a break up, try to get Chasing Eveline back together and they try to get the band new love from teenagers in creative ways and it made my heart melt how determined they both are in these activities because it was just that important to them. In the end they meet a boy named Sean who they quickly become friends with due to his love for the band too. Up to this point as a reader you really don't know which way this book is going and let me tell you there's plot twists in there.

The best part of this entire book to me was that it was a realistic story told about a teen girl dealing with pain and grief. She was strong in her broken heartedness. She was strong and determined and so real. The ending of the book was perfect, I mean they struggle hard throughout so any sort of reward at the end was going to be worth it but the end was such a great reward for them. Its a story of friendship and love, family and acknowledgment and acceptance. Just pure brilliance.

I feel as though this is YA novel that anyone can read no matter their age. Its heart warming and heart breaking, food for the soul, sewn together with love and written so perfectly. I cried and laughed, I experienced emotions with these characters and their lives, a great book does this and Leslie has done an amazing job here.

For all of this alone it is a 5/5 from me and a recommendation to anyone, I believe there is so much more for me to say but I can't quite put it into perfect enough words to express it. I really hope that I can read more of Leslies work in the future because Chasing Eveline with stay with me.

Top Ten Tuesday - Ten Things I'd Love To See More Of

More PoC characters

More representation of the LOGBTQ+ community including those after the +

More gender neutral activities

More depictions of religions and history

More education on politics to inform readers of any age in an engaging and easy to understand way.

More showings of day to day struggles

Inclusion of the worlds problems

More acceptance between characters; no fat shaming, slut shaming, height shaming? Less discrimination.

More characters with all of their quirks no matter how unusual or uncommon they may be.

Even more love  💕 and friendship

The Broke and The Bookish hosts Top Ten Tuesday Weekly