Title: Sometimes It HappensAuthor: Lauren Barnholdt
Series: Stand Alone
Pages: 320
Published: Available July 27th by Simon Pulse
ISBN: 9781442413146
Source: Around The World Tours
Description: On the last day of her junior year, Hannah's boyfriend Ryan dumped her. Facing a summer of loneliness, Hannah turns to her best friend Ava for comfort. Ava does what BFFs do: she stays by Hannah's side...until it's time for Ava to head up to Maine for the summer. Also left behind is Ava's boyfriend, Noah, who's such a great guy he gets Hannah a job at the diner he waits tables at. Slowly, Hannah comes out of her funk thanks to Noah's good conversation and their fun times at the diner. But things get complicated when their friendship turns into attraction--and one night, into a passionate kiss. The novel opens on the first day of senior year; the day Hannah is going to see Ava, Ryan, and Noah all in one place. Over the course of the day secrets and betrayals are revealed, and alliances are broken and reformed. In the end, everyone is paired up once again, but not the way you might think...
I Give This ...
One little events can change your life as well as the readers opinion on the whole situation. Such was the case with this story. Yeah...the description is misleading a little.
I liked Hannah. I even felt sorry for her. Ava was a total bi#%h. It's no wonder that Hannah has no friends outside of her. I sure wouldn't want to hang out with her. So when Ava all of sudden decides to take a job as a camp counselor, Hannah has no idea who to turn. Ava, being the generous person that she is, had Noah check up on her. Why, I can never really figure out. I liked that Hannah makes new friends and step outside of her comfort zone. I really loved that she finally decided to see that maybe Ava wasn't the best person to be friends with.
I really like Noah as well. He's funny, sweet, and seems to be able to bring Hannah out of her funk. What I don't see is what he ever saw in Ava. I like the dynamics of his relationship with Hannah. You can tell he's trying to step away from what he's feeling. And it's not that Hannah is always trying to put herself in front of him. He's trying to do the right thing.
I also enjoyed Lexie. She's just the person that Hannah needed to become friends with. I found it interesting that she's dated the same person as Ava, but we don't know much about her until they become friends. What's obvious is Lexie and Ava's mutual dislike of each other. Feels like there's more of a story there.
I actually was really enjoying this book until we learn what happened that night. I could have a forgiven a kiss. It wouldn't be the first time a girl likes her best friends boyfriend. But, I never pegged Hannah as the type to sleep with him. I don't buy the whole excuse "sometimes it happens." Because, that's one of those lines that shouldn't be crossed (even if your BFF is the type of person that Ava is). Plus, it felt so rushed and lacked the romance, even if they really do really care about each other. In real life, the best friend isn't really likely to forgive. And the labels that would come along with that make it even less likely that the guy is going to stick around (because you know the whole school is going to learn of this).
I read Two Way Street quite some time back and while I liked it, I had some issues with it. Sounds like it was kinda the same for you with this one. I still think I might give this one a try though I'm glad to know what I'm getting into. Thanks for the great review! :D
ReplyDelete~Briana
I have read at least one other book by Lauren Barnholdt and I really enjoyed it. She writes contemporary books that are very realistic and fun to read. I seem to be in a contemporary YA mood so this was a great read for me. It was hard for me to feel bad for Hannah, the main character, though. I realize that her best friend Ava asked her boyfriend Noah to make sure Hannah was ok after her breakup with Sebastian when Ava went away for the summer but she just rebounded with Noah and their relationship just did not seem right to me. Noah was not swoonworthy to me and a little annoying. Sebastian just seemed like a jerk and I was surprised when Hannah was halfway decent to him after he cheated on her. I did feel sorry for Ava though because she lost her best friend and boyfriend all in a few days. The only character that I really liked was Lacey. I can be a hypochondriac sometimes too (not to her extreme though) and I really liked that she was very vulnerable when it came to her ex and his current girlfriend.
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