Emmy & Oliver Review

By: Robin Benway

Published: June 23, 2015

Emmy’s best friend, Oliver, reappears after being kidnapped by his father ten years ago. Emmy hopes to pick up their relationship right where it left off. Are they destined to be together? Or has fate irreparably driven them apart?

Emmy just wants to be in charge of her own life.

She wants to stay out late, surf her favorite beach—go anywhere without her parents’ relentless worrying. But Emmy’s parents can’t seem to let her grow up—not since the day Oliver disappeared.

Oliver needs a moment to figure out his heart.

He’d thought, all these years, that his dad was the good guy. He never knew that it was his father who kidnapped him and kept him on the run. Discovering it, and finding himself returned to his old hometown, all at once, has his heart racing and his thoughts swirling.

Emmy and Oliver were going to be best friends forever, or maybe even more, before their futures were ripped apart. In Emmy’s soul, despite the space and time between them, their connection has never been severed. But is their story still written in the stars? Or are their hearts like the pieces of two different puzzles—impossible to fit together?

Emmy & Oliver was such a great book to read and I would recommend this to anybody. & I gotta give this props for being the next best thing after I read Fangirl. This story tells two sides of the same story. Though Emmy is Oliver's best friend, he's been gone for 10 years and now that he's finally back she's ready to start off from where they left off, but it might be harder than she thought as she realizes he has changed and he isn't the same boy she knew when they were kids. In Oliver's case, it feels like he was never kidnapped by his father. So returning home for him isn't exactly what he imagined it would be. He feels suffocated, isolated, and lonely. All his life, he thought he was living a normal life. His dad taught him how to ride a bike, took him hiking, and on a lot of trips. He'd spent all his life thinking his mom was the bad guy, while the world thought the opposite.. that his dad was the bad guy. 

This book explores how one teenager's life is affected by the lost of a friend, and how another's is trying to find his way around a new environment without feeling suffocated. Emmy is always finding ways to go to the beach so she can surf, one the ways is even lying to her parents about where she's going since her parents are fiercely overprotective. Ever since Oliver's disappearance everything change. Parents became more protective, kids had to play in groups. That's how Emmy, Caro, and Drew become such close friends. So when Oliver finally came back after 10 year's, it was shock to everybody. 

When Oliver returned he was lonely, he didn't know what to do when he returned to see that his mom was never the bad guy, but she did remarry and he had two little sisters. He didn't know how to respond to this, and he shut himself in his room not talking to anybody much expect for Emmy. Thanks to Emmy, even though it was a little bit he was able to adjust to his new life. Sometimes he wishes he'd never returned but by the end he's happy that he did. Even though he didn't really remember much about his hometown, along the way Emmy, Drew, and Caro were there to help him. 

Emmy & Oliver is such a emotional read, its so meaningful and its definitely not a light read. I liked that it didn't just show Emmy and Oliver's problems, but also Drew's and Caro's. This story shows us how everybody's life is not as perfect as you think. Like Drew, he may be rich but it doesn't mean he has a happy life. He's gay, but his parents don't except that at all. His parents won't even let him bring his boyfriend to a family event because they think his grandmother won't like that and won't lend his parents any more money. 

I loved his book, and how it explored so many realistic different problems. Whether it was about Emmy having the courage following her dreams, Oliver coming to terms that his dad did kidnap him, Drew defying his parents, & Caro excepting that not everybody will be together when college finally comes. Robin Benway really ties up all the loose ends by the end of the book, and I'm really looking forward to reading all of her future/past books!!

Until then, Cindy :)

Fangirl Review

First of all guys I'm so sorry for not posting for so long. I'm not even gonna lie, the reason was because I was way behind on my gigantic pile of books, and because.. I honestly didn't feel like blogging during May and June. I was just so busy with Finals and then it was suddenly summer and i'm now officially a Junior in High school!! :O That's some scary shiz. And the last reason was because I was thinking of not blogging anymore, but once I gave it some thought I decided to keep going. I mean blogging is fun, especially since you get to meet fellow crazy book lovers xD Well anyways finally after this long rant is the review! ;)

By: Rainbow Rowell

Published: September 10, 2013

Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan...

But for Cath, being a fan is her life—and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.

Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words... And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?

And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?

This book totally wowed me. & It totally also made me an official fan of Rainbow Rowell's writing! I mean I absolutely loved how her writing had so much depth and emotion behind it. It was as if we, the readers, were experiencing what Cath was going through ourselves. This story tells about Cath and her twin sister Wren, who has loved Simon Snow since they were kids. But as they're starting college her twin who's always loved the same thing as her decides that she needs to take a break from Cath and also that she doesn't want to room with Cath which devastates her. After Cath finds out, she also unknowingly takes a step into the big world that is college and meets her bi-polar roomate Reagan and her *boyfriend?* Levi. You can say that Fate *ahem Rowell in this case* has a weird way of putting people together. 

The thing with this book is that almost all the characters are relatable and everything is not as predictable as you thought. This book seriously has a crazy way of growing on you, because the characters aren't perfect and the events are really realistic. Cath goes through so many struggles in this book, and it really feels like your right there beside her ready to punch those jerks  *the supposed good library buddy*. Fangirl isn't your typical Ya novel, its something different and I liked that. There was no love triangle, Levi is certainly handsome but he isn't some perfect light/dark haired, brooding, strong, guy. For heaven's sake he has a receding hairline. is on the scrawny side a bit, and is always smiling!! & For that I love him anyways. 

“I feel sorry for you, and I'm going to be your friend."

"I don't want to be your friend," Cath said as sternly as she could. "I like that we're not friends."

"Me, too. I'm sorry you ruined it by being so pathetic.”

Now onto Reagan. She's one badass roommate. Although Cath initially thought Reagan hated her, she didn't. She just didn't talk to Cath, since Cath never talked to her. Eventually Reagan started talking to her saying that she would become her friend whether or not she liked it, and that is what began a life long friendship that included roasting people in the cafeteria!!  

Once again, I'm so happy that a love triangle did not happen between Levi, Cath & Reagan because to be honest Cath is too much of a cinnamon roll to take on Reagan lol. So you guys should read this book because it'll give you cavities because of how sweet it is!! ^^ *Yes I know you guys can thank me for this later*

Until then, Cindy ^^