Novel Review: Save the Date by Morgan Matson

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Release Date: June 2018

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Charlie Grant's older sister is getting married this weekend at their family home, and Charlie can't wait for the first time in years, all four of her older siblings will be under one roof. Charlie is desperate for one last perfect weekend, before the house is sold and everything changes. The house will be filled with jokes and games and laughs again. Making decisions about things like what college to attend and reuniting with longstanding crush Jesse Foster all that can wait. She wants to focus on making the weekend perfect.

The only problem? The weekend is shaping up to be an absolute disaster. There's the unexpected dog with a penchant for howling, house alarm that won't stop going off, and a papergirl with a grudge.

There are the relatives who aren't speaking, the (awful) girl her favorite brother brought home unannounced, and a missing tuxedo. Not to mention the neighbor who seems to be bent on sabotage and a storm that is bent on drenching everything. The justice of the peace is missing. The band will only play covers. The guests are all crazy. And the wedding planner's nephew is unexpectedly, distractedly cute.

Over the course of three ridiculously chaotic days, Charlie will learn more than she ever expected about the family she thought she knew by heart. And she'll realize that sometimes, trying to keep everything like it was in the past means missing out on the future.

The Cover:

This cover is super cute. The image and even the font match with the wedding theme really well, while also showing the quirky nature of what's going to happen in the book. It's definitely eye-catching, and shows what kind of feel the book is going to give.

Review:

Charlie has lived in her own family bubble for all of her life. When her sister's wedding is coming up, and thus all of her family is again in the same house together for the summer, some of her history starts to unravel in her eyes.

There's wedding chaos happening, the brother Charlie has always idolized is home again, the boy she's always had a crush on is suddenly an option now. And then she's forced to start questioning the life she's lead, and what the “cute” family comics her mother writes has actually done to her and her siblings' lives.

I really like the idea of this story. The whole Grant Central Station comic strips is a really good plot to explore, and it's done really well here, too. Charlie has upheld her family in such a specific light all her life, and particularly one of her brothers, that it's a shock when some of those things are revealed to her differently. I really appreciated the way that she's given this information and how she takes it. The whole thing with her crush could have gone one way, and I really liked that it didn't; that's not the moment of revelation to her, at least not in a certain way, and instead a learning experience in a good way instead. That's just one thing she had to get a new perspective on. The rest of the stuff falls into place just right, with the timing it should.

Charlie needed a wake up call, and she gets it. Of course, there's also another boy, a better one.

I really appreciated how this story played out. It could have been done in one way, which I worried about at one point, and I'm glad it went in a different one. It went in a better direction, without using the romance/crush as a crutch and a be-all-end-all kind of thing. The family drama is given its own time, and it's done really well.

Matson has quickly become one of my favorite authors, and another author that I will very quickly pre-order, now.

Novel Review: The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance; Family, Friendship

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Release Date: May 3, 2016

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Teaser Tuesday. Wishlist Thursday.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Andie had it all planned out.

When you are a politician’s daughter who’s pretty much raised yourself, you learn everything can be planned or spun, or both. Especially your future.

Important internship? Check.

Amazing friends? Check.

Guys? Check (as long as we’re talking no more than three weeks)

But that was before the scandal. Before having to be in the same house with her dad. Before walking an insane number of dogs. That was before Clark and those few months that might change her whole life.

Because here’s the thing - if everything's planned out, you can never find the unexpected.

And where’s the fun in that?

The Cover:

I really like the cover. I think it fits the book and the setting quite well, and I appreciate that the dogs are an important part of the book. It would catch my eye. Plus, the back cover, and the inside of the dust cover have different images, and I really like that.

Review:

Of course, I enjoyed this book. It took me a while to read, but it still pulled me back in every time I picked it up. A very fun read.

In the beginning, Andie is a little bit unlikable, with how set in her ways she is. How she treats boys, and how controlling she can be. She didn’t bother me too much, aside from a few of her choices in the later half, but she learned a lot by the end, and I believed it.

I didn’t expect the father-daughter relationship that was in this book, given the synopsis made me think he would be a much worse person. And he has his faults. But he’s also a great dad, and the close relationship those two re-form in this book was so enjoyable. They get along really well, and it was really fun to see their banter.

Andie also has a very close group of girl friends, and they are all there for each other in an instant. The conflict that happens there, while sad, is realistic and understandable. Sad, but it makes sense to me. They were still a lot of fun to read, their interactions and banter a lot of fun. Andie’s best friend and her boyfriend were also a solid couple through this entire novel, and they seemed the type that had met early and would be together until late in life. I really liked seeing that.

Now, the romance. Andie meets Clark, who is awkward and shy, but who turns out to be a best-selling fantasy novelist. And he’s great, I love Clark. The chemistry between the two was slow at times, but it was still very sweet, and I loved them. He fits in with her friends really well, and I enjoyed the bromance he formed with the other guy in the group. I love the honesty among the group, how certain ones had certain people they would go to to talk with.

There was also a second boy, a guy who Andie had fooled around with from time to time, and I thought drama would be caused because of it. I was pleasantly surprised when not only was there not drama, but that the other guy reacted really well. It makes me want to know more about him. I want him to have a book.

This was a lot of fun to read. Her books are always a joy, and I will be picking up anything she releases next.

Teaser Tuesday[204]: The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

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The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Release Date: May 3, 2016

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Wishlist Thursday.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Andie had it all planned out.

When you are a politician’s daughter who’s pretty much raised yourself, you learn everything can be planned or spun, or both. Especially your future.

Important internship? Check.

Amazing friends? Check.

Guys? Check (as long as we’re talking no more than three weeks)

But that was before the scandal. Before having to be in the same house with her dad. Before walking an insane number of dogs. That was before Clark and those few months that might change her whole life.

Because here’s the thing - if everything's planned out, you can never find the unexpected.

And where’s the fun in that?

Excerpt:

“‘Wow,’ Clark said, shaking his head. ‘You weren’t kidding.’ He looked over at me, and I felt my eyes straying involuntarily to his mouth.” (Hardback, pg. 258)

What are you reading right now?

Wishlist Thursday[156]: The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Release Date: May 3, 2016

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Andie had it all planned out.

When you are a politician’s daughter who’s pretty much raised yourself, you learn everything can be planned or spun, or both. Especially your future.

Important internship? Check.

Amazing friends? Check.

Guys? Check (as long as we’re talking no more than three weeks)

But that was before the scandal. Before having to be in the same house with her dad. Before walking an insane number of dogs. That was before Clark and those few months that might change her whole life.

Because here’s the thing - if everything's planned out, you can never find the unexpected.

And where’s the fun in that?

Why?:

I’ve read Matson’s previous books and loved them, Since You’ve Been Gone is one of my favorite books. So of course this is on my list, and I will be getting it once it’s released. I love her writing and her characters, and this book sounds very cute. I can’t wait for it.

What’s on your list?