This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith (Review)

Wow! So, I haven't posted a review since JULY. And I am SUPER sorry... This school year has been absolutely insane for me and I didn't really understand when people said Junior year was the hardest but, I would say they were beyond right. I've had to do more work this year than ever. High school is kicking my behind. Along with play practice and all of my other theater things, well, I've had close to no time to read or review. And I miss it. A lot. So that, my friends, is why I am BACK! I have made it a goal to go back to my review ways and post a review every week! Obviously today isn't Sunday, but I just finished this book and felt the need to review. I apologize for the super long paragraph filled with dumb excuses.... ONTO THE REVIEW! (Did you miss my overuse of capitalization?) (and my overuse of parentheses to give little tidbits of information you guys REALLY didn't need?)

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Genre: Contemporary Romance

Number of Pages: 416

For ages 13+

"If fate sent you an email, would you answer?

When teenage movie star Graham Larkin accidentally sends small town girl Ellie O'Neill an email about his pet pig, the two seventeen-year-olds strike up a witty and unforgettable correspondence, discussing everything under the sun, except for their names or backgrounds. 

Then Graham finds out that Ellie's Maine hometown is the perfect location for his latest film, and he decides to take their relationship from online to in-person. But can a star as famous as Graham really start a relationship with an ordinary girl like Ellie? And why does Ellie want to avoid the media's spotlight at all costs?" -Goodreads

I have been on a MAJOR contemporary romance kick lately... Seriously cannot get enough of it. And this book was exactly what I was looking for! Sidenote (as if I don't make enough already): I had no idea this was the same author of The Statistical Probablity of Love at First Sight until after I bought the book! COOL!

This book was filled with all my favorite kinds of things. A swoony boy, a hilarious, quirky, main character, and... Did I mention a swoony boy? Just thought I should make that known just in case any of you forgot. 

Ellie is the kind of character you wish you knew. She's gutsy, she's super funny, and she's unbelievably sweet. And while she has faults, you just can't help but have this need to help her. Even though that's pretty much impossible. (Crazy, I know.) Ellie has had some hardships in her past and it causes her to be a bit wary when it comes to some things. (I can just hear my English teacher right now, "Julia, there's a better word to use there instead of 'things.'" BUT I'M NOT ABOUT TO GIVE STUFF AWAY.) There were times when I just wanted to tell the poor girl that it was okay to be a little adventurous. To just let things happen. But who am I kidding? I'm a complete wuss and if I were in her shoes, I would probably be doing the same stuff she was doing. But hey, if there was a swoony boy involved, maybe I would have been a bit more adventurous in her shoes. 

If I hadn't made it clear enough in my previous paragraphs, there's a swoony boy in this book. (SAY WHAT?) Not to mention he's a STINKING MOVIE STAR. I loved the fact that in the emails between Graham and Ellie we really got to see their personalities. They didn't know who the other person was on the other side of the computer screen and they weren't afraid to tell some of their deepest feelings. Plus, their banter back and forth was beyond adorable. Like, seriously, people, (I think I misused all of those commas...) the amount of sweet in this book could give you cavities.  

I loved the fact that we got both points of view in this book. We got to see that Graham isn't just some stuck up, pampered movie star. We see that he had a normal childhood, and we see his inner struggles. (As cliche as that sounds.) And some of the things he said had me falling back on my bed and sighing, stereotypical teenage girl style, I know. This is why I have unrealistic expectations of teenage boys, people. BECAUSE OF THESE BOOKS. Do I stop reading, though? No I most definitely do not... 

And while I rave and rave about the swoony-ness of this book, I couldn't help but feel unresolved in the end. Don't get me wrong, I loved everything else about this book, as you can tell. But, the ending just didn't feel like enough for me. There was something more that I think I was wanting from it that I just didn't get. It may just be a me thing. I'm the kind of person who lives off of resolved endings. And this one kind of did, just not enough for me. It ended with possibility instead of a for sure thing. Which is completely okay! Just not my taste. But do not, I repeat DO NOT, let that keep you from reading this book. It will make your heart flutter and make you wish you could have a boyfriend that was a sweet, sensitive movie star. 

I give this book 4 out of 5 diva crowns! It had me swooning every other page and gave me the teenage girl giggles. I'm pretty sure there were moments in this book where I was all alone in my room smiling to myself. I highly recommend this book to contemporary romance lovers! This book will leave you feeling light and fluffy. (Because apparently, to me, that's a feeling...) 

               

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Thanks so much for reading! I'm sorry I've been absent for so long, but I'm back! I hope everyone's rest of the week is filled with *sparkles* and that everyone had a FANTABULOUS New Years!

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith (Review)

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Number of Pages: 236

For ages 12+

"Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan’s life. She’s stuck at JFK, late to her father’s second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon to be step-mother that Hadley’s never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport’s cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he’s British, and he’s in seat 18C. Hadley’s in 18A.

Twists of fate and quirks of timing play out in this thoughtful novel about family connections, second chances and first loves. Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver’s story will make you believe that true love finds you when you’re least expecting it." -Goodreads

I was just browsing through contemporary romance on Goodreads and found this little gem! I needed a little refresher from so many paranormal/ dystopian books and what better way to do that than by reading contemporary romance! 

On a side note... the title is definitely a mouthful! ;)

The story takes place in the span of 24 hours. You would think that since it had at least 200 pages the events would just drag on, but it definitely didn't. It was fun knowing that so much could happen in one day. Especially so many eventful things!

I loved Hadley. I loved her personality, I loved her flaws, and I loved the way she thought. Plus, she loved to read. Who wouldn't like that in a main character? She wasn't one of those main characters who made a whole bunch of stupid decisions. Her decisions actually had reason behind them, and even though some were on a whim, I couldn't help agreeing with her. Hadley has to go all the way to London for her father's wedding where he will be getting married to a woman Hadley has never even met. Talk about difficult. And on top of that, she's just missed her flight. Fortunately, without her missing her flight, there would pretty much be no story to tell! While waiting, she meets a fantabulous and may I say, SWOON WORTHY boy named Oliver.

Oliver was super duper sweet and had loads of charm. Plus, he was quite the gentleman! The chemistry between him and Hadley was absolutely there and you couldn't help rooting for them to work out. I'm not usually one who thinks that someone can fall in love or even realize that they have really strong feelings for someone in the span of 24 hours, but by the end I was on board! Of course, under the circumstances it could be a tad different than other situations. You got to learn a lot about Oliver and his life in America and in London. You saw what problems he had to deal with and some of his flaws. Both he and Hadley both uncovered each other's true personalities.

Something else that I really liked was the way the author used those 200 pages. There's only so much you can write over something that happens in the span of 24 hours in 200 pages. She had lots of flashbacks that gave you a great background on Hadley's life and why some of these problems in her life occurred.

This book definitely had a little flair of Anna and the French Kiss, and there was definitely an English boy in there too. ;) I couldn't help sharing all of my comments to my friends nearby and I'm sure they got annoyed at times..

After reading this book I had realized that contemporary romance may be my favorite genre. Surprising, I know! I LOVE dystopian romance and paranormal romance and fantasy romance and all that jazz, but when I've read a whole bunch of those different genres, it's nice to be able to read a book where the main aspect is romance and there isn't any huge aspects to digest.

This book was a super fast read for me, it had amazing romance, and super fantabulous characters! 5 out of 5 diva crowns! :)