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thrscldrn's review against another edition
5.0
Bittersweet (n.)
Pleasure alloyed with pain
How perfect the title is for the story! Our dream today may not be our dream tomorrow. But what if your dream would be your only way out? Just like Hudson's cupcakes, this story is a great mix of ingredients that go perfectly together. Dreams, family, love, choices, secrets, friends, and icing.
Pleasure alloyed with pain
How perfect the title is for the story! Our dream today may not be our dream tomorrow. But what if your dream would be your only way out? Just like Hudson's cupcakes, this story is a great mix of ingredients that go perfectly together. Dreams, family, love, choices, secrets, friends, and icing.
ir0l's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars.
Cute book but I begin to be too old for this. Especially when I hate the secondary characters. But the heroine is cute and the love interest is just a perfect/cute/beta guy.
Cute book but I begin to be too old for this. Especially when I hate the secondary characters. But the heroine is cute and the love interest is just a perfect/cute/beta guy.
kayteaface's review against another edition
5.0
I absolutely adored this book. It was so true to life, so relatable, and very enjoyable. It was ridiculously cute and I didn't want it to end!
I really connected to Hudson as a character. She's a teenage girl who wants to get out of her no-opportunities hometown and she has her fair share of friend, boy and family troubles. On top of that, she feels like she's really blown her chance of pursuing her dream of becoming a figure-skating star. She escapes her problems and worries by immersing herself in all that is cupcake-baking goodness by coming up with newfangled, wacky flavours and ideas that have given her single mother's diner some publicity. When she realises she wants to put her dreams back on track and win a grant through a local competition, she helps out with her school's hockey team's training, putting up with their banter and jibes, in exchange for some practice time on the ice. At that point, I found her to be very strong-willed. I think she may just be my new favourite female character!
Also, her bond with her little brother, Bug, is just the cutest thing ever. Bug's shenanigans have to be one of the highlights of Bittersweet for me :')
What I really, really liked about this book was that there's no instalove! You may know I'm an avid anti-instalove kinda gal, so this was the book for me. I really liked how it took a whole book for an actual friendship to grow and withstand some troubles before anything really happened relationship-wise with Hudson's main crush .. who, by the way, I wouldn't mind literally bumping into on a frozen-over lake in real life, either ;)
I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes cute, girly reads.
I'd kill for a sequel.
I really connected to Hudson as a character. She's a teenage girl who wants to get out of her no-opportunities hometown and she has her fair share of friend, boy and family troubles. On top of that, she feels like she's really blown her chance of pursuing her dream of becoming a figure-skating star. She escapes her problems and worries by immersing herself in all that is cupcake-baking goodness by coming up with newfangled, wacky flavours and ideas that have given her single mother's diner some publicity. When she realises she wants to put her dreams back on track and win a grant through a local competition, she helps out with her school's hockey team's training, putting up with their banter and jibes, in exchange for some practice time on the ice. At that point, I found her to be very strong-willed. I think she may just be my new favourite female character!
Also, her bond with her little brother, Bug, is just the cutest thing ever. Bug's shenanigans have to be one of the highlights of Bittersweet for me :')
What I really, really liked about this book was that there's no instalove! You may know I'm an avid anti-instalove kinda gal, so this was the book for me. I really liked how it took a whole book for an actual friendship to grow and withstand some troubles before anything really happened relationship-wise with Hudson's main crush .. who, by the way, I wouldn't mind literally bumping into on a frozen-over lake in real life, either ;)
I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes cute, girly reads.
I'd kill for a sequel.
halynah's review against another edition
5.0
Wonderful, brilliant book! I liked the plot, pacing, style of writing, characters. I felt sorry for Hudson, because it's very difficult for a girl her age to endure such a pressure - both physical and emotional- and be torn between school, work, family, friend, figure-skating, boys, cupcakes, duties...I loved Hudson's relationships with her little brother, I liked the romantic line of the book, I enjoyed Hudson's training exprience. To put it briefly - amazing, warm, interesting read!
eghimire_'s review against another edition
3.0
Yummy, I know right? Well on every chapter you get these amazing descriptions and your mouth just waters. I mean, who wouldn't want that amazing cupcake right now?
Bittersweet was definitely a bittersweet read. I mean the book took a turn I didn't expect in the romance department and it irritated me. cough* love-triangle *cough. But overall it was a good read.
Hudson is a hilarious main character and she's very likable but during the the last 2/3 of the book, she started annoying me with how she was treating her best friend Dani. I got tired of her brushing off everything for the ice skating competition
halcyone's review against another edition
4.0
This review was originally posted at The Cozy Armchair.
Bittersweet was such an enjoyable read, successfully balancing fluff and realistic life lessons. I never once thought it was superficial, and it never took the easy way out when it came to decision-making and relationships. But it's also the kind of book that fills you with warmth, a perfect read when you need a bit of a pick-me-up.
I mean, what else would you expect from a book that starts each chapter with delicious descriptions of Hudson's famous cupcake creations? I had to fight the urge to go buy a dozen to snack on while reading, and I kept seriously lamenting the fact that her cupcakes weren't actually available to buy at my local bakery.
Anyway, I loved just about everything in this book: the small town setting, the winter season backdrop, a past in ice skating, a present in baking and hockey training, confusing hockey-playing boys, a struggling family, etc. Not to mention that I love, love, love anything to do with culinary arts and restaurant management, so when those elements make an appearance in books, I'm basically guaranteed a good time.
Hudson is a great, sympathetic character. She has big dreams but feels trapped by her obligations to her family (working in her mom's diner, taking care of her brother Bug). I could understand where she was coming from with her frustration and resentment, but at the same time it was very easy to see it from her mom's point of view too. Her mother works tirelessly to keep the diner open and pay the bills, and it makes sense that she would turn to Hudson for support.
Hudson takes on a lot of responsibilities and tries to juggle them all on her own, ultimately learning to pick and choose her priorities carefully. In this regard, the book's title couldn't be more accurate. The story touches upon the good and bad times of life - whether it's the small moments you have baking cupcakes with your brother, or the stress of keeping a secret from your mom, or understanding that it's not always about getting out of a small town, it's also about the people you'd leave behind.
So when I said this book managed to deliver a good message while spoonfeeding you a sweet romance and fluff, I meant it. And there were so many other elements to love, like Hudson's friendship with Dani and their ups & downs, how Hudson wormed her way into the hockey team, her relationship with her adorable little brother Bug. Not one character is perfect in this book, but that only serves to make the story feel believable.
Bittersweet had a kind of atmosphere that really drew me in. Even though I read it in the middle of a hot and humid Florida summer, I could imagine myself in the middle of the winter season instead. This would be a perfect book to read in December while wrapped up in a blanket and nursing a cup of hot chocolate. Seriously, it gives you that kind of warmth when you read it, so this is one book I'd have to highly recommend!
Bittersweet was such an enjoyable read, successfully balancing fluff and realistic life lessons. I never once thought it was superficial, and it never took the easy way out when it came to decision-making and relationships. But it's also the kind of book that fills you with warmth, a perfect read when you need a bit of a pick-me-up.
I mean, what else would you expect from a book that starts each chapter with delicious descriptions of Hudson's famous cupcake creations? I had to fight the urge to go buy a dozen to snack on while reading, and I kept seriously lamenting the fact that her cupcakes weren't actually available to buy at my local bakery.
Anyway, I loved just about everything in this book: the small town setting, the winter season backdrop, a past in ice skating, a present in baking and hockey training, confusing hockey-playing boys, a struggling family, etc. Not to mention that I love, love, love anything to do with culinary arts and restaurant management, so when those elements make an appearance in books, I'm basically guaranteed a good time.
Hudson is a great, sympathetic character. She has big dreams but feels trapped by her obligations to her family (working in her mom's diner, taking care of her brother Bug). I could understand where she was coming from with her frustration and resentment, but at the same time it was very easy to see it from her mom's point of view too. Her mother works tirelessly to keep the diner open and pay the bills, and it makes sense that she would turn to Hudson for support.
Hudson takes on a lot of responsibilities and tries to juggle them all on her own, ultimately learning to pick and choose her priorities carefully. In this regard, the book's title couldn't be more accurate. The story touches upon the good and bad times of life - whether it's the small moments you have baking cupcakes with your brother, or the stress of keeping a secret from your mom, or understanding that it's not always about getting out of a small town, it's also about the people you'd leave behind.
So when I said this book managed to deliver a good message while spoonfeeding you a sweet romance and fluff, I meant it. And there were so many other elements to love, like Hudson's friendship with Dani and their ups & downs, how Hudson wormed her way into the hockey team, her relationship with her adorable little brother Bug. Not one character is perfect in this book, but that only serves to make the story feel believable.
Bittersweet had a kind of atmosphere that really drew me in. Even though I read it in the middle of a hot and humid Florida summer, I could imagine myself in the middle of the winter season instead. This would be a perfect book to read in December while wrapped up in a blanket and nursing a cup of hot chocolate. Seriously, it gives you that kind of warmth when you read it, so this is one book I'd have to highly recommend!
eatingwords's review
4.0
I don't even know where to start. There are so many aspects of the book that I liked (and also a few that I didn't).
I read this book for the Young Adult Book Club and I wasn't sure whether I would like it and what to really expect from the story as I have read a few reviews in which Hudson was not a particularly nice and fun main character, but selfish and on a big ego trip. But I didn't feel that way. I would rather say that Hudson's behaviour was justifiable.
Now onto the things I loved:
1. The Cupcake Theme. Since I started reading this book I'm craving cupcakes. Delicious, chocolatey cupcakes.
2. The love triangle. I am usually so not a fan of love triangles. I hated them in manga because the second guy always came in the way of the relationship of the original couple. I was always annoyed with it and I avoided reading books with two love interests ever since. But I think that Sarah Ockler solved it quite well as I didn't mind reading about the two boys. It didn't annoy me and I quite enjoyed reading about both characters.
3. The writing. I think Sarah Ockler's writing is beautiful. As I started this novel I got engrossed in the story and in the writing.
4. The figure skating/ice hockey. At first I wasn't sure I would enjoy it because of the figure skating/hockey thing. I'm not into sports, whether it's in real life or in books. But I found that even the parts about sports were interesting and I found myself rooting for the Wolves. I think Sarah Ockler did a nice job with the writing and especially with the description of the competitive ice skating. It was fun to read those parts.
5. Hudson. She was a great main character. She was caring, a great sister to Bug (who was also very adorable), funny. She had her problems and sometimes she seemed to be selfish. But let's be true here: who doesn't? I thought that it was great of Hudson to pursue her dreams, to start skating again. She never complained although she had so much to do. She had to go to school, act as a parent-surrogate for Bug, train the Wolves, go ice skating (and that without her mother finding out!), she had to bake cupcakes in her mother's diner and then also be a waitress there. Furthermore she also has a social life and her problems there: her friendship with Dani (which was great!), her problems with her father, the relationship drama with the two love interests. I think she deserves some credit here! I don't know if I could manage all of that at once. So yes, if she seemed selfish, may it be.
6. The setting. The setting was on ice because of the figure skating/ice hockey thing. But mainly the setting was the diner. And I loved the diner. I loved Trick, Marianne, Dani, the atmosphere behind the counter. It was great and I enjoyed reading about it. Where I live we don't have diners per se, so I was quite fascinated by the whole thing.
I couldn't quite give the book a five-star-rating because there were a few things that bugged me (pun intended):
1. Hudson's mother. The diner was her dream, yes. The diner is also the only income the Avery family has. I understand that. But I thought that Hudson's mother seemed to be oblivious of so many things going on in her children's life. She took everything for granted that Hudson did for her. She even expected her to be the surrogate-parent for Bug. She expected her to take care for paying the gas bill and when Hudson forgot it in all of her trouble, she was mad at her. I sometimes wanted to just shake her and tell her to wake up.
2. Josh Blackthorn. Yes, the swoon-worthy main love interest. It's not that I didn't like him. He was a good friend to Hudson. They shared the same music interests, their love for ice skating. Everything was great. Expect for his personality. I just hate it when boys (actually not just boys but anyone) don't know what they want. Or rather: when they don't say what they want. It drove me crazy how Hudson and Josh had this sexual tension going on quite a few times and he always backed away. Who does that?! It was quite obvious that he seemed to like Hudson more than just a friend. But instead of saying it straight out or acting appropriately, he does..nothing. Argh!!
But all in all I really liked this novel and I have already added Sarah Ockler's other works to my wishlist.
I read this book for the Young Adult Book Club and I wasn't sure whether I would like it and what to really expect from the story as I have read a few reviews in which Hudson was not a particularly nice and fun main character, but selfish and on a big ego trip. But I didn't feel that way. I would rather say that Hudson's behaviour was justifiable.
Now onto the things I loved:
1. The Cupcake Theme. Since I started reading this book I'm craving cupcakes. Delicious, chocolatey cupcakes.
2. The love triangle. I am usually so not a fan of love triangles. I hated them in manga because the second guy always came in the way of the relationship of the original couple. I was always annoyed with it and I avoided reading books with two love interests ever since. But I think that Sarah Ockler solved it quite well as I didn't mind reading about the two boys. It didn't annoy me and I quite enjoyed reading about both characters.
3. The writing. I think Sarah Ockler's writing is beautiful. As I started this novel I got engrossed in the story and in the writing.
4. The figure skating/ice hockey. At first I wasn't sure I would enjoy it because of the figure skating/hockey thing. I'm not into sports, whether it's in real life or in books. But I found that even the parts about sports were interesting and I found myself rooting for the Wolves. I think Sarah Ockler did a nice job with the writing and especially with the description of the competitive ice skating. It was fun to read those parts.
5. Hudson. She was a great main character. She was caring, a great sister to Bug (who was also very adorable), funny. She had her problems and sometimes she seemed to be selfish. But let's be true here: who doesn't? I thought that it was great of Hudson to pursue her dreams, to start skating again. She never complained although she had so much to do. She had to go to school, act as a parent-surrogate for Bug, train the Wolves, go ice skating (and that without her mother finding out!), she had to bake cupcakes in her mother's diner and then also be a waitress there. Furthermore she also has a social life and her problems there: her friendship with Dani (which was great!), her problems with her father, the relationship drama with the two love interests. I think she deserves some credit here! I don't know if I could manage all of that at once. So yes, if she seemed selfish, may it be.
6. The setting. The setting was on ice because of the figure skating/ice hockey thing. But mainly the setting was the diner. And I loved the diner. I loved Trick, Marianne, Dani, the atmosphere behind the counter. It was great and I enjoyed reading about it. Where I live we don't have diners per se, so I was quite fascinated by the whole thing.
I couldn't quite give the book a five-star-rating because there were a few things that bugged me (pun intended):
1. Hudson's mother. The diner was her dream, yes. The diner is also the only income the Avery family has. I understand that. But I thought that Hudson's mother seemed to be oblivious of so many things going on in her children's life. She took everything for granted that Hudson did for her. She even expected her to be the surrogate-parent for Bug. She expected her to take care for paying the gas bill and when Hudson forgot it in all of her trouble, she was mad at her. I sometimes wanted to just shake her and tell her to wake up.
2. Josh Blackthorn. Yes, the swoon-worthy main love interest. It's not that I didn't like him. He was a good friend to Hudson. They shared the same music interests, their love for ice skating. Everything was great. Expect for his personality. I just hate it when boys (actually not just boys but anyone) don't know what they want. Or rather: when they don't say what they want. It drove me crazy how Hudson and Josh had this sexual tension going on quite a few times and he always backed away. Who does that?! It was quite obvious that he seemed to like Hudson more than just a friend. But instead of saying it straight out or acting appropriately, he does..nothing. Argh!!
But all in all I really liked this novel and I have already added Sarah Ockler's other works to my wishlist.
cburgbennett's review against another edition
4.0
SUPER cute. This is a contemporary, teen, romantic-comedy, done right, and here are the reasons why.
Number one: all the cupcake talk made me super hungry. Hudson (is a girl) made a bunch of super amazing sounding cupcakes. Seriously. Cupcakes dipped in silver glitter (edible of course), cupcakes frosted with fluffy peanut butter cream cheese frosting and topped with three different kinds of chocolate...i mean seriously. Can I have a cupcake now? I mean this alone made the book excellent.
Number two: As sad as the premise of the story was, parents got divorced, dad totally ignores his children, Hudson gave up ice skating because of it, she lost her best friend Kara when she quit ice skating, Hudson works her butt off at her mom's diner now, and she has a bunch of other stuff going on...including training sexy hockey players so that she can have skate time. Sign me up...for the hockey player part...and maybe the making cupcakes part too. But with everything going on in the book, everything somehow was fixed in a realistic manner. It didn't seem fake or ridiculous. It sounded like real life. And that is what contemporary is about. Being real.
Number three: Josh was seriously the nicest sounding guy ever. He was quirky and funny and smart and an athlete (which means he probably has a nice bod...and a great personality), he was just pretty much a great guy.
Number four: The book had some great lines that made me crack up. And here are just a couple lines:
1) “It takes forty muscles to frown, and only twelve to jam a cupcake in your mouth and get over it.”
2)“What's up?" Need a kidney? Two of them? Where do I sign? I grab my pen again, just in case.”
3)“What do you need, Josh?" Just name it. Anything. I'm totally here for you.
(hudson imagining what josh needs) I knew I could count on you, Hudson. The thing is... I don't know if I'm a good kisser. It's not the sort of thing you can figure out on your own, you know? So I was thinking, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, maybe you could kiss me, everyday for a year, and then you can...
"Hudson?”
4) “See, some people politely encourage their tone-deaf friends to sing. Some people even convince them to go on live television and audition for national competitions. But me? I am not that friend.”
And those aren't even the best ones. Gosh. In conclusion...I really enjoyed this book. Pretty clean. Not a lot of swearing. And just overall great. Yep. I'm done now.
Number one: all the cupcake talk made me super hungry. Hudson (is a girl) made a bunch of super amazing sounding cupcakes. Seriously. Cupcakes dipped in silver glitter (edible of course), cupcakes frosted with fluffy peanut butter cream cheese frosting and topped with three different kinds of chocolate...i mean seriously. Can I have a cupcake now? I mean this alone made the book excellent.
Number two: As sad as the premise of the story was, parents got divorced, dad totally ignores his children, Hudson gave up ice skating because of it, she lost her best friend Kara when she quit ice skating, Hudson works her butt off at her mom's diner now, and she has a bunch of other stuff going on...including training sexy hockey players so that she can have skate time. Sign me up...for the hockey player part...and maybe the making cupcakes part too. But with everything going on in the book, everything somehow was fixed in a realistic manner. It didn't seem fake or ridiculous. It sounded like real life. And that is what contemporary is about. Being real.
Number three: Josh was seriously the nicest sounding guy ever. He was quirky and funny and smart and an athlete (which means he probably has a nice bod...and a great personality), he was just pretty much a great guy.
Number four: The book had some great lines that made me crack up. And here are just a couple lines:
1) “It takes forty muscles to frown, and only twelve to jam a cupcake in your mouth and get over it.”
2)“What's up?" Need a kidney? Two of them? Where do I sign? I grab my pen again, just in case.”
3)“What do you need, Josh?" Just name it. Anything. I'm totally here for you.
(hudson imagining what josh needs) I knew I could count on you, Hudson. The thing is... I don't know if I'm a good kisser. It's not the sort of thing you can figure out on your own, you know? So I was thinking, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, maybe you could kiss me, everyday for a year, and then you can...
"Hudson?”
4) “See, some people politely encourage their tone-deaf friends to sing. Some people even convince them to go on live television and audition for national competitions. But me? I am not that friend.”
And those aren't even the best ones. Gosh. In conclusion...I really enjoyed this book. Pretty clean. Not a lot of swearing. And just overall great. Yep. I'm done now.
sarakovach's review against another edition
5.0
Cupcakes, Figure-skating, and Hockey. What a combination - but it works!!!! The format of the book - with cupcakes as chapter headings - how ingenious! The names and descriptions of the cupcake "titles" definitely matched the story-line of each chapter.
Bittersweet is such a sweet story - literally - pun intended. You get drawn into each character. Hudson - our protagonist has so much going on in her life - the diner, figure-skating, her family, her friends, the boys - where does she start, and where does she end. She struggles so much to make the right decisions, for herself and for those she cares about. The hockey boys - what a refreshing look. I usually hate athletic boys in stories - so cocky and full of themselves. While there was a little of this, the author showed us a side of them that made me actually like each one.
I just loved how so much was wrapped up into this story. It was a quick and easy read, but kept me wanting for more. I could not put it down once I started. I was wrapped up in Hudson's life, that I still feel myself drawn back in and thinking about it.
Bittersweet is such a sweet story - literally - pun intended. You get drawn into each character. Hudson - our protagonist has so much going on in her life - the diner, figure-skating, her family, her friends, the boys - where does she start, and where does she end. She struggles so much to make the right decisions, for herself and for those she cares about. The hockey boys - what a refreshing look. I usually hate athletic boys in stories - so cocky and full of themselves. While there was a little of this, the author showed us a side of them that made me actually like each one.
I just loved how so much was wrapped up into this story. It was a quick and easy read, but kept me wanting for more. I could not put it down once I started. I was wrapped up in Hudson's life, that I still feel myself drawn back in and thinking about it.