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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
This book is 290 pages long and I have 30 annotations. They’re broken up into categories: angst, favorite scenes, quotes I want to remember, and the love story. While the love story is almost my favorite part, it’s not the most important part. Not really. I found this book by chance alone when browsing Amazon and I ordered it right after it was released, but it took me two months to get around to reading it. (A tragedy, truly.)
Amelia lives in books, and her friend, Jenna, ventures into all of these worlds with her. They’re thick as thieves, the best of friends, and they’re on the cusp of beginning college when Amelia is left bereft in a sea of loss when Jenna is killed. I did not expect to get choked up when Jenna died because I knew it was coming. Yet, it hurt so badly. I lost a friend that was incredibly important to me a few years ago in what can only be called a freak accident involving car, and maybe that’s why I felt this so clearly. It’s like a lance through my heart, the best kind. The reminder that I can still feel, which I believe Amelia is partially in search of through this story.
When a rare edition of the first novel written by N. E. Endsley arrives after Jenna’s death, it sets off a series of events where Amelia travels to Michigan from Texas, to this bookstore where the book originated from. Even more jarring, she meets the author Nolan, and nothing else is what she plans.
As someone who has an intense, irrational fear of the inevitable and losing those I love, this book should have left me sad. It left me hopeful. It’s just… I don’t know how to word it. I loved this book, and I’m so glad I picked up this debut on a whim. I can’t wait for her to write another book so I can preorder before it’s released.
I think this book is perfectly made for readers, for writers (or for that mix of both), and for dreamers. It’s been a really long time since I’ve thought about my friend without sorrow tainting all of it, but I thought of V through this entire book, and I think that made it so much more personal to me.
Jenna is gone, and the loss runs so deep that I think I may wake up in a few weeks and remember how it felt to read that line. But Jenna is so alive in the pages of this novel, you’ll never forget her.
Nolan is a relatable character for me. He suffers from panic attacks, and that is something I can heavily relate to. He’s a romantic, even if he didn’t expect himself to be (or maybe he did), and he bares himself when he’s scared to be vulnerable.
Alex is the best friend anyone could have, and Nolan is lucky.
Wally, the dog, reminds me of my mastiff mix to a T, and I loved that lighthouse scene so much. You know the one.
Val is fucking great.
I love Jenna’s parents, and how they have always taken Amelia in, but do so more after Jenna’s death. Though Mark’s heart is in the right place, I think he struggles the most with the overprotectiveness that follows after losing a child.
I love the symbolism of whales in this novel. I love whales. I love orcas. (Yeah, Nolan, I know they belong to the dolphin family.)
Here are some of my favorite lines. Super spoilers.
“Let me do this for you,” Nolan says. “Please. Let me give you stories.”
“It made me want to write something else that would make you look like that.”
Amelia lives in books, and her friend, Jenna, ventures into all of these worlds with her. They’re thick as thieves, the best of friends, and they’re on the cusp of beginning college when Amelia is left bereft in a sea of loss when Jenna is killed. I did not expect to get choked up when Jenna died because I knew it was coming. Yet, it hurt so badly. I lost a friend that was incredibly important to me a few years ago in what can only be called a freak accident involving car, and maybe that’s why I felt this so clearly. It’s like a lance through my heart, the best kind. The reminder that I can still feel, which I believe Amelia is partially in search of through this story.
When a rare edition of the first novel written by N. E. Endsley arrives after Jenna’s death, it sets off a series of events where Amelia travels to Michigan from Texas, to this bookstore where the book originated from. Even more jarring, she meets the author Nolan, and nothing else is what she plans.
As someone who has an intense, irrational fear of the inevitable and losing those I love, this book should have left me sad. It left me hopeful. It’s just… I don’t know how to word it. I loved this book, and I’m so glad I picked up this debut on a whim. I can’t wait for her to write another book so I can preorder before it’s released.
I think this book is perfectly made for readers, for writers (or for that mix of both), and for dreamers. It’s been a really long time since I’ve thought about my friend without sorrow tainting all of it, but I thought of V through this entire book, and I think that made it so much more personal to me.
Jenna is gone, and the loss runs so deep that I think I may wake up in a few weeks and remember how it felt to read that line. But Jenna is so alive in the pages of this novel, you’ll never forget her.
Nolan is a relatable character for me. He suffers from panic attacks, and that is something I can heavily relate to. He’s a romantic, even if he didn’t expect himself to be (or maybe he did), and he bares himself when he’s scared to be vulnerable.
Alex is the best friend anyone could have, and Nolan is lucky.
Wally, the dog, reminds me of my mastiff mix to a T, and I loved that lighthouse scene so much. You know the one.
Val is fucking great.
I love Jenna’s parents, and how they have always taken Amelia in, but do so more after Jenna’s death. Though Mark’s heart is in the right place, I think he struggles the most with the overprotectiveness that follows after losing a child.
I love the symbolism of whales in this novel. I love whales. I love orcas. (Yeah, Nolan, I know they belong to the dolphin family.)
Here are some of my favorite lines. Super spoilers.
Spoiler
“I love her,” Nolan whispers and my heart stops. “I know it’s too soon, and unrealistic, and stupid, but I love Amelia Griffin, and if she will let me love her - in whatever way she wants to - we could tell each other stories forever. Of pictures and whales and...anything you want, Amelia.”“Let me do this for you,” Nolan says. “Please. Let me give you stories.”
“It made me want to write something else that would make you look like that.”
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is so cliche and bleh. Amelia is probably one of the most annoying characters I have ever come across and I felt uninterested in her storyline. I’m quite surprised I made it across the whole book actually. (The whale conversation is the stupidest and most cringe thing I have ever read like what) The author seems to think their relationship is a lot cuter and more clever than it actually is. Also Amelia is a big fat mooch.
I flew through this book. It was sweet, emotional, sad, and all of the other emotions you could dream of wrapped into this book of a girl and a boy who are both lost in their own right. I really appreciated Noah in this book. He was the most outstanding character for me as he had so much depth. Amelia was great but I almost found her to be a supporting character because I really just appreciated Noah so much. I can't wait to see everyone else's journey with this book.
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A new favorite. An absolute gem of a book. For readers, for storytellers, for fantasy fanatics and lover of words. This book is for you. It’s enchanting and whimsical and heartbreaking. And it will forever have a place in my heart
DNF on page 122.
I’m sorry. I can’t do it. Amelia is annoying and rude, and wants everything to be about her. I’m not enjoying myself, and I do NOT want to go in a slump.
There was a lot of childishness. From Amelia.
I mean seriously, why get THAT mad over your best friend meeting both yours and her favorite author?? I mean sure, I’d be jealous, but I wouldn’t get MAD. This is ridiculous.
I wish pretty covers meant good books.
I’m sorry. I can’t do it. Amelia is annoying and rude, and wants everything to be about her. I’m not enjoying myself, and I do NOT want to go in a slump.
There was a lot of childishness. From Amelia.
I mean seriously, why get THAT mad over your best friend meeting both yours and her favorite author?? I mean sure, I’d be jealous, but I wouldn’t get MAD. This is ridiculous.
I wish pretty covers meant good books.
"It seems unfair that the world is often critical of finding meaning in another person. We're allowed to find ourselves in places, books, nature, but not in another human. We aren't allowed to mourn losing a piece of ourselves for too long - especially when young - because we must learn to stand on our own two feet.
But if the world must be made of car crashes and unspeaking books, let there at least be no guilt in companionship, no matter how brief. To quote Valerie, everything is silly because everything is temporary."
This book made me sob in the break room at work. So, there's that.
Amelia Griffin is a book lover and devourer, and an ardent Orman Chronicles fan. She and her best friend/sister Jenna have their futures planned out side by side, from college and beyond, and Jenna is convinced that their future together is more important than anything else. Until tragedy strikes, and Jenna dies. Amelia is left to pick up the pieces of herself by journeying to Michigan to find the source of a mysterious book that was delivered to her under questionable circumstances.
This is one of those books that is simultaneously cozy and heartbreaking, and it nails atmosphere. Lochbrook is a storybook town in every way, and Val's bookstore is a place that I would spend all my time in. It almost makes me want to open a bookstore in real life - it's just so vivid and homey and cozy and perfect in my mind.
Ashley perfectly captures what being a bookworm means in this novel as well. Amelia and Jenna are different kinds of book lovers; Jenna keeps her books in pristine condition, always has a plan while Amelia is more of a browser, but they are united in their love for words and the stories they consume. I am obsessed with one passage from the book that talks about how everyone has stories to tell, whether they're writers or architects or marine biologists - it's all just about how we choose to tell those stories, and the beating heart of this book is about those stories. They're all valid and worthy, as long as we believe in them.
N.E. Endsley is another highlight of this book, along with Alex and Val and the cast of supporting characters. Nolan is so sweet, so guarded, so afraid of opening himself up, and the ways that Amelia and Jenna both come in to help save his heart are beautiful. Everyone here feels so colourful and alive, like I know them all personally.
This is a book about books, about stories, about finding your own and pursuing it for no other reason other than it feels right and you love it. It's about love and grief and what happens when the person you love the most leaves, but also, it's a story about finding hope and working through that sadness and choosing yourself, whatever that means to you. I loved it so so much.
But if the world must be made of car crashes and unspeaking books, let there at least be no guilt in companionship, no matter how brief. To quote Valerie, everything is silly because everything is temporary."
This book made me sob in the break room at work. So, there's that.
Amelia Griffin is a book lover and devourer, and an ardent Orman Chronicles fan. She and her best friend/sister Jenna have their futures planned out side by side, from college and beyond, and Jenna is convinced that their future together is more important than anything else. Until tragedy strikes, and Jenna dies. Amelia is left to pick up the pieces of herself by journeying to Michigan to find the source of a mysterious book that was delivered to her under questionable circumstances.
This is one of those books that is simultaneously cozy and heartbreaking, and it nails atmosphere. Lochbrook is a storybook town in every way, and Val's bookstore is a place that I would spend all my time in. It almost makes me want to open a bookstore in real life - it's just so vivid and homey and cozy and perfect in my mind.
Ashley perfectly captures what being a bookworm means in this novel as well. Amelia and Jenna are different kinds of book lovers; Jenna keeps her books in pristine condition, always has a plan while Amelia is more of a browser, but they are united in their love for words and the stories they consume. I am obsessed with one passage from the book that talks about how everyone has stories to tell, whether they're writers or architects or marine biologists - it's all just about how we choose to tell those stories, and the beating heart of this book is about those stories. They're all valid and worthy, as long as we believe in them.
N.E. Endsley is another highlight of this book, along with Alex and Val and the cast of supporting characters. Nolan is so sweet, so guarded, so afraid of opening himself up, and the ways that Amelia and Jenna both come in to help save his heart are beautiful. Everyone here feels so colourful and alive, like I know them all personally.
This is a book about books, about stories, about finding your own and pursuing it for no other reason other than it feels right and you love it. It's about love and grief and what happens when the person you love the most leaves, but also, it's a story about finding hope and working through that sadness and choosing yourself, whatever that means to you. I loved it so so much.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes