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chapter1_page1's review
4.0
⭐️ 4 ⭐️
Anywhere Else is a thoroughly enjoyable read.
This YA/Romance is well-written and features a cast of well-rounded, relatable characters.
Told from the perspective of Leena: a lovely, hardworking, determined 18-year-old, who lives with her selfish, uncaring, alcoholic mother; the difficult subject matter is handled with great insight and sensitivity.
I particularly enjoyed the heartwarming relationship Leena shares with her best friend Sydney. The complicated love triangle Leena finds herself in really tugged at my heartstrings too.
Anywhere Else is an endearing, uplifting read.
A solid four stars from me.
Many thanks to Kayla Hicks for the eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
Anywhere Else is a thoroughly enjoyable read.
This YA/Romance is well-written and features a cast of well-rounded, relatable characters.
Told from the perspective of Leena: a lovely, hardworking, determined 18-year-old, who lives with her selfish, uncaring, alcoholic mother; the difficult subject matter is handled with great insight and sensitivity.
I particularly enjoyed the heartwarming relationship Leena shares with her best friend Sydney. The complicated love triangle Leena finds herself in really tugged at my heartstrings too.
Anywhere Else is an endearing, uplifting read.
A solid four stars from me.
Many thanks to Kayla Hicks for the eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
booknallnight's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Oh my teenage heart. 💗💗
When I was first contacted by the author to read and review Anywhere Else, I was a bit skeptical. I don't usually enjoy contemporary romance. It's getting closer to Fall, when I start reading more of these and step out of my comfort zone. One cannot always read horror, thrillers and fantasy 😂
I am so glad I decided to accept. This is such a sweet, heartbreaking and hopeful story. To me, it felt more like a coming of age as Leena deals with so many obstacles and begins to believe in herself. She is constantly smacked with challenge after challenge, not to mention an extremely toxic and volatile mother-daughter interaction. Throughout it all, however, she stays strong and steadfast. My heart broke so many times for her.
The romance in this one is well done. From the get-go, I was Team Garrett 😂. Towards the end, during one of their times hanging, I was in tears. I'm such a sap when the right mood and words hit. This is one book that just fit at the right time and found me in the right mood. Anywhere Else is exactly what I needed and I can't recommend this one enough for those who just want something sweet and uplifting.
I sincerely appreciate being given the chance to read this one. All opinions expressed herein are mine and mine alone.
When I was first contacted by the author to read and review Anywhere Else, I was a bit skeptical. I don't usually enjoy contemporary romance. It's getting closer to Fall, when I start reading more of these and step out of my comfort zone. One cannot always read horror, thrillers and fantasy 😂
I am so glad I decided to accept. This is such a sweet, heartbreaking and hopeful story. To me, it felt more like a coming of age as Leena deals with so many obstacles and begins to believe in herself. She is constantly smacked with challenge after challenge, not to mention an extremely toxic and volatile mother-daughter interaction. Throughout it all, however, she stays strong and steadfast. My heart broke so many times for her.
The romance in this one is well done. From the get-go, I was Team Garrett 😂. Towards the end, during one of their times hanging, I was in tears. I'm such a sap when the right mood and words hit. This is one book that just fit at the right time and found me in the right mood. Anywhere Else is exactly what I needed and I can't recommend this one enough for those who just want something sweet and uplifting.
I sincerely appreciate being given the chance to read this one. All opinions expressed herein are mine and mine alone.
readandreviewit's review
4.0
Before I get into the review, I would like to say a massive thank you to the author for sending me an ARC digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
Anywhere Else follows the protagonist, Leena, an eighteen year old who’s had a difficult childhood but is now starting to break away from that. As a reader we get to see her start her new life, navigating relationships and friendship along the way.
I really enjoyed the two relationships in this book. Although I did feel the person Leena would choose was a tad predictable, it was still a really enjoyable read and didn’t take anything away from the book. Both of the potential love interests were lovely and both had their fair share of moments with Leena.
Leena herself was a really great character. I really admired her strength as well as her drive and how hardworking she was. I think Leena’s struggles with money and figuring out what she wanted to do with her life were really relatable and helped me connect with her as a reader.
Leena’s friendship with Sydney was also lovely. I really enjoyed reading about how much the two looked out for each other, and the bond they shared. It was nice to see some great friendship in addition to the romance, and it made me love the book even more.
Of course, Anywhere Else also covered some serious topics. As already mentioned, Leena struggled with a difficult childhood and family situation, and watching her overcome that was very inspirational. Alcoholism was another key topic in this book, and I felt the author dealt with this in a sensitive and realistic way.
Overall, I would recommend this for anyone searching for a lovely romance with some great friendships. I would also recommend it to any fan of love triangles.
Anywhere Else follows the protagonist, Leena, an eighteen year old who’s had a difficult childhood but is now starting to break away from that. As a reader we get to see her start her new life, navigating relationships and friendship along the way.
I really enjoyed the two relationships in this book. Although I did feel the person Leena would choose was a tad predictable, it was still a really enjoyable read and didn’t take anything away from the book. Both of the potential love interests were lovely and both had their fair share of moments with Leena.
Leena herself was a really great character. I really admired her strength as well as her drive and how hardworking she was. I think Leena’s struggles with money and figuring out what she wanted to do with her life were really relatable and helped me connect with her as a reader.
Leena’s friendship with Sydney was also lovely. I really enjoyed reading about how much the two looked out for each other, and the bond they shared. It was nice to see some great friendship in addition to the romance, and it made me love the book even more.
Of course, Anywhere Else also covered some serious topics. As already mentioned, Leena struggled with a difficult childhood and family situation, and watching her overcome that was very inspirational. Alcoholism was another key topic in this book, and I felt the author dealt with this in a sensitive and realistic way.
Overall, I would recommend this for anyone searching for a lovely romance with some great friendships. I would also recommend it to any fan of love triangles.
bookishcharli's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this book and I got through it quite quickly once I sat down and started it.
Leena is a kind, caring, hardworking and loyal 18 year old who’s relationship with her best friend Sydney will leave your heart warmed and envious of the bond they share. Poor Leena doesn’t have an easy life, she has to deal with her abusive alcoholic mum and her boyfriend, Chase, just broke up with her completely out of the blue.
Sydney swoops in and saves the day, because she’s amazing, and helps Leena get her life back on track as they get their own place together. However, there’s still one issue for poor Leena to work through, and that is her love triangle situation. Does she choose Brent or Garrett? Or should she not choose either of them as both seem to come with some skeletons in their closets? I’ll leave that for you to find out when you read the book, no spoilers here!
This book was well written and flowed nicely from start to finish. There were numerous times that I wanted to get into those pages and try to smack some sense into Leena’s mum, but the hardest part was not being able to give Leena a big cuddle and a shoulder to cry on. She’s been through so much in her short 18 years of life and I couldn’t help but want to sit her down and tell her that all of the horrible things her mum said about her weren’t true, and she’s a wonderful human with so much love to give the world.
As much as this book is about Leena and her romances (it’s marketed as a YA romance), for me the bigger storyline for me was her friendship with Sydney. Sydney is an absolute champion and I’m so happy to have found one of my own. They share such an amazing bond, and you can tell that they deeply cared for each other and would always have their backs. I truly hope everyone in their life experiences a bond like Leena and Sydney’s, it is truly magical.
TW: alcoholism and abuse.
Thank you so much to Kayla for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, you absolutely smashed this, I already want to reread it.
Leena is a kind, caring, hardworking and loyal 18 year old who’s relationship with her best friend Sydney will leave your heart warmed and envious of the bond they share. Poor Leena doesn’t have an easy life, she has to deal with her abusive alcoholic mum and her boyfriend, Chase, just broke up with her completely out of the blue.
Sydney swoops in and saves the day, because she’s amazing, and helps Leena get her life back on track as they get their own place together. However, there’s still one issue for poor Leena to work through, and that is her love triangle situation. Does she choose Brent or Garrett? Or should she not choose either of them as both seem to come with some skeletons in their closets? I’ll leave that for you to find out when you read the book, no spoilers here!
This book was well written and flowed nicely from start to finish. There were numerous times that I wanted to get into those pages and try to smack some sense into Leena’s mum, but the hardest part was not being able to give Leena a big cuddle and a shoulder to cry on. She’s been through so much in her short 18 years of life and I couldn’t help but want to sit her down and tell her that all of the horrible things her mum said about her weren’t true, and she’s a wonderful human with so much love to give the world.
As much as this book is about Leena and her romances (it’s marketed as a YA romance), for me the bigger storyline for me was her friendship with Sydney. Sydney is an absolute champion and I’m so happy to have found one of my own. They share such an amazing bond, and you can tell that they deeply cared for each other and would always have their backs. I truly hope everyone in their life experiences a bond like Leena and Sydney’s, it is truly magical.
TW: alcoholism and abuse.
Thank you so much to Kayla for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, you absolutely smashed this, I already want to reread it.
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