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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
3.5 stars - I'm really tired right now and still need to gather my thoughts on this but all in all I liked it - the writing and storytelling was beautiful and I loved how it was like a Gatsby retelling and it was fun to keep reading to see what the big deal was but that's the part that brought this down, to me it wasn't a big deal. You go through the book wanting to know why happened but it just didn't live up to all the build up. I didn't feel fully connected with the characters but I thought that worked well with the book. I don't know I liked it but it just didn't leave that much of an impact, still thinking as I've just finished it!
Not what I was expecting at all! I really enjoyed the mysterious aspect to the story. Definitely worth the read!
I liked this book, in the beginning, but as it went on it was hard to find a character to sympathize with and attach to. Then the ending was lackluster. The story takes place over a year, which is a lot of time for a 17 year old to show growth, and to develop the story. Instead, they Established themselves early on and remained static throughout the rest of the book.
Actual rating - 3.5
The premise of this book is a lot like The Great Gatsby. While I am not the biggest Gatsby fan, I liked Even in Paradise. The writing is beautiful and flows easily. Chelsey Philpot wove a heartbreakingly emotional story about flawed people. Beautiful but flawed people.
The premise of this book is a lot like The Great Gatsby. While I am not the biggest Gatsby fan, I liked Even in Paradise. The writing is beautiful and flows easily. Chelsey Philpot wove a heartbreakingly emotional story about flawed people. Beautiful but flawed people.
Source: I received a copy of this from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the publisher for giving me a chance to read this
I really enjoyed the back story to this.
Two friends who needed each other most to get through the hard times.
Sebastian then comes into the picture and he is gorgeous and Charlotte wants him.
But alas, he is sadly taken.
Oh damn.
Julia is still suffering from a family tragedy, and Charlotte may just find out what it is...
I'm trying to collect my thoughts on this book as it was a great one.
Definitely big on friendship and family.
The cover makes this book like it's going to be a fun summer read full of laughs.
I actually found it to be quite deep.
When Charlotte becomes Julia's best friend, she doesn't expect to fall deep with her.
If you really like your contemporaries then definitely give this a go.
But it is deep, and if you go in, the characters will pull you in with them.
A great book and well worth the read.
I really enjoyed the back story to this.
Two friends who needed each other most to get through the hard times.
Sebastian then comes into the picture and he is gorgeous and Charlotte wants him.
But alas, he is sadly taken.
Oh damn.
Julia is still suffering from a family tragedy, and Charlotte may just find out what it is...
I'm trying to collect my thoughts on this book as it was a great one.
Definitely big on friendship and family.
The cover makes this book like it's going to be a fun summer read full of laughs.
I actually found it to be quite deep.
When Charlotte becomes Julia's best friend, she doesn't expect to fall deep with her.
If you really like your contemporaries then definitely give this a go.
But it is deep, and if you go in, the characters will pull you in with them.
A great book and well worth the read.
3.5 stars!
This book was like We Were Liars but better.
It's about a pretentious family and their secret. I liked the world they lived in. I've never lived in that sort of world so it was fun to get into. The story fell a little flat for me. It originally started off good but somewhere in the middle got boring.
It's a book that you can skip over but won't kill you to read. Enjoyable enough!
This book was like We Were Liars but better.
It's about a pretentious family and their secret. I liked the world they lived in. I've never lived in that sort of world so it was fun to get into. The story fell a little flat for me. It originally started off good but somewhere in the middle got boring.
It's a book that you can skip over but won't kill you to read. Enjoyable enough!
The Buchanans' pull was as natural and strong as the moon on the tides, and when I was with them I was happy in the warmth of their reflected light....Even knowing as I do now, that grace, power, and, yes, love can hide the darkest elements of the human heart, I would do it all again. Beginning with the night I met her, then him, then the rest. I would do it all again just to know that for a moment I was one of the Great Buchanans.
So begins Even in Paradise by Chelsey Philpot. After reading about this book on several other book blogs, I really wanted to read it myself. Charlotte is a junior at a private boarding school in New England. A chance meeting one night with, and then a semi-rescue of, the new student Julia Buchanan changes the trajectory of Charlotte's life. Julia is the daughter of a wealthy former Congressman whose family suffered a tragedy several years earlier. Julia and Charlotte (whom Julia immediately dubs Charlie) become fast friends and all of the Buchanans come to love Charlie. They see her as a lifeline for Julia who has had a difficult past few years. Everything seems nearly perfect for a while, but that near perfection cannot last...even in paradise.
I really liked this book. The characters are lovely and allow the reader a peek into the life of high society, beach houses in the Hamptons, and Ivy League colleges. This is, of course, rather fantastical, but it still makes for fun read. The characters are not without flaws, but that makes them all the more likable. While things are going well, Charlie and Julia are happy and quickly become the best of friends and the reader enjoys their friendship.
Beatitudo nos efficit omnes stultos. Happiness makes us all fools.
When Julia begins to struggle again, her family depends on Charlie to help bring her back from the brink. This is a lot of responsibility to put onto an eighteen-year-old girl and as a reader I found this part difficult to believe.
This book didn't exactly end the way I would have liked, but once I turned the last page, I could appreciate the author's choices. The title of the book alone clues one in that it won't be a happily-ever-after ending, but I liked that Charlie is such a strong female character. This was a very good book and I think you'll like it. Pick it up and let me know what you think.
Check out more of my books at SmartGirlsRead!
www.smartgirlsread.blogspot.com
So begins Even in Paradise by Chelsey Philpot. After reading about this book on several other book blogs, I really wanted to read it myself. Charlotte is a junior at a private boarding school in New England. A chance meeting one night with, and then a semi-rescue of, the new student Julia Buchanan changes the trajectory of Charlotte's life. Julia is the daughter of a wealthy former Congressman whose family suffered a tragedy several years earlier. Julia and Charlotte (whom Julia immediately dubs Charlie) become fast friends and all of the Buchanans come to love Charlie. They see her as a lifeline for Julia who has had a difficult past few years. Everything seems nearly perfect for a while, but that near perfection cannot last...even in paradise.
I really liked this book. The characters are lovely and allow the reader a peek into the life of high society, beach houses in the Hamptons, and Ivy League colleges. This is, of course, rather fantastical, but it still makes for fun read. The characters are not without flaws, but that makes them all the more likable. While things are going well, Charlie and Julia are happy and quickly become the best of friends and the reader enjoys their friendship.
Beatitudo nos efficit omnes stultos. Happiness makes us all fools.
When Julia begins to struggle again, her family depends on Charlie to help bring her back from the brink. This is a lot of responsibility to put onto an eighteen-year-old girl and as a reader I found this part difficult to believe.
This book didn't exactly end the way I would have liked, but once I turned the last page, I could appreciate the author's choices. The title of the book alone clues one in that it won't be a happily-ever-after ending, but I liked that Charlie is such a strong female character. This was a very good book and I think you'll like it. Pick it up and let me know what you think.
Check out more of my books at SmartGirlsRead!
www.smartgirlsread.blogspot.com
I confess, the cover photo drew me in. I was thinking that this was just another teen novel about a scholarship girl trying to fit into the posh crowd at an exclusive prep school, and although it is, I really enjoyed the characters in this novel. Charlotte Ryder is an art student that attends the exclusive St. Anne's school on scholarship. One night, when she awakens to hear "it" girl Julia Buchanan tossing her cookies outside her dorm room window, Charlotte decides to help her out when her friends abandon her. The family "tragedy" is not too difficult to figure out, and I would not classify this as a mystery - it is more a romantic, coming of age novel, that focuses on the frail nature of friendships. I really enjoyed this one! A solid debut about a Kennedy-like family, and the girl that penetrates their "inner circle".
I enjoyed this way more than I thought I would. The writing, the characters, their relationships. It reminded me so much of We Were Liars but without the crippling disappointment. The "secret" wasn't really astounding but was fitting and real for the world of the book. Also, all girls boarding schools + strong female friendships are my LIFE
