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nicolemhewitt's review against another edition
5.0
3.5/5 Stars
This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction
Never Always Sometimes is a YA contemporary romance with a bit of a twist. It’s the type of romance where you’re not exactly sure how things will end. Will Dave and Julia end up together or are they truly better as friends? It’s not a simple answer, and this isn’t a simple romance.
What I loved:
Dave and Julia.
I really loved the relationship between Dave and Julia. They fit with each other and had a sort of easy friendship, even though Dave was hoping for more. Dave and Julia understood each other on a level that no one else seemed to. They spent all of their time together, and they liked it that way – until they decided to try to complete their Never list.
Never always sometimes.
The concept of the list of things that Dave and Julia were never supposed to do was really fun – even if it did feel a bit pretentious at times. But that was kind of the point. Julia spent her life trying to prove something to her biological mother, who was living but a typical, ordinary life. Julia wanted to feel a kinship with her mother, so she strove to avoid normality. It made sense. I could see why Julia struggled with being a typical teenager when she felt like her mother would much more easily love her if she was atypical. So when Dave and Julia decide to actually live out their Never list, it’s interesting to see how the results are not exactly what they expected – especially for Dave, who was kind of always living this unordinary life for Julia anyway. Dave starts to realize that maybe the fact that he was fixated on Julia caused him to miss out on other people and experiences – even if those experiences are “typical.” I liked this aspect of the story.
Dave and Gretchen.
While I loved Dave and Julia together as friends, I was kind of rooting for Dave and Gretchen as a couple. Gretchen is a girl that Dave gets to know once he starts actually interacting with other people. While Gretchen was sometimes almost a little too good to be true, it was hard not to want happiness for her – and for Dave, with her.
Family ties.
I loved the fact that this book explored the relationship between Julia and her dads (who she adored) and her birth mother (who she sort of worshipped in a way). Julia had so much yearning when it came to her mom, but that didn’t take away from the positive relationship that she had with her dads. I loved the complexities of these relationships.
The negatives:
Not sure which romance to root for.
My only issue with the book was that it was hard to know which couple I should be rooting for. On the one hand, Julia and Dave had history and really understood each other. But once Dave started to get to know Gretchen better, she seemed to make him really happy, and I started to think that maybe Julia limited him a little bit. I really liked the first half of the book, but once things switched to Julia’s POV (in the second half), I kind of felt torn and I wasn’t sure whether I could really get behind Julia and Dave OR Dave and Gretchen. Since this book was a romance (of sorts) that left me feeling conflicted – and I wasn’t enjoying the book as much. I will say that everything worked itself out in a way that I was happy with in the end, but I wasn’t always sure about the journey there.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book, even if it wasn’t perfect. I liked the characters and I appreciated the message. I give this one 3.5/5 stars.
***Disclosure: This book was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction
Never Always Sometimes is a YA contemporary romance with a bit of a twist. It’s the type of romance where you’re not exactly sure how things will end. Will Dave and Julia end up together or are they truly better as friends? It’s not a simple answer, and this isn’t a simple romance.
What I loved:
Dave and Julia.
I really loved the relationship between Dave and Julia. They fit with each other and had a sort of easy friendship, even though Dave was hoping for more. Dave and Julia understood each other on a level that no one else seemed to. They spent all of their time together, and they liked it that way – until they decided to try to complete their Never list.
Never always sometimes.
The concept of the list of things that Dave and Julia were never supposed to do was really fun – even if it did feel a bit pretentious at times. But that was kind of the point. Julia spent her life trying to prove something to her biological mother, who was living but a typical, ordinary life. Julia wanted to feel a kinship with her mother, so she strove to avoid normality. It made sense. I could see why Julia struggled with being a typical teenager when she felt like her mother would much more easily love her if she was atypical. So when Dave and Julia decide to actually live out their Never list, it’s interesting to see how the results are not exactly what they expected – especially for Dave, who was kind of always living this unordinary life for Julia anyway. Dave starts to realize that maybe the fact that he was fixated on Julia caused him to miss out on other people and experiences – even if those experiences are “typical.” I liked this aspect of the story.
Dave and Gretchen.
While I loved Dave and Julia together as friends, I was kind of rooting for Dave and Gretchen as a couple. Gretchen is a girl that Dave gets to know once he starts actually interacting with other people. While Gretchen was sometimes almost a little too good to be true, it was hard not to want happiness for her – and for Dave, with her.
Family ties.
I loved the fact that this book explored the relationship between Julia and her dads (who she adored) and her birth mother (who she sort of worshipped in a way). Julia had so much yearning when it came to her mom, but that didn’t take away from the positive relationship that she had with her dads. I loved the complexities of these relationships.
The negatives:
Not sure which romance to root for.
My only issue with the book was that it was hard to know which couple I should be rooting for. On the one hand, Julia and Dave had history and really understood each other. But once Dave started to get to know Gretchen better, she seemed to make him really happy, and I started to think that maybe Julia limited him a little bit. I really liked the first half of the book, but once things switched to Julia’s POV (in the second half), I kind of felt torn and I wasn’t sure whether I could really get behind Julia and Dave OR Dave and Gretchen. Since this book was a romance (of sorts) that left me feeling conflicted – and I wasn’t enjoying the book as much. I will say that everything worked itself out in a way that I was happy with in the end, but I wasn’t always sure about the journey there.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book, even if it wasn’t perfect. I liked the characters and I appreciated the message. I give this one 3.5/5 stars.
***Disclosure: This book was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
mmeagan's review against another edition
3.0
This was a charming book. It was contemporary in a way that wasn't over-the-top or felt like it was trying to hard. The characters were fun, although they weren't as fully fleshed out as they could have been. I enjoyed reading from both Dave and Julia's perspectives. The plot took a couple turns that I wasn't expecting, and I was pleasantly surprised with the bittersweet ending and the way Alsaid guided the reader to that point.
I'm happy to have discovered the author and look forward to reading more of his novels.
I'm happy to have discovered the author and look forward to reading more of his novels.
rybread13's review against another edition
3.0
Going into Never Always Sometimes, I really just expected a cute contemporary. I wanted to be able to sit back and relax while reading instead of the high paced novels that I’ve been reading lately. Unfortunately, this just wasn’t the one that I was looking for. This book reminds me of The Beginning of Everything mixed with Since You’ve Been Gone and I don’t know how I feel about that.
The story or characters didn’t wow me enough to make me want to read it again. No, I don’t read every book I thought was good unfortunately. Although usually, after completing a book I enjoyed, I always have the sense of starting it over from the beginning. I didn’t get that feeling from this book at all. I’ve seem all of these characters and some of the plot points in other stories. Maybe that was the point, being a book about chiches, but it wasn’t enough to pull me in for a second time. In fact, it was just enough to get me through it the first time.
The characters were cute and funny like most contemporary books but I couldn’t connect to them. The overall book felt very disconnected which was really reflected in the way the characters-and-reader-chemistry. I couldn’t mash well with any character and often times found myself zoning out during the internal dialogue and only being entertained when Julia was making a joke or Dave was messing around with Julia, which honestly wasn’t super interesting in itself.
Never Always Sometimes was written in dual third person limited perspective. It was definitely a different experience for me seeing as though I don’t read a ton of dual perspectives in the first place. The first half is written in Dave’s POV while the second half is written in Julia’s POV. This may have been yet another reason why the story felt very disconnected for me. I couldn’t focus enough on the characters because I was too focused on the way the scenes and the POVs were written. It takes away from the story itself and doesn’t give the story the credit that it deserves.
Overall, Never Always Sometimes was a “meh” book. It was short so it wasn’t a time commitment or anything of the sorts. If it was any longer, I may not have finished it. Definitely not a must read but a good story to read if you need something quick and to the point.
The story or characters didn’t wow me enough to make me want to read it again. No, I don’t read every book I thought was good unfortunately. Although usually, after completing a book I enjoyed, I always have the sense of starting it over from the beginning. I didn’t get that feeling from this book at all. I’ve seem all of these characters and some of the plot points in other stories. Maybe that was the point, being a book about chiches, but it wasn’t enough to pull me in for a second time. In fact, it was just enough to get me through it the first time.
The characters were cute and funny like most contemporary books but I couldn’t connect to them. The overall book felt very disconnected which was really reflected in the way the characters-and-reader-chemistry. I couldn’t mash well with any character and often times found myself zoning out during the internal dialogue and only being entertained when Julia was making a joke or Dave was messing around with Julia, which honestly wasn’t super interesting in itself.
Never Always Sometimes was written in dual third person limited perspective. It was definitely a different experience for me seeing as though I don’t read a ton of dual perspectives in the first place. The first half is written in Dave’s POV while the second half is written in Julia’s POV. This may have been yet another reason why the story felt very disconnected for me. I couldn’t focus enough on the characters because I was too focused on the way the scenes and the POVs were written. It takes away from the story itself and doesn’t give the story the credit that it deserves.
Overall, Never Always Sometimes was a “meh” book. It was short so it wasn’t a time commitment or anything of the sorts. If it was any longer, I may not have finished it. Definitely not a must read but a good story to read if you need something quick and to the point.
magicgardener's review against another edition
2.0
i cant believe i liked this book enough to keep it on my shelf for 2 years. i read it when it came out and really liked it. lets say i have matured enough to see how cheesy it is. no to mention we dont get any closure at the end. the book didnt seem to have much point to it because i doubt anyone was rooting for Gretchen. who seems like un unrealisticly nice girl. no one is that nice. why does she always play the victim card as well. she is always getting cheated on and shit like that.
rpych2's review against another edition
1.0
This was basically trying to be a John Green book without all the likable characters or fun plot, so everything that makes them great. Not a fan, can't really find much to say about it because nothing really stuck out as being that good or even horribly bad for that matter. A book that was just kind of there.
nklosty's review against another edition
4.0
The List is not only a cool idea for a book, but something that I wish I would have thought of as I was entering High School. I like how real Dave and Julia's relationship seems. I wonder what I would have put on my list. 91
ameserole's review against another edition
4.0
I adored Julia in this book. She is hilarious and unique. Her friendship with Dave is totally relatable, especially when in high school. Together they are adorable. I get that people didn't like the ending because Dave and Julia don't end up together--but I loved that! The love that they had...it just seemed more like friendship then relationship to me. I wish there was more to the book...like if Julia ever got with Brett?!? What exactly happened after prom?!? What happened with her real mom?!? I just want answers to my questions :( I need another book!!!
uwuramengirl's review against another edition
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
So boring, literally put me in a reading slump. Julia always mentioning she was barefoot was an ick, & I knew they should not be together & so happy they didn't end up together.
beccaxbelz's review against another edition
3.0
i do not know how to feel about this one, i may or may not come back with more articulated thoughts