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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
I've been on a contemporary kick this May, but This Is what Happy Looks Like was a kind of disappointment. The characters just fell in love with no actual reason to, and the story seemed so lon but went through only a short period of time. In some ways this book was cute, and I hope that The Geography of You And Me is better than this.
So my conclusion- This book isn't what I thought it would be. It's what no character development looks like.
So my conclusion- This book isn't what I thought it would be. It's what no character development looks like.
When an email from Graham Larkin to a pig walker gets mistakenly sent to sixteen year old Ellie O’Neill, an unlikely friendship blossoms between a teen heart-throb and a small town girl. But when their relationship goes from online to off-screen, things get complicated. The guy that every girl wants falls for a girl who wants nothing to do with the limelight or the paparazzi following that comes with it. Can the easy camaraderie Ellie and Graham once had stand up to the pressures that real life brings?
I have to admit I love the famous guy falling for the small town girl storyline. Mix it with elements of mistaken online identity in a “You’ve Got Mail” twist and you have one of my all time plot lines. I’ve watched movies based on this. I’ve read stories basted on this – I’ve even written my own novella like this. I’m delighted to say that This is What Happy Looks Like is such a worthy addition to the other works in this genre.
Ellie and Graham are flawlessly flawed. They are characters who both had to grow up fast due to their circumstances and as a result they both act much older than their years. Seeing them in this summer romance was delightful to see them behave like the teenagers they are. Both have their baggage but neither of them dwell on their situation. Graham wants something to like him for him and not the fame or privileges that go along with the “Graham Larkin Experience”. Ellie enjoys the quiet life and doesn’t appreciate the media circus that the film crew has brought to her peaceful Maine cottage.
I was a little disappointed with the supporting cast of characters – the friends were of the fair-weather variety and the authority figures were somewhat fleeting – but they didn’t detract from the romance between Graham and Ellie.
This is a very sweet story. Plot wise – there’s not too many surprises this is definitely one of those books you read for the journey and not the destination. It loses steam about two-thirds of the way in but manages to pick up the pace for a delightful ending.
Overall I’d recommend this book for anyone who likes a light contemporary story about a summer romance where no matter who you are, sometimes the simplest things in life are the ones that make you the happiest.
I have to admit I love the famous guy falling for the small town girl storyline. Mix it with elements of mistaken online identity in a “You’ve Got Mail” twist and you have one of my all time plot lines. I’ve watched movies based on this. I’ve read stories basted on this – I’ve even written my own novella like this. I’m delighted to say that This is What Happy Looks Like is such a worthy addition to the other works in this genre.
Ellie and Graham are flawlessly flawed. They are characters who both had to grow up fast due to their circumstances and as a result they both act much older than their years. Seeing them in this summer romance was delightful to see them behave like the teenagers they are. Both have their baggage but neither of them dwell on their situation. Graham wants something to like him for him and not the fame or privileges that go along with the “Graham Larkin Experience”. Ellie enjoys the quiet life and doesn’t appreciate the media circus that the film crew has brought to her peaceful Maine cottage.
I was a little disappointed with the supporting cast of characters – the friends were of the fair-weather variety and the authority figures were somewhat fleeting – but they didn’t detract from the romance between Graham and Ellie.
This is a very sweet story. Plot wise – there’s not too many surprises this is definitely one of those books you read for the journey and not the destination. It loses steam about two-thirds of the way in but manages to pick up the pace for a delightful ending.
Overall I’d recommend this book for anyone who likes a light contemporary story about a summer romance where no matter who you are, sometimes the simplest things in life are the ones that make you the happiest.
Personally, not a fan of this book.
The whole thing was just boring, to put it bluntly. There was no real plot lines, and the ones I thought there was going to be resolved themselves really quickly and then just fizzled out. Some of the characters choices just felt stupid. Like Quinn's whole character was just unnecessary, in my eyes. She seemed like a main character when the book began, and then just fizzled out from there. And her whole reason for not talking to Ellie was stupid.
There was no connection between Ellie and Graham, and it just seemed so forced. I felt nothing when they kissed. I felt nothing during all the supposedly "cutsey" moments. Their characters were just bland and dull, as was their romance.
Graham just turned up out of the blue after apparently emailing Ellie back and forth for a while but we didn't see any of that. We were told that they had chemistry and that they had connected over email, but we didn't get to read any of that ourselves. Also, he claimed he was falling in love with her after about 20 pages - there was no build up to their romance whatsoever.
PG 104: "That felt like... nothing," he said. "At best, that'll get a yawn out of the audience."
"Boring," the director said. "Could we create a little more chemistry?"
Funny, that's exactly how I feel about this book!
I think the only thing I actually liked about this book was that there was a beagle named Bagel. That was cool.
In my opinion, I thought it was just boring and bland. I don't think I'm going to read any more books from this author, as this is the third one I've tried and the third fail in my eyes.
The whole thing was just boring, to put it bluntly. There was no real plot lines, and the ones I thought there was going to be resolved themselves really quickly and then just fizzled out. Some of the characters choices just felt stupid. Like Quinn's whole character was just unnecessary, in my eyes. She seemed like a main character when the book began, and then just fizzled out from there. And her whole reason for not talking to Ellie was stupid.
There was no connection between Ellie and Graham, and it just seemed so forced. I felt nothing when they kissed. I felt nothing during all the supposedly "cutsey" moments. Their characters were just bland and dull, as was their romance.
Graham just turned up out of the blue after apparently emailing Ellie back and forth for a while but we didn't see any of that. We were told that they had chemistry and that they had connected over email, but we didn't get to read any of that ourselves. Also, he claimed he was falling in love with her after about 20 pages - there was no build up to their romance whatsoever.
PG 104: "That felt like... nothing," he said. "At best, that'll get a yawn out of the audience."
"Boring," the director said. "Could we create a little more chemistry?"
Funny, that's exactly how I feel about this book!
I think the only thing I actually liked about this book was that there was a beagle named Bagel. That was cool.
In my opinion, I thought it was just boring and bland. I don't think I'm going to read any more books from this author, as this is the third one I've tried and the third fail in my eyes.
I thought this book was really cute and unique. It wasnt amazing, or my favorite book ever, but i still enjoyed it. It isn't all happy, because thre are some arguments and other reasons that I don't want to spoil but, those are not major and over all it was a good book. So as i said before this book is really cute, so if you are looking for something to make you smile, go read it. It isn't all happy, because thre are some arguments and other reasons that I don't want to spoil but, over all it was a good book.
