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4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
There was a lot going on in this book, a lot of different interacting stories and a lot of different characters, and although I might not normally like that, it seemed to work for me.
The main character, Claudia goes to an all girls school that is situated right across a field from an all boys school. Claudia's brother, Alex, her best friend, Zoe, and her sister Julia and Julia's husband, Mark all play an online computer game similar to Dungeons and Dragons. Claudia has her people and keeps to herself in school. She has some acquaintances and gets along with pretty much everyone but doesn't really have any close friends at her school until a failed project causes her to join a play with the girl she can't stand to be around, Iris. The play is between both the all girls school and the all boys school. During the course of the play, Claudia branches outside of her little circle and finds friendships (and maybe even a little romance) in unlikely places. This book is about realizing what really matters and taking risks that might get you hurt but might also be the best choice you could have ever made.
Emma Mills is very quickly becoming one of my favorite authors, alongside Meg Cabot, Nicholas Sparks, and Sarah Dessen. There is just something about the simplicity of a cheesy teen romance, and this gave me everything I wanted. I would recommend this and Emma Mills's other two novels.
The main character, Claudia goes to an all girls school that is situated right across a field from an all boys school. Claudia's brother, Alex, her best friend, Zoe, and her sister Julia and Julia's husband, Mark all play an online computer game similar to Dungeons and Dragons. Claudia has her people and keeps to herself in school. She has some acquaintances and gets along with pretty much everyone but doesn't really have any close friends at her school until a failed project causes her to join a play with the girl she can't stand to be around, Iris. The play is between both the all girls school and the all boys school. During the course of the play, Claudia branches outside of her little circle and finds friendships (and maybe even a little romance) in unlikely places. This book is about realizing what really matters and taking risks that might get you hurt but might also be the best choice you could have ever made.
Emma Mills is very quickly becoming one of my favorite authors, alongside Meg Cabot, Nicholas Sparks, and Sarah Dessen. There is just something about the simplicity of a cheesy teen romance, and this gave me everything I wanted. I would recommend this and Emma Mills's other two novels.
A solid four after all :)
Edit 2/8/19
You know what? I re-read this book and I'm going to rate it a 4.5-5
I can't make up my mind but this was a surprisingly enjoyable read. Foolish Hearts had been on my tbr list for a while and I had finally got around to it since it was a birthday present from a friend. Anyhow, I came into with little to no expectations plus I kind of forgot what the entire book was about. Honestly, I think this was one of the best combinations when going into any new story, so you won't be disappointed :P
[too lazy to write synopsis here...but imagine that was here]
I don't know if it was just me, but I found this book to be hilarious at times. I was up at who knows what time in the early hours of the morning trying to suppress my laughter (I haven't laughed out loud for a long time when reading a book so there was that). Maybe it was because I was up at 1 am something? Still, the humour was great and I love the dynamics between many of the characters, especially between Claudia and Iris. I will admit some characters weren't as engaging or three dimensional due to the wide cast. However, I was willing to overlook it because of the core characters, who were great.
An extra point for being a contemporary book that I have actually liked in a long time. Normally, I stay away from this genre in favour of fantasy, but I think I needed a contemporary fix. Well, Foolish Hearts delivered. :D
As for the romance, it was actually fun despite it kind of being awkward in the beginning. I don't know, but it made me laugh a lot. I loved the friendships a lot <3 especially the trope of 'kind of enemies to friends'.
One of the things that stood out to me was that it was relatable. In the sense, that Claudia goes to an all-girl private school and it was really nice to relate to some of her experiences there. Granted, I didn't go to a school where any of my classmates/year level lived in mansions (not that I know of...) or were afflicted with big famous companies. I liked how the story wasn't focused on who was the popular girl or the rich vs poor girl dynamic (Boys over Flowers anyone?), which was refreshing. Plus, I love how many characters were in the fandoms of online gaming and following particular groups/bands. It just made me so happy and it never seemed like forced pop cultural referencing.
So yeah, these were my jumbled thoughts for the book.
Edit 2/8/19
You know what? I re-read this book and I'm going to rate it a 4.5-5
I can't make up my mind but this was a surprisingly enjoyable read. Foolish Hearts had been on my tbr list for a while and I had finally got around to it since it was a birthday present from a friend. Anyhow, I came into with little to no expectations plus I kind of forgot what the entire book was about. Honestly, I think this was one of the best combinations when going into any new story, so you won't be disappointed :P
[too lazy to write synopsis here...but imagine that was here]
I don't know if it was just me, but I found this book to be hilarious at times. I was up at who knows what time in the early hours of the morning trying to suppress my laughter (I haven't laughed out loud for a long time when reading a book so there was that). Maybe it was because I was up at 1 am something? Still, the humour was great and I love the dynamics between many of the characters, especially between Claudia and Iris. I will admit some characters weren't as engaging or three dimensional due to the wide cast. However, I was willing to overlook it because of the core characters, who were great.
An extra point for being a contemporary book that I have actually liked in a long time. Normally, I stay away from this genre in favour of fantasy, but I think I needed a contemporary fix. Well, Foolish Hearts delivered. :D
As for the romance, it was actually fun despite it kind of being awkward in the beginning. I don't know, but it made me laugh a lot. I loved the friendships a lot <3 especially the trope of 'kind of enemies to friends'.
One of the things that stood out to me was that it was relatable. In the sense, that Claudia goes to an all-girl private school and it was really nice to relate to some of her experiences there. Granted, I didn't go to a school where any of my classmates/year level lived in mansions (not that I know of...) or were afflicted with big famous companies. I liked how the story wasn't focused on who was the popular girl or the rich vs poor girl dynamic (Boys over Flowers anyone?), which was refreshing. Plus, I love how many characters were in the fandoms of online gaming and following particular groups/bands. It just made me so happy and it never seemed like forced pop cultural referencing.
So yeah, these were my jumbled thoughts for the book.
emotional
funny
fast-paced
This is still a favorite (possibly in my like, top three to five all-time?) and also I am Claudia. It hits like every single one of my sweet spots oh my GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
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
This was a YA book in all aspects. While YA isn’t my favorite I like it because it’s a quick read though.
My review will be unpopular according to the rating but it’s good to have differences :)
I found a lot of the book to be monotonous. I guess most of it was character and relationship building but I was bored with it until Julia went into labor. I kept at it thinking something crazy was going to happen but nothing did.
Maybe I’m just too old to really connect with this book. It just wasn’t something I really enjoyed.
My favorite character was Iris because I feel like she was the most interesting. She was a bit of a contradiction but I liked seeing her grow throughout the book.
This would be a great book for a middle or high school kid. I would have loved to have this book when I was in high school because it may have helped me through tough times.
My review will be unpopular according to the rating but it’s good to have differences :)
I found a lot of the book to be monotonous. I guess most of it was character and relationship building but I was bored with it until Julia went into labor. I kept at it thinking something crazy was going to happen but nothing did.
Maybe I’m just too old to really connect with this book. It just wasn’t something I really enjoyed.
My favorite character was Iris because I feel like she was the most interesting. She was a bit of a contradiction but I liked seeing her grow throughout the book.
This would be a great book for a middle or high school kid. I would have loved to have this book when I was in high school because it may have helped me through tough times.
The only thing which kept this from 5 stars was its length. I needed more of this fabulous story! I feel like a lot of contemporary novels end too soon, and this syndrome exists with Foolish Hearts. It’s definitely a standalone, but I would kill for a sequel to fully see these friendships and romances blossom.
Emma Mills’ third YA novel, Foolish Hearts centers around a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and a variety of relationships that are starting, blooming, or ending. Our POV character, Claudia Wallace, brought it too real for me, touching on my personal flaws and doubts. So yeah I cried.
In other hands, Gideon Prewitt might have come across as a Manic Pixie Dream Boy, but Mills crafts more humanity into him and doesn’t use him solely as a means to stir Claudia into living an adventurous, wild life. He has his own life and wants outside of the possible romance.
My favorite relationship in the book is between Claudia and Iris, which reminded me of my sister and I when we were younger. Their slow-burn friendship is one of the highlights of the book.
So overall it’s a four-star read, but a STRONG four stars. 8/10 highly recommend.
Emma Mills’ third YA novel, Foolish Hearts centers around a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and a variety of relationships that are starting, blooming, or ending. Our POV character, Claudia Wallace, brought it too real for me, touching on my personal flaws and doubts. So yeah I cried.
In other hands, Gideon Prewitt might have come across as a Manic Pixie Dream Boy, but Mills crafts more humanity into him and doesn’t use him solely as a means to stir Claudia into living an adventurous, wild life. He has his own life and wants outside of the possible romance.
My favorite relationship in the book is between Claudia and Iris, which reminded me of my sister and I when we were younger. Their slow-burn friendship is one of the highlights of the book.
So overall it’s a four-star read, but a STRONG four stars. 8/10 highly recommend.
Flat out delightful. I need every book she's ever written immediately. The dialogue in this book always had me smiling. I found most of the characters, even more minor side characters to be 3 dimensional and interesting. Claudia is flawed, but she is still a joy to root for. Was this book groundbreaking? No. Did it break me? No. But it made me happy, and I honestly could think of Zero reasons why I shouldn't give it 5 stars.
I received this book in the December Uppercase Box and am so glad that it was chosen to be featured. The story follows Claudia, who, at the beginning of the book, ends up overhearing the breakup of the meanest girl at school and her girlfriend. When school starts back up, they are being forced to write a paper together and eventually, try out for the school play. The idea of fate and unlikely relationships is a recurring one throughout the novel and a magnificent one, too.
One of my favorite things about the book overall is the voice that Emma Mills uses for Claudia’s narration and the way she writes the dialogue for the characters. Claudia not only provides us insight into what is happening around her but always does so with just a sprinkle of salt or sarcasm whenever she can. I appreciate that because irony and poking fun at situations is my kind of humor as well. Whenever a story features a narrator like Claudia, I am guaranteed to embarrass myself by laughing out in public, in a superb way, of course. (Including this time. I was reading before one of my basketball games. I may or may not have gotten some weird looks from my teammates…) Mills also takes the style of internal dialogue that Claudia has and weaves it into what other characters say, too. Gideon’s charm and one-liners helped make a good impression on me as the reader, and also never failed to make me laugh at myself. I also loved when Iris pipes in with a smarta** comment every once in a while.
Another element of this book that I enjoyed is the interests that each of the characters has in the book. A big bonding point for Claudia, Zoe, Alex, and Julia is an online role-playing game called Battle Quest. If you’ve been following my blog for some time, you will know that I love seeing all types of video games in books. I’m not sure if it’s because I was a big gamer (Minecraft, specifically) when I was younger, or if it’s because I’ve always enjoyed stories and games, but what I do know is that I’ve regularly enjoyed books with this element. My only disappointment with the Battle Quest story arc is that towards the end of the novel, the author ultimately drops this subplot of the book! I know that it isn’t a significant part of the story, and the characters use the game as a tool to interact in the book, but I want to know what happens after the last Battle Quest session between Claudia, Alex, and Zoe. (I’m probably the only person who has read the book who wants to know this…) The other interest that was prominent in the book is TION, which is the boy band in the story that Claudia and Iris end up bonding over. It is another point in the novel that I related to my own experiences. We’ve all had a band that we’ve fangirled (or fanboyed) over in the past (or currently do), and I loved being able to connect with the girls on a particular level over a similar love.
I can’t mention character interests without shouting out the theatre nerds in the book. I have just started rehearsals for my high school’s production of The Sound of Music, (where your featured blogger will be playing the role of Sister Berthe. #nunlife) and reading about Claudia’s rehearsals made me more excited to start spending evenings with my cast and crew. I also found it fascinating that in the story, Del creates and assembles all the costumes for the production. Since I go to a small school, we don’t have the budget or personnel to make each ensemble, but it sounds like a marvelous experience.
I think one of the biggest things that struck me about this book was how real the relationships between the characters are. Not every single friendship or romantic endeavor is perfect, and the way some situations are handled mirror real high school interactions. I imagine that even though I haven’t had the same experiences that Claudia has had, I would have dealt with her situations in much the same manner, which kept adding to the relatability of this story.
Overall, I think that this book was a great contemporary read, and if you are looking for a book with equal parts romance, bromance, sibling and LGBTQ representation, and fangirling, this is the book for you.
Your nun-in-training,
Ashton
One of my favorite things about the book overall is the voice that Emma Mills uses for Claudia’s narration and the way she writes the dialogue for the characters. Claudia not only provides us insight into what is happening around her but always does so with just a sprinkle of salt or sarcasm whenever she can. I appreciate that because irony and poking fun at situations is my kind of humor as well. Whenever a story features a narrator like Claudia, I am guaranteed to embarrass myself by laughing out in public, in a superb way, of course. (Including this time. I was reading before one of my basketball games. I may or may not have gotten some weird looks from my teammates…) Mills also takes the style of internal dialogue that Claudia has and weaves it into what other characters say, too. Gideon’s charm and one-liners helped make a good impression on me as the reader, and also never failed to make me laugh at myself. I also loved when Iris pipes in with a smarta** comment every once in a while.
Another element of this book that I enjoyed is the interests that each of the characters has in the book. A big bonding point for Claudia, Zoe, Alex, and Julia is an online role-playing game called Battle Quest. If you’ve been following my blog for some time, you will know that I love seeing all types of video games in books. I’m not sure if it’s because I was a big gamer (Minecraft, specifically) when I was younger, or if it’s because I’ve always enjoyed stories and games, but what I do know is that I’ve regularly enjoyed books with this element. My only disappointment with the Battle Quest story arc is that towards the end of the novel, the author ultimately drops this subplot of the book! I know that it isn’t a significant part of the story, and the characters use the game as a tool to interact in the book, but I want to know what happens after the last Battle Quest session between Claudia, Alex, and Zoe. (I’m probably the only person who has read the book who wants to know this…) The other interest that was prominent in the book is TION, which is the boy band in the story that Claudia and Iris end up bonding over. It is another point in the novel that I related to my own experiences. We’ve all had a band that we’ve fangirled (or fanboyed) over in the past (or currently do), and I loved being able to connect with the girls on a particular level over a similar love.
I can’t mention character interests without shouting out the theatre nerds in the book. I have just started rehearsals for my high school’s production of The Sound of Music, (where your featured blogger will be playing the role of Sister Berthe. #nunlife) and reading about Claudia’s rehearsals made me more excited to start spending evenings with my cast and crew. I also found it fascinating that in the story, Del creates and assembles all the costumes for the production. Since I go to a small school, we don’t have the budget or personnel to make each ensemble, but it sounds like a marvelous experience.
I think one of the biggest things that struck me about this book was how real the relationships between the characters are. Not every single friendship or romantic endeavor is perfect, and the way some situations are handled mirror real high school interactions. I imagine that even though I haven’t had the same experiences that Claudia has had, I would have dealt with her situations in much the same manner, which kept adding to the relatability of this story.
Overall, I think that this book was a great contemporary read, and if you are looking for a book with equal parts romance, bromance, sibling and LGBTQ representation, and fangirling, this is the book for you.
Your nun-in-training,
Ashton
