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3.25 AVERAGE
3.25 AVERAGE
The premise of this book was so good, but sadly I just didn’t enjoy it. I felt like there wasn’t much character development or depth and it was hard to care about the characters or what was happening. I wanted to like this book really, and it wasn’t badly written or anything, I just found myself not enjoying the read and being frustrated at the almost cliched nature of it.
Sara Chae is the inventor of an app that sends personalized last messages to the people in your life after you die. When an apparent malfunction means Sara's notes to her boss, former best friend, parents, high school crush, etc. are sent while Sara is very much still alive, she is put back in contact with Harry, her high school crush, who just happens to work at the venture capital firm she is hoping will help fund her app.
I wanted to like this book, but I was so bored. I don't care about character's jobs and this book was very much focused on Sara and her job more so than the romance or her relationships with the other characters. I just wasn't invested (no pun intended) in Sara's app, her relationship with Harry, or really anything else in the book. I did finish it, but it took weeks for me to get through.
I wanted to like this book, but I was so bored. I don't care about character's jobs and this book was very much focused on Sara and her job more so than the romance or her relationships with the other characters. I just wasn't invested (no pun intended) in Sara's app, her relationship with Harry, or really anything else in the book. I did finish it, but it took weeks for me to get through.
Done with being undervalued and overworked, Sara Chae quits her job and takes her app idea with her. Her app allows you to send people in your life one last message upon your death. So you can let them know how you really feel once and for all. On a drunken night with her sister, Sara writes up her final messages to her high school crush, her BFF who ghosted her, and her overbearing parents just as a cathartic release. But when she wakes up, she finds that all her messages were actually sent. This triggers interactions that never would have happened if the messages weren’t sent out. And there’s also a competition to earn funding for her app, glass ceilings to break, and growth opportunities—both professionally and personally.
I really enjoyed this book and liked Sara a lot. She’s headstrong and sticks up for what she wants and how she wants to be treated, but not so stubborn that she can’t see when she’s wrong or empathize with how others feel. It was exciting to watch her stick it to the man and fight for what she deserves.
Thank you, @NetGalley, @AvonBooks, @HarperVoyagerUS, and @SuzannePark for my advanced copy.
I really enjoyed this book and liked Sara a lot. She’s headstrong and sticks up for what she wants and how she wants to be treated, but not so stubborn that she can’t see when she’s wrong or empathize with how others feel. It was exciting to watch her stick it to the man and fight for what she deserves.
Thank you, @NetGalley, @AvonBooks, @HarperVoyagerUS, and @SuzannePark for my advanced copy.
2.75! One Last Word is the app that Sara Chae is the founder of which allows a person to write pre-written messages that will be sent out the day they die. Unfortunately for Sara, one night all the messages she wrote on a drunken night were sent out. One of them is her high school crush, Harry, who now is her mentor in a program.
If you’re a fan of To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, this book will definitely be for you! Sara and Harry’s relationship was enjoyable to watch develop. I love knowing that they have a past since high school and it is not a recent development. It was like a second chance story in a sense but more on the unrequited love side.
When it came to Sara. I loved her story because it was so relatable in a lot of ways. She deals with a hostile work environment and overbearing parents. It was great to see her stand up for herself in all aspects of her life by the end. Sadly, I feel like this book fell flat for me. It was a quick read but a lot of development was needed when it came to certain parts of the story and by the end, it felt rushed.
Thank you to NetGalley, Avon, and Harper Voyager for this eARC!
If you’re a fan of To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, this book will definitely be for you! Sara and Harry’s relationship was enjoyable to watch develop. I love knowing that they have a past since high school and it is not a recent development. It was like a second chance story in a sense but more on the unrequited love side.
When it came to Sara. I loved her story because it was so relatable in a lot of ways. She deals with a hostile work environment and overbearing parents. It was great to see her stand up for herself in all aspects of her life by the end. Sadly, I feel like this book fell flat for me. It was a quick read but a lot of development was needed when it came to certain parts of the story and by the end, it felt rushed.
Thank you to NetGalley, Avon, and Harper Voyager for this eARC!
Romance is not my usual genre, but I wanted to give this book a shot. And I really tried. But after cringing my way through 62 pages, I had to stop.
Sara Chae is written like a Relatable Character, not like a person. If you've ever thought of the perfect comeback 4 hours after someone made a rude comment at you, then Sara made that comment in real time. She has the perfect Tumblr girlie-approved quip for everything -- being a woman in a tech company, being Asian, setting boundaries with parents, etc. And I fully support her advocating for herself! But the fact that these very manufactured-feeling situations all happen in quick succession (I counted 4 of these instances in the first 50 pages), she doesn't feel like a real human. She feels too crafted, too Perfect Quippy, that it really comes across as stiff and emotionless writing.
I don't know much about app development, so I can't speak to how realistic any of the tech discussions or the corporate business stuff is, but ultimately I didn't care about that aspect of it, because my eyebrows were too busy escaping into my hairline reading the phrase "lusty messages" only to learn that it was just Taylor Swift lyrics. And not even anything saucy, just bland, standard TSwift. And this was apparently the catalyst for the romance plot? After a page of Sara's sister waxing poetic about what a genius Taylor is, I gritted my way through ten more pages before deciding there was no way I could keep reading.
I didn't bother sticking around long enough to meet Harry. I had no doubt he would be every bit as manufactured and boring as Sara.
Bleh. What a disappointing foray into a new genre.
Sara Chae is written like a Relatable Character, not like a person. If you've ever thought of the perfect comeback 4 hours after someone made a rude comment at you, then Sara made that comment in real time. She has the perfect Tumblr girlie-approved quip for everything -- being a woman in a tech company, being Asian, setting boundaries with parents, etc. And I fully support her advocating for herself! But the fact that these very manufactured-feeling situations all happen in quick succession (I counted 4 of these instances in the first 50 pages), she doesn't feel like a real human. She feels too crafted, too Perfect Quippy, that it really comes across as stiff and emotionless writing.
I don't know much about app development, so I can't speak to how realistic any of the tech discussions or the corporate business stuff is, but ultimately I didn't care about that aspect of it, because my eyebrows were too busy escaping into my hairline reading the phrase "lusty messages" only to learn that it was just Taylor Swift lyrics. And not even anything saucy, just bland, standard TSwift. And this was apparently the catalyst for the romance plot? After a page of Sara's sister waxing poetic about what a genius Taylor is, I gritted my way through ten more pages before deciding there was no way I could keep reading.
I didn't bother sticking around long enough to meet Harry. I had no doubt he would be every bit as manufactured and boring as Sara.
Bleh. What a disappointing foray into a new genre.
Sara created an app called One Last Word where people can write messages to friends and loved ones that are sent after they die. After having no luck with her misogynistic bosses, she quits her job and is accepted into a program that will give her the opportunity to pitch/ develop it on her own. When her new mentor happens to be her high school sweetheart, Sara sets out on a journey to bring her app to life while also following her heart romantically.
I loved how this dived into woman in the tech world and the sexism they face. Along with that, Park brought a lot of Asian culture to the story and highlighted the familial pressure/ expectations Asian women sometimes face. I love how much Sara grew professional as well as how she learned to speak up for herself with her parents. However, while I love a second chance romance, I did not feel the connection between Sara and Harry and thought the rekindling with former best friend was too rushed.
Read if you like:
-Women in Stem
-Start up world
-Fake dating
-Second chance friendships
-Closed door romance
-To All the Boys I Loved Before
I loved how this dived into woman in the tech world and the sexism they face. Along with that, Park brought a lot of Asian culture to the story and highlighted the familial pressure/ expectations Asian women sometimes face. I love how much Sara grew professional as well as how she learned to speak up for herself with her parents. However, while I love a second chance romance, I did not feel the connection between Sara and Harry and thought the rekindling with former best friend was too rushed.
Read if you like:
-Women in Stem
-Start up world
-Fake dating
-Second chance friendships
-Closed door romance
-To All the Boys I Loved Before
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I liked it but didn't love it. What I thought was going to be the main premise of the book ended up not being that significant to the story at all though.
This is the tale of Sara Chae, who walks out of her terrible tech job and starts trying to make her own company; One Last Word, an app that sends messages to your loved ones after your death. Unfortunately early in the process Sara gets wasted and writes a bunch of notes that are then sent out when a DIFFERENT Sara Chae dies. ....And this has almost no bearing on the story. Mostly it's the story of a woman building a company and her high school crush happens to be her mentor.
It was cute at times. But a lot of the time it felt like building a company would; stressful and busy and certainly perfect for someone. Just maybe not me.
This is the tale of Sara Chae, who walks out of her terrible tech job and starts trying to make her own company; One Last Word, an app that sends messages to your loved ones after your death. Unfortunately early in the process Sara gets wasted and writes a bunch of notes that are then sent out when a DIFFERENT Sara Chae dies. ....And this has almost no bearing on the story. Mostly it's the story of a woman building a company and her high school crush happens to be her mentor.
It was cute at times. But a lot of the time it felt like building a company would; stressful and busy and certainly perfect for someone. Just maybe not me.
I want to like Suzanne Park's books more. The premise of her books sound good but the execution is lacking. Her dialogue doesn't sound like how real people would talk. The vast majority of the dialogue is dry. The few funny or clever parts? The author ruins them by explaining her own jokes as if her readers were stupid.
Who are her readers supposed to be? Her characters are supposed to be in their thirties but have the EQ of teenagers. There is character growth in her books but largely because the characters start off so immature that there's nowhere to go but up. Her books have moments of brilliance while others have plot holes so large they're laughable. This one is no different.
Who are her readers supposed to be? Her characters are supposed to be in their thirties but have the EQ of teenagers. There is character growth in her books but largely because the characters start off so immature that there's nowhere to go but up. Her books have moments of brilliance while others have plot holes so large they're laughable. This one is no different.
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced