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3.04 AVERAGE
3.04 AVERAGE
So horribly bad. I had to force myself to finish this. The author was super young when she wrote this and I tried to keep that in mind while reading, but it was just so awful I couldn’t handle it.
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book is story of friendship, love , trust, and relationship that we have to choose and maintain forever. Elle being friends from childhood with Lee had a secret crush on his elder brother Noah who treat her like more than friends and help her away from problem , he is protective about her and Don't want her to make herself fool infront of everyone , but things change when they set up a fund raising The kissing booth and unintentionally Noah and Elle kiss each other and then a hot Romance phase came to life but when Lee came to know about it, he felt cheated and berated his brother and best friend but soon he realise that things are not the same and both are in love and here the story ends as Noah left for Harvard University Boston in IV league school for studies and career.
Who knew all this started with a kissing booth...
Elle & Lee have been BFFs since birth - they even share the same birthday - and have been there for each other through all the highs and lows. Growing up alongside them is Lee's older bother Noah, who's always prone to getting into fights and being a little hot tempered. He's not just hot tempered, he's hot, full stop. Every guy wants to be Noah and every girl wants to be with him. Well, except Elle. Kind of. Because Elle would be lying if she didn't have just a little crush on him. Because to Noah, she'd just be his geeky younger brother's best friend. Who's never been kissed. So naturally, the girl who's never been kissed is the one running the kissing booth at the school carnival. And then it happens - Noah kisses her. Soon, she's in a secret relationship with Noah. Secret, because if her father found out he'd seriously disapprove. But more importantly, if Lee finds out it will crush in. Because even though Lee knows that Elle kind of has a crush on Noah, he also knows that Noah is a player and isn't the guy for his best friend.
So I did a terrible thing - I read The Kissing Booth AFTER watching the Netflix film. I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself! But, I have no regrets because I seriously enjoyed both of them (enough to warrant me watching the film three times in like four days...). But enough about the film - we are here to talk about the book that inspired the film.
As a fan of cute YA & NA romances, I really enjoyed diving into this. I'm actually surprised that I hadn't heard of it before the film was announced - I would have loved this when I was actually in high school. But even as a 22-year-old, I still loved reading the story and following Elle's journey. Granted, there were elements that my 22-year-old self picked up on that teenage me probably would have glossed over - more on that soon.
Firstly, I really enjoyed Lee and Elle's friendship. Their scenes were super fun and always put on a smile on my face. As much as I love romance, it's friendships like this that I want to see more of in young adult novels. It's one of those friendships that are just so fun to read - they could literally be watching paint dry but it'd be fun. PLUS, it's a friendship that doesn't end up becoming a romance - WE NEED MORE LIKE THIS. Although, let's be honest, I kind of did want sparks to fly between Lee and Elle (is there a fanfic of it, because I need to read it!).
When it comes to Noah and Elle's relationship, I did really enjoy their journey. Of course, there were times when things just weren't right - like the whole thing about Noah keeping guys away from Elle, only to then profess that he has feelings for her. But overall, in the end, their relationship wasn't terrible or wrong, there were just some parts that could have been written differently or expanded upon.
The only problem I have is the ending! While I really appreciated how Beth wrote Elle's feelings towards her relationship with Noah - that he may not be forever, but that she's glad he is her first love - it felt like Beth was setting up for a possible sequel. After everything we had gone through with these characters throughout the book, it felt like a bit of an anticlimactic ending, especially because there isn't a sequel. However, with the book and film's popularity, I'm hoping that Beth will turn about and continue this story to give these characters the ending they deserve. While there may not be a sequel, there is a companion novel, The Beach House, which takes place during the events near the end of this novel.
Overall, contemporary and romance fans will really enjoy this book - if you're in high school, even better. If you liked the film, definitely give the book a read - it's pretty much what you get to see onscreen, with some bonus content (kind of like deleted scenes on a DVD).
Elle & Lee have been BFFs since birth - they even share the same birthday - and have been there for each other through all the highs and lows. Growing up alongside them is Lee's older bother Noah, who's always prone to getting into fights and being a little hot tempered. He's not just hot tempered, he's hot, full stop. Every guy wants to be Noah and every girl wants to be with him. Well, except Elle. Kind of. Because Elle would be lying if she didn't have just a little crush on him. Because to Noah, she'd just be his geeky younger brother's best friend. Who's never been kissed. So naturally, the girl who's never been kissed is the one running the kissing booth at the school carnival. And then it happens - Noah kisses her. Soon, she's in a secret relationship with Noah. Secret, because if her father found out he'd seriously disapprove. But more importantly, if Lee finds out it will crush in. Because even though Lee knows that Elle kind of has a crush on Noah, he also knows that Noah is a player and isn't the guy for his best friend.
So I did a terrible thing - I read The Kissing Booth AFTER watching the Netflix film. I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself! But, I have no regrets because I seriously enjoyed both of them (enough to warrant me watching the film three times in like four days...). But enough about the film - we are here to talk about the book that inspired the film.
As a fan of cute YA & NA romances, I really enjoyed diving into this. I'm actually surprised that I hadn't heard of it before the film was announced - I would have loved this when I was actually in high school. But even as a 22-year-old, I still loved reading the story and following Elle's journey. Granted, there were elements that my 22-year-old self picked up on that teenage me probably would have glossed over - more on that soon.
Firstly, I really enjoyed Lee and Elle's friendship. Their scenes were super fun and always put on a smile on my face. As much as I love romance, it's friendships like this that I want to see more of in young adult novels. It's one of those friendships that are just so fun to read - they could literally be watching paint dry but it'd be fun. PLUS, it's a friendship that doesn't end up becoming a romance - WE NEED MORE LIKE THIS. Although, let's be honest, I kind of did want sparks to fly between Lee and Elle (is there a fanfic of it, because I need to read it!).
When it comes to Noah and Elle's relationship, I did really enjoy their journey. Of course, there were times when things just weren't right - like the whole thing about Noah keeping guys away from Elle, only to then profess that he has feelings for her. But overall, in the end, their relationship wasn't terrible or wrong, there were just some parts that could have been written differently or expanded upon.
The only problem I have is the ending! While I really appreciated how Beth wrote Elle's feelings towards her relationship with Noah - that he may not be forever, but that she's glad he is her first love - it felt like Beth was setting up for a possible sequel. After everything we had gone through with these characters throughout the book, it felt like a bit of an anticlimactic ending, especially because there isn't a sequel. However, with the book and film's popularity, I'm hoping that Beth will turn about and continue this story to give these characters the ending they deserve. While there may not be a sequel, there is a companion novel, The Beach House, which takes place during the events near the end of this novel.
Overall, contemporary and romance fans will really enjoy this book - if you're in high school, even better. If you liked the film, definitely give the book a read - it's pretty much what you get to see onscreen, with some bonus content (kind of like deleted scenes on a DVD).
It’s hard to rate this book because I watched the movie first. I really liked the book (5/5 stars) but it’s just so different from the movie so idk how to feel.
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I honestly can't tell if I enjoyed this better than the movie or not. I really enjoyed that they didn't have the stupid "best friends rules" thing but Noah was also a lot more toxic in the book, I feel. It definitely read like a teenager writing fanfiction. It didn't bother me at first- I actually kind of liked it (the book equivalent of it's so bad it's good) but we cycled through seemingly all the tropes and every two seconds I felt like we were going through another cycle of emotion and plot and it just got to be tiring.
I watched the first movie 2 years ago on Netflix and recently I saw ('hate-watch' might be more accurate) the sequel and I mean... they were bad... both movies are very entertaining, but they are in no way 'good'. Anyway, once I read it was originally a 15 years old's Wattpad story I was slightly intrigued, especially once I saw it was available as an e-book in my library...
So, I read it. And I must say, it's a lot better than I expected! Clearly, it's not mind-blowing or even mildly surprising (and there are a couple of (very) problematic elements, but it was really not as bad as I expected! In some way, I'd even argue that it was better than the movie! (one of the most annoying things in the movie was Elle and Lee's weird obsession with the rules and Lee's frankly dickish behaviour as a consequence of those rules, but the rules weren't there in the book and Lee's character was a lot better and likeable in the book! (maybe because Elle is less likeable in the book as a result)).
Despite these (relative) positives, I can't help but share this memorable and horrible line from the book which makes me drop it from maybe 3 to definitely 2 stars:
"'They [my parents] were trying to help, I know that. But the thing is...' He sighed a little. 'They tried, but they failed miserably. I'm a bad boy and always will be.' "
Anyway, I was wheezing, but entertained!
So, I read it. And I must say, it's a lot better than I expected! Clearly, it's not mind-blowing or even mildly surprising (and there are a couple of (very) problematic elements, but it was really not as bad as I expected! In some way, I'd even argue that it was better than the movie! (one of the most annoying things in the movie was Elle and Lee's weird obsession with the rules and Lee's frankly dickish behaviour as a consequence of those rules, but the rules weren't there in the book and Lee's character was a lot better and likeable in the book! (maybe because Elle is less likeable in the book as a result)).
Despite these (relative) positives, I can't help but share this memorable and horrible line from the book which makes me drop it from maybe 3 to definitely 2 stars:
"'They [my parents] were trying to help, I know that. But the thing is...' He sighed a little. 'They tried, but they failed miserably. I'm a bad boy and always will be.' "
Anyway, I was wheezing, but entertained!
The Kissing Booth by Beth Reekles is a sweet, fluffy read that is a lot of fun! This book focuses on the growing relationship between Rochelle and her best friend's "bad boy" brother, Noah. She has to hide the relationship from her best friend, Lee, but is risking her friendship with Lee worth dating Noah?
I originally read this book on Wattpad when it was completed and loved it, the published version was a great improvement. The book isn't amazing or life-changing but is really cute and just a light read you can get through very quickly. The character development isn't great and neither is Beth's writing style but she wrote this at a young age and is very impressive, I'm excited to read her next book, which is also an original Wattpad book "Rolling Dice".
I originally read this book on Wattpad when it was completed and loved it, the published version was a great improvement. The book isn't amazing or life-changing but is really cute and just a light read you can get through very quickly. The character development isn't great and neither is Beth's writing style but she wrote this at a young age and is very impressive, I'm excited to read her next book, which is also an original Wattpad book "Rolling Dice".