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A review by jscarpa14
Someone Else's Fairytale by E.M. Tippetts
4.0
The title and appearance of this particular novel gives the appearance that it's something that it isn't. Lately I've been in the mood to read silly contemporary romances preferably leaning toward young adult genre so far removed from real life that their whole purpose is to make you smile. The young adult factor makes it more so because a teen protagonist feels things at a much more exaggerated spectrum than an adult protagonist would. There's nothing heavy about this sort of book and sometimes that's the perfect sort of book for escapism because it's just realistic enough to not feel like fiction but is the ultimate happily ever after. When looking for a book that's meant to be nothing but a mood upper such as this one finding one where a movie star falls for a normal girl fits the bill. In fact it fits the bill so well it doesn't get much sillier. So when I bought this book that's what I was looking for. The cover screams silly unrealistic romance. The thing is in a way it is, but really it isn't that at all. It wasn't what I was looking for at all but the first person narrative from Chloe's point of view had me hooked from the very first page.
The book and the series in general fall more into the lines of romantic suspense or mystery with silly undertones than they do into your typical Cinderella romance. Tippetts presents a broken heroine that is the sort of broken where she doesn't truly realize she's broken. As it's a first person narrative we don't get insight into what the other person is thinking or feeling about her and in the beginning it's not even completely clear who the opposite side of this romantic pair will be. The protagonist is in her early twenties and if anything is the opposite of an emotionally exaggerated teen, her emotions are kind of stilted to the point she doesn't completely recognize them most of the time. She doesn't really understand people or their motives and she doesn't really understand herself either. If what Tippetts was shooting for was a romance the book should have ended when Chloe came to the conclusion that she was truly in love with Jason and then took the necessary steps to get him back. It should have ended with a kiss over ice cream where the two romantic leads declared their love for one another. However this scene while touching in an under done sort of way isn't anywhere near the end of the book. It's probably past the half way point but to be honest I wasn't really keeping track. I just remember that a whole bunch more stuff happens after that.
The book is sort of hard to categorize and pin down as one specific genre because it's not really about a plot, but rather about a character and her emotionally growth throughout the novel. While it's marketed as a love story, I wouldn't really call it that. While it has crime, a criminal and a victim (the protagonist herself) I'm not sure I'd really call it a mystery either. It's more about stepping into the shoes of someone who's learning to recognize emotions both in herself and others. The relationship between Chloe and her messed up mother is in my opinion equally important to the relationships between Chloe and Jason as well as Chloe and Matthew. The relationship between Chloe and Jason's niece Kyra as well as that between Jason himself and Kyra I think bear equal importance in this novel. I didn't turn the pages wondering who is Chloe going to end up with or who exactly slashed Chloe's tires and broke her windows. I turned the pages wondering hmm how is she going to react to this event or that one. I turned the pages wondering if Chloe was going to realize that she never let anyone in and if she was going to learn how to do that.
What makes the story worth reading is that it's different, it's not easily categorized and it reminds you of how broken people can be without realizing that that are. Chloe's character has gone through things that I can't even imagine but at the same time I found myself relating to her so easily. I can relate to not knowing how to react when people you aren't close to try to hug you with being uncomfortable with them in your personal space but not really knowing how to say that their offered comfort has actually only succeeded in making me more uncomfortable. I can relate to over analyzing every situation and wondering if I missed something. She's not easy with affection or good with people and the story is in my opinion about finding the path to that. The character is memorable, and the story with all it's many elements and character interactions is interesting. I guess what I'm trying to say here is what makes the story worth reading is that it's characters and plot lines are different however I feel it's worth pointing out that the story is somewhat marketed as something it's not. It's not a romantic comedy or a Cinderella story where a rich handsome movie star sweeps the girl off her feet. More than anything I think it's about a girl learning that life isn't black and white and how to fit people, real people into her life.
The book and the series in general fall more into the lines of romantic suspense or mystery with silly undertones than they do into your typical Cinderella romance. Tippetts presents a broken heroine that is the sort of broken where she doesn't truly realize she's broken. As it's a first person narrative we don't get insight into what the other person is thinking or feeling about her and in the beginning it's not even completely clear who the opposite side of this romantic pair will be. The protagonist is in her early twenties and if anything is the opposite of an emotionally exaggerated teen, her emotions are kind of stilted to the point she doesn't completely recognize them most of the time. She doesn't really understand people or their motives and she doesn't really understand herself either. If what Tippetts was shooting for was a romance the book should have ended when Chloe came to the conclusion that she was truly in love with Jason and then took the necessary steps to get him back. It should have ended with a kiss over ice cream where the two romantic leads declared their love for one another. However this scene while touching in an under done sort of way isn't anywhere near the end of the book. It's probably past the half way point but to be honest I wasn't really keeping track. I just remember that a whole bunch more stuff happens after that.
The book is sort of hard to categorize and pin down as one specific genre because it's not really about a plot, but rather about a character and her emotionally growth throughout the novel. While it's marketed as a love story, I wouldn't really call it that. While it has crime, a criminal and a victim (the protagonist herself) I'm not sure I'd really call it a mystery either. It's more about stepping into the shoes of someone who's learning to recognize emotions both in herself and others. The relationship between Chloe and her messed up mother is in my opinion equally important to the relationships between Chloe and Jason as well as Chloe and Matthew. The relationship between Chloe and Jason's niece Kyra as well as that between Jason himself and Kyra I think bear equal importance in this novel. I didn't turn the pages wondering who is Chloe going to end up with or who exactly slashed Chloe's tires and broke her windows. I turned the pages wondering hmm how is she going to react to this event or that one. I turned the pages wondering if Chloe was going to realize that she never let anyone in and if she was going to learn how to do that.
What makes the story worth reading is that it's different, it's not easily categorized and it reminds you of how broken people can be without realizing that that are. Chloe's character has gone through things that I can't even imagine but at the same time I found myself relating to her so easily. I can relate to not knowing how to react when people you aren't close to try to hug you with being uncomfortable with them in your personal space but not really knowing how to say that their offered comfort has actually only succeeded in making me more uncomfortable. I can relate to over analyzing every situation and wondering if I missed something. She's not easy with affection or good with people and the story is in my opinion about finding the path to that. The character is memorable, and the story with all it's many elements and character interactions is interesting. I guess what I'm trying to say here is what makes the story worth reading is that it's characters and plot lines are different however I feel it's worth pointing out that the story is somewhat marketed as something it's not. It's not a romantic comedy or a Cinderella story where a rich handsome movie star sweeps the girl off her feet. More than anything I think it's about a girl learning that life isn't black and white and how to fit people, real people into her life.