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A review by bigdreamsandwildthings
Anna K: Away by Jenny Lee
3.0
I listened to the audiobook of this, and I cannot recall one memorable quote, so alas, my usual review format is out of my grasp. But that's pretty indicative of how I felt about this one overall. I liked it well enough while I was listening, but overall...it was pretty forgettable.
Anna K is recovering from the death of her lover, Alexia Vronsky. She is planning a summer in Seoul to get away from her hometown and try to move on with her life, but everything reminds her of him, and she wants to share her adventures only with him. Meanwhile, Bea is in LA, and she has found a new surfer girl beau, though she still blames Anna for Vronsky's death. Lolly, Stephen, Kimmie, Dustin, the gang is all back, and ready for the best summer ever - or at least the one filled with the most drama possible.
These books really are pure escapism. Like imagine being a spoiled rich person, and what you'd do if you had no conscience and access to all the money in the world. That's what these characters do. And there's absolutely a part of me that revels in imagining these things. The grand scale of everything in this world is mind-boggling and fun, and if you just lose yourself in that sense of wonder and incredulity, they are a lot of fun to read.
That said, this one just wasn't as engaging for me. I found Anna to be the best part of the first book, and here, she's grieving, but also, somehow, having like, the coolest summer ever? And she doesn't ever recognize it? She meets a K-pop star and gets famous in Korea and meets the coolest new friend and parties at the coolest nightclubs, and I know it's all just coping for her, but damn, I just wanted to shake her. She's so blah, and that makes it harder to read about her.
And everyone else is just on the same bullshit as book one. Lolly and Stephen are annoying and don't develop at all; Kimmie and Dustin take a major backseat, and it's like their storyline about sex is in there just to make up for them having absolutely no story otherwise. I liked Dean, and Lolly's time at the acting camp, but overall, nothing special happens with any of these guys. Bea's story is a bit more interesting, but I dislike her intensely as a character, so that made it harder to sympathize with her at all. She is every terrible spoiled rich girl stereotype rolled up into one.
And plot-wise...that ending. I thought maybe we'd get a kind of repeat of book one, but then, after almost no buildup...nothing. Very unsatisfying tbh.
I didn't hate this all the way through, though. I did like being swept up in the drama of it all, and like I said, it is nice to just escape into a world where your problems don't have anything to do with money. But this was just an inconsequential read for me at the end of it all.
Anna K is recovering from the death of her lover, Alexia Vronsky. She is planning a summer in Seoul to get away from her hometown and try to move on with her life, but everything reminds her of him, and she wants to share her adventures only with him. Meanwhile, Bea is in LA, and she has found a new surfer girl beau, though she still blames Anna for Vronsky's death. Lolly, Stephen, Kimmie, Dustin, the gang is all back, and ready for the best summer ever - or at least the one filled with the most drama possible.
These books really are pure escapism. Like imagine being a spoiled rich person, and what you'd do if you had no conscience and access to all the money in the world. That's what these characters do. And there's absolutely a part of me that revels in imagining these things. The grand scale of everything in this world is mind-boggling and fun, and if you just lose yourself in that sense of wonder and incredulity, they are a lot of fun to read.
That said, this one just wasn't as engaging for me. I found Anna to be the best part of the first book, and here, she's grieving, but also, somehow, having like, the coolest summer ever? And she doesn't ever recognize it? She meets a K-pop star and gets famous in Korea and meets the coolest new friend and parties at the coolest nightclubs, and I know it's all just coping for her, but damn, I just wanted to shake her. She's so blah, and that makes it harder to read about her.
And everyone else is just on the same bullshit as book one. Lolly and Stephen are annoying and don't develop at all; Kimmie and Dustin take a major backseat, and it's like their storyline about sex is in there just to make up for them having absolutely no story otherwise. I liked Dean, and Lolly's time at the acting camp, but overall, nothing special happens with any of these guys. Bea's story is a bit more interesting, but I dislike her intensely as a character, so that made it harder to sympathize with her at all. She is every terrible spoiled rich girl stereotype rolled up into one.
And plot-wise...that ending. I thought maybe we'd get a kind of repeat of book one, but then, after almost no buildup...nothing. Very unsatisfying tbh.
I didn't hate this all the way through, though. I did like being swept up in the drama of it all, and like I said, it is nice to just escape into a world where your problems don't have anything to do with money. But this was just an inconsequential read for me at the end of it all.