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A review by angelicasreads
It Had to Be You by Lizzy Charles
3.0
This book was so cute and fluffy, and I loved it! I needed a book like this to read during finals and get my mind off actual work.
I am a huge fan of fake romance turned true love stories. As cliched and cheesy as they are, I cannot help but enjoy their drama.
This book was adorable and a surprisingly quick read. It follows Edelweiss and James, a quiet girl going to school for the first time, and the most popular guy on campus. With that alone, I knew I was going to enjoy this novel.
Edelweiss (Edel for short) has lived all around the globe with her diplomat parents. Now, for the first time, she is going to go to an actual school, Brokemore Academy, and she has with her a list of things she wants to complete to have officially lived a good high school experience. Among those things are:
-Make the type of friends who will laugh with you until you cry or cry with you until you laugh
-Stay up all night long binging Netflix with my roommate
-Give a speech
And the most important:
-Fall in love and break up
Enter James, charming, handsome, and resident bad boy at Brokemore. His dad is in the military and has traveled the world to do his duty. Sadly, this means that he has left James behind to be raised by his aunt with the hopes of giving him a normal life. And while James is thankful, all he really wants is his father’s attention and to make him proud.
And then, James runs into Edle (literally), and sparks (and a little bit of pizza) fly.
In order to please James dad, and give Edel a sense of security at the new school, the two make a deal, pretend to date each other through the semester. With the bargain struck, a friendship starts to build, and soon, something else starts to form beneath. But what I liked more than the romance was the characters.
I like they are each their own person. Many times in YA romance novels the characters are only half people, needed their other half to be a full person. I don’t like that. Here, both James and Edel know what they want and who they are. They are strong minded and loyal, and good. James especially, I felt was a very well developed character. Usually, the male lead’s personality revolves around being handsome and tough. James, on the other hand, was such a nice guy who genuinely loved his family and truly did everything in his power to make his father happy.
I also loved all of the side characters. Julie was great, I love seeing good depictions of adults in YA. So many times are adults two-dimensional idiots or heartless jerks in YA. And then there is Ainsley, I want more of her story. I want to know what happens next with her, which is why I am glad that there will be more to this series.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I read it all in one night and could not put it down. Admittedly, it took me a bit to truly get into it, but once I did, I was hooked. Great novel!
Also, just cause, let’s give a hand up for this super awesomely adorable interracial couple. Honestly, the people on the cover was what really pulled me in and made me want to read it. I need more books like this in YA contemporary!
**I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.**
I am a huge fan of fake romance turned true love stories. As cliched and cheesy as they are, I cannot help but enjoy their drama.
This book was adorable and a surprisingly quick read. It follows Edelweiss and James, a quiet girl going to school for the first time, and the most popular guy on campus. With that alone, I knew I was going to enjoy this novel.
Edelweiss (Edel for short) has lived all around the globe with her diplomat parents. Now, for the first time, she is going to go to an actual school, Brokemore Academy, and she has with her a list of things she wants to complete to have officially lived a good high school experience. Among those things are:
-Make the type of friends who will laugh with you until you cry or cry with you until you laugh
-Stay up all night long binging Netflix with my roommate
-Give a speech
And the most important:
-Fall in love and break up
Enter James, charming, handsome, and resident bad boy at Brokemore. His dad is in the military and has traveled the world to do his duty. Sadly, this means that he has left James behind to be raised by his aunt with the hopes of giving him a normal life. And while James is thankful, all he really wants is his father’s attention and to make him proud.
And then, James runs into Edle (literally), and sparks (and a little bit of pizza) fly.
In order to please James dad, and give Edel a sense of security at the new school, the two make a deal, pretend to date each other through the semester. With the bargain struck, a friendship starts to build, and soon, something else starts to form beneath. But what I liked more than the romance was the characters.
I like they are each their own person. Many times in YA romance novels the characters are only half people, needed their other half to be a full person. I don’t like that. Here, both James and Edel know what they want and who they are. They are strong minded and loyal, and good. James especially, I felt was a very well developed character. Usually, the male lead’s personality revolves around being handsome and tough. James, on the other hand, was such a nice guy who genuinely loved his family and truly did everything in his power to make his father happy.
I also loved all of the side characters. Julie was great, I love seeing good depictions of adults in YA. So many times are adults two-dimensional idiots or heartless jerks in YA. And then there is Ainsley, I want more of her story. I want to know what happens next with her, which is why I am glad that there will be more to this series.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I read it all in one night and could not put it down. Admittedly, it took me a bit to truly get into it, but once I did, I was hooked. Great novel!
Also, just cause, let’s give a hand up for this super awesomely adorable interracial couple. Honestly, the people on the cover was what really pulled me in and made me want to read it. I need more books like this in YA contemporary!
**I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.**