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A review by joyousreads132
First & Then by Emma Mills
3.0
I have wanted to read this book since it made its rounds in the blogosphere. With a cover that speaks of a fun contemporary read, how could I pass up the opportunity? While the plot itself isn’t all that ground-breaking, I thought the book was had its moments.
Falling in love with your best friend
Kind of a tiresome story arch, isn’t it? Especially knowing before hand that there’ll be another person in the picture sooner or later. Well, Devon Tennyson finds herself in this situation. Pining for her best friend Cas is such an inconvenience. Considering Cas has always treated her like his buddy, and have flaunted his ability to attract any girls that he wanted in her face. But such is her life. You can say that Devon is a tired, 18-year-old who was going through the motions of high school life until she can get the heck out of dodge.
With her fourteen-year-old cousin moving in to their house permanently, she also didn’t want to be saddled with a boy who trails her like a shadow. All that is about to change after the star of their football team took a shining to Foster, her cousin.
Friday Night Lights
Football is a big deal in their town. and with Ezra Lynley at the helm of stardom, the madness is amped to another level. When he took Devon’s cousin under his wings, Foster becomes an instant celebrity. But Devon can’t stand him. He’s surly, under appreciative of his celebrity status, and his drive to succeed hopelessly annoys Devon.
Pride & Prejudice
If you’re going into this book thinking it’s a retelling of Austen’s P & P, you’ll be disappointed. It is not a retelling. It may be loosely based on P & P, but you won’t find similarities between Ezra and Darcy. With that being said, I thought Mills made a good decision not to give us yet another retelling of P & P. Goodness knows, there’s a whole slew of them out there. Though, come to think of it, Ezra and Darcy were both socially awkward, so in that regard, I can agree. Devon shares Lizzie’s frankness from time to time, but she is not completely opinionated as Lizzie ever were. She’s got a dry wit, but she’s so quick to judge.
In Retrospect
It was a mildly enjoyable book. It wasn’t nearly as wonderful as I’d hoped it would be, but it was still cute. It had some scenes that made my chest ache, but not to the point that it conjured up tears. Devon was a little hard to take at first – I was never a fan of characters who can’t seem to find anything to be happy about in her milieu. And like a said, her judgement against the other girls who are not like her was a bit tiresome. She did grow up a little, and I especially enjoyed it more once she’s accepted Foster as her brother.
Falling in love with your best friend
Kind of a tiresome story arch, isn’t it? Especially knowing before hand that there’ll be another person in the picture sooner or later. Well, Devon Tennyson finds herself in this situation. Pining for her best friend Cas is such an inconvenience. Considering Cas has always treated her like his buddy, and have flaunted his ability to attract any girls that he wanted in her face. But such is her life. You can say that Devon is a tired, 18-year-old who was going through the motions of high school life until she can get the heck out of dodge.
With her fourteen-year-old cousin moving in to their house permanently, she also didn’t want to be saddled with a boy who trails her like a shadow. All that is about to change after the star of their football team took a shining to Foster, her cousin.
Friday Night Lights
Football is a big deal in their town. and with Ezra Lynley at the helm of stardom, the madness is amped to another level. When he took Devon’s cousin under his wings, Foster becomes an instant celebrity. But Devon can’t stand him. He’s surly, under appreciative of his celebrity status, and his drive to succeed hopelessly annoys Devon.
Pride & Prejudice
If you’re going into this book thinking it’s a retelling of Austen’s P & P, you’ll be disappointed. It is not a retelling. It may be loosely based on P & P, but you won’t find similarities between Ezra and Darcy. With that being said, I thought Mills made a good decision not to give us yet another retelling of P & P. Goodness knows, there’s a whole slew of them out there. Though, come to think of it, Ezra and Darcy were both socially awkward, so in that regard, I can agree. Devon shares Lizzie’s frankness from time to time, but she is not completely opinionated as Lizzie ever were. She’s got a dry wit, but she’s so quick to judge.
In Retrospect
It was a mildly enjoyable book. It wasn’t nearly as wonderful as I’d hoped it would be, but it was still cute. It had some scenes that made my chest ache, but not to the point that it conjured up tears. Devon was a little hard to take at first – I was never a fan of characters who can’t seem to find anything to be happy about in her milieu. And like a said, her judgement against the other girls who are not like her was a bit tiresome. She did grow up a little, and I especially enjoyed it more once she’s accepted Foster as her brother.