Saturday, June 27, 2015

Review: The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi

Title: The Night We Said Yes
Author: Lauren Gibaldi
Publisher: HarperTeen
Age Group: Young Adult
Category: Contemporary Romance
Release date: June 16th, 2015
Pages: 304 (eGalley)
Rating: 3 out of 5
Source: Edelweiss
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Before Matt, Ella had a plan. Get over a no-good ex-boyfriend. Graduate from high school without any more distractions. Move away from Orlando, Florida, where she’s lived her entire life. 

But Matt—the cute, shy, bespectacled bass player who just moved to town—was never part of that plan. 

And neither was attending a party that was crashed by the cops just minutes after they arrived. Or spending an entire night saying “yes” to every crazy, fun thing they could think of. 

Then Matt abruptly left town, and he broke not only Ella’s heart but those of their best friends, too. So when he shows up a year later with a plan of his own—to relive the night that brought them together—Ella isn’t sure whether Matt’s worth a second chance. Or if re-creating the past can help them create a different future.

One summer night, Ella meets a boy who turns her world upside down. They share 12 hours together that they'll never forget, a night that sparks a romance between the two that lasts for months, but then Matt leaves without so much as a goodbye.  Everyone who grew fond of Matt feels his betrayal, but not like Ella.  Without closure, she can't move on.  When Matt returns, everyone struggles to forget the past 6 months and the pain they were put through when he disappeared, so they decide to relive the night that they said yes to everything.

This book takes place over the span of one night, but the chapters alternate between Then and Now.  Seeing how the characters have changed now that so much has happened between them kept me interested.  I wanted to find out why Matt just left and cut off all contact with his friends the way that he did, because I could definitely relate to Ella.  As for the characters, I felt that most of them were just a little immature for me to really connect with.

The Night We Said Yes took me almost a month to get through, despite being a shorter book.  When I picked it up, nothing stood out.  Once I finally finished it, I felt that it was a good story, but there are just more exciting books that I could have been reading instead.  While Ella and Matt were the sweet couple, Meg and Jake were the most interesting to read about.  Their relationship wasn't the healthiest, but they had the kind of romance that you hope the best for.

Overall, this was a nice story about four best friends, second chances, and a night of fond memories.  Saying "yes" to everything is what originally brought them all together, so when they're given the opportunity to relive the best moments, they see if it helps them remember what they'd forgotten.

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