reviewsbysam - Tumblr blog

reviewsbysam · 4 years

Text

Again, but Better

No Spoilers in this section!

Again, but Better is the debut novel of popular booktuber Christine Riccio aka polandbananasbooks. It is a fun, fast read and overall I found to be enjoyable.

Without giving too much away, this is a story about Shane. She is an introverted 20 year old who feels as though she has been denied the full college experience due to her introversion. She decides to try and turn this all around by going to London and studying abroad.

I feel as though Christine still has room for growth for her future books, but from the cover art, to the concept, to the title I thought this was a clever and impressive attempt at a first book.

For a more detailed look of what I loved (and what I didn’t as much) scroll to below this picture. Spoilers below!!!

This section is full of spoilers!!! You have been warned!

I have watched Christine’s youtube channel for years so I was a tad nervous going into this book. I was nervous that I would not enjoy this book by a newbie author, but that was (thankfully) not the case. While reading I did find things that bothered me within the writing. This included the reoccurring use of describing Shane’s talking as “squeaking” at one point in the book and the constant use of exclamation marks in the dialogue. At first, these things seemed to stick out to me; however, once I got immersed into the story I noticed none of it. I was focused on the content rather than her writing style, which I personally believe to be the sign of a good author. I have seen that others disagree, but I enjoyed the flow of her writing. Overall, I was impressed by the writing itself.

One thing I did not like as much were some of the times in which Shane was portrayed as clumsy. Immediately upon arriving she falls down the stairs and almost walks out into traffic. Both of these instances felt a little too cliche. I understand that it is a rom-com and cliches will be present to an extent, but I felt as though more subtle or creative ways could have been used to drive the point home.

I found Shane to be a likable character. It is clear that Shane is based upon Christine herself. She even admits in this in the authors note. I know some people have found a problem with this, but I didn’t at all. It felt like an easter egg hunt while reading the book to spot the similarities, which made it all the more enjoyable. It also made Shane feel more like a genuine character.

Many many many references were made to music/books/tv that Shane (and Christine) was a fan of. There were references to Lost, Harry Potter, Cassandra Clare, Taylor Swift, The Hunger Games, The Beatles, and more. As someone who is a fan of many of these topics I was excited when they were mentioned. When Pilot and Shane discuss All Too Well by Taylor Swift I felt like I might explode. My inner dialogue was somewhere along the lines of “Omg Taylor Swift again, cool. All too well? All too well! I can’t believe they are talking about the masterpiece that is All too well in this book!” That being said, I feel as though there were possibly too many references in the book. I understand why they were included, but they probably are not as fun to read for people who are not fans of those topics. This is especially true because so many of the references were part of major plot points. An Albus Dumbledore quote written on the inside cover of the Prisoner of Azkaban was a huge part in reigniting the motivation of Shane. The climax of the book in which Shane and Pilot decide to stay in 2011 is marked by him randomly appearing and playing State of Grace, Stay Stay, Stay, and You Belong With Me on the guitar. These were critical moments within the story. I also worry that having so many current references wont age well if people decide to read this book later down the line. However, having Pilot serenade me with Taylor Swift songs would also be a major swoon moment for me, so I am not complaining.

One of the highlights of the book for me was the travel. Reading about our characters’ time in Rome left me googling pictures of it for hours after reading. The Palace of Versailles is a major point on my bucket list and reading about it was wonderful. Christine did an excellent job painting a beautiful and enticing picture of what it could be like traveling abroad and visiting different countries on the weekends. For people who love to travel, or dream of doing so, living vicariously through Shane is a delight. For this reason, I favored the front half of the book. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, the way those parts were written. Now, don’t mind me casually looking up the study abroad options my college offers.

Somehow I have made it very far into this review without mentioning the romance at all. In reality, Pilot was mostly likable because of how we saw him through Shane’s eyes. Their witty banter was fun and I truly did feel the connection between the two of them. That being said, he had a girlfriend!!! He put Shane in the horrible position of falling for him (because yes he could have put a lid on it right in the beginning) and then making her feel guilty and hopeless because she didn’t want to be “the other woman.” It was upsetting considering he didn’t even feel much for Amy and stayed with her for six. more. years. Then, he goes MIA when Shane needed him most. He did try to keep her parents from finding out about her lying to them, but then after the fact, when the damage was done, he didn’t give her the support she needed from her friend. Pilot is not all bad though and I did like him throughout the book. It’s just in hindsight he handled things poorly. Although, that was probably the point considering this was all during Take One when things went badly and hence why they needed to be done again, but better. In fact, it made for a much clearer juxtaposition between their first time in 2011 and their 2011/2017 selves, because the second time around Amy was (for the most part) out of the picture. Additionally, I loved how much Pilot really did seem to care for her. He shined in the moments that he tried to distract her when she was upset and helped her through crisis (such as when she lost her purse and almost got mugged).

There are moments of the book I wish we could have expanded upon more. I loved when the whole gang would get together. Babe seemed like an amazing best friend to have! I was left wanting to know more about Leo and his story. I thought it was a very good little twist when Shane messaged him back the second time around and we found out he needed her more than she needed him. His character became much more 3 dimensional, but I was still left wanting more of him. Also, when Chad (more on him later) kissed Shane, I felt like that was a big moment. I felt as though the story kind of brushed by it. I couldn’t believe that Shane wasn’t more upset with how poorly her first kiss had gone or that Pilot wasn’t more upset about it.

I though the touch of magic in the book was nice, but could have used a tad more explanation. I guess that’s the thing about magic, its a mystery.

Now, circling back to Chad. He was the most stereotypical douche guy ever. This felt intentional on Christine’s part so it didn’t bother me. His character seemed to even border on satirical. The fact that she used the name Chad which is often used to make jokes about frat guys who say “bro” and just care about drinking... hilarious. It felt like an inside joke with the reader.

Another really comical thing from the book were the deleted scenes. The cover of Wrecking Ball was already funny, and the girls who were fans of it scoffing at Miley Cyrus’ version made it even better. It felt like a good choice to leave it out of the book, but I’m glad it was included at the end.

Overall, the thing that made me happiest in the book was that although it was a romance it did not make romance the center of Shane’s life. She was a driven character with dreams and ambition. She wasn’t just a brainless lovestruck girl sitting around thinking about Pilot. When Shane began not putting enough focus on her career because of Pilot, she left him. During this time we didn’t read about Pilot at all. She worked hard, was focused, and flourished. She spent more time with her friends and continued to travel. It was such an amazing message for girls and is one of the main reasons I thought Shane was a great main character. Pilot also valued her success over their relationship. When he saw that she got published he continued to stay away from her so that she could continue killing the game without him as a distraction. In the end they were able to find a balance between romance and work including reading dates (something I loved because I regularly do it with my boyfriend) which I thought was really important. Her becoming a successful writer was just as big of a deal as her ending up with the guy. She also cared about his success which was sweet. Shane motivated Pilot to start a Youtube channel and gain exposure. Apparently it worked because when he stays with her Pilot ends up achieving his dreams, unlike when he ended up with Amy the first time.

All in all I was happy with this book. i obviously had a lot to say about it and forced myself to stop here. Overall, I give it an 80%. I can’t wait to read Christine’s next book and to see how she improves as a writer.

I’d love to know what you though about it!

#again but better #review #YA novel

0 notes