drakitha's review against another edition
5.0
This book was quick and adorable. I liked the characters and found them pretty accurate to when I was a senior in High School. Thank you Owl Crate!
thebookishlibrarian's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book! I also love that the author is a librarian (so am I!) but that's besides the point. I love how the book was written half in the past and half in the present; there are "then" chapters and "now" chapters. I just loved the characters and I really connected with them. The book left me with the song "21 Guns" by Green Day stuck in my head. I can't wait until she writes more!
carolinethereader's review against another edition
2.0
OKAY so I am actually giving this 2.5/5 stars. I rounded the rating down because three stars felt a little bit too generous and there were quite a few things that bothered me about this book. I was really excited when I got this in my OwlCrate last month because the synopsis sounds adorable and said it was about friendship which is always nice. I enjoyed this book just enough to keep me reading.. I'm just gonna fill this review with the things I found frustrating so here we go.
First, it bothered me that this debut novel was marketed as a story of romance and friendship because honestly those elements were meh. The friendship between Meg and Ella was sweet and believable enough, they seemed to really complement each other. That was the only relationship that I found to be authentic; all the others felt forced. The romance of this story was, admittedly, lovely. Having it conveyed through then and now chapters was a really sweet way of telling the story.
The two romantic relationships which are most heavily focussed on (Jake and Meg, and Matt and Ella) both seemed toxic to me. In one you have the stereotypical lead singer of a band who flirts with anything with boobs and the girlfriend who just puts up with it. They break up and then they are back together.. but it's okay because that's how their relationship works. Like no. That's not healthy.
Then there's Matt and Ella who I honestly found so frustrating. I can't deny that they were a cute couple in the 'then' chapters because I think they were adorable. Matt just leaves though and it breaks her heart. It would have been okay if this story was about her other friends helping her get through such a tumultuous time but nope. He comes back and she is so quick to let him back into her life because she is just drawn to him and she missed him. She yells at him a little bit, getting it out of her system and then la-de-fucking-da things are okay again.
This brings me to my second flaw in this book: it was predictable. I know it was meant to just be a cute fluff story but I knew what was going to happen just from reading the blurb which really diminished my enjoyment. When a story is that easy to predict, it becomes boring.
The final thing that annoyed me were some of the cliched analogies that were made. Two in particular stand out:
1. Ella playing a video game and drawing parallels between the character she is playing in the zombie game and herself.
"I watch my video game character get eaten and stabbed. And instead of flinching or mourning, I accept his damage and move on, as I should have half a year ago..."
Like I get that she is reflecting on herself but using a video game to inspire this introspection seems meh.
2. (This one occurs at the very end so obviously don't read if you don't want to know)
Anyway I got that out of my system. This book isn't bad, but I do not think it is great either. It was fun to read because of all the dares and the light-hearted humour but as a whole it felt a little bit too 'high school drama'.
First, it bothered me that this debut novel was marketed as a story of romance and friendship because honestly those elements were meh. The friendship between Meg and Ella was sweet and believable enough, they seemed to really complement each other. That was the only relationship that I found to be authentic; all the others felt forced. The romance of this story was, admittedly, lovely. Having it conveyed through then and now chapters was a really sweet way of telling the story.
The two romantic relationships which are most heavily focussed on (Jake and Meg, and Matt and Ella) both seemed toxic to me. In one you have the stereotypical lead singer of a band who flirts with anything with boobs and the girlfriend who just puts up with it. They break up and then they are back together.. but it's okay because that's how their relationship works. Like no. That's not healthy.
Then there's Matt and Ella who I honestly found so frustrating. I can't deny that they were a cute couple in the 'then' chapters because I think they were adorable. Matt just leaves though and it breaks her heart. It would have been okay if this story was about her other friends helping her get through such a tumultuous time but nope. He comes back and she is so quick to let him back into her life because she is just drawn to him and she missed him. She yells at him a little bit, getting it out of her system and then la-de-fucking-da things are okay again.
This brings me to my second flaw in this book: it was predictable. I know it was meant to just be a cute fluff story but I knew what was going to happen just from reading the blurb which really diminished my enjoyment. When a story is that easy to predict, it becomes boring.
The final thing that annoyed me were some of the cliched analogies that were made. Two in particular stand out:
1. Ella playing a video game and drawing parallels between the character she is playing in the zombie game and herself.
"I watch my video game character get eaten and stabbed. And instead of flinching or mourning, I accept his damage and move on, as I should have half a year ago..."
Like I get that she is reflecting on herself but using a video game to inspire this introspection seems meh.
2. (This one occurs at the very end so obviously don't read if you don't want to know)
Spoiler
Ella and Matt go on a roller coaster and she thinks about how this is a fair representation of their relationship. They started slow and then dropped into things suddenly. The first loop is their first kiss. She considers how there will be more 'twists and turns' in their roller coaster relationship, and accepts that she is okay with this. WHAT! Isn't that the most cliched analogy ever like seriously, it really bothered me when I read it because surely there's some combination of words that is better than that. Right?Anyway I got that out of my system. This book isn't bad, but I do not think it is great either. It was fun to read because of all the dares and the light-hearted humour but as a whole it felt a little bit too 'high school drama'.
jadelee_ls's review against another edition
Oh god no. Couldn't even get to the end of chapter 2. What a generic crap.
ciaralo's review against another edition
4.0
WHAT WHY AM I TEARY? This book was a big hit of nostalgia for me and it was so good. Review to come.
REVIEW:
I knew as soon as I read the synopsis for this book that it was one I was going to really like. It's all about friendship and second chances and hometowns and summer, which are some of my favourite things to read about. The Night We Said Yes was a touching novel that had me recalling some of those incredible summer days.
I got committed to this book very quickly. I sat out in the sunshine (got a sunburn) and read all afternoon. The story captivated me, and the characters were stellar. Ella was a wonderful protagonist that I could totally relate to, and her best friend Meg was caring and lovable. Jake frustrated me sometimes, but he had a good heart. Matt was the kind of guy I would've crushed on in high school, and he sure won my heart in this book. I shipped Ella and Matt pretty dang quickly, even though I wasn't sure what happened between them. They just had such chemistry, it was great to read about.
The time-hopping set up of this novel worked really well. I feel like each chapter complimented the next and kept the story moving forward. In many books with this format, I find myself committed to one timeline over the other, but that was not the case with The Night We Said Yes. I loved getting both stories and seeing what things had changed and all the things that had stayed the same. There was only one moment in the book (which I talk about later) that was off for me, but the rest worked seamlessly.
Reading this book was really nostalgic for me. It felt like going back to the end of high school and how hopeful and scary and joyous it was. This book captured that feeling so well. On a personal level, this book reminded me so much of my friends and some of the ridiculous things we did: going to see our friends play a gig, yelling in cars about boys, going on adventures through the town we knew so well, and feeling like we were on the cusp of something new and exciting. Although I've moved on from that (and sadly, from many of those friends) reading The Night We Said Yes reminded me of all those happy times and how incredible it can feel. I got a little teary at the end because it was a bit like moving on all over again.
Matt's explanation about why he left didn't sit well with me, for some reason. Maybe it was because it was unexpected, but something about it just kind of didn't work for me. It took me out of the story for a few pages, but I quickly found myself drawn back in. Because this story, for me at least, wasn't about why Matt left but about these friends and their story and how scary and amazing it can be to take a chance.
After I finished The Night We Said Yes, I immediately went out and pre-ordered Matt's Story, the upcoming companion e-novella. I just wasn't ready to let go of these characters. I'm still not. I'm writing this review (well, the end of it) weeks after I finished the book and I'm STILL feel nostalgic about the whole thing. I can't wait to go back and read this one all over again.
Overall, The Night We Said Yes was a heart-warming, nostalgic, and just plain great debut. I am so excited to see what other awesome books Lauren Gibaldi has in store for us.
- Ciara (Lost at Midnight)
REVIEW:
I knew as soon as I read the synopsis for this book that it was one I was going to really like. It's all about friendship and second chances and hometowns and summer, which are some of my favourite things to read about. The Night We Said Yes was a touching novel that had me recalling some of those incredible summer days.
I got committed to this book very quickly. I sat out in the sunshine (got a sunburn) and read all afternoon. The story captivated me, and the characters were stellar. Ella was a wonderful protagonist that I could totally relate to, and her best friend Meg was caring and lovable. Jake frustrated me sometimes, but he had a good heart. Matt was the kind of guy I would've crushed on in high school, and he sure won my heart in this book. I shipped Ella and Matt pretty dang quickly, even though I wasn't sure what happened between them. They just had such chemistry, it was great to read about.
The time-hopping set up of this novel worked really well. I feel like each chapter complimented the next and kept the story moving forward. In many books with this format, I find myself committed to one timeline over the other, but that was not the case with The Night We Said Yes. I loved getting both stories and seeing what things had changed and all the things that had stayed the same. There was only one moment in the book (which I talk about later) that was off for me, but the rest worked seamlessly.
Reading this book was really nostalgic for me. It felt like going back to the end of high school and how hopeful and scary and joyous it was. This book captured that feeling so well. On a personal level, this book reminded me so much of my friends and some of the ridiculous things we did: going to see our friends play a gig, yelling in cars about boys, going on adventures through the town we knew so well, and feeling like we were on the cusp of something new and exciting. Although I've moved on from that (and sadly, from many of those friends) reading The Night We Said Yes reminded me of all those happy times and how incredible it can feel. I got a little teary at the end because it was a bit like moving on all over again.
Matt's explanation about why he left didn't sit well with me, for some reason. Maybe it was because it was unexpected, but something about it just kind of didn't work for me. It took me out of the story for a few pages, but I quickly found myself drawn back in. Because this story, for me at least, wasn't about why Matt left but about these friends and their story and how scary and amazing it can be to take a chance.
After I finished The Night We Said Yes, I immediately went out and pre-ordered Matt's Story, the upcoming companion e-novella. I just wasn't ready to let go of these characters. I'm still not. I'm writing this review (well, the end of it) weeks after I finished the book and I'm STILL feel nostalgic about the whole thing. I can't wait to go back and read this one all over again.
Overall, The Night We Said Yes was a heart-warming, nostalgic, and just plain great debut. I am so excited to see what other awesome books Lauren Gibaldi has in store for us.
- Ciara (Lost at Midnight)
bridaniel92's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. I finished it in about a day (2 but the amount of hours were less than a day). I really liked the way Gibaldi told the story, switching between then and now. That was really interesting and kind of a nice way to get to know the characters, and to give back story as well.
My review for Once Upon A Twilight will have more details ;)
My review for Once Upon A Twilight will have more details ;)
charmaineac's review against another edition
4.0
Such an adorable story! If we only saw that first night, the insta-love would've felt lacklustre. But thankfully, we got to see the night a year later. We got to see them run through all their old haunts in town. We get to hear about the time in between everything, six good and six bad. Those parts were my favourite.
By the end, I felt the invincibility of youth. I'm not sure whether to quote the infamous, "In that moment, we were infinite" or go with some Nicki Minaj, "The night is still young and so are we." Both seem absolutely appropriate. This story shares insight into a time in life when people want to hit "pause" and remember all the good times.
My only qualm was the overreactions and over-dramatizations at certain points. If this book were a movie, it might be an overacted Disney flick. Oops.
I have a feeling that there might be some strain a few months later while they're at different colleges and finding out the world is so, so big. I kind of want to see them go through that. Even if they one day grow apart, even if they don't end up getting married or anything (being realistic here), I feel like their experiences are the kind to fondly look back on in the future.
I seriously don't know why this story makes me want to litter my review with a ton of lyrics (maybe it was the oh-so-appropriate 21 Guns?), but...
"Young love is such dumb love, call it what you want it was still enough."
By the end, I felt the invincibility of youth. I'm not sure whether to quote the infamous, "In that moment, we were infinite" or go with some Nicki Minaj, "The night is still young and so are we." Both seem absolutely appropriate. This story shares insight into a time in life when people want to hit "pause" and remember all the good times.
My only qualm was the overreactions and over-dramatizations at certain points. If this book were a movie, it might be an overacted Disney flick. Oops.
I have a feeling that there might be some strain a few months later while they're at different colleges and finding out the world is so, so big. I kind of want to see them go through that. Even if they one day grow apart, even if they don't end up getting married or anything (being realistic here), I feel like their experiences are the kind to fondly look back on in the future.
I seriously don't know why this story makes me want to litter my review with a ton of lyrics (maybe it was the oh-so-appropriate 21 Guns?), but...
"Young love is such dumb love, call it what you want it was still enough."