Reviews

By the Book: A Novel of Prose and Cons by Amanda Sellet

emmgrace's review

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lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

ya contemporary is not my thing anymore. clearly. or maybe this book was just bad. 

booksngrannies's review against another edition

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lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

hollyreadingisjolly's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

lis_allenwalker's review

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4.0

This was. . .fine. I had a difficult time with the voice of our main character. Maybe I'm just (finally) getting too old for YA.

ashleytayytayy's review against another edition

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3.0

Cute, fluffy read. Sometimes you need some fluff.

emfreih's review

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3.0

2.5/5

I have never read anything where I hated the main character to a point where I was more excited to hear the minuscule details of all other side characters. Mary Porter-Malcolm was by far one of the most irritating and grating characters that have ever been read or ever been written. Yes, I understand that she spent fifteen years of her life sheltered and shaded by her private school but being the youngest daughter in the Porter-Malcolm family, her naivety is unbelievable. Even with her reading! I learned a good majority of everything I knew in middle school from the books I poured over at every free minute. You cannot honestly tell me that she acted like that in public and it was just OKAY!

Don't get me wrong, I was extremely satisfied with her characterization by the end of the book but it just didn't make sense for how she started out. She just leaned over and kissed Alex in a brazen manner while surrounded by an ENTIRELY FULL AUDITORIUM and she was just okay with that. Only a few months before, Mary couldn't even walk through the cafeteria without overthinking everything.

doesitcomeinabook's review

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4.0

I'm afraid I'm about just as blind as the main character... And about 1/10 well read in comparison.
The characters were very nice, and the pitches to the books were superb.
Alex and the friend group were amazing!
This is the perfect romance for introverted book lovers

sofypinho's review against another edition

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FMC so annoying!!!!!

lizleiby's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

4.0

I enjoyed the book 4 stars but if I’m being critical it’s more like 3 stars for me. The romance fell flat but I loved the friendships and the family. 

thecrazyreader's review against another edition

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4.0

4 stelle!
Questa storia è davvero dolcissima e mi è piaciuta tantissimo per questo.
E' una storia sui primi amori e sulle amicizie e la scrittrice è riuscita benissimo a dare spazio ad entrambe le parti senza che una abbia più importanza dell'altra, ammetto che però due o tre scene in più tra la protagonista e il suo interesse amoroso non mi sarebbero dispiaciute.
Se amate i classici questo libro è perfetto per voi, perché Mary (la protagonista) è un'appassionata e in base a questi libri vede il mondo, per questo motivo il libro è pieno di citazioni e interessanti spunti. Ammetto che tante volte non capivo da dove veniva lo spunto, anche se alla fine cita con titolo tutti i libri che ha usato per il romanzo, però tanti libri hanno catturato il mio interesse e quelli che invece ho letto credo che abbiano avuto una davvero interessante interpretazione.
Anche la famiglia ha un ruolo centrale nel libro e mi è piaciuto come ognuno di loro aveva i suoi problemi e come si sono intrecciati con la storia della protagonista.
Altro punto a favore del libro è proprio Mary, lei sbaglia, magari qualche volta è ingenua, però ha solo sedici anni e questo è quello che ha mostrato il libro, una semplice ragazza di sedici anni che ha una passione, che sbaglia, che soffre, che si innamora e che cerca il suo posto nel mondo, ma soprattutto che capisce che la vita non finisce qui e riesce anche a rimediare ai suoi errori.