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A review by nebraskanwriter
Something Wilder by Christina Lauren
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I just don’t think Christina Lauren books are for me. I’ve tried a couple of them and just come out the other side feeling mediocre.
This story felt like it was trying to do too much. As other reviewers have said, this is a treasure hunt first and foremost with the romance taking a major backseat.
The backdrop of this story is that Leo & Lily spent five blissful months with each other at the age of 20. However, their time together is disrupted when Leo’s mom gets into an accident so Leo leaves the desert to go back to New York to be with his mom. Lily does not try and reach out to him, to see if he’s okay, if his mom is okay. No, it’s Leo’s job to reach out to her. Well Leo’s mom sadly dies from her injuries from the car crash so now Leo is taking care of his younger sister, Cora, all by himself as his dad is no longer in the picture. And for some reason, even though Lily never fought for him and let him go easy peasy, Leo never stopped loving her after long 10 years.
Side note: Even though the book builds up their romance as some love that transcends time, I feel like Leo was the only one that truly loved that way. If Lily loved Leo the way she says she did, she would have tried harder to be with him instead of letting him go so easily. Why did she not follow up with him? It just doesn’t make any sense to me. You had his phone number, WHY DID YOU NOT CALL HIM?
Now, fast forward, 10 years later and Lily is running a treasure hunt retreat for tourists out in the desert. Unbeknownst to Leo and his New York buddies, they’ve just planned a trip with Leo’s old flame. (Mind you, this story takes place over a single week out in the desert). Someone steals Lily’s dad’s journal (which has treasure maps in it from where Butch Cassidy might have buried his stolen bank treasure) and all chaos breaks loose. There is mutiny, hostages being held, gun fights, and oh yeah one of Leo’s friends FALLS TO HIS DEATH IN THE DESERT and literally no one cares. They’re all like “eh, we never liked that guy any way, whatever.” There is some talk of possible lawsuits, (possible prison time for possibly murdering someone!!) but all of that is pushed aside because oh my look at what Leo’s skin looks like in the firelight.
I know in romance books you are supposed to suspend your belief, I know it’s escapism. (I promise I’m not that much of a stick in the mud). But this book just went more and more off the rails as we kept going and as it turned into more John Wayne/60s Wild West movie-esque, it became more and more unbelievable. It was like reading some knock off version of National Treasure or The Goonies, with a little dash of cowboys and horses.
This story felt like it was trying to do too much. As other reviewers have said, this is a treasure hunt first and foremost with the romance taking a major backseat.
The backdrop of this story is that Leo & Lily spent five blissful months with each other at the age of 20. However, their time together is disrupted when Leo’s mom gets into an accident so Leo leaves the desert to go back to New York to be with his mom. Lily does not try and reach out to him, to see if he’s okay, if his mom is okay. No, it’s Leo’s job to reach out to her. Well Leo’s mom sadly dies from her injuries from the car crash so now Leo is taking care of his younger sister, Cora, all by himself as his dad is no longer in the picture. And for some reason, even though Lily never fought for him and let him go easy peasy, Leo never stopped loving her after long 10 years.
Side note: Even though the book builds up their romance as some love that transcends time, I feel like Leo was the only one that truly loved that way. If Lily loved Leo the way she says she did, she would have tried harder to be with him instead of letting him go so easily. Why did she not follow up with him? It just doesn’t make any sense to me. You had his phone number, WHY DID YOU NOT CALL HIM?
Now, fast forward, 10 years later and Lily is running a treasure hunt retreat for tourists out in the desert. Unbeknownst to Leo and his New York buddies, they’ve just planned a trip with Leo’s old flame. (Mind you, this story takes place over a single week out in the desert). Someone steals Lily’s dad’s journal (which has treasure maps in it from where Butch Cassidy might have buried his stolen bank treasure) and all chaos breaks loose. There is mutiny, hostages being held, gun fights, and oh yeah one of Leo’s friends FALLS TO HIS DEATH IN THE DESERT and literally no one cares. They’re all like “eh, we never liked that guy any way, whatever.” There is some talk of possible lawsuits, (possible prison time for possibly murdering someone!!) but all of that is pushed aside because oh my look at what Leo’s skin looks like in the firelight.
I know in romance books you are supposed to suspend your belief, I know it’s escapism. (I promise I’m not that much of a stick in the mud). But this book just went more and more off the rails as we kept going and as it turned into more John Wayne/60s Wild West movie-esque, it became more and more unbelievable. It was like reading some knock off version of National Treasure or The Goonies, with a little dash of cowboys and horses.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail