Review: I recommend this book! It's a great read!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 24, 2014
NOTE: I received the eARC via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.When picking up this book, I didn't believe I'd end up liking it so much. At the time I felt like reading a contemporary romance, and this novel was my choice. Surprise, surprise! Another Little Piece of My Heart came to be a page-turner!Writing style:Intriguing, captivating, realistically written. Incredible fresh and out of the cliche zone.There were a lot of scenes told as memories, as a fill-in-the-blanks kind of thing. I liked that.Story line:A year ago, Claire met Jared. They fell for each other, just as madly as a couple of teenagers can. They were happy together, until Claire's parents decided to step in between them. In present day, Claire tries to suppress her still lingering feelings as Jared enters her life again.Themes:- Sacrifice should be very well thought out, not decided on the spur of the moment.- Usually, things are not as they seem.- Everyone makes mistakes. Moreover, everyone is entitled to make mistakes.Characters:Claire is a very realistic, very vivid character who makes you think about the important things in life, just as they become more real for her. She grows a lot in the pages of this novel - from a girl who has everything - to a girl who thinks she has nothing - to a wise young woman who realizes that nothing in life is easy, but you still have to fight for it.Jared is a character we barely see, but we know a lot about through Claire's thoughts and memories. Still, he feels real, His words, his actions remind me of how a real boy would be have out there in the real world.April, Claire's little sister, was stubborn and selfish and most of the time tried to bend the rules so they fit her desires. Yet, in rare moments, she was also considerate and helpful. I suspect this is the kind of relationships a lot of sisters have.Hannah and Lea, Claire's cousins, were weird and not really friendly. I couldn't believe Lea withheld a very important piece of information from Claire.Claire & April's dad struck me as a selfish parent in the beginning. I was left with the impression that he couldn't care less about his daughters. But towards the end things changed, and I think I actually respected him.In conclusion:Another Little Piece of My Heart is a coming-of-age novel that deals with all those problems an adolescent girl goes through - parental issues, love troubles, finding out who you are in the world. It's a very good read and I can easily recommend it.