Review: Loved it!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 9, 2013
4.5 starsAs soon as I started Precious Things, I knew I was going to love the characters and the story. It was such a fun and heartfelt book, and it really stood out from other books I've read in the new adult genre. It just had that extra special something I like to find in the books I read. I wish I knew how to perfectly describe it, but what I can say is that I was able to click with the story right away. It was exactly what I needed to read at the time, and I wish it never had to end.Isabelle was the main character of Precious Things. She was hilarious and had me cracking me up throughout the entire book! I loved her honesty and snarky attitude. While she might come off as a bit whiny to some, I understood why she felt the need to complain about her life and why she wanted to run away and avoid certain situations. When you worked really hard for something and find out it was all for nothing, it's not always easy to accept nor is it easy coping with the aftermath. In Isabelle's case she wasn't able to get into her dream college because of money issues and that meant she was stuck at home with the same job while attending a local community college. The way she reacted to things around her, whether it was good or bad, made her a much more genuine character in my eyes, and I couldn't help but to adore and root for her.Evan was the guy Isabelle ended up falling for, and he's actually the teacher's assistant in the electronic music class Isabelle had no choice but to take. I loved Evan as much as I did Isabelle. Not only because he was really good-looking, although that didn't hurt, but because he was patient and sweet with Isabelle and the rest of the students in their class. (Him teaching the class made him sound even hotter, by the way.) He was one of the reasons Isabelle began to not hate community college as much as she did in the beginning.I also loved that Evan could match Isabelle's snarkiness and that he challenged her. Since they had an immediate attraction to one another, plenty of fun banter and tension formed between them. Their relationship together was adorable and sexy. There were many moments where I was swooning like crazy. What I really appreciated about their relationship and them as characters, though, was that they weren't perfect. Both made mistakes and sometimes said things that they regretted. It just made them and their relationship easier to relate to. And them being mature enough to own up to their actions made it even better.Before I end this review, I would like to mention a few more aspects  that made me happy. I loved that there was a pretty diverse cast of  characters in this book. Isabelle is part Korean, and it was great that  even though she didn't know much about her Korean side there were still  moments of her thinking about it scattered throughout the book. Another  thing was all the mentions of electronic music. It's my favorite type of  music to listen to! I'm no expert like Evan. In fact, I probably would  have been as confused as Isabelle if I had taken the class and I haven't  listened to much of Depeche Mode's songs either. But at least like Evan I  can appreciate awesome music, so whenever a song was brought up I went  on YouTube and listened to it. 'Precious,'  the song that seems to have inspired the title of the book  and fits the story perfectly, was my favorite! It was a beautiful song. How could I not fall for  Evan with his great taste in music? hehePrecious Things was the start of new beginnings. The author did a  wonderful job showing how complicated and  complex life and  relationships, including family dynamics and  friendships, can be. And  while there's not always an easy resolution to  life's problems,  eventually amazing opportunities will come along that  may change the course of what we thought we wanted out of life. This book was really a great read for me, and I will definitely be keeping an eye out for whatever Stephanie Parent writes next!