Truly Madly Guilty, Liane Moriarty

Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty

I wasn´t really sure about this novel because there were plenty of good reviews and it was recommended to me by all kinds of different apps, such as iBooks, Amazon and even Barnes and Nobles. Yet when I finally started reading it, a lot of negative reviews started popping on the internet, which left me very confused, but it did make me curious to find out why everyone was having such mixed feelings. 
When I started reading the novel I quickly realized that I wasn´t very interested in the plot as I thought I would be, yet I did push myself to continue reading because I believed that I would eventually end up liking the characters, but in reality I didn´t and I started thinking that there were too many scenes that were forced. 
The novel narrates the days following a barbeque evening, where Clementine and Sam were invited by Oliver and Erika to their neighbor's, Vid and Tiffany, barbeque. Yet, something happens during the dinner and none of the people leave the place being the person they were before. 
In the beginning, I felt like the story was going to be more inclined towards the different couples that meet for dinner, yet the truth is that this story is much deeper than that. For instance, Clementine and Erika have been best friends since they were younger, but that only happened because Erika comes from a family that isn´t willing to take care of her, therefore, Clementine is forced to shelter her as a friend, even though most people would think that they are truly best friends, although neither of them actually like each other and they are simply bound together like most family relationships, where there is an unbreakable connection that makes them see each other every now and then as if they truly enjoyed each other´s company.
On the other hand, something that I truly enjoyed about the novel was seeing the relationships in the novel and the different characters that were introduced.
My favorite couple was Sam and Clementine because they shared a different connection than the other relationships, where they both came from completely different worlds, yet they understood each other so perfectly. What I liked the most about them was that they were the most realistic representation of a marriage in the novel, they exhibited the falling in and out of love and the way marriage works for most people. Also, this is going to sound really really weird, but I loved Sam´s character and the small things that he did. 
I found Oliver and Erika´s relationship much more mature, which made me realize that mature relationship where similar people are together are much less interesting than others. Oliver was depicted as the perfect husband, but I felt like he didn´t deserve Erika, who I disliked very much because I found her to be too selfish and she never thought about other people´s feelings as much as she did with hers. 
Lastly, Vid and Tiffany were never really the center of attention in the novel, although the roots of the story were literally planted in their yard because they were never really mentioned or when they were, their relationship was never exhibited as the others. 
One of my favorite things about the novel, aside from the characters, where the different themes that the author experienced throughout the novel. I loved that she was able to include so many different aspects of life such as marriage, work, children, death, accidents and of course, that certain feeling of anger that we all experience in our lives towards ourselves for not preventing certain things or for taking the decisions that we took, and those "what ifs...?" that follow us every day. 
In conclusion, there were many many things that I actually liked about this novel like the characters, the relationships, the different themes and the vague plot, and I would´ve loved to give it 5 stars, but truthfully, there were many characters that I disliked and also the way some of them were not even included as much as the other characters. Yet, I will say that I found Truly Madly Guilty to be insightful and inspiring to be read by someone that is still growing up because it made me realize that human emotions and relationships are much more complex that one expects. 

4 out of 5 stars 

Love, Sua

The Royal We, Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

I have been in love with this book for so many years that it simply feels natural for me to talk about it. My love for this novel is so deep that I can still remember the time that I first saw it at the Grove's Barnes and Nobles in California. Honestly, this book is much more than you think, when I was first reading it, I thought that this would be a simple romance novel, yet as I continued I discovered that this novel talked about so much more, which I will be talking about later on in this review. Also, I have been so obsessed with this novel that I have tried so hard to find similar novels, which have led me to novels like Romancing the Throne by Nadine Jolie Courtney and The Heir and the Spare by Emily Albright, which have only made me realize that this novel is such a precious gem.
The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan tells the story of Rebecca Porter or simply "Bex," who is just starting the school year at Oxford, yes, England, after she decided to take a year abroad from Cornell, where her twin sister, Lacy is still at. On her first day, she meets a rather handsome young man that goes by the name of Nicholas, simply known as Nick or AKA Steve as his friends call him when they are in public. Both bond over a conversation about monarchs with syphilis before Bex realizes that Nick is the future heir of the country. In the place where she is staying, she meets the people that will end up becoming her best friends. There's Cilla, Gaz, Joss, and Clive, who also happen to be Nick's best friends. On the other hand, it is almost inevitable for Bex and Nick to fall in love with each other, I mean, they binge-watch a series together almost every night, yet their love is simply not meant to be because Nick's already dating India and of course, Bex has been snogging Clive, literally Nick's best friend. The group goes through so many adventures and creates so many memories that as the story goes, you will feel like you are part of the group as well. 
I want to start by talking about the characters because I simply loved them so much! I love how Bex is someone that really doesn't care about gossip or royalty because it creates funnier scenes, like the syphilis scene. Although I did hate whenever she was being impulsive. I loved Nick because he portrayed vulnerability in certain scenes, while he was also seen as a prize by girls and simply as a friend by the other main characters. I really liked how the authors really emphasized on Nick's background and lifestyle, even though he was seen as a normal person by the group of friends because they gave us so much more of the character, which made me love him even more! As much as I love Bex and Nick, my favorite characters were Cilla and Gaz because they were SO funny that I cried due to the laughter. I loved Cilla's stories and Gaz' comments. 
On the other hand, I absolutely loved how this is basically royalty. I loved how they truly portray the lifestyles and the people, like Nick's family, including his father and his brother, Freddie, who I also love very much! I adored how the authors touched a lot on the things that you would expect in a royal family, like the pressure and the useless things that people can do for show or drama. 
I truly think that this book has made me become obsessed with the royals as much as they are! (FYI: the authors run a site called Go Fug Yourself, which I am obsessed with now as well). In the beginning, I truly didn't care at all about royals, yet now I am simply fascinated by their lifestyle. 
Also, I believe that Nick, Bex, and Freddie being inspired by William, Kate, and Harry is just a plus!
Something that I was not expecting from this novel was the many topics that it covers. I loved how they really emphasize on family, enemies, dreams, friends, love, jealousy, expectations and the unexpected. Although the novel is really long, you will feel like the novel is so short because of the so many different stories that are included. 
From the first page all the way to the last one, I was hooked, so much that I became obsessed with the audiobook and I still listen to it all the time, although I will admit that I only replay the scenes that I like, like the karaoke scene and the one that they talk about seeing Cats! If you're going to read the novel, be on the lookout for those!
Lastly, I want to congratulate the authors because they did an exceptional job with this novel. They were able to take such a complex world and narrate it in an incredible and not only heart-warming, but inspiring because this novel really made me want to try the unexpected and new things, just like Bex did when she moved to the other side of the world, to be something that her sister wasn't and to find herself in the world. Also, this novel has really made me wish that college is as fun as they describe it here, although I believe that it depends on the friendships that accompany me. 
I truly recommend The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan because it is witty, smart, fun and includes charming characters that will enter your heart from the very first time that they appear on paper! 

5 out of 5 stars 

Love, Sua 

Top Ten, Katie Cotugno

Top Ten by Katie Cotugno

This book will be released October 3,
2017 in the US

I have read Katie Cotugno before, I read 99 Days, which makes Top Ten the second novel that I read from this author. I enjoyed 99 Days a lot, I remember that at first, I thought that I wouldn't like the story, but as I continued reading it, I started enjoying it, and I would like to mention that in Top Ten I think that it happened in exactly the opposite way, I liked it a lot at the beginning, but as the story continued, I started getting annoyed by the main character and started to lose interest as the story progressed. 
Top Ten tells the story of Gabby, a teenager that has always preferred not getting involved with other people at high school, and Ryan, probably the most popular guy in high school being the hockey star. They become friends in an awkward attempt to escape realities and before they can realize it, they share a friendship that has changed their lives and they have become the other´s most important person. 
But that is until they start realizing that they may be liking each other as more than friends, but that idea seems to far away from their reality since they are both in different relationships that already feel like so much work. 
Will Gabby and Ryan be able to let go of their friendship and start a new relationship?
As usual, I´ll start by talking about the characters. 
I really liked Ryan because he gave us a new type of popular jock. I actually found Ryan cute and adorable! Which is unusual for me and for anyone that has read several YA novels that involve jocks, they are supposed to be ONLY hot. But Ryan is the exception, he is HOT and ADORABLE, which creates the type of boyfriend every girl wishes for. I liked that he was the first one that realized that he was completely in love with his best friend, which seems to be first because we are not really used to knowing how the male lead character feels like. In my opinion, Ryan was very similar to Peter Kavinsky from To All the Boys I´ve Loved Before by Jenny Han,  who I absolutely adore, again because he is cute and hot, being a high school jock and all. Also, the whole vibe of not having a perfect family and a perfect life like the main character is very similar. 
Gabby was a character that I didn´t like at all! In fact, I started to find her annoying because she was always ready to criticize others and judge them but got very angry when other told her the truth that she wasn´t willing to accept. I saw too little character development throughout the four years of her high school career, she always had something that she didn´t like and found wrong in her life. So, for me, Gabby didn´t really do it for me.
On the other hand, I liked the idea of having Chelsey and Shay as supporting characters because I believe that for example, Shay was the character that pushed Gabby for some character development and seeing the type of people that both main characters were surrounding themselves with showing us how the characters were changing as we read along, I would say they were the piece that completed the story perfectly.
But although I didn´t like the main character, I did enjoy other things about the story. For instance, I liked the structure of the novel a lot. I liked both sides, although they weren´t in the first point of view, they did give us a piece of their minds, which made it easier to understand them and their actions. Also, the structures of the chapters were very nicely-planned because they are told in different time periods of their relationships and they are a list, which is something that only Ryan and Gabby understand, it´s their THING.
I enjoyed the way popularity was portrayed in this novel because it was realistic, just like the whole high school environment. I really enjoyed that Gabby wasn´t immediately popular because she was friends with Ryan, in fact, everything stayed the same way, which showed how personal their friendship was for both of the characters. 
In addition, I really liked Cotugno´s writing because it is very sweet and touching in an emotional way, I believe her words were very carefully chosen and that she was able to describe feelings in a very beautiful way. 
I believed that Top Ten is the perfect mixture of To All the Boys I´ve Loved Before, with a little bit of Love, Rosie and a fun activity in a Morgan Matson style. 
Overall, Top Ten is a fairly enjoyable reading about high school and the popularity.
I apologize for the short review. Also, I would like to thank the publisher for providing an ARC through Edelweiss in exchange for a review. 

3 1/2 stars out of 5 stars 

Love, Sua