Love, Life, and the List

I really enjoyed this book, despite the rather annoying male lead. Abby doesn't seem to have a WHOLE lot of depth, but she's super sweet and not overly angsty (for the most part), like you find in most teen heroine novels. Her sarcasm wasn't biting or rude (intentionally), and really was just a display of affection for the most part. She wasn't super obnoxious about it - most teen authors seem to use sarcasm as a poor way of trying to make their characters look clever, but instead they just come off rude.I also appreciated that the "list" premise also wasn't super big stretch here as compared to other teen books, where an absurd list ridiculously drives the entire plot.However, the thing I enjoyed most about this book was the interactions between Abby and her grandfather. They were super cute and actually made me laugh out loud, which doesn't happen often for me. I also appreciated that an elderly character was portrayed in an honest and real way, and actually had a good relationship with the surrounding characters.Finally, this was probably the first Kasie West book where I didn't really care for the male lead at all. I understood why Abby liked him, but he just seemed kind of weak despite everything. His excuses were rather pathetic, although sadly realistic.Basically, I give this book points for not following most teen novels where teen sarcasm, a list, and elderly characters are concerned.Overall, a rather refreshing and, all in all, cute little read.

This is one of my favorite reads of the year. Probably because it is based on one of my favorite cliches: best friends turned romance. But this one had a twist that hits home - unrequited love. What do you do when your best friend doesn't feel the same way about you?Abby was such a fun heroine, and her friendship with Cooper highlighted all the qualities that made her HER. That's what made their relationship feel real and sweet and oh so fluffy. While I floundered a bit trying to feel the enormity of the close-knit, best friends group dynamic when 2 of the 4 friends were gone for all but two chapters, I'm also glad we got so much time with just Abby and Cooper because their friendship shows all the foundation work for a great romance.Also, more than just showing the intense, already established friendships, Kasie West brings new people into Abby's life. Lacey and Elliot give Abby the swift kick she needs to get out of her rut with Cooper and with Life, capital L. I found it interesting how Kasie West compared and contrasted the importance of new and old relationships - relying and finding solace in what you've always known, and finding new experiences you didn't know you needed. That's really what this book was about. And that journey applied to Abby and Cooper; and in smaller doses Lacey and Elliot and Rachel (I don't know about Justin, he was in one scene at the end, but I hope we get to know him and the group as a whole better in the companion novels!).I also LOVED Abby's relationship with her mother and grandfather. Especially her grandfather. It's a relationship not commonly seen in YA, so that was fun.

~4 Stars(Contains Spoilers.)For a long while in this book, I really thought it was going in a particular direction, and had accepted that. Which made me conflicted when it went somewhere else in the end—even though that was the direction I originally wanted.Abby is an artist, and she's trying to get accepted to art school and get her pieces put in an art show at the museum she works at. When she's told that she doesn't have enough experience—enough life experience—she decides to make a list and do some new things, challenge herself a little. Most of her friends are away for the summer, which leaves her with only Cooper, her closest friend and whom she's had a crush on forever.I typically really like list-related series. They're fun to me and add some interesting challenges/plots for the characters, and I'm a list kind of person. I will admit the list took to the background a bit in this book. It was still fun and made Abby put herself out there, but it wasn't as important as it is in some books.I also really liked Cooper, and am always a sucker for friends-to-lovers stories. For a really long time it felt like their relationship was going in one direction, because Cooper was fighting it so hard and Abby was still recovering from a failed earlier attempt. But their relationship was so close, and it was clear when they both became jealous, that it didn't make sense for it to end any other way. There was no way that Cooper didn't feel the same way for her, he was insane for thinking otherwise.West's books are either just okay or a real hit for me, and this one was sadly the former. I did really like parts, particularly Cooper and Abby's relationship. I also liked Abby's parents and family situation, and completely understood when she got upset at what her father did and how her family reacted/let her down. But there were still parts that were just okay to me. This was more fun than not, but not a favorite at this point.

I’ve read this before but it’s an amazing story with a lot of great character development anyone who reads will enjoy.

Ce n'est pas mon roman préféré de Kasie West mais comme toujours on passe un bon moment. L'attrait principal de ces romans est vraiment le traitement des personnages que je trouve toujours bien travaillés. Il n'y a pas de passé horrible et c'est également agréable! Le niveau d'anglais est très accessible et la lecture est rapide

This teenage romance drama has a really good character sketch which I loved the most. It would have been nice if it had multi-person perspective story telling. Overall, a nice read.

A good read but I enjoyed the author's other books( P.S I like you, on the fence and the distance between us) better.