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5 stars! This review will be spoiler free!
Synopsis:
Shane is a pre-med student with perfect grades and impressed parents, but that's just the surface. Underneath, she has made no college friends, she's still dependent on her family, and has yet to take any risks. That ends now, she's going to do the college experience AGAIN, but BETTER (I couldn't resist that). This time she's going to be in London, studying abroad, taking a chance doing a writing internship which is very much against her parents wishes but is completely inline with her passions. This is Shane's chance to do what she didn't do when she started college: friends, fun, romance. READ IT to see where her "second chance" takes her.
Thoughts:
Shane Primaveri is not alone in the fact that she's "doing college wrong." Class, food, home, repeat was my replay as well when I was in undergrad and every time I've looked back, I also thought that I didn't do college right. Christine was right when she said this was a book we NEEDED. Because I never found something like this early on in my college career.
There were a few differences between me and Shane's lives, and even thought I didn't get to travel abroad for me "redo," I completely resonated with all of her feelings because I had those same thoughts during mine. This book is LOL (literally laugh-out-loud) funny! But also has very deep and sad moments, reflecting very real life issues. I felt the whole spectrum of emotions from happiness, to anxiousness, to giddiness, to sadness (with literal tears), to anger, and back to extreme glee. I couldn't put this book down, I couldn't stop thinking about it when I was reading it. I just didn't want it to end. And because I had not read the synopsis very carefully, or at all really, I didn't see the mid-book twist coming. It was a RIDE omg. I loved it. It was almost like having a Disney-like twist plopped in a book to make it THAT much better.
If there was anything for me to knit-pick at it would maybe be some of the dialogue in the beginning of the book. I really enjoyed the writing overall, very simplistic and Christine-like. BUT there were these random moments where the dialogue is awkwardly placed (like her saying *something* and him laughing, but the line is not actually funny that time) or the occasional repetitiveness (ex: describing all the different smiles multiple times). But even that would cause me to drop a star because I still finished this book feeling overjoyed!
The friendships made in this story are FUN. Christine often talks about choosing the names of her characters and honestly, I loved them all. I especially love Babe and the twist about her name that you learn about in the end. Like would name my kid Babe now, not after the pig. Babe and Shane's friendship is a best-friend-ship that I aspire to have one day. Other than Babe, Sahra and Atticus are more flat, we know enough about them for them to contribute to the story, but not quite as much as Babe.
Shane's parents also played a vital role in this story, and thought I hated the part they had to play, it was very much real and contributed to the relatability of this story.
The romance, a majority of this book, with Pilot is such a rollercoaster. He is the reason I was angry and sad and happy right along with Shane. Their relationship is now one for the movies, and one for the YA romance history books, I loved it all and especially the ending.
If this book has taught me anything it is to be fearless in your pursuit of your passions.
Now, I am actually pre-med (because I want to be) and am currently in medical school, and I do whatever I can to put myself out there, to make long lasting networking relationships/friendships, and to have a grand 'ol time in my last hoorah of schooling. I finished this book feeling ABSOLUTELY STOKED about life and to continue conquering every milestone in my life. For that, I will forever thank and love this story and this book.
Overall:
I've pretty much said it all above. WOULD RECOMMEND.