Author: Lauren Morill
Release date: November 13, 2012
Pages: 256
Publisher: Random House
How I got it: For review from Netgalley
Meant to be or not meant to be . . . that is the question.
It's one thing to fall head over heels into a puddle of hazelnut coffee, and quite another to fall for the—gasp—wrong guy. Straight-A junior Julia may be accident prone, but she's queen of following rules and being prepared. That's why she keeps a pencil sharpener in her purse and a pocket Shakespeare in her, well, pocket. And that's also why she's chosen Mark Bixford, her childhood crush, as her MTB ("meant to be").
But this spring break, Julia's rules are about to get defenestrated (SAT word: to be thrown from a window) when she's partnered with her personal nemesis, class-clown Jason, on a school trip to London. After one wild party, Julia starts receiving romantic texts . . . from an unknown number! Jason promises to help discover the identity of her mysterious new suitor if she agrees to break a few rules along the way. And thus begins a wild goose chase through London, leading Julia closer and closer to the biggest surprise of all: true love.Meant To Be was such an adorable debut. While it won't go down in my favorites or anything, it was so cute and fun and I think chick-lit fans will adore it.
Because sometimes the things you least expect are the most meant to be.
If I had to pick my favorite thing about Meant To Be, it might be Julia. She was level-headed, kind of neurotic, and she very much valued reading, something we can all appreciate. Despite her various mistakes and mishaps I couldn't help but be invested in her character.
Or it might be the banter between Julia and Jason. It felt so natural and light-hearted and wasn't overly intense. I hate intense conversations like the ones on TV shows when they just stare into each other's eyes for an hour. How is that supposed to show me you value each other? It just makes it look like you're both stalkers. Anyways, yeah, I loved the way Morill handled the banter.
Though, it might also be the setting, so vivid and exciting yet not bogged down by too much description.
Basically, there were lots of things to like about Meant To Be.
However, there was one thing that really bothered me, and that is Jason. While sometimes he did things that made me smile and gave me the butterflies, I felt like he didn't grow at all, and I never got to know him as much as I would've liked to. I kept expecting it to happen, but when it didn't I couldn't help but feel disappointed.
Plot: A little slow to start, but once I got into it I though it was fun but predictable.
Characters: Julia rocked, and Jason sometimes rocked.
Writing: Good.
Ending: Pretty good.
Mature content: There was drinking and mild swearing.
Overall:
Definitely kept me interested.
Despite some minor issues I had with Meant To Be, overall I really liked it and I'm interested in reading more from Morill.
