Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this free digital copy in exchange for an honest review. This book is out now!
A long weekend, sleepy cats, only two weeks left of school, and a new book review for you! I’m bummed at myself that I waited so long to read Emma Lord’s Begin Again (it published in January of this year) because it was SUCH a delight and true breath of fresh air.
Okay, this is my first time reading an Emma Lord book and now I want to read more. Begin Again was adorable and just bursting with heart and care. This is definitely a book about finding yourself, coming into your strength, and finding your forever friends. I couldn’t help but connect with MC Andie–I too have had my best laid plans crumble enough times to figure out that sometimes that’s the best thing that can happen to you. While there are definitely romance elements (more on that next paragraph), it was the friendships Andie finds and makes that made this book such a winner for me. She and her friends complement each other so well and I felt like these were all people I knew.
This is definitely a slow-burn romance (for VERY good reasons) but good lord was I ready when it finally happened!! Normally a slow-burn wears down my patience…but I absolutely loved that this story wasn’t solely about the romance, because the non-romantic parts of it were also SO GREAT. However…Milo is everything and these books are definitely ruining me for real-life men because I can’t seem to meet ones so kind, thoughtful, intelligent, and handsome? Moving on lol. The way Andie roots down and grows and finds her place at her new school made my heart so full. I love how she finds ways to honor her mom’s legacy while also forging her own path and rediscovering her dreams.
For those who want to know–this is definitely YA (Andie is a freshman in college) and the romance is clean–nothing spicy happening here. I would definitely recommend!
Happy reading, friends! Maybe I’ll have a music post for you tomorrow. Maybe I won’t. Guess we’ll all see. 🙂
CW: Death of parents (in the past), troubled family relationships, cheating
The Bookish Bird 