"Lamppost."
I'm back! I've been stuck in the worst reading slump ever, but this book finally FINALLY got me out of it, and I have LOTS OF FEELINGS, so let's go!
(Spoilers ahead)
This book was extremely beautiful for me because I've been a fan of Christine's for years and years. She's the first booktuber I ever started watching and she's the one I tend to agree the most with in terms of the kind of books she likes so I can't even explain how excited I was for this book to come out. That being said, there are so many little things throughout the book that are so very Christine and it just made me so happy and they felt like inside jokes with her viewers that I was so excited about. One of the main things I absolutely loved was all of the Taylor Swift (I'll get back to that) and the chapter titles featuring Hamilton, Taylor, and even One Direction (woop!) were amazing. My favorite, by far, though, was this gem:
"I expel the giant breath I've been very aware of holding for the past thirty seconds" (28). I cackled at the hilarious spin on the classic trope of letting out a breath they apparently didn't even realize they were holding. LOVED IT.
I think the concept of this book was so refreshing and fun. It took me a bit to catch onto the fact that they were going to be thrown back in time for a do-over. I absolutely love that Shane and Pilot got to be all lovey-dovey for a while, but even more so, that they both got to do what they really wanted with their lives and mend other relationships that had been strained because of decisions made the first time around. The travel aspect was also super fun, especially with reliving a few of the trips over again and seeing the differences was so amusing.
Speaking of Pilot and Shane being lovey-dovey, OH MY GOODNESS, THEY ARE SO CUTE, I WAS ABSOLUTELY SWOONING. The move-off was my favorite thing ever! Seriously, they were so cute, I don't even know what to say except that Pilot twirling Shane around in the house of mirrors even though he doesn't even like to dance made my heart beat twice as fast as normal and I couldn't handle it. Also, all of the Taylor Swift moments were amazing, but Pilot singing "Stay Stay Stay" DESTROYED ME in the best way, and I'll never hear the song the same way. AHH.
I. love. Shane. I am Shane. Seriously, I don't think I have ever seen so much of myself in a protagonist, and it was really kind of incredible. She tried so hard to not let fear stop her from doing what she wanted to do, but a lot of times before the do-over, she still let fear win. And that's exactly how I feel a lot of the time. But then she got to go back and do what she really wanted to do! And she learned from the first time, and she grew because of it, and that's my goal in life, I think, to not let the fear win as much. I actually got pretty emotional over this because it felt like someone else got it. Someone else who ended up finding a big epic true love and her dream job, even though she was like me.
Going off of that, Christine's Author's Note in the beginning made me cry. Here's my favorite part:
“This is for all the teens/young adults/adults who feel like they’ve been left behind. You’re not behind. You have time to find yourself and love and adventure. It’s all out there, and when you’re ready to push yourself out of your comfort zone and look for it, you’ll find it."
Thanks, Christine. Thanks for writing this book and showing me that I wasn't left behind. I needed it.
Overall, this book was super fun and it means a lot to me. I give it 5 stars!
^^ Shane and her shawarma
