Little Fires Everywhere by: Celeste Ng

Genre: Fiction, Contemporary
Published: September 12, 2017 by: Penguin Press
Pages: 338
Rating: 5/5 stars

Shaker Heights is a neighbourhood that plays by the rules. It's residents are successful and orderly, and everybody knows their place. So when Mia Warren enters town, an eccentric artist with her daughter Pearl, suspicions arise. Elena Richardson, one of Shaker Heights' most prominent residents, soon becomes weary of Mia when the adoption of a Chinese-American baby by Elena's friend puts Elena and Mia on opposing sides. Soon Elena will try to uncover the secrets of Mia's past out of spite, but it will have devastating costs for both her family, and Mia's.

This book BLEW MY MIND. It was so cleverly written, with well-rounded, developed characters and a kickass setting. It kinda had the feeling of Big Little Lies to me, but this book truly can stand on it's own of being an amazing read.

There are so many layers to this book. There are themes of motherhood, of adoption, and importantly, of culture. I think Shaker Heights as a whole was an amazing setting to place this story in because you really see how this perfect neighbourhood breaks down as the story goes on.

The characters were incredibly well-written. Elena, I loved to hate, I had such a respect for Mia as a mother, and even the Richardson children and Pearl were really developed characters. I think that Ng really succeeded in writing such complex characters that you can rally behind, but also scoff at their decisions. (But in a good way!)

Overall, the plot of this book was fascinating; the themes, really well-written, and I could not put it down. It was suspenseful, shocking, also funny at times, and I think Ng is a brilliant writer.

Have you read Little Fires Everywhere? What did you think?

Emily @ Paperback Princess

Eleanor & Park By: Rainbow Rowell

At the beginning of summer, I was allowed to buy three books; one of them being : Eleanor & Park. No, this isn't a book about an intersection, (as my dad thought it was.) This is a book about two star crossed lovers, who didn't care what anyone thought of them. This may sound like a cheesy love story, but it is definitely much more than that.

What first drew me to this book, is that John Green had written a review on it, on the front page. (If John Green liked it, it must be good.) When I read the front flap, I saw that music played a role in the story. I love listening to music, so I thought I'd give it a try.

The first few chapters involve Eleanor and Park just meeting. At first, I didn't like the character of Park. I found him rude to Eleanor. After a while, I grew to love his character.

Although the book was told in third-person, the chapters involve alternating scenarios between Eleanor and Park. I liked that, because I could feel their thoughts and emotions. The pro of this book is the climax. (Emotionally-charged moment) I don't want to give too much away, but the climax had a lot of action, I was constantly turning the page to find out more.

Overall, Eleanor and Park was a good book if you like a cute love story that ends in a cliffhanger. I am not one for cliffhanger stories, so I found the ending a let down. I feel like their love story ended without me knowing what's next. Do they live happily ever after? Do they break up? Those questions were not answered, and I felt disappointed. I love a happy ending to a story, and I'm not sure that I got it in this novel.

Rainbow Rowell did a great job of capturing the feeling of a first love. (Although I've never felt that feeling yet.) However, I would have liked to read more of an ending.

If I were to rate Eleanor and Park, I would rate it a 4 out of 5 stars, for it's thrilling climax, but cliffhanger ending. If you have read, this book, let me know what you thought of it in the comments!

Thanks for Reading!

Paperback Princess