BOOK REVIEW: Everything, Everything – by Nicola Yoon

Title: Everything, Everything
Author: Nicola Yoon
Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance
First published: September 1st 2015
Publisher: Delacorte
Finished reading: July 9th 2016
Pages: 320

“Sometimes I reread my favorite books from back to front. I start with the last chapter and read backward until I get to the beginning. When you read this way, characters go from hope to despair, from self-knowledge to doubt. In love stories, couples start out as lovers and end as strangers. Coming-of-age books become stories of losing your way. Your favorite characters come back to life.”

This book by Nicola Yoon was on my 2015 most-anticipated-releases list and has been recommended to me numerous times in the past, so I’m glad I finally found time to read it. I can definitely understand why so many people seem to love Everything, Everything, because it’s without doubt a ‘cute’ and entertaining read. And the fact that the two main characters are so adorable together is probably why I have given this book a high rating, because I did have some serious issues with the credibility of the plot. I mean, Maddie is supposed to get really sick the minute she steps outside, so doing what she did would be mostly insanely stupid and not adventurous like the story wants to portray. Because people with SCID wouldn’t have that option in the first place… And since SCID plays such a big role in both Maddie’s life and the plot, I’m not sure a detail that big can be overlooked. That said, I loved LOVED the prose and illustrations and I literally flew through the pages. I really liked the characters as well; especially Olly was adorable (although like I said before how he handles the whole SCID situation is not that credible). But credibility aside, Everything, Everything is basically a very cute and fluffy YA contemporary romance story that fans of the genre will most likely love.

Madeline Whittier has SCID, and has basically been living inside a bubble for the last seventeen years since she is allergic to just about everything. Even the smallest contact might kill her, so she never left the house since she was a baby. But when Olly moves in next door and wants to talk to her, Maddie is not so sure she can accept her monotone life anymore. Her mother doesn’t want to do anything to do with a possible meeting, but the two soon start talking anyway after Olly writes his IM address on a piece of paper and shows it to her at her window. They start talking, and soon Maddie feels the need to meet him in person. But will her mother let her? And what would be the consequences?

The credibility of the plot (especially the part involving SCID) was probably the only issue I had with this story, because otherwise I really enjoyed reading Everything, Everything. It’s a well written, fast-paced and adorable contemporary romance story that will manage to both make you cry and bring a smile to your face. Recommended to everyone who enjoys reading the genre.

WWW Wednesdays #99 – July 13th

WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I’m currently reading Wanderlost by Jen Malone, which is turning out to be a quick and entertaining road trip story from what I can see so far. I’ve also started reading The Neverland Wars by Audrey Greathouse because I was in the mood for a Peter Pan retelling, but I can’t say I’m enjoying it. The tone and prose don’t seem to fit the theme at all and I’m struggling to continue this one… Same goes for The Stepmother by Claire Seeber: I started reading it last week, but I couldn’t get into the story and decided to keep it temporarily on hold and read a few other titles instead.

• WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

* The first book I finished since last week is My Girl by Jack Jordan, which is probably one of the most twisted and disturbing thrillers I’ve read so far this year. If you are into the genre, definitely make sure to check out this book!
* I then finished Out Of The Easy by Ruta Sepetys, which is without doubt my new favorite of this author. The setting, prose and character development are excellent and I really felt like I was right there in the 1950s along with the characters.
* I also read The Night Stalker by Robert Bryndza, which by no means suffers from the ‘weak-second-book’ syndrome. It’s fast-paced, well written and has an intriguing plot and plot twists. It’s without doubt a very entertaining read!
* I then read The Straw King by Danielle Paige. This novella was surprisingly good compared to the last few previous stories, but I still wasn’t overwhelmed by it.
* I’ve also been able to finish Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon, a title that was on my 2015 most-antipated-releases list. I enjoyed reading it and I admit it was a ‘cute’ read, but I did have some problems with the credibility of the plot. I mean, if the main character is really that sick, doing what she did is incredibly stupid.
* The last book I managed to finish is The Sister by Louise Jensen, which I ended up really enjoying. It’s dark, messed with your mind and has many plot twists… The story jumps back and forth between the past and present and there are quite a few unreliable characters, but it only added to the whole mystery around Grace and Charlie.

• WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

Depending on what genre I’m in the mood for, I will read When We Collided by Emery Lord. Although I really want to read The Ice Twins by S.K. Tremayne as well, both because I’ve heard great things about it and because I want to The Fire Child by the same author. If I want something different, The Girl With All The Gifts by M.R. Carey is also high on my list… And my latest TBR jar pick is still The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz. (Which I should read soon since it’s been too long since I last read a TBR jar book.)

WWW Wednesdays #98 – July 6th

WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I’m currently reading one of my pending Netgalley reads: My Girl by Jack Jordan. It’s still too early to tell what I will think of it, but it looks like it’s a fast read. I have also finally started Out Of The Easy by Ruta Sepetys; a book I have been wanted to read for a while and it is a nice change of scenery after all those mystery/thriller reads. So far I’m really enjoying it! I also want to continue Sweetheart by Chelsea Cain, but I might read another pending Netgalley mystery/thriller or two before that.

• WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

* After a few disappointing reads last week, All The Missing Girls by Megan Miranda definitely made up for it all. This book is without doubt one of the best mystery/thriller reads I’ve read this year and on my favorites list!
* I then finished Seven Ways We Lie by Riley Redgate, which was quite good, although the many different POVs did make this read a little more difficult to read and less entertaining. Also, I liked some of the characters and prose better than others and I would have liked to see the whole seven sins theme playing a bigger role in the book.
* Last To Die by Arlene Hunt started off slow, but completely recovered with an explosive ending that definitely made this read worth reading! If you like twisted, creepy and intense reads, this one is definitely for you.
* I also read As Red As Blood by Salla Simukka on a whim after thinking about possibly seeing one of my Finnish friends again this summer (who lived in Tampere as well). I really liked the beginning of this read and the setting, but the whole plot and main character was a bit fantastical for a mystery/thriller read and it wasn’t as good as I hoped.
* I’ve also been able to finish Cascadia by H.W. “Buzz” Bernard yesterday evening. I ended up really enjoying this suspense/natural disaster/science story, definitely worth reading! More in the upcoming review…

• WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

As soon as I finish at least one of my current reads, I will most likely start reading The Night Stalker by Robert Bryndza. I really enjoyed the first book, so I was so glad Netgalley approved my request for the sequel! 😀 I also want to read Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon, a book that has been on my TBR pile for way too long now and really want to read. The Ice Twins by S.K. Tremayne is high on my list as well, both because I’ve heard great things about it and I was able to get a Netgalley copy of the just published The Fire Child by the same author and I want to read the other book first. My latest TBR jar pick is still The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz. (Which I should read soon since it’s been too long since I last read a TBR jar book.)