Book Title: Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between
Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Date Published: September 1st 2015 by Poppy
Number of Pages: 272 (Paperback)
Synopsis
(From Goodreads) On the night before they leave for college, Clare and Aidan have only one thing left to do: figure out whether they should stay together or break up. Over the course of twelve hours, they retrace the steps of their relationship, trying to find something in their past that might help them decide what their future should be. The night leads them to family and friends, familiar landmarks and unexpected places, hard truths and surprising revelations. But as the clock winds down and morning approaches, so does their inevitable goodbye. The question is, will it be goodbye for now or goodbye forever?
Charming, bittersweet, and full of wisdom and heart, this irresistible novel from Jennifer E. Smith, author of The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, explores the difficult choices that arise when life and love lead in different directions.
Book Review
After reading All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, I knew that I will need a simple and fluffy book to balance things out and avoid a reading “burnout.”
Fortunately, Jennifer E. Smith’s Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between is here to save me. This was the perfect light read after my heart-breaking experience with historical fiction!
Writing Style
I find it fascinating how Jennifer E. Smith can effectively write “one night stories.” To be fair, this is my first time reading her works. And upon researching her other novels, I found out that she likes to incorporate the element of time in her love stories. I do commend her for that!
In this particular book, I really like how she switches from present to past. This successfully showed the strong bond between Clare and Aidan, even though in the present, I’m perfectly aware that their relationship is coming to an end. I just appreciate how I can learn more about their relationship through the stops they visit in their last 12 hours together. It’s a nice twist to an otherwise typical romance/break-up story.
Plot
The plot falls short for me. But since I have no expectations whatsoever coming into this book, I didn’t mind it.
Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between is your typical run-of-the-mill love story. The drama between Clare and Aidan, the so-called “reasons” why they should break up, are downright petty. It’s there just for the sake of creating unnecessary drama. Basically, the whole story is pointless.
Nevertheless, I did enjoy reading their angst and obvious reluctance to break up. After all, I’m a sucker for characters pining over each other.
Characters
I didn’t have any strong feelings for the characters in this novel. They’re average and pretty forgettable.
Clare is your typical brunette girl who thinks of herself as “unremarkable.” She has understanding and supportive parents, and she’s always ahead of her class. And oh, she likes to stick with rules and lists. That’s why she annoyed the heck out of me. I hate how she pushes this break-up thing with her boyfriend when it’s so clear that she still loves him. Not only is she selfish but she is also indecisive for the majority of the book.
Aidan, on the other hand, is the complete opposite of Clare. He’s a go-with-the-flow type of guy—the carefree type whose mind is only on playing lacrosse. I was actually surprised that his relationship with Clare managed to last for almost 2 years, considering their differences and all. I kind of felt bad for him at some parts of the book. It seemed like he’s the only one who’s “giving” in the relationship. And he’s the only one who wants to try a long-distance relationship (because duh, technology).
Luckily, I still enjoyed reading about their dynamic. They do act like love-sick teenagers—which makes the book so cheesy—but I didn’t mind it as much since it’s a high school relationship anyway. I think some readers can relate to them, especially those who are going away to college or university. But as for me, I just feel indifferent.
Overall Thoughts
To sum it all up, Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between is a cute and fun contemporary book. It’s the kind of novel to read if you need some cheering up or if you want to get out of a reading slump. No big, life-changing lessons, just pure and simple fluff.
Book Rating (Summary)
Writing Style: 4 stars
Plot: 2.5 stars
Characters: 3 stars
Overall Rating: 3 stars
My book review of Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between is also posted on Goodreads!
Let’s Talk!
Have you read Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between? What is your favorite light and “feel good” book?
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