Review: Over You by Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus

Hey!

Over You

by Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus

Pub: August 21st 2012
by HarperTeen
Hardcover, 304 pages

Goodreads:

After the grand explosion of her relationship, seventeen-year-old Max Scott developed what every girl in the history of the world has been waiting for: a way to get over being dumped. Now Max is the go-to guru for heartbroken high-school girls all over NYC. But when her ex unexpectedly shows up in her neighborhood, Max’s carefully controlled world starts to unravel. With her clients’ hearts hanging in the balance, Max will have to do the seemingly impossible: get over him once and for all.

Brilliant at bringing humor to the trials and tribulations of the lovestruck, #1 New York Times bestselling authors Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus have crafted a tale that will resonate with any girl who has ever been in love or had her heart broken. It brims with smart observations, features a pitch-perfect teen voice, and will attract fans of Jenny Han, Sarah Mlynowski, and Lauren Barnholdt. Readers are sure to fall head-over-heels for this sharp spin on breaking up, making up, and getting even.

This was a fun, quick, chic read! It’s the kind of book you read by the pool, sipping a cool cocktail and daydreaming about cute boys, big cities, fancy fashion, parties and vacations... A perfect summer read! (after all the tragic, intense books I’ve read lately, I really needed something light and entertaining).

Told in 3^rd person POV, Over You is a contemporary story about friendship, young love, relationships, break-ups, broken hearts and learning to move on.

I haven’t read many Young Adult books told in 3^rd person POV before, so it took me a little while to get used to the writing style. But once I got into the story, I started to really enjoy it and I couldn’t put it down until I finished it! Of course, it also helped that Max was a very likeable character and it was easy to relate to her.  She’s smart, sassy, independent, confident, determined and a lot of fun to follow around! She’s always up to something, always in action. She started her own business - granted, it’s not really a business, more like a means to help girls in post-break-up distress, but still - she’s put to work some pretty impressive entrepreneurial skills.

Max sighs contentedly as she makes her way to Union Square, her tasks for the night completed. She relishes the feeling of being worn out by a full day of work, looks forward to getting into bed and waking up fresh tomorrow to tackle this new challenge of getting Bridget over the boy-next-door. Which is way worse than boy-from-camp, boy-in-school-play, or even boy-in-homeroom. She’s learned that there’s bound to be a strategy, she just has to think long and hard and shake down what the world has to offer.

She always tries to find the best solution for everything, but she’s also caring and reliable, so people look up to her and ask for her help frequently (I could have used a friend like her back in high school):

“This is your schedule,” Max says forcefully. “Up! Out of bed! And directly downstairs to the kitchen for a sugar-free caffeine beverage—”
“Sugar free?” Bridget asks through a mouthful of egg.
“No Coke. No Red Bull. No Frappuccinos. We can’t risk you getting artificially hyped and doing something ill advised.”[…] Little known fact: dehydration and depression go hand in hand.” She flashes a rapid succession of slides. “Virginia Woolf, Sylvia Plath, Courtney Love. Crazy? Maybe. Depressed? Probably. Dehydrated? Definitely. It’s astounding how the lack of electrolytes can suck a girl’s mojo. In conclusion, every morning, without fail. Caffeine. Protein. Shower. Real clothes. Water. CPSRW. I’m tacking it to the ceiling over your bed.”

She and her crew are always planning or working on something, so there’s no dull moment throughout the book. Max is resourceful, intuitive and likes to have everything under control – and if she doesn’t, she acts like she does – there’s people counting on her, after all. She’s positive and creative and always has a back-up plan. Or she used to – up until now.

Their latest case proves to be a little more challenging that the previous ones they’ve worked on. There may be more people and *gasp!* even some real feelings involved. So everything starts to be a little more complicated. 

Max had to moved a lot over the years, so she didn’t get the chance to build strong relationships.  Now it’s easier for her to just keep a cool façade and not to get attached to anyone. So when she faces what her ‘clients’ endure everyday and her perfect image begins to slip, her life gets a bit out of control and suddenly there’s too much to handle on her own. 

Guys are so confusing! She looks over at the pile of bananas. It’s so clear which fruit are good and which ones are rotten. You can see it before you make your investment. Why can’t boys be more like bananas? Why do you have to put your heart out there before you find out you picked a bad one?

She’s the kind of girl who always knows what to say and how to make people feel better, but when it comes to her own personal problems, she struggles to find a solution, to use her own advice or to  actually trust someone. But that’s when she starts to realize what she’s been missing all along; who cares about her and is always there for her, no matter how much she tries to keep them at a safe distance. Because, after all, there’s always more to a story than meets the eye. 

Since the story was told in 3^rd person POV, we got some glimpses from other characters as well, which was refreshing and interesting, but in the same time, a little confusing. You get caught up in Max’s story and then BAM! There’s Taylor pacing around the room, talking to his best friend and having second thoughts about… something (spoiler). And then BAM! There’s Ben not wanting to admit that he has feelings for someone. And then we’re back to Max. Without any warning. Anyway, these sequences were few and far between and in the end, proved to be very helpful for the conclusion of the story, but still, they were confusing. 

Ok, bottom line: we have humor, wit, fashion, romance, friendship, loyalty, likeable characters, original plot and a writing that flows effortlessly - all the ingredients necessary for a delightful summer read! (actually, this is a perfect read for those days when you need a breather from all the dramas and paranormals and dystopians and post-apocalyptics and the like;)).

*Review copy provided by the publisher HarperCollins and Edelweiss in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you!
**All quotes were selected from the Advanced Reader e-proof and they might be different in the final published edition. 

Happy reading!
xoxo