To All The Boys I've Loved Before, by Jenny Han

To All The Boys I've Loved Before, by Jenny Han

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Chick-lit, Romance

Rating: 5/5 stars










Goodreads Summary: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is the story of Lara Jean, who has never openly admitted her crushes, but instead wrote each boy a letter about how she felt, sealed it, and hid it in a box under her bed. But one day Lara Jean discovers that somehow her secret box of letters has been mailed, causing all her crushes from her past to confront her about the letters: her first kiss, the boy from summer camp, even her sister's ex-boyfriend, Josh. As she learns to deal with her past loves face to face, Lara Jean discovers that something good may come out of these letters after all.

Review:

 
  Jenny Han, you know that I love you and your books, but seriously, what have you done to me. I. AM. ABSOLUTELY. BROKEN after reading this unbelievable book.

  So I started off hoping and absolutely expecting the best. I love Jenny Han's books. She is one of my favourite authors and leaves me either crying or screaming happily by the end. And guess what I got when reading To All The Boys I've Loved Before? Haha, BOTH.

   Lara Jean has loved five boys in total, and after every single time she felt like it was time to say goodbye to the guy, she wrote a letter to them, expressing all of her fears and feelings. She'd end up putting the letter away in a teal hatbox that her mother once gave her before she died. One day, all of her fears were made public, and each letter was sent to the boys she loved before. She was mortified, just like any teenage girl would be. She found out that her father gave the box to Goodwill, and the letters then were given to the guys. Lara Jean unexpectedly kisses one of the guys she once loved in order to make another jealous, and that's where it all began.

   The Racing Plot: From the beginning, I was stuck in this book. After the main idea got to its point, I already knew that I was in love with this book, and it's normally difficult to figure that out until the end when reading a book. Jenny Han just keeps her books magical and amazing all throughout. Who'd think that someone would cry in this kind of book? Let me tell you, I never expected that I'd go through so many emotional breakdowns when reading this book, but I did. One minute I was so happy for Lara and the next I just wanted to die.

   
     I just don't understand how people say there was no romance in this book, because there. absolutely. WAS. OKAY? I listened to the reviews and was like, "Oh. This is going to be boring because there's no romance and it's all complaining and whining." NOOOO. The romance in this book may have been fake for a while, but it was there, and I'm not going to let anyone get by thinking the opposite.

     A love triangle in a contemporary/chick-lit book? Tell me more! Yes, this included a deep love-triangle, and I seriously didn't know who's side to be on because oh my, Lara was too lucky to have two hot guys running after her. I felt like I had to keep myself going strong and STAYING strong so I wouldn't squeal and feel like I was dying when a normal scene was going on in the book.

   
  So Jenny Han eventually left me crying and I had to calm myself, AND IT'S BECAUSE OF THE GUYS. Imagine that, guys breaking readers' hearts. -.-

  The Characters: Holy popsicles. The characters were too good. I loved the Song sisters, their bond was inseparable, and you can never find a sisterly bond like that in any book. It's the first time I've read about something like this. Lara was a downright kick-ass awesome protagonist. Many people disliked her because she liked her sister's ex-boyfriend, but I didn't care. She deserved a guy who would be good for her, and it didn't matter who he was, as long as she loved him. I seriously saw Peter as the perfect guy for her, although I didn't see that right in the beginning when we met him. At first I saw him as a snob, or one of those "popular jock guys we see in the movies," but in the end, I ended up loving him too much. He made me upset for not expressing his feelings for Lara sooner enough, and not knowing who to pick- Genevieve or Lara, but he was a little heart-breaking teddy bear that I just wanted to cuddle with.

    This is one of my new favourites, and one of my favourite contemporaries ever. Once again, Jenny Han has made me bawl and cry and love another novel again. :)