The Rest of the Story by Sarah Dessen Genre: YA Contemporary Romance Publication date: June 4, 2019 Format: I purchased this book with my own money. *This post may contain affiliate links which does not affect the price for your purchase. Purchase from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3ddPdN4 Summary: From #1 New York Times bestselling author Sarah Dessen comes a big-hearted, sweeping novel about a girl who reconnects with a part of her family she hasn’t seen since she was a little girl—and falls in love, all over the course of a magical summer. Emma Saylor doesn’t remember a lot about her mother, who died when Emma was twelve. But she does remember the stories her mom told her about the big lake that went on forever, with cold, clear water and mossy trees at the edges. Now it’s just Emma and her dad, and life is good, if a little predictable…until Emma is unexpectedly sent to spend the summer with her mother’s family that she hasn’t seen since she was a little girl. When Emma arrives at North Lake, she realizes there are actually two very different communities there. Her mother grew up in working class North Lake, while her dad spent summers in the wealthier Lake North resort. The more time Emma spends there, the more it starts to feel like she is also divided into two people. To her father, she is Emma. But to her new family, she is Saylor, the name her mother always called her. Then there’s Roo, the boy who was her very best friend when she was little. Roo holds the key to her family’s history, and slowly, he helps her put the pieces together about her past. It’s hard not to get caught up in the magic of North Lake—and Saylor finds herself falling under Roo’s spell as well. For Saylor, it’s like a whole new world is opening up to her. But when it’s time to go back home, which side of her—Emma or Saylor—will win out? Review: When I say I could not wait to get my hands on this book, I mean it. I have loved everything that Sarah Dessen has written and this one was no exception. I purchased it on Kindle almost as soon as it came out and read it that day. In Sarah Dessen’s previous books, there are always little easter eggs from previous books, people who cross paths with each other that are main characters from other books. For this one though, Ms. Dessen creates a whole new world for Emma and her family. Of course, this new fictional town is just as amazing as the ones in her previous books but there’s something about it being completely new that is really refreshing. I mean, with the other books, when I was reading it for the 2nd, 3rd, or even 10th time (yes I’ve read some of her past books 10 times now) I was always looking for small details I missed. Did I happen to see that background character in a previous book? Did I miss a detail about that shop that the character just went into? Emma had only visited North Lake once before, before her mother passed away. Emma is also able to create new relationships with cousins she never knew she had and old friends. Through this, she’s also able to rekindle friendships with the people she once knew. Through photos Emma is able to learn more about her mother and her mother’s time in North Lake. I love how a lot of the book is about self discovery. Something that sets this book apart from Ms. Dessen’s other ones are the prominence of family. Emma Saylor is constantly surrounded by people that are her family, even though she is just getting the chance to learn who they are and to be able to live with them. She had for so long been living a certain lifestyle with her dad and never really learned about her late mother’s side of the family. Being thrown into these situations where she really had no other choice but to get to know her mother’s side of the family. Something else I really liked was the lack of modern technology. That’s not to say that there wasn’t any technology, but just that it didn’t play an important part. This really allows the reader to be able to really immerse themselves with Emma’s family. It’s too common now that teens just sit around all day and be on their phones and not be talking with each other. I really can’t wait to see the next book that Ms. Dessen writes. I hope more are set in North Lake because I want to discover more about life there, perhaps from someone who’s lived there her whole life. Overall I absolutely loved the book. I’ve said it a bunch of times in this review and lots of time before but Sarah Dessen books absolutely do not disappoint. I give The Rest of the Story a 5 out of 5. If you haven’t already read it, go and read it. Just make sure you have enough time to read it all the way through because trust me, it’s hard to step away during the middle. Until next time! Brooke
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About me!Brooke's a high schooler who loves to read all sorts of books. She's happy to be able to share all the books she's reading with all of y'all. Archives
June 2020
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