Author: Sarah Dessen
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Genre: YA contemporary
My Rating: 5/5 stars
Release Date: 6/4/19
Synopsis:
“Emma Saylor doesn’t remember a lot about her mother, who died when she was ten. 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—her grandmother and cousins 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 divided into two people as well. 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 will win out?”
I’ve only read two Sarah Dessen books before this one and I honestly didn’t love either of them. So, I was going into The Rest of the Story with lowered expectations and pure hope in my heart that I’d enjoy this one. And now I’m happy to report that I did overall enjoy this story!
What I enjoyed about this story:
- I loved the large family dynamic! The North Lake family was hilarious and heartwarming. I wish I could just spend a weekend hanging out with all of them.
- Emma Saylor’s character development. It was done perfectly!
- The romance. OH MY GOSH. The friends-to-lovers romance was adorable and Roo is such a sweetheart. I will never be over cinnamon roll boys in books.
- The setting was beautiful. Dessen described the lake in such a way that I wish I was a water person so I could enjoy the summer the way everyone at North Lake does.
- This book was impossible to put down. I started it just planning to read a few chapters and ended up staying up ridiculously late trying to finish it!
What I didn’t enjoy about the story:
- My only complaint about this book is that it was a little confusing to get into. As Emma Saylor begins living with her mother’s family I felt overwhelmed with the copious amount of new characters flying at my face. It was overwhelming and confusing while starting out in this new story.
So overall I really loved this story! It’s a lovely Summer read full of fun characters set at one of my new favorite fictional settings. It was a vivid story of growing up, falling in love, and discovering who you are.
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