Begin Again by Emma Lord ★★★★★ #BookReview #YA

Welcome to Smitten For Fiction! My name is Amanda and this blog is all about books. I mainly share spoiler-free book reviews and sometimes other bookish things. Not every book is my cup of tea – and that’s ok. Even if I didn’t like it, I will try to find readers that would. Thanks for visiting. Let’s get Smitten For Fiction.

I was excited to receive an arc for Begin Again after loving Tweet Cute, You Have A Match, and When You Get The Chance. I’ve given all of Emma Lord’s books four or five stars, so she’s earned a place on my list of favourite authors.

About The Book 📚

Title: Begin Again

Author: Emma Lord

Publication Date: January 24, 2023

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Suggested Reader Age: Teens

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance

Pages: 352

Content Warnings: death of parent, grief

About The Author

Author of Tweet Cute, You Have A Match, When You Get The Chance, and Begin Again
NYT Bestselling author
Buzzfeed market editor
Lives in NYC
Likes community theater
Psychology degree from University of Virginia
https://twitter.com/dilemmalord
https://www.instagram.com/dilemmalord/
https://www.emmalordwriting.com/

My Review

› Andie Rose believes in destiny. She uses corny cuss words, has everything planned and if you have a problem Andie will brainstorm a solution. After a lot of hard work, she’s finally attending her dream school, Blue Ridge State. And she even gets to surprise her boyfriend Connor because she managed to keep it all a secret. The only thing is, he surprised her by transferring to their local college. They decide to stay put for this semester and continue their long-distance relationship. Andie was raised by her grandmothers after her mom died and her dad was absent. Andie’s RA is a tall guy named Milo Flynn. Milo is addicted to coffee, super serious, and broken-hearted after his girlfriend left him for his brother. Andie’s new roommate is Shay Gibbins, a bibliophile who runs an Instagram with no idea what to claim as her major.

› Andie also wants to be a therapist. She plans to get a Psychology degree, then a Master’s in clinical psych. She also wants to get into one of the secret societies at Blue Ridge. She feels that it’s part of her destiny. Freshmen attend a ribbon event where they complete a task to earn a yellow, red, or blue ribbon. Each ribbon represents a different secret society. They can join the society at the end of the semester if they have enough ribbons. “The Knight’s Watch” is a radio show hosted by an anonymous student that shares updates about the school and ribbon events. Andie has been listening since she was a little girl. Andie’s mom was the original Knight – she’s the one who started it all.

› Andie is determined to join the same society that her mom was in, but she doesn’t know which one to choose because it was a secret, so she has to collect enough ribbons from all three societies. She’s dealing with grief, a determination to follow in her mother’s footsteps, intense emotions about her father wanting to reconnect, a long-distance relationship with Connor, struggling with college courses, and trying to help her friends with their problems. It’s too much for one person. However, it’s when things fall apart that we can begin again.

› I use the CAWPILE method to rate books.
0-3 Really bad
4-6 Mediocre
7-9 Really good
10 Outstanding

› Characters: 10
The main characters are well-developed with goals, motivation, strengths, flaws, external and internal conflict, backstory and characteristics making them unique. The side characters are interesting and diverse.

› Atmosphere: 10
I can picture every setting and felt appropriate emotions.

› Writing Style: 10
I love Lord’s writing style. It’s original and readable with authentic dialogue. It’s not repetitive.

› Plot: 10
I enjoyed the beginning, middle and end. This was a page-turner for me. I loved the pacing.

› Intrigue: 10
I didn’t want to put it down.

› Logic: 9
Who in their right mind transfers schools without telling their boyfriend? It’s out of character for Andie who’s had her life planned out for years.

› Enjoyment:
Overall experience is a 10!

Average 9.9

1.1-2.2 = ★
2.3-4.5 = ★★
4.6-6.9 = ★★★
7-8.9 = ★★★★
9-10 = ★★★★★

My Rating ★★★★★

› Final Thoughts
• Begin Again is a heartfelt and charming story about grief, navigating relationships, resilience, and self-love that made me try a cheese bagel with strawberry cream cheese (it’s delicious BTW). If you liked A Brush With Love by Mazey Eddings, The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon, One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston or Love From A to Z by S.K. Ali then I think you’ll love Begin Again. Highly recommend it to fans of contemporary RomComs!