But now it’s time for Caroline to go off to college and she wants nothing more than to leave her old “life” behind and build something real. However, when her mother discovers the truth about her manufactured friends, she gives Caroline an ultimatum: Prove in this first semester that she can make friends of the nonfictional variety and thrive in a new environment. Otherwise, it’s back to living at home—and a lot of therapy.
Armed with nothing more than her resolve and a Felicity-inspired plan, Caroline accepts the challenge. But she soon realizes that the real world is rarely as simple as television makes it out to be. And to find a place where she truly belongs, Caroline may have to abandon her script and take the risk of being herself. (Pub Date: Mar 20, 2018)
It's a simple book, and yet I enjoyed it so very much!
Caroline is in trouble. After years pretending to have friends—most of them fictional and based on her favorite TV show—her mother finally discovered every lie. But one, the reason she chose an university so far away from home. It's her last hope, reinventing herself as an extroverted girl who'll say yes to fun and finally making Liam fall in love with her.
While the theme and the development are rather familiar, I like how some points were distinct from other YA books. First, this takes place mostly in college. Caroline is a freshman and we go through her move, her first days, her first party, all of those rite of passages we've also been through and many reader will as well.
And as I was saying, the theme. This is about self-esteem, about fearing social contact. Caroline's situation and thoughts are very easy to relate to. First, she just wanted to satisfy her mother's curiosity, then she starts enjoying the new world she's built for herself, where she is in control. So she sees college as a second chance to make it right—by pretending. It's such a familiar story, though taken to another level. I also remember thinking college would be different, I would act differently. When, in fact, you're the only one whom you can change.
I think the story brings an important lesson without forcing it on the reader. Also, a college environment is something lacking in YA's. I could count on my fingers the ones that did it and weren't just calling college a place that looked more like some high school. Adding tot he fact Caroline is just starting, you can't deny younger readers will be interested in checking what they can expect to deal with in a few months/years.
With all that as a pro, the story is also great. I love romances but it was refreshing having a book not so focused on that. "Didn't you say she followed a boy to college?" Yes, but it's definitely not about her love interest but about overcoming herself, her fears, her mistakes. Caroline's challenges aren't about a boy, as in real life our problems aren't usually about boys. They come, break your heart and go, the problems however, tend to stay.
"So why is it not a five-star?" Because it was still a simple book. I think it's also a merit that it accomplished this much but I don't see it intending to go the distance. I'm stingy with my stars, and that's the reason I don't give it the maximum rating. Still, I recommend it to anyone who enjoys lighthearted, coming-of-age stories. It's also a great pick for an YA book club, I would love discussing what each reader thinks about Caroline's past actions and how her mother dealt with them.
Honest review based on an ARC provided by Edelweiss. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.
Rating: 4 out of 5.
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