Review: The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi

The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi 

Publishing Date: June 16, 2015
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Pages: 304 pages
Young Adult Contemporary

The Premise: The story follows Ella, who had a plan to get over her ex-boyfriend, finish high-school and move away. However, her plan did not include Matt, the cute bassist player that joins her friend's band. The first night they meet, together with her bestfriend Meg and her on-and-off again boyfriend, Jake, they plan a night where they say yes to everything. Fast forward to a year later, Matt has left abruptly, leaving Ella completely heartbroken, but now he returns hoping to recreate that night where it all began.

My overall thoughts and review: The premise of this book sounded incredibly interesting when I first heard about it. I liked that there was a love relationship, but there was also a big focus on friendship. I also really enjoyed how the story moved from the past to present with every chapter. It was interesting to see how Ella's and Matt's relationship was in the past, but not in so much detail that it takes away from the significant point of moving towards the picture. I really enjoyed how this book tackled issues of moving away from home to university and how that affects relationships and friendships. I think what Gibaldi did was focus on the different types of love relationships: ones that seem problematic and ones that don't, but Gibaldi was very sure to emphasize that everyone has different experiences when it comes to relationships. Even when Ella did not always agree with how Jake was with Meg, or vice versa, with Meg not always agreeing with how Matt was with Ella, the take away was that as friends, they were able to support one another in their decisions and choices. I really enjoyed this book so much. It was well written, it definitely had some swoon-worthy moments and it was more than simply saying Yes, but also about being brave as well. I give this book an easy 5 stars because this is a really well-rounded young adult contemporary read. I think it is a definite must-have in your beach bag this summer! :D Well done, Lauren! I can't wait to read what you write next! :)

My rating of the book: ✮✮✮✮✮  (5/5 stars) 

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Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by HarperCollins Publishers (HCC Frenzy) for consideration/review. All opinions are my own.