Posted by DonnaRelease Date: July 16th, 2015
Finished Date: July 5th, 2015
Publishers: Simon & Schuster UK
Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance
Source: For Review
Format: Paperback
Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance
Source: For Review
Format: Paperback
Oliver's absence split us wide open, dividing our neighborhood along a fault line strong enough to cause an earthquake. An earthquake would have been better. At least during an earthquake, you understand why you're shaking.
Emmy and Oliver were going to be best friends forever, or maybe even more, before their futures were ripped apart. But now Oliver is back, and he's not the skinny boy-next-door that used to be Emmy's best friend. Now he's the boy who got kidnapped. A stranger - a totally hot stranger! - with a whole history that Emmy knows nothing about.
But is their story still meant to be? Or are they like the pieces of two different puzzles - impossible to fit together?
Emmy and Oliver were going to be best friends forever, or maybe even more, before their futures were ripped apart. But now Oliver is back, and he's not the skinny boy-next-door that used to be Emmy's best friend. Now he's the boy who got kidnapped. A stranger - a totally hot stranger! - with a whole history that Emmy knows nothing about.
But is their story still meant to be? Or are they like the pieces of two different puzzles - impossible to fit together?
Since they were born, Emmy and Oliver have been as close as best friends can be. But when Oliver is kidnapped by his father, Emmy's world is rocked and that's including the town she lives in. Everyone feels the loss from Oliver's disappearance and from that moment on, nothing is ever the same. But years later Oliver is found but he's not the same boy Emmy used to know. But once they start spending time together, they realize they may not be the same people now but that might be a good thing too....
Emmy and Oliver is such a well written story that it's simply impossible not to enjoy it. It's a touching YA contemporary read that has a serious plot that adds to the emotional aspect of the story but also has such a sweet romance that really makes this a great story. I felt it was realistic to the events that were happening around the characters and the author did a fantastic job writing about the serious issues. I always find I enjoy stories more than deal with issues that are more common in our world nowadays such as kidnapping because it also spreads awareness to the readers. So bravo!
Emmy was such a great character. She's very understanding and has the patience of a saint. Her overbearing parents drove my crazy sometimes but I could see why they acted the way they did. But Emmy was just such a lovable character.
I really felt for Oliver's situation and I really felt his emotions to the events were realistic. He's torn between right and wrong. He's torn between two parents but more importantly he's torn between two different versions of himself. The before and after. It was hard for him. But Emmy made things easier for him and watching their friendship blossom again was so good. It was so good to read their journey together.
In all, Emmy and Oliver is a great read and certainly one I'd recommend this year!
Thank you to Simon & Schuster for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review.
INSPIRATION FOR EMMY & OLIVER
by Robin Benway
I wish that I had a great story about divine inspiration, how I was driving along one day and BAM! I got hit by this wonderful idea for a new story. But the truth behind EMMY & OLIVER is that it's a book that took its time becoming an actual book.
I worked on it off & on over the course of four years, but it wasn't until I sat down and really started thinking about who the characters were that I discovered the story behind Oliver's kidnapping. I read an article in the Guardian about parents whose children were taken in international abductions, and that really helped form Emmy & Oliver's mothers, two women who both witnessed this terrible incident and had to still go on with their lives.
In the very beginning of a first draft, Emmy was originally a cross-country runner. However, several summers ago, my mom and I took surfing lessons together (she's great, I'm not), and I realized that our girl Emmy was a surfer. Making that change in her character really helped the whole book come together because not only did Emmy have this talent, but it gave the book its seaside setting.
I grew up near the beach and spend a lot of time there now, and there's something about a beach community that feels different. For me, writing books that take place in my hometown feels natural, like I'm revisiting all of my old haunts with new characters, and I really wanted both Emmy & Oliver to be in the ocean waves, figuring out how to be friends again in the midst of Oliver's sudden return back home.
One of the most difficult things I've learned about writing a book is that you can't wait for inspiration. If you want to know how your characters think, feel, and act, you have to step up to meet them, which means sometimes you have to start writing them before you know who they are. That's how it was with EMMY & OLIVER, and while I'm so glad that the book is finally making its way out into the world, I miss the times that I spent with my characters.
AUTHOR BIO:
I'm the author of "Audrey, Wait!", "The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May & June", and the AKA series. My new book "Emmy & Oliver" will be released on June 23, 2015. I live in Los Angeles with my extremely stubborn shih tzu, Hudson. I've gotten a lot better at cooking. I still love coffee. We should be friends.
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