Title: To All The Boys I've Loved Before
Author: Jenny Han
Series: To All The Boys I've Loved Before #1
Genres: YA, Contemporary, Romance, Fiction, Chick Lit
Published: August 7th, 2014
Read: January 2016
Rating: ★★★★★
My Copy
Publisher: Scholastic
Cover: Paperback
Purchase Location: Waterstones, London
Goodreads Summary: Lara Jean keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her. One for every boy she's ever loved. When she writes, she can pour out her heart and soul and say all the things she would never say in real life, because her letters are for her eyes only. Until the day her secret letters are mailed, and suddenly Lara Jean's love lifegoes from imaginary to out of control...
Sequel
Such a lovely and cute story! I got hooked from the second I opened the cover. The story is written in such a flow that you read 200 pages without even noticing that a few hours have passed. The story is quirky and although there's a little drama (Lara's love letters being released) it turns into a romantic story so fast that you can't decide if you want to be angry at the person who sent them in the first place (I suspected Kitty from the beginning).
I think the idea of writing a love letter to a past love could actually be quite helpful to get over somebody and I think it's a lovely way to try to say goodbye. Even if the other person would never read the letter you know you told him everything you wanted to. I really like Lara Jean's personality and this makes it so much greater.
The protagonist Lara Jean is a tranquile, nice and baking-skilled girl who has feelings for her sister's boyfriend. When Josh figures this out she pretends to have a boyfriend and Peter, who also got a love letter, takes advantage of this to get rid of his ex-girlfriend. Guess what, they actually fall for each other. I was so happy when I read Peter's love confession for Lara Jean. But of course they couldn't just life happily ever after. Margot's heart breaks when she finds out that Josh and Lara Jean had feelings for each other (although Lara Jean never acted on them).
I can only imagine what a sisterly bond like that has to mean to someone (FYI I don't have a sister). I understand however that sisters (especially younger ones) would want to have revenge if they'd feel humiliated. I think Kitty's action of sending the letters was the best thing that could have happened to Lara Jean because that way she was forced to come out of her comfort zone and try out new things (with Peter she had to go to parties and school events she normally never went to).
I recommend this book to lovers of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell and An Abundance of Katherines by John Green.
