Rashika, The Book Owl

Another Little Piece of My Heart was a hard book to rate. Quite simply put, I did not like it at all when I started but as I progressed, something happened. I stopped getting annoyed. I started smiling like a creeper. I was cheering the main character on and when I closed the book, my heart felt fluffy. I don’t even know what that means. I just felt so nice and comfy and it was a really good mood to be in. I also went to sleep right away.

I picked this book as a means to celebrate. I had just turned in my last college application. That called for a good fluffy book. I guess I should have taken the reviews a little more seriously and should have been prepared to hate Jared. I hadn’t been and that cost me the beginning quarter. 

If you’re looking for a Persuasion re-telling, I don’t know what to tell you. For Darkness Shows the Stars follows the plot line of Persuasion a lot more closely but I really enjoyed Another Little Piece of My Heart. Martin really put an original spin on things, which I enjoyed. We live in the 21st Century but the original story was written in the 19th Century. Things are going to be difficult if you expect it to follow the original story word for word.

The angsty teenager in me fangirls over Claire. She is such a wonderful character. She’s pissed at Jared. When he comes back, she isn’t ready to let go. She isn’t swooning over him. Sure she has her moments of jealousy but he also broke her heart. He got a music deal and a grammy at her expense and she has no money to go to college. You tell me, how would you react to something like that? Are you going to run back into the arms of the ex? Are you going to be polite (like the original Anne.. who also happens to be 27)? Or are you going to take digs at whatever chance you get and try to get as far away as possible? Perhaps even imagine running him over with your Miata (which he wrote a song about). Yeah if you’re 17 and perhaps even older, YOU’D GO FOR THE LAST OPTION. And she did. I wouldn’t call Claire a kick ass female lead, she is very down to Earth and relatable. She has dreams but worries they will never come true. She isn’t always sure of herself. She gets angry. She tries to hold in her anger and that usually ends up with all of it being let out at once. She is human. 

Jared started off as a pain. I wanted to kick him. I REALLY DID. Or perhaps punch him. I hated him for what he did to Claire. He was selfish. Her mom had cancer and he didn’t understand. He made it about himself. But in the end I warmed up to him. He was insecure. I’ll admit, that is a very lame excuse but it works here because let’s face it, teenagers (that explains everything). Their are plenty of ways where I would have hated the same situation but somehow the author explains everything in a way that is believable. I still did have a problem with his ‘perfectness’. He is 19 and famous. WHY DOES HE HAVE PROBLEM WITH COMPLIMENTS? Why is he this sweet guy? Shouldn’t fame have gone to his head? Aside from that, I have to give the author credit for trying to show the other side of the coin. That fame isn’t everything. Jared cannot write music for himself anymore. He is under pressure from his label and his agent to come up with something while he is still the 'hot thing' but how does he do that when he’s all vented out? He has an image to maintain and most people see him as an object instead of a human. There are some harsh realities when it comes to being famous but he’s 19.. so.. shouldn’t he revel in it more?

The two as a couple worked really well. I love how Claire is actually honest about Jared’s flaws. There are actually things she doesn’t like about him *gasp*. Like things she wished she could change but she loves him and accepts him for who he is and thats what makes the two incredible. Predictably, there is a LOT of angst but it's cute.

The relationship between Claire and April was my favorite. It’s the kind of relationship between sisters I’ve been looking for. Something I can relate to. My sister and I aren’t overly close despite the fact that that there isn’t much of an age gap between us. We clash too often but nothing brings us together like hating on people and that’s exactly what brought Claire and April together. They aren’t the best of sisters but get along all right. They ‘compete’ against each other occasionally but in the end they’re sisters and hey, you have to hate the enemy. 

I also loved the whole parental aspect. We all know that the father in Persuasion was an ass. We hated him. The mother, from what I understand, was more sympathetic towards her daughter which wasn’t the case in this book. That bothered me for most of the book until the ending. The author didn’t try to make the parents the antagonists but justified them. Parent’s aren’t always right but in the end they love you and will do whatever they can to protect you. It's really as simple as that. They aren't actually out to get you or ruin your lives (in most cases... I cannot account for everyone).

The plot wasn’t the strongest but I guess everything worked out because I loved the book. 

I’d recommend this to anyone looking for a cute second chance romance (in YA *gasp*) or anyone who needs to unwind and doesn’t mind dealing with teenage angst.