The way you smile and sing along: NOW THAT I'VE FOUND YOU.

Now That I've Found You by Kristina Forest
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This charming, lighthearted story follows Evie, the granddaughter of legendary actress Evelyn Conaway—though to Evie, she’s always just been Gigi, her beloved and constant presence in an otherwise lonely childhood. Now, as Evie pursues her own dreams of acting, a friend's betrayal leads to a career-crushing viral video, leaving her future in shambles.

Desperate for guidance, Evie turns to Gigi, only for her to disappear. Instead, she finds herself stuck with Milo—a sweet, down-to-earth musician and grocery store worker who, for some reason, is staying with her grandmother. With her last shot at redemption tied to a prestigious awards ceremony, Evie embarks on a whirlwind search across New York City to find Gigi, with Milo reluctantly (but adorably) at her side. Along the way, they share stories, uncover secrets, and slowly grow closer, even if their chemistry takes time to develop.

While the plot isn’t particularly deep, it delivers strong themes of self-acceptance and breaking free from others' expectations—important messages for a YA audience. Evie starts off frustratingly self-absorbed, especially next to the kind and steady Milo, but her journey of self-discovery makes for a satisfying arc. The real standout, though, is Milo’s bandmates, who provide delightful comic relief throughout.

A quick, enjoyable read with heartwarming moments, NOW THAT I'VE FOUND YOU is sure to resonate with YA readers. 3.75 stars.

View all my reviews

So come on darling, feel your spirits rise: THE NEIGHBOR FAVOR.

The Neighbor Favor by Kristina Forest
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm so glad I read this for my A to Z owned book challenge!

Lily Greene feels inadequate compared to her parents and sisters. She wants to be a children's book editor but is stuck as an assistant in nonfiction to a terrible boss. So she strikes up a correspondence with her favorite fantasy author--finding solace as the two begin communicating frequently via email. It seems like they may become more than email pals when he suddenly ghosts her.

This is a really cute read, completely propelled by the lovely and charming Lily, who carries the whole book. I found Nick, her love interest, to be an incredibly frustrating character. Nick moves in down the hall from Lily, and the two feel an instant attraction. An author writing under a pen name, he soon realizes Lily was the person he was writing to via his author website, but (of course) he keeps it from her, and (of course) he agrees to set her up with someone else instead.

So much miscommunication ensues and angst follows. Nick has a huge inability to move past the damage his parents caused him and just act, which made me want to scream sometimes. But I still managed to enjoy him and Lily together. And Lily was great! She was a sweet heroine who worked hard to find herself. The book portrayed her relationships with her sisters very well, as well as Nick's friendship with his agent (and college friend) Marcus and Marcus' husband. There are lots of little tidbits about publishing and the writing world. Lily and Nick's quirky neighbors give us some much needed lighthearted fun.

The book starts off being told solely via Nick and Lily's emails--often an irritating format, it worked quite nicely here. Eventually we go back to narrative form and while there's the annoyances with Nick, this is still a cute read with diverse characters and a fun story. 3.75 stars.

View all my reviews