A story from the perspective of a girl who thinks that all the clichés of high school are pointless, before she becomes friends with a guy who would do anything to convince her otherwise.
It has been quite a while since the last young-adult contemporary romance novel I read, so I don't know if I just forgot what they were like, or if this novel just didn't give me everything that my favorite contemporary romance novels have. It felt to me like Shuffle, Repeat didn't have much to offer. I won't get into that now, but I will get into it later in the review when I discuss my dislikes. Until then, let's focus on the things I DID like!
‣ The cover receives a grade of 103% in the class of being aesthetically pleasing.
No one can disagree to the fact that the cover to Shuffle, Repeat is absolutely gorgeous and appeals to those of us who, contrary to popular belief and passionate protests, judge books by their covers. I know most of us, if not all of us, do this! I do this and I'm not ashamed to admit it! Totally judged this book by its cover, and the judgement was positive.
"I know I need to say something important and epic and romantic, because this is a moment that requires an important, epically romantic gesture, but the words aren't there. Instead, all I have is the overwhelming fear that I've already lost the one person I want the most to find."
‣ When reading Shuffle, Repeat, I easily took notice of the obvious talent the author has with words.
I was not a big fan of the overall story, but I could definitely tell that the author was a good writer, and had a way with words. Things could've been deeper and they could've been better paced, but she is a good writer, and I would definitely give other works of hers a chance in the future.
‣ I couldn't bring myself to care about the characters because they felt really two-dimensional and shallow.
It only took me about the first 50 pages to really notice that the characters weren't developing and rounding out quite as much as I had expected (or at all). I was really disappointed with this because I was looking forward to reading this novel. The plot sounded interesting and the love story sounded super cute, but the characters ended up being so flat and two-dimensional that I just couldn't bring myself to care or try get caught up in the characters and their lives. I did not have those infamous heart-racing moments as the love story pulled together and that makes all the difference in a contemporary romance novel.
‣ It skipped over lots of time and didn't have much depth or description, which I guess was the leading cause of the dislike mentioned above.
The novel's main points, and the way the chapters skipped over time and focused on various little instances rather than long periods of time really had an effect on the overall story. It caused me to not get enough in one sitting about the characters, setting, or basically anything. And I need all that information if I'm truly going to get engrossed in a novel and root for the characters. I didn't get this in this story and I was truly disappointed in that as well.
“A few minutes of purchasing and texting and sending later, our 'Sunrise Songs' playlist has one new addition. I touch a final screen and the opening drumbeats reverberate out of the speakers, followed by an acoustic guitar and piano. A moment later, a melodic voice floats over us both.”
‣ The story seemed cliché at points (which was the main focus, I guess), which made it seem really unrealistic to me.
I get that the whole story focused on the clichés of high school and how they're worth remembering and participating in. I liked that part of the story and I really related to June's character in that aspect, but there were clichés in the actual writing that kind-of, sort-of, maybe had me rolling my eyes. There were some unrealistic situations, some unrealistic reactions and some unrealistic dialogue etc. that caused me to not really get into the book. When too many things happen that I just can't see actually happening in real life, that causes me to separate further and further from the story and not get as attached to it or into it as the author may have aimed for.
Shuffle, Repeat by Jen Klein
323 Pages / Paperback
Published May 3rd, 2016
Publisher / Random House Books for Young Readers
Rate / ★★☆☆☆
June wants high school to end and real life to begin. Oliver is soaking up senior year’s glory days. They could have coasted through high school, knowing about—but not really knowing—each other. Except that their moms have arranged for Oliver to drive June to school. Every. Single. Day. Suddenly these two opposites are fighting about music, life . . . pretty much everything. But love is unpredictable. When promises—and hearts—get broken, Oliver and June must figure out what really matters. And then fight for it.
