Early Book Review: Over You

Author: Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus

Publication Date: August 21, 2012
Publisher: Harper Teen

After the grand explosion of her relationship, seventeen-year-old Max Scott developed what every girl in the history of the world has been waiting for: a way to get over being dumped. Now Max is the go-to guru for heartbroken high-school girls all over NYC. But when her ex unexpectedly shows up in her neighborhood, Max’s carefully controlled world starts to unravel. With her clients’ hearts hanging in the balance, Max will have to do the seemingly impossible: get over him once and for all.

Brilliant at bringing humor to the trials and tribulations of the lovestruck, #1 New York Times bestselling authors Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus have crafted a tale that will resonate with any girl who has ever been in love or had her heart broken. It brims with smart observations, features a pitch-perfect teen voice, and will attract fans of Jenny Han, Sarah Mlynowski, and Lauren Barnholdt. Readers are sure to fall head-over-heels for this sharp spin on breaking up, making up, and getting even.

The cover of this book is something that I believe all girls can easily relate to. How many of us can say that we have ever had our heart’s broken or damaged? How many of us have longed to breathe the words, “over you!” I know that I can attest to all of the above. The cover shows such a happy and blossoming couple and I love the idea of using the photo strip! How creative! I know personally I have about twenty of those with my friends and boyfriends. That was such a personable detail that really made the title pop for me.

Max is a girl, who like many others, has suffered a horrendous break up that left her alone and brokenhearted. She is the founder of Ex, Inc. which is a flourishing company that helps devastated girls get over boys that recklessly damaged their hearts. Max seems to such a strong and confident character. I couldn’t believe that she put together this program to help other girls in need, and she really cared about their recovery. Her story, of her own break up, was not revealed until later of course and I was wondering if we were ever going to get the details!

At first I really liked Max and then once I got to the middle of the book I started to change my mind. I guess I was just somewhat disappointed in her when I learned that she was not over her own break up, but was strongly encouraging other girls to get over theirs. I didn’t expect her to be invincible, but I guess after the first few chapters I came to see her as some kind of superwoman of break ups! It was almost like Ex, Inc. was some kind of front for her own insecurities. I am not saying that I completely disliked Max because I didn’t. I just had such a strong individual in my mind and I should not have jumped the gun on my own assumptions.

I LOVED the guy that Max meets named Ben. She meets Ben when he comes to put together the new crib for her younger sibling that is on the way. What a cute and completely strange way to meet a potential boyfriend!! Anyhow, I just really liked Ben because from the get go I could tell that he was a sincere person and he was already crazy about Max. Of course Max had to mess up a few times, like most girls do with the guy that is obviously perfect for them, but finally she got her stuff together! This was a cute story but probably nothing that I would read a second time around. It was a fast, light summer read and took me no time at all to finish.

***A copy of the book was provided for me from Southern Book Blogger Tours for review purposes***