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A review by obscurepages
Been Here All Along by Sandy Hall
3.0
This was a good read, a fast and fun one. And although the plot seemed too easy and predictable at times, it was still pretty enjoyable. I definitely recommend this to those who are looking for a short and sweet contemporary read!
The writing
The writing was okay, it was light and it was easy to follow.
There are four perspectives, though, so that can be a little confusing, not because of timelines or the different thoughts of the characters, but because you’ll be wondering “oh, why does this character have a perspective? What does he/she have to the with the plot? Do they have a bigger purpose or part? What’s going to happen in their arc now?”. Stuff like those.
The characters
The characters were fine and it was easy for me to connect with the main characters, especially with Gideon and Kyle.
I love how they’re all facing their own problems. As I’ve mentioned, there are four perspectives, and these four characters all have their problems that they’re going through. I wish the author delved more into that though, because some conflicts in each perspective were only partly-solved. I was really waiting for the characters—especially Ezra and Ruby—to truly overcome and face their problems head on, I wanted to see more of their character development.
Another thing is that Gideon and Kyle’s feelings for each other seemed a bit rushed for me. I mean I get that they’re best friends, and I LOVE the best friends to lovers trope, but I didn’t see much of the “buried” feelings as they say, or the gradual realization that they have feelings for each other. I still like their pairing though, haha!
The plot
As I’ve mentioned above, the plot can seem too easy and predictable at times. Like it’s something that I’ve already seen in other YA contemporaries (the plot actually reminds me a bit of Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda). The good thing about this is that, readers will definitely get that happy ending they’re looking for. This is why I totally recommend this book as sort of a palate cleanser, in case you’ve been reading a lot of fantasy novels or books with heavy or emotional issues. Been Here All Along is a fun and light read, for sure.
There are a couple of subplots as well, that I feel like wasn’t answered or tackled completely. It left me a little bit unsatisfied because unsolved or partly-solved subplots are some of the banes of my existence. Apart from that, everything was good.
Overall this was a fun read and I give it three stars!
(This review can also be found on my blog.)
The writing
The writing was okay, it was light and it was easy to follow.
There are four perspectives, though, so that can be a little confusing, not because of timelines or the different thoughts of the characters, but because you’ll be wondering “oh, why does this character have a perspective? What does he/she have to the with the plot? Do they have a bigger purpose or part? What’s going to happen in their arc now?”. Stuff like those.
The characters
The characters were fine and it was easy for me to connect with the main characters, especially with Gideon and Kyle.
I love how they’re all facing their own problems. As I’ve mentioned, there are four perspectives, and these four characters all have their problems that they’re going through. I wish the author delved more into that though, because some conflicts in each perspective were only partly-solved. I was really waiting for the characters—especially Ezra and Ruby—to truly overcome and face their problems head on, I wanted to see more of their character development.
Another thing is that Gideon and Kyle’s feelings for each other seemed a bit rushed for me. I mean I get that they’re best friends, and I LOVE the best friends to lovers trope, but I didn’t see much of the “buried” feelings as they say, or the gradual realization that they have feelings for each other. I still like their pairing though, haha!
The plot
As I’ve mentioned above, the plot can seem too easy and predictable at times. Like it’s something that I’ve already seen in other YA contemporaries (the plot actually reminds me a bit of Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda). The good thing about this is that, readers will definitely get that happy ending they’re looking for. This is why I totally recommend this book as sort of a palate cleanser, in case you’ve been reading a lot of fantasy novels or books with heavy or emotional issues. Been Here All Along is a fun and light read, for sure.
There are a couple of subplots as well, that I feel like wasn’t answered or tackled completely. It left me a little bit unsatisfied because unsolved or partly-solved subplots are some of the banes of my existence. Apart from that, everything was good.
Overall this was a fun read and I give it three stars!
(This review can also be found on my blog.)