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young adult book reviews & more

Wherever Nina Lies by Lynn Weingarten

Wherever Nina LiesIt’s been two long years since Ellie’s older sister Nina has disappeared. Pretty much everyone has given up any hope that Nina will return, but not Ellie. Ellie can’t bear to think Nina, her sister whom she loves and idolizes, could be dead. Ellie desperately wants to find Nina, and when she stumbles upon a portrait of her, drawn by Nina, she’s certain she’s found her clue. With the help of a hot and mysterious stranger named Sean, Ellie sets off on a seemingly wild-goose chase for the whereabouts of her sister. But Ellie isn’t prepared for what she learns along the way, regarding her sister and her new love interest Sean. In this suspenseful and fast-paced debut, readers will be swept along with Ellie as she journeys and finds love, lies, and the strength of sisterhood.

I was immensely impressed with this solid debut novel. Weingarten shows a mastery of her skill with words, especially when manipulating the plot. Ellie’s cross-country escapade was filled with humor and lust yet also disappointment, anticipation for the next clue, confusion, and danger. I like how the story strings the reader along nicely and then twists nearly completely around. In the back of my mind, I think I expected part of the outcome of Ellie’s journey, but I was still shocked when it actually happened. I also really liked the development of both Ellie’s and Nina’s characters. Ellie is easy to relate to, especially in her sisterly affection, friendship dilemmas, and thoughts of self-preservation, and this increases the reader’s sympathy for her as well as interest in her story. The reader gets to know Nina mainly through Ellie’s memories and thoughts of her sister, and it creates an image of a wild yet thoughtful girl anyone can love. Some of the minor details of this novel, though, were not as well executed as the plot and development of the major characters. There were some details that never completely added up. Also, Ellie’s relationship with her best friend Amanda seemed strange at times, and their problems seemed to magically disappear at the end of the novel. Other than these few aspects, Wherever Nina Lies was an extremely well-written and enjoyable story.

Wherever Nina Lies is very impressive for a first novel, and I hope Weingarten plans to write more novels especially if they’re as good as this one. Readers will see this novel as a hybrid between two fantastic novels, How to Be Bad and The Year My Sister Got Lucky, and will not be disappointed in this fantastic story of mystery, romance, suspense, and, most of all, sisterhood.

Rating: 4.75

Review copy from Amazon Vine

21 munch(es) :

Lenore Appelhans said...

A book with a similar story you might want to check out is:

How to be Lost by Amanda Eyre Ward

Anonymous said...

This book sounds awesome. I can't wait to read it.

Maryannwrites said...

You have been tagged. I tagged you athttp://its-not-all-gravy.blogspot.com/

Melissa Walker said...

It sounds great! I've been looking forward to this one!

Carolina said...

I really want to read this book. I can't wait for it to come out.

Anonymous said...

Wow. This book sounds really good. I usually read supernatural stuff, but this sounds interesting too!

Anonymous said...

I saw this book in a bookstore and I'm going back to get it as soon as possible. I started reading it at the store, and it's really good!

Anonymous said...

i read this and it's amazing. i'm writing a review on it for school.

Anonymous said...

this is one of the best books ive ever read but tht may b my opinion idk..but its really, really good.

Bidisha said...

I just finished this book and I thoroughly enjoyed it. While the first part was breezy, the later part had my pulse racing. I'll definately be looking forward to Weingarten's other books :D

April (BooksandWine) said...

I feel like character development is an important element to a good book! I'm really looking forward to Wherever Nina Lies, as it looks awesome.

the little reader said...

i'd never heard of this, but it sounds interesting. thank you for the review!

Kelsey said...

Good review. I haven't read it, but I entered in the contest to win it. Hope to read and review it on my blog!

Thanks,
Kelsey
krae991@yahoo.com

Cats on the Shelf said...

I wants to read this book! -_-

Jessy said...

Glad to hear you enjoyed it! I think it sounds like a good read.

Anonymous said...

Your review has made me very curious about the book. Sounds really good.

Unknown said...

deffinitely checking this one out :)

Bookie said...

Great review. I like books with interesting twists and turns. That makes me want to find out whats gonna happen next!

J Wiles Parker said...

I like the fact that she's actually looking for something as opposed to just running off randomly.
For some reason, this book vaguely makes me think of The Body of Christopher Creed; though, I'm sure they are nothing alike.

Anonymous said...

can u plz tell me it's cost ?????

Rachael Stein said...

Anonymous:

this book costs $8.99 for paperback and $16.99 for hardcover

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