4 1/2 stars. Now, this is the sort of YA contemporary I love: wistful, bittersweet, and sad, but hopeful too. Again Again is actually quite different to anything Lockhart has written before. I was a big fan of her earlier fun "chick-lit" stuff and never really got on board with her dabbles in the mystery/thriller genre, but while this one is definitely more suited to my tastes, I would say it is not much like her recent thrillers OR her older fluffy books. It's a book about love and loving, but it is not, in my opinion, a romance. At the start of the book, we meet Adelaide as she struggles in the aftermath of a devastating break-up, as she tries to juggle her feelings about her brother and his opioid addiction, as she falls in love, maybe, possibly, with someone new. Alongside the main plot, we also see Adelaide's story play out in different universes, in snippets of what might have happened, what could have happened, what never did, if she had made other choices. I was unsure about this at first, but I really grew to love it as the story progressed. There is something about the multiverse theory, especially when applied to love and relationships that might have happened or never did happen, that makes me quite inexplicably sad. I think Lockhart taps into that here. There's a lot going on here for such a short book (304 pages and that's including many pages of texts); a lot of food for thought. The author sensitively portrays grief-- though not the kind that follows a death, as we most often see in YA --and the effects of addiction on the families of the addict. Emotions are complex in this book, just as they are in real life, and Adelaide battles with complicated feelings of love, fear and anger following her brother's relapse. Which emotion wins out? Well, that depends on what universe you live in. In the end, Again Again shows there's good and bad, happiness and sorrow, wins and losses in every universe. For every chance you didn't take, there's another one you did. It's about accepting the good with the bad. I thought it was all quite beautiful.

This book was so unique. I enjoyed the way the author made you feel through her use of language, somehow managing to bring back memories of past and present relationships. I was so hooked that I read it in one sitting. The style of writing was very different but unlike some other books I have read that jump from one time zone or storyline, somehow in this book the author manages to make everything flow and tie in. Possibly this was achieved by the use of strong characters, whose traits ran through each scenario, particularly the main character of Adelaide. I loved this character but if I had one complaint it was that it was difficult to believe someone of her age would be so mature and I felt that the real Adelaide was older than the character in the book. A very small complaint though and, overall, I really enjoyed the book. I have also read two other novels from this author which I would recommend, so will keep an eye out for her in the future.

If you could live your life again, what would you do differently? That is a question most people most likely have thought about. If someone asked me to describe Again Again in three words, I'd say it's simple but complicated, and really unique. It is the story of 17-year-old Adelaide. Her younger brother is an opioid addict and she has moved away from him and her mother with her father to a boarding school where he is teaching. She has just broken up with her boyfriend, she is in danger of being kicked out of school and she is not loving life much at the moment. It is the summer holidays and she meets Jack while out dog walking. I enjoyed Adelaide and Toby's relationship - it was heartbreaking, pure, and real. I love reading about complex sibling relationships and I expected this to be more focused on the love interest mostly but I'm glad it didn't though. Adelaide seemed a little too much in love with each and every boy she met and maybe that is the point of young love but it made her come off as desperate and annoying.

Again Again is the latest novel by bestselling author E Lockhart. Adelaide Buchwald is not at a good stage in her life. Her younger brother has a serious illness, and she has just been dumped by her boyfriend. Adelaide is distraught, and the only thing she enjoys is her dog walking job. When she meets Jack, a boy she met once before at a party and wrote her a poem, she thinks her life is about to take an upward turn. This is only the second book I have read by Lockhart and you couldn’t get two more different genres. Genuine Fraud was an intriguing adventure which portrayed women as independent people who don’t need to rely on men to give them fulfilment. In Again Again Adelaide appears to need a man to give her life meaning. For most of the book, the dialogue barely passes the Bechdel test. However, there are some parts of the book which are interesting, specifically the relationship between Adelaide and her brother, Toby. The conflicting emotions Adelaide feels e.g. fear, hurt and betrayal are understandable and add depth to her character and the story as a whole. These chapters are skilfully written with a real rawness at the heart, and this makes the weakness of her relationships with other male characters all the more puzzling and frustrating. The style of writing is quite unusual; a mix of reported speech, text messages between Abigail and other characters, and at times what appears to be a stream of consciousness. While off-putting at the outset, during the course of the book this idiosyncratic style became more familiar and it often signified when Adelaide was working through ideas in her head. Lockhart has also thrown in alternate realities so the reader can see how a slight change from one of the characters, can lead to a whole different future for Abigail. These are identified by varying fonts, so it is easy to follow. While this does add perspective on how one simple change can lead to a completely different future, ultimately, I’m not convinced it really added anything to the plot or to Adelaide’s story. The book has a satisfying conclusion with a further alternate reality, which for me raised the question of what was the point of the rest of the book. Hopefully readers may see it as a lesson that it is more important to be comfortable and happy with yourself, rather than wanting the approval of others. Although the book is not without faults, it is heartening to see authors writing stand-alone books rather than going for the easy option of sequels. While not every book will be a success with all readers, it is far better to aim for originality. Just a word of warning for anyone attracted to the rather whimsical cover and blurb. This is not the quirky book suggested; it is a far darker tale, although Adelaide’s conversations with the dogs are marvellous.

Firstly I will just point out that although I gave this book 3 stars, it’s not because it’s poorly written or a bad book or a bad story I just feel like it didn’t work for me. I love Young Adult books and have read so many but personally I felt this was to simplistic and at times babyish. The actual storyline was good and I felt it could have been so much more even for a YA audience. I particularly enjoyed the latter half of the book to the beginning but perhaps I just began to accept that I wasn’t going to get the book I expected. I feel like this book could have been so much more and we could have seen deeper into the characters but as it is I’d describe as an average YA novel.