Samantha Van Leer is Jodi Picoult's daughter, and the idea for Between The Lines came from her. Jodi and Samantha developed the idea together, and have written the story jointly. It will be published in the UK on 5 July 2012 by Hodder and Stoughton. I'm a massive fan of Jodi Picoult's novels, devouring each one as they are published. I also read quite a lot of Young Adult fiction and was intrigued by the idea of this novel. Between The Lines is a very clever concept - a story within a story. Delilah is a modern-day American teenager, she's a bit awkward, she doesn't hang out with the cool crowd and she is obsessed with Oliver. Oliver is no ordinary boy, he's a character in a children's fairy story. He's just a line drawing, a figment of an author's imagination, but he is Delilah's dream man. She knows the story by heart, she knows every line and every illustration ..... until one day she notices that one of the pictures has changed ...... and then Oliver speaks to her! Combining fairy story with a modern coming-of-age tale this really is a very clever and unique novel. Yes, it is magic, but it also deals with real issues, those faced by teenage girls all over the world. Jodi Picoult's writing style is at the forefront throughout the story, peppered along the way with some real humour that at times is almost tongue-in-cheek. Oliver is desperate to get out of the fairy tale and Delilah is desperate for a friend. The fast paced plot follows their attempts to be together. Delilah has to deal with her Mother's increasing worries about her, how can she prove that she doesn't need to see a shrink, even though she's been caught talking to a book? Between The Lines is great fun and an ideal way for younger readers to sample Jodi Picoult's writing style. Samantha Van Leer has inherited her Mother's talent and I'm positive that this is the start of a very successful writing career for her. Her imagination combined with her humour are an ideal mix. Suspend all disbelief and enjoy this story for what it is, a magical fairy story with a cast of real-life characters.

Imagine if you will, a story containing a romance as intense and perfect as the Twilight saga but instead of Vampirism being the obstacle keeping them apart it is a fairy tale! You really need to suspend your disbelief for this one, which is a given when you are reading fantasy but you also need to forget everything that Jodi Picoult wrote before this as it is very different, you need to remember the idea was her daughters. That said I wasn't sure I was enjoying it at first but I did eventually settle into the story and become rather addicted to the woeful tale of Delilah and Oliver and their search for a way to get Oliver out of his fairy tale and into her very real life. Filled with a lot of heart and a few laughs too I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good romance with a little fantasy thrown in for good measure or maybe it's the other way around!

I've read quite a few of Jodi Picoult's books, having started with My Sister's Keeper and worked my way through several more until they all got a bit predictable. Recently I decided to read a couple more as they were on offer and found myself pleasantly surprised as they didn't follow her usual pattern (Picture Perfect and Harvesting the Heart in case you were wondering - the latter affecting me as much as My Sister's Keeper). This meant I wasn't quite sure what to expect when it came to Between the Lines, her first teenage novel and co-written with her daughter. Having spoken to a few of my colleagues it seems that quite a few people are confused as to whether this is teen or adult fiction and what it is exactly that this book is about. I'd already bought it as an impulse purchase because this book is so nice and unusual and so thought I'd bump it up my reading list to see if I can have an answer. My answer is this: Between the Lines is written for a young teenage audience and is a bit of a light-hearted and fun modern fairytale. It's definitely more for those who already have a love for books as those who aren't so keen on books will be put off by the length (and weight) of this book. It's also completely different from Picoult's other books - there's no darkness aside from the mention of divorce and being unpopular but these aren't the focus at all and the whole book has a very happy and fairytale feel. The quality of the actual book is stunning (hence the impulse purchase). If you pick it up one of the first things you'll notice is that it's a lot heavier than you'd expect. This is due to the fact that it's printed using high-quality paper to enable the use of colour (or so I presume). There are three narrative voices used in Between the Lines: the original fairytale that Delilah fell in love with, Prince Oliver and Delilah. Each has their own colour and then Delilah and Oliver's worlds have their own font style. There are also colour illustrations to go with the original fairytale and black and white silhouette-style ones dotted throughout the text which both help to add to this book's charm. The cover lets it down slightly as it would have been nice to have one that was in the style of those you usually find on fairytales to truly complete the feel. It is instantly identifiable as a Jodi Picoult novel, although as the story is so different I don't think this adds anything to the book and may be part of the reason why some are getting a bit confused about it. It's as if they're hoping people will buy the book because it's her writing it instead of on the strength of the book itself. I can see the marketing logic but would definitely love to see it with a more stunning cover as it does just let the book down slightly. The story itself was charming and fun. You won't end up in tears or traumatised but will feel slightly warm and fuzzy. It doesn't take itself too seriously and is a pleasant read with an ending that comes about in a way that I didn't predict. I think if I was a young teenager I could quite easily fall in love with this book but as an adult it doesn't quite have the depth that I'm used to and this is absolutely fine because that's the age group it's intended for. The writing style is easy to read, the characters are suitably soppy for each other and the products mentioned are perfect at speaking to that age group. However, the products do prevent it from having that timeless quality that some books have. Having read the book, my first reaction was a little bit of disappointment that it ended where it did without you finding out how the author or anyone else react or how they make it work in the days to come but having thought about it, the point where it ends works perfectly because it's the end of the altered story in the fairytale book which is of course supposed to be the story that you're reading and so what happens after that story ends would not be in it. Overall this book was pleasant to read and a bit of light-hearted fun that I would recommend to young teenage girls who are confident readers and who like a good fairytale.