Review: Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill

Publication date: 13th November, 2012
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Links: Amazon | The Book Depository | Goodreads
Source: NetGalley
Rating: 4/ 5 stars

[from goodreads]

Meant to be or not meant to be . . . that is the question.

It's one thing to fall head over heels into a puddle of hazelnut coffee, and quite another to fall for the—gasp—wrong guy. Straight-A junior Julia may be accident prone, but she's queen of following rules and being prepared. That's why she keeps a pencil sharpener in her purse and a pocket Shakespeare in her, well, pocket. And that's also why she's chosen Mark Bixford, her childhood crush, as her MTB ("meant to be").

But this spring break, Julia's rules are about to get defenestrated (SAT word: to be thrown        from a window) when she's partnered with her personal nemesis, class-clown Jason, on a school trip to London. After one wild party, Julia starts receiving romantic texts . . . from an unknown number! Jason promises to help discover the identity of her mysterious new suitor if she agrees to break a few rules along the way. And thus begins a wild goose chase through London, leading Julia closer and closer to the biggest surprise of all: true love.

Because sometimes the things you least expect are the most meant to be.

REVIEW

I knew I was meant to read Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill the minute I saw it on Goodreads. Everything about it sounded so CUTE: the cover, the plot and the characters... How can you not want to read about a possible love-hate relationship, a mystery man and childhood crush, all on a school trip to London? Especially when it's all happening to Julia, the most unlikely candidate for boy drama!

Julia, an accident-prone word lover and stringent follower of rules, is pretty much on her own on her school trip to London. Her best friend, Phoebe, couldn't make it to the trip and the rest of her classmates on the trip are not her type at all. They spend most of their "cultural hours" shopping than doing anything else. When Julia is partnered with Jason, the class clown, she's sure Jason is going to ruin the trip for her... as he's the kind of person who manages to turn everything into a joke. 

But surprise, surprise... there's so much more to Jason, who after way too many deals, promises to help Julia find the identity of the person who's been sending her romantic texts. There's secret identities, secret admirers and numerous mishaps gone right in this book as Julia realises that her search for her MTB (meant-to-be) ended sooner than she thought it did. 

Being an accident-prone word lover who takes too few risks myself, I enjoyed living vicariously through Julia as she experiences the adventure of a lifetime! There no one who could've shaken her up and gotten her to live more than Jason Lippincott (how I love that name!) who I looved from their very first interaction at the beginning of the trip. I've become seriously immune to bad boys in Young Adult fiction, making Jason's goofy I-don't-even-take-myself-seriously charm even more authentic and swoon-worthy!  

There's also so much of LONDON in this book... whether it's the street culture, quest for the perfect fish 'n chips, Beatles covers and the Stratford-upon-Avon trip... I loved how I felt just a page away from experiencing everything.

Sure, there was a point in the book when it felt like there were way too many boys in Julia's life and the boy-related confusion got a bit too much, especially when Julia's childhood crush, Max Bixford, makes an appearance... but the issue didn't stick for long. It was just way too much fun... there was hardly a character I didn't like (though Max Bixford comes close)! Even Mrs. Tennison, who was in charge of the trip and is constantly confiscating phones and handing out punishment essays, was too amusing to be unlikable. And what more, there's a twist at the end that genuinely took me by surprise!

If you haven't found a fun, goofy, sweet and genuinely cutesy read since Anna and the French Kiss (I know I haven't), you have got to read Meant to Be. It's everything the blurb promises to be and more! 

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars