Book Thoughts: Again, but Better by Christine Riccio

““I think I’d want to be in the room when they wrote the Constitution.” I ponder. “Maybe dressed as a guy, so I could insert my two cents and they’d listen to me.””

I was very lucky to be sent the eARC of Again, but Better by Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press; this was a release I have been highly anticipating.

That being said, let me start out with: I really, really, really wanted to like this book. Christine is one of my favorite Booktubers; her book talks are some of my favorite videos, and my friends and I all discuss her videos and eagerly await each one. Her passion and enthusiasm are evident in all her videos, and this book is no different.

The story follows Shane Primaveri, a girl who studies abroad in London in search of adventure. She feels as if she’s been missing out on the true college experience, and wants to push herself to make new friends and explore new cities. Soon, she runs into a potential romance, which she must quickly learn to deal with. She’s just starting to learn how to juggle her family, her career aspirations, newfound friendships, romantic aspirations, and trying so hard to stay on top of it all.

I loved the premise; it seemed like something I would immediately fall in love with. Sadly, Again, but Better, didn’t live up to my expectations. Initially, the writing was hard for me to get past. One of the things I can’t stand about books is when they are written in the present tense, and this story was entirely in the present tense. For whatever reason, present tense takes me out of the story, and it takes so much more concentration for me to dive into a fictional world. That was my first hurdle.

Over the years, I’ve come to realize some of aspects I dislike about the way certain books are written. I don’t like when there are large portions of the text dedicated to the character getting dressed, or detailed descriptions of outfits characters are wearing. It always takes me out of the story, and actually, makes it harder for me to visualize the character, what they look like, and what they are about to do. For some reason, I hate it. I also dislike when there are too many references to pop culture, especially when they are not well-incorporated, like consistently putting in song lyrics as if they are part of normal dialogue. This book had a lot of that, and it was hard for me to overlook my pet peeves and dive into the story.

Another issue I had was with the characterization. I love Christine, and Shane seemed like a fictional portrayal of herself. However, in book form, I didn’t find it endearing, as I do in real life. In fact, it seemed borderline unrealistic at times: a twenty-year old doesn’t act or think like the character is written. Perhaps, if Shane had been a bit younger, I could’ve found it to be more believable, but at the beginning of the story, it was a bit annoying.

It was also hard for me to get over the names. Shane, I could deal with. Her flatmates, Pilot and Babe, were names that continually took me out of the story every time I came across them. However, I do read Sarah J. Maas, so I guess names shouldn’t be that big of an issue for me.

I also had some problems with the portrayal of the romantic relationship in the book. The potential love interest is Pilot, but you find out very early on that he has a girlfriend. Though it’s clear that Shane is not happy about any prospect of Pilot cheating, their banter and flirtations still continue. Personally, I strongly dislike the cheating trope, particularly how it portrays another person as an obstacle to get to “true love.” It’s overdone, and I’m tired. Also, at least twice in this book, two drunk guys kiss Shane without her consent. This is a little nitpicky, but I would’ve loved a little more discussion on that; I don’t want to see sexual harassment or assault normalized.

To put it frankly, this book was a complete rollercoaster for me. I truly don’t want this review to be all criticism; there were some parts I enjoyed. Though Shane annoyed me at first, as the story progressed, I began to root for her more and more. I began to like her right before the twist (which I won’t spoil), and I particularly liked the emphasis on her finding herself. Whenever I got annoyed at something that Shane did, a couple chapters later, she would realize that herself, and grow from her mistakes.

I think the book also did a really good job of capturing the study abroad experience. In my personal life, studying abroad felt like a do-over of freshmen year of college: you’re thrown into a new city, and become friends with everyone you meet, mainly out of necessity. It did a good job of capturing both that confusion and camaraderie, even though, at times, I found Shane’s inner monologue to be grating and over the top.

The book also emphasized friendship, though not to a huge degree, but I still appreciated it. The relationship between Shane and her flatmates is important to her, and it comes across how they they have each others’ backs, no matter how close they seem, particularly when Shane has trouble with her parents. I liked that there was a strained relationship with her family; it gave her character a bit more depth. I also found Shane’s struggles to follow your passion very relatable. However, at times, the family dynamic seemed to be too over the top, particularly when her cousins make fun of her on her Facebook wall. For me, it’s a little hard to believe your cousins are willing to blast you on the internet like that, especially on such a public forum.

I liked how Shane and Pilot needed to be friends first, even if that was necessary because of Pilot’s aforementioned girlfriend. Though, the banter between the two came across as if you were talking to Christine in real life. Of course, I don’t know her personally, but as one of her viewers and now a reader of this book, there didn’t seem to be a big distinction between fictional Shane and Christine in her videos. At times, I liked I didn’t mind the similarities - it was cute, and established a precedent for Pilot and Shane’s friendship. At other times (going back to my pet peeves), there were too many contemporary references that threw me out of the story altogether.

The twist in this book is what (partially) redeemed it for me. At first, I was unsure if I could finish it. Around halfway through, I was glad I decided to finish it, because it did get slightly better. However, the problems I had with the book and the writing didn’t go away, but…I no longer hated the book. By the ending, the story was less focused on Shane’s love life and more about her personal growth, and that, I could get behind. I still don’t love the book, but I’m glad I read it.

This digital ARC was sent to me by Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 3/5

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Release Date: May 7, 2019