Today is release day for All The Little Lights by Jamie McGuire and if you’ve read any of her other books, I’m sure you’re excited. I have the pleasure of reading this before it released and am delighted to be able to finally share my review with you all. Below is the book cover and description, followed by my review.
All The Little Lights by Jamie McGuire
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jamie McGuire comes a riveting tale of first love that starts young but runs deep.
The first time Elliott Youngblood spots Catherine Calhoun, he’s just a boy with a camera, and he’s never seen a sadder and more beautiful sight. Both Elliott and Catherine feel like outcasts, yet they find an easy friendship with each other. But when Catherine needs him most, Elliott is forced to leave town.
Elliott finally returns, but he and Catherine are now different people. He’s a star high school athlete, and she spends all her free time working at her mother’s mysterious bed-and-breakfast. Catherine hasn’t forgiven Elliott for abandoning her, but he’s determined to win back her friendship…and her heart.
Just when Catherine is ready to fully trust Elliott, he becomes the prime suspect in a local tragedy. Despite the town’s growing suspicions, Catherine clings to her love for Elliott. But a devastating secret that Catherine has buried could destroy whatever chance of happiness they have left.
All The Little Lights – My Review
This book is quite a difficult one for me to review. I’ve read other books by Jamie McGuire and loved them but this one just felt a little flat. It’s in the category of Adult romance but it’s actually a young adult book. It begins with the two characters meeting when they are young and getting to know each other at fifteen. Elliott has to leave Catherine on the day her father dies and does return for two years. Things have totally changed for Catherine at this stage and Elliott must try to get her to forgive him.
I found this book a little on the boring side and for the most of it I was confused. We discover that Catherine’s mother opened a B&B after her father died and we’re given the names and get to meet all the different people that stay there. But there’s never an explanation as to who these people are and why Catherine is so afraid of them. That was the main reason I continued reading the book as I needed to find out what was going on in the B&B and what had Catherine so terrified.
When Presley goes missing, a girl that has bullied Catherine all her life, Elliott comes under the spotlight because of his heritage.
I’d say the last 15% of this book was the best and it’s where things really got interesting. Before that it just felt a little dry. Nothing really happened and it was more a typical teen romance novel. School, bullying, first love, football games, etc.
I can’t fault the writing in this book at all. Jamie McGuire is an amazing writer and creates wonderful characters. I think the main reason for the confusion with this book is that it was categorised as an Adult romance so I was expecting a lot more. This is definitely a YA book.
Overall, I enjoyed the story, but I just didn’t love it as much as her previous books.
All The Little Lights is available now in ebook, paperback, and audiobook from Amazon and other retail stores, and I’m also thrilled to see that it has been listed in the YA category instead of Adult Fiction as it was on NetGalley.
Amanda J Evans is an award-winning Irish author and writing coach. Amanda writes adult romance that often crosses into paranormal and fantasy. Growing up with heroes like Luke Skywalker and Indiana Jones, her stories centre on good versus evil with a splice of love and magic thrown in too. Her books have all won awards and her novella, Hear Me Cry, won the Book of the Year Award at the Dublin Writers Conference 2018. Amanda is also the author of Surviving Suicide: A Memoir from Those Death Left Behind, published in 2012.
