Book Review | ...And a Happy New Year? by Holly Bourne

Rating |

Pages| 224 pages

Genre| YA, Contemporary, Slice of Life, Romance

Publisher| Usborne Publishing

Publication| 1 November, 2016

Format| Hardback

SAME BEACH. SAME VIEW. SAME GIRLS.
AND YET TOTALLY DIFFERENT GIRLS...

Evie, Amber and Lottie are having
a New Year party to remember.

For the first time since leaving college, al three girls are back
together. It's time for fun and flirting, snogs and shots.

(And not tears or tantrums or terrible secrets.)

Because everything's going great for these girls
- Spinster Club for ever!

RIGHT?

...And a Happy New Year? by Holly Bourne is the only holiday themed book that I got myself for this Christmas, in fact it is probably the only Holiday themed novel that I own (apart form What Light? by Jay Asher).

This novella, I believe, is the final instalment to the Spinster Club series - and I think there is no better way to end a series but with this lovely little book which simply summarises what has happened after the events of What's a Girl Gotta Do?

The best thing about Holly Bourne's novels (or in this case novella) is that she tells you the story the way it is! This novel is formatted in a way that it shows all of the girls point of views, the novella happens in just a span of 5 hours.

With Lottie having moved to London for University, and even though Evie and Amber are still living in the same town, the girls have started to drift apart. That's not all, but each girl is harbouring a secret that they would rather not share with each other and to keep up a front that nothing has changed at all. But all throughout the night, each secret slowly unravels and all of their situations have been disclosed to each other. Really showing how each girl is coping with the changes in their lives, and truly how much they have missed each other!

The plot is completely relatable, and I definitely believe that these situations are quite realistic. With Lottie, I can understand how she would like to keep up a front that she is enjoying University as much as everyone else thinks she should be, what with all the success she's garnered - but in reality she feels lonely, as her flatmates aren't as welcoming to her as she thought (in fact their just horrible people). Not only that, but keeping up a relationship with Will who has been drifting away from her - just adds to her insecurities. I never did like Will! BUT, I did cry when he broke it off with Lottie - WHHHHHYYYY!!!!

Evie is also having a hard time, with Oli relapsing and Lottie having moved away - she too feels like some things are just going downhill, and she doesn't want to tell the girls about Oli, in case that they will urge her to break-up with him. She's also scared of breaking down and relapsing herself, so she tries her best to keep herself together.

Then, Amber - she's finally found a guy who loves her for her, and she's happy. But, she's also moving to America. That's her secret, and she keeps putting off telling the girls, because she is afraid that this will cause their friendship to break.

But everything worked out in the end. It was simply beautiful. I loved how it all Started and ended in the same spot at the same time. Which was really lovely. I loved everything about this book. It's a great ending to a wonderful series, and I think it just shows how important friendships really are. That no matter in what situation you are in, friends are always there to help you through it.

​I highly recommend reading The Spinster Club Series by Holly Bourne to everyone who is interested in reading. It may be a YA book, but it is also very informative, especially with regards to feminism, and also mental health!