The author offered me a free copy of her YA novel 'Chasing Eveline'. I finished it earlier today & these are my thoughts.

I loved it! I loved how the power of music was so deeply woven into the story. But mainly I loved the three teenage main characters. Ivy (the main character) shows a lot of personal growth by the end of the novel and I really liked this about her. A great story about friendship, family ties and growing up. If you're a fan of YA, you should give this a read. I read it in 2 sittings!

I liked that this didn't go the way I expected. This wasn't what I expected to read when I picked up the book, and even as I was going, the plot seemed to move in a clear direction, but then it went somewhere else. It was unpredictable, and I really enjoyed that about it!

I LOVED the music element in this book! It is very much a completely different style of music than to what I would listen to, but I just love people being passionate about music regardless of what it is. I love how much she loved them, if that makes sense.

I also loved the references to 80s films, many of which I have seen. Whenever Back To The Future was mentioned, I smiled so wide!!

Ivy did a lot of dumb things though. I liked her character, she just didn't have a lot of wisdom or common sense. I just don't know how she thought any of her ridiculous ideas would work, and I was constantly cringing at her optimism. I was still entertained by her antics though.

Matt was a good character, I think that he was the perfect balance of everything, and I have nothing to say about him other than that he is great!

What I wanted more of was Jason & Sean. I feel like if a dog is going to be in a story, they should play a role (I also believe that there should be a dog in every story...) But Jason was still really great!

I LOVED Sean's character, I kept waiting and waiting for him to play a bigger role, but his character role kind of just fizzled out. I loved him, but I needed more.

The ending also felt a bit incomplete. It just kind of ended and I didn't really feel as though it was all resolved, which isn't a style I am a fan of.

Overall though, I really liked this book.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me with a copy. All opinions are my own.

Chasing Eveline is a book about music, about grief and about finding trust again. No one can take it all on one's shoulders, which is something both Ivy and her father have to learn.

Ivy wants to go to Ireland to meet her favourite band and see them play. Perhaps her mother will be there too. Ivy has to think of how to get there, and manage to let them play together at all - for the band has split up a very long time ago.

I liked this book and it's plot. I admit: many of the difficulties were solved in a way that was too easy for real life, but that was not really what this story was about anyway. The way both Ivy and her dad tried to spare each other, even when they did not have to after all, was very recognizable.

I recieved a free copy through Netgalley in return for an honest review.

Even though this book is a short one, it took me some time to get through it. Music is important to me and this book surprised me in how much it was entwined into the story, but overall, I can't say I loved this book. It was enjoyable and it made me smile quite often although most of the time, Ivy got on my nerves. It was the amazing cover that made me continue reading despite the struggles.

What I liked most about the story was how things never turned out the way I expected them to. I loved how Ivy kept pushing through and had ideas she could use to reach her goal. I think this book can be an inspirational read for people who are motivated by emotional reasons, even though this wasn't a book for me.

This book is really cute. No, all of it isn't very realistic. But sometimes it's nice to have fantasy in life. I appreciate the way that Leslie Hauser manages to show both the tight grasp we can have on the past but the bittersweet release of letting go and finding new passions in the present and future.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is so cute! Ivy is so awkward and relatable, her platonic friendship with Matt was perfect, and her relationship with her dad captured a lot of what I remember about high school. Plus, the music elements and Sean were both so lovely and so well-written. I got completely lost in this book. A must read - highly recommend!

My full review can be found on the Epilie Aspie Chick blog!

Thank you to Pen Name Publishing for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When I picked this book up, the story I thought it would be definitely turned out to be something else entirely. While it seems like everyone else who has read this book loves the story and all of its characters, I had the opposite reaction. In fact, the farther in I read the more horrified I became.

The story itself is cute, but the problem I have is the behaviors throughout this book from both Ivy and Matt. Its disturbing just how obsessive, manipulative, and destructive they can be not only for their own mental health - but also for healthy relationships. Ivy makes it crystal clear that she's willing to do anything and sacrifice anyone to get that band back together and see them. The only exception to the rule is her father here, which provides the opportunity for a wakeup call but is never properly utilized. Matt is a low level stalker for his ex Charlotte by knowing where she is and when to the point where even Ivy points out that she doesn't want to know how he knows Charlotte's whereabouts. Its creepy, frightening, and absolutely not the type of behavior that should be outlined in the book. By the end the whole story, Ivy and Matt's behavior ends up being justified as a way of moving on with their lives when it should have been pointed out as an inappropriate way to deal with a personal tragedy.

Chasing Eveline is the story about Ivy, a teenage girl who still feels connected to her AWOL mother through the music of her mother’s favourite band, Chasing Eveline. This is what drew me into the story, as music is very important to me personally and I too have a favourite band, whose songs mean the world to me.

The present tense is not my favourite, but I do like the author’s writing style, simple and effective, and quite lyrical in places. Ivy is a very likable and well-explored narrator and though I found her a bit of a headcase at times and she was full of the worst ideas, I could relate to her quite easily. The relationships between her and the other characters were very realistic.

Maybe the storyline was a bit too simple, but it did make me smile and even cry a little bit. I liked the ending too.

A quick enjoyable read!