Wednesday 30 November 2011

And For Your Information by Denise Deegan

For Review: Hachette Books Ireland
Published: 8 September 2011

From Goodreads: Everyone thinks they know who I am - ditzy Sarah, who cares more about appearances than she does about anything real. And yeah, I do care about what people think of me. Take my friends Alex and Rachel. We all go to Strandbrook College, Dublin. We're supposed to be best friends. But Alex and Rachel - they're really close. They tell each other things that they would never tell me. I try not to mind. And then there's Simon. He's my sort-of boyfriend but we hardly see each other. And when we do, I feel like he doesn't really 'see' me, you know? Everything's such a mess right now. My dad left us to be with Her; my mum is really angry all the time; and my brother Louis, he just doesn't care. I guess that's why the shoplifting started. It makes me feel good. In control. I just want everything to change. And it does. The day I got caught ...

This is just one of those books that really got under my skin. I just can't stop thinking about it.

This is the second book in the Butterfly series - following on from And By The Way - and this time we get Sarah's story. I was surprised by how much I loved Sarah - she was the weaker of the three characters for me in the first book but here she really grows - becomes absolutely adorable and I could help but completely loved her.

I must say the synopsis is just a tad misleading - I went into this not realising just how much of an emotional roller coaster it would be. I'm not sure I've sobbed my way through a book quite like this for a while.

When Sarah is caught shoplifting she is forced to see a therapist and complete community service at a home. It is here she meets Shane - someone who opens her eyes to the kind of person she want to be.  I ADORED Shane. Honestly, I fell completely in love with him and I think anyone who reads this will too. He's just so selfless and caring - always thinking about other people - I'm not sure many people in his situation would be the same. I think Sarah's has a lot to do with this - I think meeting her helps him to overcome his anger to a certain extent but I also think it just gets him back to the person he was before.  And I admired Sarah for her decision - how brave she is to invest in the relationship and give that much for someone - I think that Shane gives her the courage to be who she wants to be and that gives her the courage to change the relationships around her. Plus they are just so incredibly sweet and caring with each other.

One of the things I really love about these books is that it's not just about the person narrating the story. We still get to find out what is happening in Rachel and Alex's life. Life changes in a major way for Alex, Rachel and Mark seem to have some troubles, we get to see Louis in a completely different light  - and I have to say I think I am starting to love him.

I can't wait to read the third book and am really looking forward to Rachel's story. Plus I want to catch up with Alex and Sarah to see how they are doing. I love these characters - it's a strange thing to admit but I really miss them now I've finished reading.

I really loved this one - even if it did nearly destroy me!

1 comment:

Hannah Mariska said...

I haven't seen this book before. It sounds interesting and from your review a bit of a tear jerker! Its strange when you're not expecting such an emotional read and then you end up blubbing the whole time, but at least I'm prepared in case I read it!

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