All The Little Lights - Jamie McGuire

Title: All the Little Lights
Author: Jamie McGuire
Rating: 3.5/5

Thanks to NetGalley and Montlake Romance for letting me receive a digital copy of this book before its official release.

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.

I think about 80% of the young adult genre fans of my generation have read Jamie McGuire's Beautiful Disaster series, or at least the first book in the series, featuring Travis Maddox - probably the ultimate hero for any young adult book. And then there are a couple that read other books by the author as well, myself included. And I've got to say, All the Little Lights reminded me so, so much of Happenstance. And in the beginning, I didn't like that. I thought it was all the same, same story, same characters. Nothing made it feel special to me. And it dragged on and on. Honestly, I wasn't sure whether I'd ever like this book.

But then things started getting interesting. Catherine's mother is a bit - and I actually mean a lot - special. You'll know what I mean once you read the book. She's not really looking after her daughter, dealing with her own problems. And I thought I had it all figured out. I thought I knew what the author had intended. With all the strangers you read about, you think the mystery about Catherine's story has to be the obvious. But it's not. I was so surprised by the outcome. It was something different! I liked that a lot. But then once you find out the truth, the book kind of ends. There's no real ending to it, for me at least. I was disappointed by it. After spending many hours reading this book, the ending was rushed.

You'll read about bullies, which is also probably why All the Little Lights reminded me so much of Happenstance. And of course Elliott doesn't care about Catherine being unpopular. He stands up for her when she needs it. And people still look up to him. That's such a clichée thing. Not every boy is handsome and self-confident. I mean, sure, Catherine stands her ground and she's tough enough, but why does Elliott have to be this popular football guy?! Oh why. But I won't complain any further, because in the end I love romantic stories and I shouldn't critize things I liked in other books.

The main idea of the story - of how everything leads to that revelation - is very interesting. And pretty creative, as well. It's just the how to get there that bothered me at some points, some scenes, some decisions of the characters and then how suddenly crime was involved and I couldn't place the book into any genre or category anymore. Which is most likely a good thing for most readers, but I'm way too organized to let the chaos take over. But if you're looking for a mystery read with still a lot of romance in it or if you're a Jamie McGuire fan, you should totally read this one.