Lost in the Adventure: 'Let's Get Lost' Review

Let's Get Lost

Author: Adi Alsaid
Goodreads / Amazon

Five strangers. Countless adventures. One epic way to get lost. 

Four teens across the country have only one thing in common: a girl named Leila. She crashes into their lives in her absurdly red car at the moment they need someone the most. 

Hudson, Bree, Elliot and Sonia find a friend in Leila. And when Leila leaves them, their lives are forever changed. But it is during Leila's own 4,268-mile journey that she discovers the most important truth—sometimes, what you need most is right where you started. And maybe the only way to find what you're looking for is to get lost along the way.

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I've always wanted to go on a huge adventure. I have terrible wanderlust. My dream is to travel the world and speak all the languages. It's far-fetched, but it's something I would love to do. And books like this help me travel. Even if I'm not physically moving (Okay, I moved from the couch downstairs to the bathroom upstairs. But still.)

The main theme of this book was 'finding yourself'. All five characters were lost (As implied by the title.) They were lost in the confusion of life. I felt connected to each of them in their lost-ness. I, too, am lost. (But in a more mental sense than physical.) 

I really liked how the author portrayed this lost-ness. It felt...real. It felt as if I could be Hudson (Not that I'm some mechanic prodigy. I'm a laziness prodigy, though) or Bree (I don't have a sister) or Elliot (I'm not crushing on anyone right now, thank you very much) or Sonia (But I doubt I'd get ONE guy much less TWO.) And Leila's lost-ness was more lost than anyone else's. She was lost in her memories. And, man, did I feel for all of them. 

I'm happy that Leila was there. I'd quite like a Leila in my life to help me get un-lost. (I'm truly a wordsmith. Un-lost. Nice one.)

One of the main selling points for this book is its unique storytelling. It isn't told by Leila throughout but has chapters told by different people during different points of Leila's journey. And it rounds things out by giving you Leila's perspective at the end. 

You got a chapter to really connect with the characters. And I felt like this succeeded. I felt for all the characters. We saw them at their worst, and they kept fighting. It's amazing that this happened in such a short time period.

Leila was truly an intriguing character. She was lost, in almost every way imaginable. Physically and mentally and emotionally. I felt so bad for her. Even before I knew what happened to her. She was such a great character. I didn't share any personal traits with her, but I truly do want to be her friend. Or her to be my friend. Either way, I want us to be friends. She was a candle of hope in the dark. And who wouldn't want a candle to be their friend? (Oh wait...) 

I only really didn't like the ending. Sure, happily ever afters are great, but it fell flat for me. With this whole adventure, I expected fireworks and cannons and cheerleaders in a pyramid. I expected a lot more from the ending. It felt so...un-Leila. She went back, and love interest appeared. It's cute, I guess, but not shocking enough.

Verdict:

Lost in the adventure

Not Too Into 'Into the Dim'

Into the Dim

Author: Janet B Taylor

Goodreads / Amazon

When fragile, sixteen-year-old Hope Walton loses her mom to an earthquake overseas, her secluded world crumbles. Agreeing to spend the summer in Scotland, Hope discovers that her mother was more than a brilliant academic, but also a member of a secret society of time travelers. Trapped in the twelfth century in the age of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Hope has seventy-two hours to rescue her mother and get back to their own time. Along the way, her path collides with that of a mysterious boy who could be vital to her mission . . . or the key to Hope’s undoing. 

Books with hype are the worst. Why? Because they have unnaturally high standards. And, to me at least, they are only half as interesting as people make them out to be.
This book was one of those hyped books. Of course, there are a lot of hyped books of 2016. But in the winter months, this was one of those hyped books.
So I felt disappointed because I just thought it was meh.

Likes:

• Admittedly, Bran was kinda funny...and kinda cute. His quips were quite well thought out. It was pretty obvious that he was smart. But the quick turn around betrayals just grated on my nerves. He really wasn't putting himself in a good light. But the care he had for his brother kinda explained why. Honestly, I don't think cute and funny guys like Bran fall for quirky but genius girls like Hope. At least...that's what I think.
• I felt like the author had really researched her time period. Not that I know much about 12th century England. But the characters seemed quite accurate. Not that we know exactly what Eleanor might do. I also felt like the research for all the useless facts Hope knew about other things were well-researched too. Not that I know about those things either.

Dislikes:

• I seriously doubt that homeschooled, seemingly-unathletic Hope could do all the flips and jumps she did. She was portrayed as meek and shy in the beginning but somehow gained all the confidence in the world by the end. Highly unlikely? I think so! She slashed and stabbed and jumped and rolled. Since when has Hope ever mentioned exercise? Horse back riding doesn't count here. She magically learned parkour in the few days/weeks between arriving at the manor and leaving for the past. Without Phoebe and Collum, she'd probably be dead.
• The dueling 'families' made me a little annoyed. This idea reminded me too much of Romeo and Juliet for me to like the romance. Also, these two barely knew each other. It was basically another Romeo and Juliet fated star-crossed lovers romance. And...man, do I hate that. The romance was supposed to be hot and one of those 'I feel like I know you' things, but it was barely touched upon. To me, Hope wasn't used to flirting and fell for the first flirt. One of those 'I was isolated but now I'm not' things.
• The cliffhanger ending made me cry in horror. Oh how I hate cliffhangers. I might just continue a series because of a cliffhanger. Even if I didn't feel starstruck. And this is one of those instances. I have no compelling need to continue the series...except for the epic cliffhanger. I WANT MORE.