Began reading: 15.12.2016
Completed reading: 23.12.2016
Overall rating: 3 stars
Why put my heart into something fate will only tear apart Christmas morning?
Sierra's family runs a Christmas tree farm in Oregon - it's an idyllic place for a girl to grow up, except that every year they have to pack up and move to California to set up their Christmas tree lot for the season. So Sierra lives two lives: her life in Oregon and her life at Christmas. And leaving one always means missing the other. Until this particular Christmas, when Sierra meets Caleb, and one life begins to eclipse the other.
What Light by Jay Asher is a fictional contemporary young adult novel that contains romance. I purchased this book last week, after searching for a decent Christmas novel for the holidays. Side note: it is rather difficult to find a nice Christmas novel at this time of the year. This book was sweet, but I found it to be a little bland.
Regular readers would know that I can be somewhat picky with spelling and grammatical errors, so you can imagine my frustration when I stumbled across a couple of grammatical errors. I will discuss the writing style later, but I found the plot to be slow-paced. A lot was going on, but I felt that it was taking a very long time to progress, which was disappointing. However, there were a couple of great quotes, including:
Why put my heart into something fate will only tear apart Christmas morning? (p. 23).
This season was supposed to be perfect, not bogged down with what-ifs. They’re all around me, though, in everything I do. I don’t know how to fully enjoy any of these moments without wondering if it’s the last (p. 31).
More quotes from the book can be found here.
I enjoyed the uniqueness behind the plot – selling Christmas trees, moving for the holidays, and the uncertainty surrounding the coming year. It was very relevant to the season, which I liked. Although it was a little predictable, the uncertainty around whether Sierra and her family would be returning the next year helped build a little suspense and tension. I think it would have been interesting to experience a little of what it would be like to celebrate Christmas in Oregon. Aside from this, the plot was unique, which was good.
Similarly, the plot had me wishing for a snowy Christmas (even though I’ve never had one), peppermint mochas and giant pancakes. It definitely gave off a sense of Christmas, which made this novel perfect for the season. It was nice to read about the contrast in seasons between Oregon and California. Although there’s that opportunity for her to experience a snowy Christmas, Sierra’s time in California was relatable. As I’ve said, I’ve never had a snowy Christmas, so it was good to know that she wasn’t experiencing one (does that sound mean?).
I mentioned earlier that I would discuss the writing style, so here it is. I was disappointed, to say the least. The characters and situations weren’t described in enough depth – I had no idea what the characters looked like, so I had to imagine someone. The only things that were described in enough depth were the diners, the church, and the trees on Cardinals Peak with the lights. I like a little detail in books, so I wasn’t happy about that.
The narrative was very sweet, but somewhat bland. It would be really good for younger readers (maybe teens?), as there is no bad language or sexual references. I’m not really sure about why I found the book bland, except that nothing massive really happened. I was waiting for a plot twist, but there weren’t any, so I was left feeling a little deflated.
Finally, the romance aspect left me with mixed feelings. I thought that it was verging on insta-love, which irritates me. The way that Sierra’s parents met influenced Sierra’s relationship, but it was definitely a little unrealistic – they were pretty much in love within a month!
It was difficult choosing a favourite character, but I’d choose Sierra over anyone else. Sierra was loyal, sweet, forgiving and feisty, but she was flawed. I wasn’t impressed with her choosing Caleb over Rachel’s performance, and she was also whiney and repetitive – I get it, you don’t want to leave California forever, but there are other ways of staying in contact with Caleb and Heather.
Again, I wasn’t very impressed with Jeremiah’s mum or sister – how can they be so rude? Isn’t it obvious that Caleb is tortured and doing his best to make up for his past?
My favourite part of the book was the midnight mass with Caleb. The whole candle thing, with Silent Night playing in the background, sounded so beautiful! The dialogue in this scene was perfect, so I decided that it was the highlight of the book!
Recommendation time! If you like Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle, The Twelve Days of Dash and Lily by Rachel Cohn, Decked With Holly by Marni Bates, Ex-mas by Kate Brian, and Secret Santa by Sabrina James, you will love this book. Also, I recommend this book to anyone who likes Love Actually, The Polar Express, Bridget Jones’ Diary, The Holiday, Almost Christmas, and Love, The Coopers.
Happy reading!
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