Title: Let’s Get Lost [Amazon]
Author: Adi Alsaid [website]
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Genre: Contemporary
Source/Type: Edelweiss/Digital ARC
Stars: 3.75 of 5
Publisher Description:
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.
There’s HUDSON, a small-town mechanic who is willing to throw away his dreams for true love. And BREE, a runaway who seizes every Tuesday—and a few stolen goods along the way. ELLIOT believes in happy endings…until his own life goes off-script. And SONIA worries that when she lost her boyfriend, she also lost the ability to love.
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.
My Thoughts:
The minute I saw the cover for Let’s Get Lost I was intrigued. You can tell right away that it is a book with travel. Then when I heard what it was about I was even more interested. And when I luckily got to meet the author I was sold. He talked so passionately about his debut novel you couldn’t help but get excited as well. And now that I read it I can say that excitement was worth it and I completely understand Alsaid’s passion. Was it the best book I ever read? No. But I enjoyed it and loved the way the story was told.
Let’s Get Lost is the story of 4 teens that all have an encounter with one girl over the course of her road trip to see the Northern Lights. There’s Hudson, a teen on the brink of getting a full scholarship to become a doctor, Bree the orphan running away from her problems, Elliott the boy with a crush on his best friend, and Sonia the grieving girl feeling guilty for moving on. They each have an encounter with Leila, a complete stranger, that changes their life and how they look at the world.
Hands down, best part of this book, was the narration. This book is not your typical road trip book as you would expect. This isn’t the story of Leila’s travels on the road and who she meets. It is the story of the people that meet Leila. It is actually told from the POV of all 5 characters with Leila being last and the connection with the other 4 people. It was a really cool way to tell a road trip story. It made me, as the reader, feel like I was actually on the journey with her. Truthfully I haven’t read a book quite like this and I was fascinated by it and how well it was done.
I also really liked all of the characters. Each had a special place in Leila’s story. She changed all of them with her kindness, her immediate friendship and her encouragement. She seemed to show up in their lives when they needed her most and them to her. I do have to admit that Hudson and Elliott were my favorites, but Sonia and Bree were interesting too.
As a whole the book gets you thinking about those random connections that you make and how they may or may not affect your life or the life of another. Let’s Get Lost makes you think about the kindness of a stranger, making a memory, or just living life. It was a fascinating story with a really unique narration and characters that were easy to follow. I certainly enjoyed it. And it is something I think many others will enjoy as well.
I’ve been wanting to read this one for a while. I was first intrigued by that cover too I love maps and a good road trip story. Great review! I’ll have to check this one out soon.