Review: Love and Other Theories – Alexis Bass

Posted January 22, 2015 by Andi in Books, Review / 5 Comments

Review: Love and Other Theories – Alexis BassLove and Other Theories by Alexis Bass
Published by Harper Collins
Published: December 30th 2014
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Love and Other Theories is a fast-paced twist on the coming-of-age novel . . . and the romantic comedy.

Aubrey and her best friends made a pact to play by the guys' rules when it comes to dating. They're hoping the rules will keep them from experiencing high school heartbreak—they don't realize that these rules could just as easily keep them from opening their hearts and minds. And when new boy Nathan Diggs moves to town, Aubrey starts to think that some rules are meant to be broken.

With equal parts bite and romance, topped off with an irresistibly engaging voice, Alexis Bass's debut novel is one you won't want to miss.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.



thoughts

I’m don’t know what to say about Love and Other Theories. I know that at 82% I almost didn’t finish it. I know that things happened that didn’t need to happen. I know that I was frustrated with a lot of it. I know that I wasn’t happy with the end. And I know that this could have been a different book if it went in a different direction. It could have been a fantastic book. Instead I was left feeling annoyed, let down, irrationally ragey (especially for a fictional character), and all around sad for what could have been.

Love and Other Theories is the story of Aubrey and her 3 best friends Shelby, Danica and Melissa. Seniors in high school and they all have one thing in common, they have never had their heart broken. After watching scores of girls seem needy and get tossed aside, they come up with theories that help them seem available and easily unattached. The theories work like a charm until the new guy, Nathan, shows up. Soon what seemed simple is anything but. Aubrey finds herself brushing the theories aside but is a broken heart worth it?

This definitely wasn’t a me book even though it seems like it from the description. There wasn’t much that I found myself hoping for or rooting for. I think a lot of that was how the book started. When we meet Aubrey, we are told she is the Joey Potter of the group (be prepared for me to make all the Dawson’s Creek references!). She was the smart one, the one going to college, the one that studied and didn’t party. But we don’t get to see that part of her. Instead we are introduced to Jen Lindley, the party girl that is boy crazy and has messed up ideas about love and the world. It just didn’t sit right with me. I wanted to see the Aubrey that we were told she was. I didn’t want to see only the girl that goes out on weekends and drinks until she throws up.

I also had trouble with Nathan. At the beginning of the book he was this sweet new guy that was taken by Aubrey. Did he do things that a good guy might not have done? Sure. But he is a teenage boy so it is almost to be expected. What bugged me was that he seemed to completely change from one chapter to the next with no rhyme or reason. He was almost a jerk by the end and it didn’t fit with what we was supposed to be.

But really even after all of that, there was one thing that really bugged me. These people never talked to each other. I mean there was literally no conversation that had any meaning that was longer than like 2 pages. It was so frustrating. I wanted to jump through the pages and tell them they needed to start getting all Dawson’s Creek and talk about things, even use a big word or two that we would have to look up. Everything was just told on such a superficial level that it grated on my nerves. These kids were playing games and acting like these ‘evolved’ individuals and all they were were scared kids that didn’t want to face heartache and rejection.

I know it looks like there was nothing redeeming about this book for me. But there are people that loved it and you could too. I just had too many issues to get over when all is said and done. I felt like the book was written to be more like a typical teenage movie that didn’t translate into a book. There was just too much that bugged me when I read this one (and that is me not even touching on one part that made me CAP LOCK text a friend to complain) and the end that disappointed me. Sadly not every book is for everyone, and this is one of those books for me.

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5 responses to “Review: Love and Other Theories – Alexis Bass

  1. I am mad just reading your review! Grrrrr! I can’t imagine living through the book. I admire your stamina in finishing this one. But I would not relate to these characters or appreciate their lack of growth. Thanks for steering me away from this one. (Also, all these Love and Other __ books are confusing! Many titles are so similar someone could accidentally pick this up by mistake. )

    Lauren @ Love is not a triangle recently posted: Dual Review: The Eighth Guardian and Blackout by Meredith McCardle

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