Sandy Hall (1)
Author of A Little Something Different
For other authors named Sandy Hall, see the disambiguation page.
Series
Works by Sandy Hall
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 20th Century
- Gender
- female
- Education
- Rutgers University (BA|Communication)
Rutgers University (MS|Library Science) - Occupations
- librarian
- Short biography
- Sandy's first book, A Little Something Different was published by Swoon Reads in August 2014, followed by four more since.
She grew up in a family that encouraged reading but she never actually meant to become an author. Failing expository writing her first year of college only solidified the idea that writing probably wouldn't make a great career choice.
She went on to get a BA in Communication and a Master of Library and Information Science, both from Rutgers University.
Eventually she got over her writing failure and discovered that she kind of loved to write. - Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- New Jersey, USA
- Places of residence
- New Jersey, USA
- Associated Place (for map)
- New Jersey, USA
Members
Reviews
A very cute and light YA romance. The main characters are thrown together after Jane takes on the job of babysitting Teo's younger sisters. There's Teo's best friend who inexplicably hates Jane's guts, Teo's search for his birth father (and his heritage), Jane's inability to communicate to her mother effectively her post-high school plans, and Jane's sister Margo who is deciding how to come out as bisexual to her parents.
Despite all the moving pieces, the story was pretty simple and easy. show more The characters seem to live in super sanitized world in which everybody is fairly bland and not too quirky (Jane's nerdy, but not TOO nerdy, for example, as her crossover fanfiction hobby is pretty glossed over). For the most part, the author seemed to rely on giving the characters some defining trait or mission in order to differentiate them rather than fleshing out personalities (Margo's clumsiness, Ravi's animosity to Jane, Teo's quest for his father). Though honestly, Ravi seemed to have the most personality of any of the characters, mainly because he was so over the top.
A quick read that I liked but I didn't find too memorable. I did appreciate the diversity in the cast of characters. show less
Despite all the moving pieces, the story was pretty simple and easy. show more The characters seem to live in super sanitized world in which everybody is fairly bland and not too quirky (Jane's nerdy, but not TOO nerdy, for example, as her crossover fanfiction hobby is pretty glossed over). For the most part, the author seemed to rely on giving the characters some defining trait or mission in order to differentiate them rather than fleshing out personalities (Margo's clumsiness, Ravi's animosity to Jane, Teo's quest for his father). Though honestly, Ravi seemed to have the most personality of any of the characters, mainly because he was so over the top.
A quick read that I liked but I didn't find too memorable. I did appreciate the diversity in the cast of characters. show less
as a human person who has been in a relationship with a former best friend, i am borderline offended.
okay, so, let's reel it back a bit. why do we like best friends to lovers stories? i can think of at least three reasons right off the top of my head: 1. the stakes are extremely high, higher the longer the pair have been friends. 2. the first point makes for a really slow build up, because there's a lot of shit to be considered, which usually makes good storytelling. 3. the characters being show more friends makes for a really deep understanding and acceptance of each other, which makes the relationship feel substancious and sumptuous and overall believable.
and the big issue is that none of those things ring true with this book. there is, i guess, a plot, yet there's not really any conflict that drives the whole book and strings it together. because a bunch of things could have been the main issue of the story- maybe it's the fact that while kyle is bi and out, gideon is barely starting to realize he's gay. maybe it's the fact that kyle has a whole ass girlfriend he's having an awesome time with. maybe its the fact that they're best friends and they're literally risking the best thing theyve had for the majority of their lives.
but guess what!! apparently none of that poses a problem, because every one of those things gets solved in a matter of three sentences to six pages. gideon's gay panic lasts about two days, ruby, the girlfriend, gets dumped immediately, coming out is an absolute breeze for gideon, and they dont even have so much of a conversation about "is it the best thing for us to do to risk all that we have?" before becoming a couple. which is. frustrating to say the least. and im not saying every gay falling in love should have as hard of a time coming to terms with it as i did, but im pretty sure there should be, at the very least, some thought about. just some "hey should we maybe take it a lil slow? should we maybe consider what happens if we decide this doesn't work out"? or SOMETHING.
the way this would have been forgivable: if they had had a big thing where they were like "i literally cannot stand the sight of you because im physically unable to stop myself from kissing your every freckle because i am in love with you in all these many many ways and this is so absolutely all consuming i am a wreck of a person so please please please just give us a chance", and it had been mutual, and the reader was actually able to tell why they liked each other so much. which we... do not? because all we have to show for this whole love is a 10 item list gideon makes that says shit like "kyle's tall" and "everybody likes him" and "hes still my friend even though hes in a relationship" and "he doesnt talk about his car constantly". which is honestly, like... the bare minumum. absolutely no substance!
so, the root of the story is simply flawed. kyle is more likeable than gideon, although i didnt hate him either. but the characters around them are as inconsistent as... everything else, really. especially ruby, who literally changes values and morals and behavior and thoughts patterns depending on whether or not she's a useful threat to kyle and gideon, and starts out as a self centered lil bitch, then gets normal-ish, then goes absolutely insane, and then becomes the best person you've ever seen. and she still remains unlikeable all throughout.
most of the other characters are flat fillers, particularly all of kyle's gideon's and ruby's friends. the only other one aside from their parents is ezra, gideon's older brother, who's actually a good brother but questionable as a person- namely, the whole "flirting with his little brother's best friend's actual current girlfriend" thing, but also the whole "spent time being a surfer after college with my bar mitzvah money and then came home to my parents when i ran out of money but dont even think about going to college or getting a job until the book is right about to end" thing. and thats... thats it. that's all he is as a character. and aside from listening to gideon whine and hiding a binder at one point, he has no other contributions to the plot, so why on god's green earth is he a narrator with his own chapters? i couldn't tell you.
so. im disappointed. of course there are a couple of redeeming points, like, say, it's readable. its light and relatively quick paced, it's really short to the degree i read it in one sitting right before going to sleep, and didnt have to force myself to finish it. ezra calls gideon "giddyup", which i cant tell whether i ironically or unironically find really cute. it's light and overall happy and i get that not every story has to be super deep and complex and make you want to curl up and sob into your sleeve because you're so concerned things are not going to work out. but both the trop, the synopsis and even the cover promised something they did not deliver, and i will hold it over their head for the rest of forever. show less
okay, so, let's reel it back a bit. why do we like best friends to lovers stories? i can think of at least three reasons right off the top of my head: 1. the stakes are extremely high, higher the longer the pair have been friends. 2. the first point makes for a really slow build up, because there's a lot of shit to be considered, which usually makes good storytelling. 3. the characters being show more friends makes for a really deep understanding and acceptance of each other, which makes the relationship feel substancious and sumptuous and overall believable.
and the big issue is that none of those things ring true with this book. there is, i guess, a plot, yet there's not really any conflict that drives the whole book and strings it together. because a bunch of things could have been the main issue of the story- maybe it's the fact that while kyle is bi and out, gideon is barely starting to realize he's gay. maybe it's the fact that kyle has a whole ass girlfriend he's having an awesome time with. maybe its the fact that they're best friends and they're literally risking the best thing theyve had for the majority of their lives.
but guess what!! apparently none of that poses a problem, because every one of those things gets solved in a matter of three sentences to six pages. gideon's gay panic lasts about two days, ruby, the girlfriend, gets dumped immediately, coming out is an absolute breeze for gideon, and they dont even have so much of a conversation about "is it the best thing for us to do to risk all that we have?" before becoming a couple. which is. frustrating to say the least. and im not saying every gay falling in love should have as hard of a time coming to terms with it as i did, but im pretty sure there should be, at the very least, some thought about. just some "hey should we maybe take it a lil slow? should we maybe consider what happens if we decide this doesn't work out"? or SOMETHING.
the way this would have been forgivable: if they had had a big thing where they were like "i literally cannot stand the sight of you because im physically unable to stop myself from kissing your every freckle because i am in love with you in all these many many ways and this is so absolutely all consuming i am a wreck of a person so please please please just give us a chance", and it had been mutual, and the reader was actually able to tell why they liked each other so much. which we... do not? because all we have to show for this whole love is a 10 item list gideon makes that says shit like "kyle's tall" and "everybody likes him" and "hes still my friend even though hes in a relationship" and "he doesnt talk about his car constantly". which is honestly, like... the bare minumum. absolutely no substance!
so, the root of the story is simply flawed. kyle is more likeable than gideon, although i didnt hate him either. but the characters around them are as inconsistent as... everything else, really. especially ruby, who literally changes values and morals and behavior and thoughts patterns depending on whether or not she's a useful threat to kyle and gideon, and starts out as a self centered lil bitch, then gets normal-ish, then goes absolutely insane, and then becomes the best person you've ever seen. and she still remains unlikeable all throughout.
most of the other characters are flat fillers, particularly all of kyle's gideon's and ruby's friends. the only other one aside from their parents is ezra, gideon's older brother, who's actually a good brother but questionable as a person- namely, the whole "flirting with his little brother's best friend's actual current girlfriend" thing, but also the whole "spent time being a surfer after college with my bar mitzvah money and then came home to my parents when i ran out of money but dont even think about going to college or getting a job until the book is right about to end" thing. and thats... thats it. that's all he is as a character. and aside from listening to gideon whine and hiding a binder at one point, he has no other contributions to the plot, so why on god's green earth is he a narrator with his own chapters? i couldn't tell you.
so. im disappointed. of course there are a couple of redeeming points, like, say, it's readable. its light and relatively quick paced, it's really short to the degree i read it in one sitting right before going to sleep, and didnt have to force myself to finish it. ezra calls gideon "giddyup", which i cant tell whether i ironically or unironically find really cute. it's light and overall happy and i get that not every story has to be super deep and complex and make you want to curl up and sob into your sleeve because you're so concerned things are not going to work out. but both the trop, the synopsis and even the cover promised something they did not deliver, and i will hold it over their head for the rest of forever. show less
When Gabe and Lea meet in a creative writing class at their university, sparks begin to fly instantly. Everyone can see it, from the creative writing professor to their fellow students to the baristas at Starbucks -- everyone, that is, except Gabe and Lea themselves. They're both shy and a little awkward, and Gabe is dealing with some trauma from his past, so it's unsurprising that they have a hard time interpreting each other's mixed signals. Still, everyone else can see that they're crazy show more about each other, and that's why this novel is told from everyone else's point of view. Parts of the story are variously told by Gabe's brother, Lea's roommate, the aforementioned baristas, a waitress at the local diner, and even a squirrel who lives on campus; in fact, the only characters who don't address the reader directly are Lea and Gabe. Despite their mutual crush, will they ever be able to get together? And if not, how will their friends, acquaintances, and random observers cope with the disappointment?
This book is a sugary confection that I devoured in one sitting. At bottom it's a classic boy-meets-girl story, but the various narrators provide an interesting twist on the tale. Overall, I was impressed with the author's ability to switch between voices so skillfully. A couple characters were difficult for me to distinguish (particularly Gabe's group of friends), but it was generally easy to keep everyone straight. (It doesn't hurt that each new perspective is clearly marked with the character's name and function, such as "Inga, Creative Writing Professor.") I didn't love every single perspective -- the narratives from "squirrel" and "bench," in particular, seemed unnecessary -- but the author interview at the back of the book revealed that she had about twice as many narrators in the initial draft! So at least she cut back a little. :) I also found it interesting to tell a love story in this way, giving everyone a voice except the two main characters; it seems to reflect a voyeuristic element in our culture (reality TV, social media, etc.). Ultimately, this is an adorable little romance with a cute gimmick attached, and I really enjoyed it! show less
This book is a sugary confection that I devoured in one sitting. At bottom it's a classic boy-meets-girl story, but the various narrators provide an interesting twist on the tale. Overall, I was impressed with the author's ability to switch between voices so skillfully. A couple characters were difficult for me to distinguish (particularly Gabe's group of friends), but it was generally easy to keep everyone straight. (It doesn't hurt that each new perspective is clearly marked with the character's name and function, such as "Inga, Creative Writing Professor.") I didn't love every single perspective -- the narratives from "squirrel" and "bench," in particular, seemed unnecessary -- but the author interview at the back of the book revealed that she had about twice as many narrators in the initial draft! So at least she cut back a little. :) I also found it interesting to tell a love story in this way, giving everyone a voice except the two main characters; it seems to reflect a voyeuristic element in our culture (reality TV, social media, etc.). Ultimately, this is an adorable little romance with a cute gimmick attached, and I really enjoyed it! show less
Another quick read! I finished this book while still home for Christmas vacation before I went back to West Virginia. The story was very cute and I love that Gideon has for Lord of the Rings, I wish I had someone like that who would even be willing to watch the movies with me. Sandy Hall does such a great job with keeping the POVs distinctive and not repetitive. I love her narrations and how cute her stories are in general.
The few issues I had was how predictable the story became after the show more first couple of chapters and that is not bad necessarily but I personally am not a fan of stories like that. Also, the length of the book does not allow the relationship to be all of that complex. I wish the issue between them could have been longer and gone more in depth with how it was solved.
I would push younger readers towards this book like preteens, I think they would enjoy the book more than those of us who are older and are looking for a little bit more. show less
The few issues I had was how predictable the story became after the show more first couple of chapters and that is not bad necessarily but I personally am not a fan of stories like that. Also, the length of the book does not allow the relationship to be all of that complex. I wish the issue between them could have been longer and gone more in depth with how it was solved.
I would push younger readers towards this book like preteens, I think they would enjoy the book more than those of us who are older and are looking for a little bit more. show less
Lists
You May Also Like
Statistics
- Works
- 6
- Members
- 1,062
- Popularity
- #24,240
- Rating
- 3.5
- Reviews
- 70
- ISBNs
- 40
- Languages
- 2