Sharon Huss Roat

4.5 stars

Okay look, in all honesty, Ivy got really annoying really fast and also kind of stayed that way .. forever ..
BUT - I still ended up breezing through the book & truly enjoyed the cutesy predictability of it all the way through.

It left me feeling happy and hopeful and wishing I could get a glimpse into its found family’s future & honestly what more could you really ask for (besides the whole slightly less frustrating protagonist thing)??

3.5 stars

This is a little hard for me to review.
Not because I didn't like it. I did. But because it falls short of perfection - for reasons that remain a mystery to me personally.

People people. Everybody is human and they act like it. They act like normal people. They have realistic relationships. Yes-please-Thank-you!

Rich-to-Poor. Yup, this was good portrayal. All the emotions involved felt real. Poor Ivy. I felt like she was too whiny in the beginning, but no, it's pretty accurate. Her show more parents too.

The thing is, this here is a good story. It's moving and slow-burn and engaging in an understated way. And yes, I would recommend it.
But in the end it's not quite up to five stars IMO.

FINAL VERDICT: TRY IT! show less

*Received an ARC from Harper Teen for honest review*
This book was everything a wonderful YA read should be... It was unique, quirky, inspiring, emotional, and romantic.

This story will suck you in with deep seeded emotions and hold you captive with an intoxicating love triangle. Ivy goes from being popular and well off, to self conscious and poor... Her family moves to the other side of town and she struggles to adjust to the new lifestyle. Her goal is to keep the move quiet and not let show more anyone find out, but eventually her secrets reveal themselves. It's not an easy journey, but in the end Ivy finds comfort in her new situation.

I loved every minute of this read. Ivy's inner battle was frustrating at times, but in the end it was all worth it. She opened her eyes to the what she truly wanted and didn't worry about what anyone else thought.

Team Lennie or Team James you ask? Of course Lennie... I loved him from the beginning. The way he carried himself all big and bad, but cowered to Ivy's little brother, tugged at my heart strings. He was mysterious and caring and quite perfect. James truly didn't have a chance....

Overall, It was an empowering book that all readers should experience. Highly Recommend! show less

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: Irritating and rather shallow female protagonist. Story improves on reading but was difficult to relate to.

Opening Sentences: I came home from school on a Thursday in early September to find my parents sitting on the couch in the front room waiting for me. I knew immediately something wasn’t right.

The Review:

Between the Notes is one of those books that starts off not so great, but luckily it improved as the story progressed. Ivy is used to show more a life of luxury so it comes as a major shock when her family loses everything and they are driven to move to the poorest part of town. Their lifestyle changes to make ends meet and forces Ivy to reconsider her priorities, particularly the things she took for granted.

I would have liked to know why exactly the family struggled so much in terms of their financial problems because it wasn’t very clear what went wrong. Ivy’s father made some mistakes at work that put the family in grave debt, but there wasn’t anything else to go on, which made it harder to believe that someone living in a mansion one week would be forced to visit food banks the next!

Another thing I did not like was Ivy’s character; I did not like her at all. Her selfishness was astounding, especially her judgemental behaviour, which bites her in the back because now people look down on her instead of the other way around. I found it strange that Ivy wastes her time whining about not having enough money instead of helping out at home by getting a job or doing odd chores; she just seems to be hell bent on making the rest of her family feel worse than they already do. She spends all her efforts trying to devise convoluted ways to continue pretending she’s not poor and everything is just as it used to be. It’s like she’s in a long-term version of denial.

“Truth is overrated,” he said. “It’s hardly ever as good as what you imagine.”
I nodded, keeping my eye on the yellow window until it disappeared from sight. We drove in silence for a few minutes. My relationship with the truth was complicated at the moment, and if James wanted to stick to imagination, I was all in favour.

It was pretty obvious who the notes were from but I was surprised that it took so long for Ivy to work it out, actually given her shallowness I shouldn’t have been. I guess her character improved on reading, and she did become semi-tolerable towards the end, but on the whole, I think Lenny should have dated Molly instead; she’s kinder and less of a user!

Both Lenny and James have their charms and I can see why Ivy was attracted to them. James has the charming-billionaire-but-will-prove-myself-on-my-own thing going on, whilst Lennie looks like a bad boy with his big build, shiny red jeep and tattoos, but his sweet personality amazed me.

The only positive thing I can say for this book is that it forces the reader not to believe everything they see or hear, but to acknowledge that sometimes there is far more than meets the eye, and it’s usually the people that you don’t expect it from that will surprise you the most.

Notable Scene:

“We have to do this for Brady,” she said quietly. “We need the money. If he doesn’t get the therapy now…”

“I know, Mum.” I strode to my room before she could remind me how much the sacrifices we made now would mean for Brady’s future. Even with twenty hours a week of therapy-speech and physical and occupational-his life would be a constant struggle. Without it, he didn’t have a chance. Didn’t I want the best for him? I would say, “Of course I do.” Because I did. I only wished it didn’t mean the worst for the rest of us.

FTC Advisory: HarperTeen provided me with a copy of Between the Notes. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. show less