BRAVO!

Oh. My. Gosh. I finished Take a Bow by Elizabeth Eulberg the other day, and now I'm going to review it. Which pretty much means that I'm going to gush to you all about how awesome it is and how you HAVE to read it because this. book. was. AMAZING. But, I'll explain all the details throughout this post. First, I want to mention (in case you didn't see the post I made about this) that I got this book at a book signing last Monday. April 17th. Which means my copy is signed. Which makes me so incredibly happy. Thank you, Elizabeth!

All right, so the book. Where do I start? The book as a whole was really good. The beginning was a very good opening, and it really set the setting for what we were going to see the characters go through within the story. Then we moved on to the actual story - senior year. I was actually kind of surprised that this book actually covered all of senior year because the book is so small. That actually made me a little sad once I really got into the book - how short the book seemed to be. I mean, how can you pack a whole school year into less than 300 pages? But, oh did Elizabeth do it perfectly. She highlighted the important aspects for our characters and did not add anything boring. That means that this whole book held my attention. From beginning to end. Seriously, I did not want to let go of this book for a second.

Okay, quick rundown of the characters. I loved every single character in this book. The way they all intertwined to create this beautiful story astounded me. First, we have Carter. (I'm going in the order that they're introduced.) AH, CARTER. I latched onto Carter from the very beginning. He is the child star who realizes that he isn't really doing anything he wants to do. So then he changes this. I admire his determination to make life what he wants it to be along with his jump into making true friends. A wonderful character, that boy. Next is Sophie. I DID like Sophie. But not in the way I like characters I love. I liked Sophie because of her role in everything that happens with all the other characters in this book. She is an essential factor on a lot of the happenings within the story, and I acknowledge that. Sophie is the character we all love to hate. Huge snob, horrible "friend," even worse girlfriend, and all around conceited witch-with-a-b. But her role in the story is prominent, so since I love the story so much, I accept her as a character.

Oh, now we have Ethan! OH, ETHAN. My first impression of Ethan was very optimistic. His audition to get into PCA made me see the vulnerability inside of him which led to a soft spot in my heart just for this gifted, wonderful boy. But then we find out some things about Ethan - things that Ethan did in the past - that are not flattering at all. Which tainted him a little, but once I decide to love a guy i a book . . . well I just can't go back. Plus, Ethan was not a total lost cause. But you will witness this yourself when you READ this stunning book. My point about Ethan: he is an incredible boy, fundamental character within this novel, and blindingly adorable. I truly adore him. He was so protective and kind and I always eat that up. Okay, last, but certainly not least, we have Emme. I LOVE Emme. Yes, me, who didn't even like Tris in Divergent, LOVES Emme Connelly in Take a Bow. She is such a bautiful character, inside and out. she has a huge heart and is so selfless it might be hard to believe if I didn't read about it myself. Emme is the kind of girl most of us strive to be and that leads me to really like her. Plus, she has serious talent which cannot be ignored - not by me, not by anyone. Emme is just one of my favorite female leads I've read about in a long while.

One of the aspects of this book that drew me in so much was the relationships. And by relationships I mean friendships. Emme and Ethan and Jack and Ben are the kind of friends that we all wish we had. Or at least I do. (If you are my friend and reading this, I suggest you read this book and see what I mean - I am NOT saying anything bad about you.) This is such a loyal group of friends that it tugged at my heart to part with them at the end of the book. They made me laugh, they made me clap, they made me want to slap somebody, and they made me happy. Especially Jack. HE was one hilarious fellow. My point here: the ties between this group of friends is so strong and lovable, it adds so much more WOW to this book.

All in all, this book has everything we can ask for. Amazing characters. A plot that holds our attention. Enviable friendships. Addicting relationships (I can't even explain this without a whole big spoiler leaking out of me, so I'm leaving it there). Humor. Just the right amount of frustration. The most perfect contemporary page turner I've opened in a long time.

Oh, it's moments like this that I wish that I still rated books on my blog. I'd give Elizabeth a BUNCH of pretty gold stars at this wonderfully entrancing story and then some. Then again, that's what Goodreads is for ;) If you ever want to see my ratings of books, Friends, you can most definitely add me on there. As long as you respect books, you are my friend there as well.

A quick comment on the ending: JUST RIGHT. I was sad the story ended, but the way it left us was in just the right way. I wouldn't change a thing. So now I suggest that EVRYONE I EVER TALK TO/MEET/PASS BY ON THE STREET read this book. It is stunning and beautiful and just so utterly great I cannot even express it via computer screen. I wish I could gush to you all in person so you could see my elation from this book in person. Sadly, I cannot. Still, read this book. I will respect you forever if you take this advice from me.

Quick message to Elizabeth: I love you. This book made me SO happy! I'm so glad I got to meet you and I can't wait to meet you again! I've read The Lonely Hearts Club, but this book tops even that. Ah, I cannot wait for your next book. Sometime between now and then I MUST get my hands on a copy of Prom & Prejudice. You now have an honorary spot on my favorite authors list. Okay, I'm done gushing now. We van move on . . . (THANK YOU SO MUCH!)

All righty, Friends. Thank you so much for reading my review! and keep your eyes out for more posts from me. I have some nice things coming up next month that you'll certainly want to see and an In My Mailbox set to post tomorrow if you didn't see it over in my pretty little left sidebar.

Visit again soon, Friends!

♥Jessica(: