Review for When We Collided by Emery Lord

When We Collided by Emery Lord 
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Release: 7th April 2016
Genre: Contemporary, Mental Health
Source: Copy received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review



Synopsis: 

"Seventeen year old Jonah Daniels has lived in Verona Cove, California, his whole life, and only one thing has ever changed: his father used to be alive, and now he's not. Now Jonah must numbly take care of his family as they reel from their tragedy. Cue next change: Vivi Alexander, new girl in town.

Vivi is in love with life. A gorgeous and unfiltered hurricane of thoughts and feelings. She seems like she's from another planet as she transforms Jonah's family and changes his life. But there are always consequences when worlds collide."

Review 
Emery Lord is fast becoming one of my favourite contemporary authors. I’ve fallen hard for her vivid and vibrant characters and her beautiful way with words that wrap around my emotions and tug hard. I’ve read and enjoyed all three of her books and am so glad she’s now published in the UK.

When We Collided is told in alternate chapters between our two main characters Vivi and Jonah. Vivi is spending the summer in Jonah’s hometown Verona Cove, she’s a burst of bright light in this small summer beach town and quiet, sweet Jonah is drawn to her like a moth to a flame. Vivi bursts into Jonah’s life like a whirlwind picking up his large and lovable family who hit rock bottom when they lost their dad. Suddenly Jonah’s grey world is once again bright with colour but sometimes those who burn the brightest have a tendency to burn out. Vivi’s life is far from the colourful portrait she paints it to be and she’s hiding her own darkness from Jonah. But Jonah has lived in the dark and knows that letting in love means letting in light.

Vivi and Jonah are two very different characters but I loved them both equally. Jonah comes from a large and close family; he’s incredibly grounded and has been trying to fill in his dad’s shoes both at home and at his restaurant since his death. Vivi comes from a single parent family; she’s wild, free and incredibly artistic. The two go together like peanut butter and jelly and the result is a sweet one that has you craving more.

Despite their differences they have one thing in common – they both live with mental illness. Jonah’s mum’s grief has slowly slipped into depression and Vivi is struggling to accept her bipolar. I loved how honestly this book represented both living with a mental illness and loving someone with a mental illness. It has some really positive messages on how best to support someone with a mental illness and most importantly, how to support yourself.

I absolutely adored everything about this book. It balanced the light and dark in life so beautifully creating a fun summer read that carries an important message. It’s a real emotional rollercoaster that made me goofy-grin at the cuteness and get teary eyed when the characters hit their lows. When We Collided is one of the standout contemporary reads of this year and is an unmissable treat for anyone who likes their book boys cute, their heroines strong and their stories powerful.

Book Recommendations Based On Your Hogwarts House

I definitely subscribe to the idea that you can tell a lot about a person by what Hogwarts house they're in. This year I've found myself thinking "Oh, that's *such* a Slytherin book! So and so would love this!" more and more often. So today, just for fun, I've decided to give you some book recommendations based off of Hogwarts houses. Whether you're brave, cunning, loyal or intelligent there's something here for everyone. Except muggles. Muggles should probably leave now.

Gryffindor 

 "Gryffindor values bravery, daring, nerve, and chivalry" - Wikia

Have a Little Faith by Candy Harper 
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I think that Faith is the most Gryffindor character that I've come across outside of the Harry Potter books. She acts first and thinks later and treats the whole world like it's the Faith show. Her act first attitude gets her into heaps of trouble but her chivalry always manages to get her out of the situations she finds herself in. These books are absolutely hilarious and every Gryffindor will relate to the awkward situations Faith gets herself into.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas 
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The Throne of Glass series is a firm favourite for most people but I think that Gryffindors will especially love it. The main character Celaena Sardothien is a total Gryffindor who has buckets of bravery and daring. Sure, she makes some bad choices along the way, but her heart is always in the right place. Celaena is also incredibly charismatic and delivers killing blows to her enemies with all sorts of Gryffindor sass.

Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli 
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Simon is another character that just screams Gryffindor. He's incredibly funny and brave and again has that whole chivalrous attitude going on, especially when it comes to his love interest the mysterious Blue. I think that every Gryffindor will appreciate Simon's courage in this contemporary coming out story and the red cover will go perfectly in the common room.

The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson 
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After Harry Potter, the Mistborn books are my favourite series of all time. The first book The Final Empire is an epic high fantasy that follows a heroes quest to defeat the greatest evil their world has ever seen. Gryffindors will love the character of Kelsier and appreciate the bravery of both him and his crew as they sacrifice everything to defeat evil.

Slytherin 

 "Slytherin house values ambition, cunning and resourcefulness" -Wikia

The Young Elites by Marie Lu 
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Slytherin friends! Finally a book has come along that follows the villain of the story, not the hero. Adelina Amouteru is Slytherin to the bone and after a life of being hurt, she wants to be the one who gets to do the hurting. She's got an extraordinary power and has ambitions to grow stronger. Despite being the bad girl you can't help but want her to succeed on her journey.

The Sin Eater’s Daughter by Melinda Salisbury
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I feel like this book has everything a Slytherin could ever want and it comes as no surprise as author Mel Salisbury is basically Slytherin headgirl herself. This book has betrayal, sin and poison and is basically darkness itself. There's also a brilliant evil queen who could give Cersei Lannister a run for her money! This book is perfect for reading under the table during potions and check out that beautiful green cover!

Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian 
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If Fantasy isn't really your thing (are you sure you're a Slytherin?) then try this contemporary read about three girls who are taking names and getting revenge on those who have wronged them. This book is full of surprising twists and despite the acts of revenge getting more and more serious as the book goes on you can't help but will the girls on to claim vengeance as theirs.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo 
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Dangerous and exciting Six of Crows is the perfect Fantasy/ Heist story. Slytherin's will love (and probably relate to) this group of criminals who'll stop at nothing to pull of their heist. To be a crow you need resilience, cunning and determination - traits that I think fit perfectly with Slytherin house.

Hufflepuff 

"Hufflepuff values hard work, dedication, patience, loyalty, and fair play" - Wikia

Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard 
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As a Hufflepuff myself, I know how deeply we care for the people we love, especially our friends and Beautiful Broken Things portrays the special connection we have with our best friends. Caddy is incredibly loyal to Suzanne and Rosie and will do anything to help and support them even if it means putting her needs aside. Hufflepuffs will admire the strength of the friendships in this book.

Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens 
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Hazel Wong is the most Huffliest Hufflepuff I've ever come across in fiction! She's incredibly hardworking but often lets her best friend Daisy take all of the credit because she's that loyal. Besides, as long as they have time in their detecting to stop for a bun break Hazel doesn't really mind. Hufflepuffs everywhere will connect with Hazel and also salivate at all of the mentions of the lovely cakes she consumes as she goes along.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell 
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If like me you're a sucker for those sweet, selfless Hufflepuff boys then look no further than Fangirl! Levi is the ultimate Hufflepuff book boyfriend. He's kind, patient and loyal and makes my heart do all kinds of weird fluttery things. I'm a massive champion of the nice Hufflepuff guy who - let's face it -usually gets overshadowed by a charismatic Gryffindor or a sexy Slytherin so it's good to see a Puff as the love interest in the story instead of the typical sidekick best friend.

Truthwitch by Susan Dennard 
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Although I wouldn't place Safiya and Iseult in Hufflepuff house it's their epic friendship that makes this book very Hufflepuff in my mind. These two heroines have an epic friendship. They're incredibly loyal to one another and nothing can break them apart. I also like the Hufflepuff  house colour clothes that Safi is wearing on the UK cover.

 Ravenclaw 

"Ravenclaw values intelligence, knowledge, and wit" - Wikia

Night Owls by Jenn Bennett 
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I think that Ravenclaws will really appreciate the creative minds of these two characters. Both Jack and Bex are really into art and I think that Claws will find Bex's dream to illustrate science text books especially interesting because it's a career you don't see every day and is really fascinating to learn about as you read this book.

Geek Girl by Holly Smale 
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Harriet Manners is the most Ravenclaw character I've ever come across. She's constantly talking about all of the obscure facts she knows and is incredibly smart and enthusiastic about school and learning. The facts that Harriet shares throughout the book will really appeal to Ravenclaws and I think they'll find her geekiness very relatable.

The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski 
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The Winner's Curse is an incredibly refreshing Fantasy read. Instead of a Gryffindor or Slytherin as the main character Kestrel is without doubt a Ravenclaw. Instead of using her fists she uses her brain to fight her battles. She's got a mind for politics and is incredibly bright which I think all Ravenclaws will appreciate.

The Archived by Victoria Schwab 
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This book centers around a very different sort of library where the dead rest on shelves like books. I think that Ravenclaws will be completely fascinated by this concept and will feel right at home in the library setting. Can we also take a moment to appreciate those house colours? I'd say this would be perfect to read in the library instead of doing homework but you're a Ravenclaw. Enjoy this one in your down time.

 Have you read any books that you think would be perfect for a certain Hogwarts house?