{Blog Tour} Review+Excerpt+Giveaway: All I've Never Wanted

Title: All I've Never Wanted

Author: Ana Huang

Publication Date: June 15, 2015

Purchase from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo Books | iBooks

Summary from Goodreads:

The Scions were the four richest, most powerful guys at Valesca Academy, and they ruled the school with iron fists. Everyone wanted to date them or be them...everyone, that is, except Maya Lindberg, who just wanted to avoid them until she could graduate.

She almost succeeded, until an ill-advised outburst on her part put her right in the Scions' path. Just like that, one became her fake boyfriend, one her unwanted matchmaker, one her guardian angel, and the one she couldn't stand the most? Yeah, he's her new housemate.

A Young Adult romantic comedy that explores what happens when a girl gets everything she never asked for, including a puppy, a new wardrobe, and, possibly, even true love.

Excerpt

“Why you get ride from strange boys?” My grandmother glared at my mom. “This how you raise daughter?”

My  mom  just  looked bewildered. She obviously  had  no  idea what was going on. Actually, neither did I.

“No, he’s not a strange boy!” I was desperate to make this stop. “He’s—uh...“ Suddenly, I had a lightbulb moment. “He’s my boyfriend!”

My mom, grandmother, and Parker all whipped their heads around to stare at me in shock. They spoke at the same time.

“He is?”

“You are?”

“I am?”

I smiled sweetly and reached out to grab Parker’s hand, squeezing it tighter than normal. “Yes. This is Parker. He was the boyfriend I told you about.”

My Thoughts

I got engrossed with this one pretty quick - I was even scolded by my mom because apparently she had been calling me for dinner three times already (and I didn't hear her.) YES. It wasn't intense, but it was definitely attention-catching. I just love the humor! Especially the parts where Maya's grandmother is involved - gotta love the grandma! <3

Actually, when I was reading the first few chapters of this, I thought that the story seemed very familiar. And whoa! I just read somewhere that it was inspired by Hana Yori Dango (I totally did not know about this one.) At first, my urge to continue reading lessened. It may be funny, but I didn't want to reread the entire Hana Yori Dango story again. I'm glad I finished this one, though.

While there may be similarities, there were also things that kept All I've Never Wanted different from Hana Yori Dango. It was refreshing, and a great break from the academic stress I am right now in. I just couldn't stop smiling! :D

I can't say that I exactly felt a connection between the characters and me (I didn't experience the same things as them), but it wasn't hard to find myself liking them, as each of them had their own personalities. I especially love their interactions with each other as friends. Although, I couldn't say the same for the romance. There were some, especially for Carlo's case, that I hoped was developed more. At times, it made me feel like they were able to find their love just so that everyone could have their own HEA, and it didn't really suit me that well.

Also, I just didn't like how the POV kept on shifting without any cue. It was confusing at most times, especially when I didn't really know who's POV it was. And while it was humorous and spirit-lifting (at least for me), towards the latter part of the story, I felt that it started becoming a little bit draggy.

Nevertheless, All I've Never Wanted is a great read, even though the story isn't really entirely new. While the romance may seem a little bit too perfect, it was still cute and fun to read, nonetheless.

My Rating

About the Author

Ana Huang, better known as ACRL37 on Wattpad, primarily writes Young Adult and Romance. She started writing her first novel, All I've Never Wanted, when she was sixteen; it was originally inspired by the Asian manga Hana Yori Dango (also known as Meteor Garden and Boys Over Flowers). Her second novel, If We Ever Meet Again, was loosely based on her own study abroad experiences in college. Her stories currently have a combined view of over 20 million on Wattpad. 

Besides reading and writing, she also enjoys politics, brunch, and traveling.

Author Links:

   

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway