Again, Again was an interesting concept, but the execution left me confused. The story follows a girl named Adelaide, who falls in and out of love a thousand times, all while confronting the secretes she keeps.

I loved the idea of a multiverse where different realities occur. Maybe you don't confront your boyfriend in this reality, but in another, you're up in his face trying to figure out what's his deal. The other universes are shown in bold text that differentiates from the main story, but there were soo many different plots and threads, I found myself having some trouble keeping each story straight.

The book follows a philosophical principle that if we say something in our universe can happen, but doesn’t here- then there is an alternative universe it DOES happen in, and therefore there are endless alternative universes around us. In following this principle, Again Again takes one scenario of the book and plays out multiple ways it could have happened, but continues the story with what really happens in the correct font.

I requested this book, and started it for that matter, with no idea what the description was. It was love alone for the author that got me going. This book will not be for everyone because of the very stylized way it is written...but I urge you. Give it a chance and treat it not as a linear story but rather as a work of art or poetry that defines our inner monologue as humans to a tee.

“Adelaide wasn’t depressed. She never felt bleak. She had energy. She was talky. She painted her fingernails green and wore floral-print dresses and enormous cardigan sweaters. But you can be talky and paint your fingernails and still be very sad. In fact, you can be talky and paint your fingernails to protect other people from how sad you are.” e. Lockhart

Using multiple different “universes” Lockhart takes the reader on multiple ways the story could have panned out- and in doing so show the ultimate healing of the main character, Adelaide, of her awful inner turmoil she tries so desperately to hide from those around her.

A story of becoming you. The you you’re meant to be, and loving it no matter what.

If anything, this is a story of love. But it may surprise you what love you will find at the end of the pages. The love I found was love for myself, and my feelings. Able to justify many different ways I see things, but choosing wisely is always the best start.

“Think of your happy memories. Know they are still in you. They are part of you. And maybe even they ARE you. It was corny.” E. Lockhart

I will say there is a trigger warning for addiction, depression and anxiety in this story.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children’s for publishing this book and providing it to me as an ARC for an honest review.

Again Again is a book about love, romantic love, love for friends, love for family. It's also about how those relationships are interconnected to form something much bigger than ourselves. I saw so much of myself as a young adult in Adelaide. Though I didn't have the same struggles she did, I had similar experiences with men, similar emotions and anxieties, I've even told myself that I'm okay when I truly was not okay. Almost everyone can relate to a character in this narrative, whether it is Adelaide or her brother or a love interest.

Early on, I felt so connected to this character, Adelaide. I have often found myself needing an escape but falling into a hole where I can't get work done or I procrastinate long enough that something just doesn't get done at all. After a jarring, but seemingly necessary move, Adelaide feels this way, something I've felt often.

I felt like I was re-living the emotions and experiences I had as a teenager and college student through the eyes of Adelaide. This is a poignant journey through love found, love lost, and the emotional growth that comes with those experiences.

The style was of particular interesting. There were several small things that I really enjoyed about this book. This book has a bit of a fourth wall breaking cadence to it. The characters interact, but there are little moments of "it was in her wallet," or "she was wearing it under her jacket". The feel of the writing is that the character is whispering these little things to you, breaking the fourth wall (it's not a play or movie, but you get the idea) and letting us in on these secrets that the other character doesn't know. It's honestly a great technique and super engaging!

The asides in the middle of chapters, alternate versions of the how the conversation would have gone - these just speak to me. As a person who goes through every scenario for a conversation, especially a hard conversation, before I have it, this hits deep.

I also loved the inner monologue of the dogs that Adelaide walks, it was a nice touch that brough even more personality out of them. Possibly my favorite metaphor is the egg-yolk-of-misery, I've felt this in my bones. When I've gone through a particularly hard time emotionally, I've felt like there is a film between me and the world and I am the misery filled egg yolk. Just brilliant.

This is a novel that drained me emotionally and built me back up again. I would highly recommend this book to anyone, it's an easy read that packs a an important and valuable message.

I received a galley copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

I think this book struggles a bit with pacing; the beginning half of the book was a bit difficult for me to get through and connect with in any real way. However, I did enjoy the second half of the book. I think the concept of multiple universes was executed in an interesting way with this book, but it overall wasn't for me.

***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of AGAIN AGAIN by E Lockhart in exchange for my honest review.***

After Adelaide’s boyfriend breaks up with her, she finds herself in and out of love over a summer of dog walking, family issues and self discovery.

I love E Lockhart’s ability to tell stories in unique and fresh styles so much that I’ll select books I would pass on from another writer. As an older YA reader, I veer toward dark and twisty stories rather than rom-coms, but everything Lockhart writes demands to be read. GENUINE FRAUD and WE WERE LIARS are two of my favorites, books I can reread and find new insights and clues I missed.

In AGAIN AGAIN, Adelaide looks at different possible scenarios for approaching conversations and interactions, which reminded me of the thoughts of an anxious person imagining talking to someone, before getting up the courage to speak. What if he says this? What if she says that? What if she doesn’t know what I’m talking about?

I loved Adelaide and all her awkward imperfections.

AGAIN AGAIN showcases Lockhart’s versatility as a writer. It’s not my favorite of her stories because of my reading preferences, not the quality of the story, characters or writing.

Readers who enjoy creative storytelling and rom-coms with devour AGAIN AGAIN.

This one was a bittersweet read. I didn’t like the first half of it but I actually liked the second half. The format of the story was interesting, showing the possible “what if’s” and than switching to a completely different reality for the second half. I found it to be a interesting read but I just could not enjoy the first half at all. If I’m being honest, Jack and Mikey were big NOs from me and the way she talks just was “meh”, however the second portion was much better. So my overall evaluation is: this is an okay read, if you like bittersweet romances then this would work for you.

"Again Again" follows Adelaide Buchwald for one summer across multiple universes. She is dealing with a recent break up as well as the aftermath of her brothers' addiction. I’ve heard of other books that tell a story in this way, but this is the first one I’ve read. I’m still trying to decide whether or not I enjoyed this aspect of the novel. Parts of the story are extremely relatable while others are a little cliched. It’s hard to describe really, but the main point of this book is to tell Adelaide’s story. I know, that’s the point of every single book ever written... But in this specific case, we explore all the possibilities of her life, her thoughts, and her emotions. Since the story is constantly changing, the personalities of the character constantly change. This made it difficult to connect or see growth in any of them. I also found it difficult to keep the realities straight, and I’m not sure if that even matters.

This is a heavier YA romance. It tackles topics of grief, heartbreak, and addiction. But it does so in a way that leaves room for healing and hope.

3.5/5 Stars

I'm old enough to remember when E Lockhart's fiction was described as chick-lit, an epithet reviewers seemed to love slinging around disparagingly in the mid 2000s but you know what? Her books back then were *great.* Again Again is certainly aimed at the literary ya crowd but since when has literary ya been code for meandering plot, meandering characters, and a message that's pretty heavy handed, as if teens are too dumb to pick up anything unless you clout them about the head frequently.

Look, did I like Again Again? No. Do I think teens will read it? A few. But I do think Again Again will win or be a contender for the big ya awards.

Tl;dr: Will win awards, but few readers.

Lockhart's "We Were Liars' blew me away and I was eager to get my hands on her latest effort. This one was....hard. I've actually had it finished for several days, but have not been sure of a review response. I liked it.....but I didn't. I think the reason for my "didn't" is that I so closely identified with the main character that it was uncomfortable.....or it was because I'm not sure I actually "got it."

I have truly bought into the whole parallel universe theory for quite some time. I have spend an unreasonable amount of time thinking about major decisions of my past and wondering how different my life would be if I would have chosen differently. (That is the "closely identify with" part). But was that Lockhart's point....how one decision can vastly change your life? Or was she describing a true parallel universe and these were Adelaide's life? Or both?? (That is the "I'm not sure I get it" part).

The summary: Adelaide lives with her with father while her mother and recovering drug addict brother live in another town. The family is still whole - just living apart. Adelaide has spent the school year coping with the aftermath of her brother's overdose (she found him and called the ambulance) and trying to be a happy, bright person because that was what she thought her boyfriend wanted. As it turns out, Adelaide has been much more affected by her brother's struggles and holds much more anger than she has let anyone know. Adelaide goes through a series of boyfriends (maybe? Some didn't happen in the alternate universe.) that ultimately led her to become a stronger person and one who exhibits more self-confidence and self-awareness about what she needs and what she wants.

I am going to give this a 4-star rating....not the full five, because I'm still not too sure about, but not lower because I suspect my angst with the book is that I get it far more than I am comfortable with wanting to right now and the mark of a great book is one that allows you to see past and outside of yourself. I am definitely going to be looking up Lockhart's publicity events - this is a book I want to see and hear her talk about in person.

E Lockhart never fails. Her writing remains as fresh and original as ever. What's remarkable is that it is BOTH plot and character-driven. I'm not even someone who needs plot, but I can't ever put Lockhart's books down because I have to find out what happens next. This book is like Sliding Doors but better (and I love Sliding Doors, let me tell you). Our heroine is deeply hurt and flawed and emotional, and I love her and want the best for her. She does not make the best decisions, but you can really empathize with her. And every part of the multiverse Lockhart creates feels like it could actually happen. On the turn of a dime, we can be funny and whimsical, and everything can workout, or we can be mean and fickle, and it all goes to hell. That's real life, and Lockhart captures that perfectly. Lastly, the love. I would be remiss if I didn't talk about it. The relationship between the heroine and her brother is tender and raw, and I think the best love story in the book. I was skeptical about two of the romantic love stories, but Lockhart really got me at the end. The last part of the book--I hope that's the real take!--is the best one. It's our best selves. I loved this book.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

I do not know where to start with this book. I cannot believe this is the same author who wrote We Were Liars. I just finished the book and honestly have no idea what I just read. None of it made sense, the characters were weird, and the writing was pretentious. I probably should have just DNFed it, but I kept hoping it would get better.

I’m not sure if it’s just me, but I didn’t understand this book at all. I really thought the premise of having alternate options of how things could have happened sounded intriguing, but I feel like it was executed really poorly. The story itself was so blah that I couldn’t have cared less in what path Adelaide chose for herself. This was nothing like We Were Liars, which for me was an outstanding book.

I am typically a huge E. Lockhart fan. Her other YA novels have such great storylines that I think about years after reading them. She weaves beautiful plots that are intriguing and engaging with strong female characters. I was so excited to read her latest publication. As much as I loved her writing style, I just didn't like this book. I was often confused about what I was reading. I love the concept of being able to replay moments in time over and over again to determine different outcomes; I often wasn't sure what I was reading. Overall, this was very disappointing.

I really wanted to love this book. The premise of it sounded so enticing. I've read books by Lockhart before and loved them. But I just could not get into this book. While the storytelling was creative in a new way, I struggled to understand what was happening when we got a glimpse into all of the potential scenarios that were being imagined. I'm sure this melancholic story will find it's audience––it just isn't my type of story or writing style.

Thanks to the publisher for the advance copy of this book.

I find that E. Lockhart uses experimental formats that can make books more enjoyable than they would be otherwise. I loved the concept of getting to see someone's life through multiple alternate universes and seeing the differences in each. Despite this, I found the book to be a bit lackluster. The main character lacks the agency to do much of anything, and it's her relationship with her brother that made the story interesting to me. The alternate universes were interesting to read through, but most of the time the differences were slight and thus felt like reading the same scene three times in a row. Because of the constant alternate universes in each chapter, it became difficult for me to pinpoint what exactly happened in each timeline. The story was close to developing Adelaide's character after the difficulties she went through, but then the final few chapters focused on an alternate universe, leaving no conclusion to the one read for the majority of the book, making it feel unfinished (and not in a good way).

I could not follow this book. Maybe it was the ebook formatting that made it more difficult to follow but I wasn't sure how to distinguish between the two alternate universes. Because of this, I couldn't follow or connect to the story. I only made it halfway through the book because I just felt so out of sorts by it. I didn't understand the purpose of the two alternate universes either. It should have been more clearly defined and laid out in the beginning.

In the multiverse, there are universes where I loved this book and others where I got too confused by the gimmick to get invested. In all of them, the journey of a family dealing with addiction was beautifully explored. It was a bold idea to write a book this way. I think there will be readers who inhabit both of my universes. I still haven't decided which one I live in.

This was my third E. Lockhart book (We Were Liars & Genuine Fraud being the other two) and her books are always interesting. Her style borders on the experimental, which can be hard to get into, but also promises to be really different from what else is out there. I enjoyed that about the book! And there were some interesting themes at play here. Some I think a lot of readers will connect to.

That being said, this feels like a book that was written for a very specific kind of person. It doesn't have what I'd consider mass appeal. It's a quiet, strange, niche story. And while I'm not quite the right person for it, there may have been a time in my life when I was. Probably when I was close to or around the age of the book's target age group (young adult).

I don't want to spoil what makes the book interesting, but if you're reading this, you may be deciding if this might be a book for you. So I'll share what will appeal to some about this book so you can decide for yourself!

You might be the right reader for Again Again, if you're interested in stories...
- exploring "what if" questions and best case/worst case scenarios,
- about intense heartbreak and healing,
- where one of the MC's loved ones is an addict,
- with more experimental writing and unusual formats,
- featuring characters suffering depression
- about a lost teen finding her way

Personally, I think I'm just beyond my angst years. Or, I should say, my angst is no longer about the kinds of things featured in this book. This story wandered a bit too much for my tastes and I didn't find myself connecting strongly with anyone in the book, which made it hard to stay invested, given that it's entirely character-driven.

I do wonder what I'd think of the story if I read it a decade or so back.

Thank you to Get Underlined / Delacorte Press for providing a free advanced e-copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I hate to say it, but this book was disappointing. I was so prepared to love this book which makes it even sadder to say that I did not enjoy it. The cover was adorable and the description was very promising. The idea of a broken girl falling in and out of love during the summer with different possibilities for how the romances played out sounded so fascinating. I wanted to leave my heart in this book and watch a beautiful story unfold in front of me of love and hurt and brokenness and just raw emotion. Instead, I'm not even sure what it was that I read. It started off kind of adorable and interesting; the chapter titles also seemed funny. I was intrigued. Then the book rapidly went downhill. It was honestly slightly bizarre at times. It would go from the story in the present to several other possible outcomes before returning to the story at present. It also got inappropriate, something I'm seeing happen so often these days in YA novels. While the book is not graphic, it is still not clean and I would not recommend letting younger readers read it. I was exhausted from trying to figure out what was real all the time. Also, saying that the main character fell in and out of love is somewhat deceiving. We start the book knowing that Adelaide's boyfriend broke up with her and very suddenly a new boy walks in and she switches gears really quickly. But she keeps having thoughts about her ex. It's a somewhat stupid and confusing thing to watch happen. The last part of the book completely changes from the beginning of the book. I almost felt like I was reading another book. Some scenes throughout the novel just didn't seem to make much sense, or have a point, or fit in with the rest of the book. And for any readers looking for a happy ending, you will not find it here. I'm not really sure it was much of an ending at all. However, there were some parts of this book I enjoyed, Sometimes the raw emotion and brokenness I wanted to see did shine through, I liked the idea of broken people finding themselves and learning how to love again; if that was the main point of the book, I probably would have enjoyed it more. Instead I got strange multiple timelines and bizarre characters and a plot that did not seem to be much of a plot at all. This book just wasn't for me, which is sad because I so badly wanted it to be. I can tell the author is extremely talented, but this book just was not great.

This book was incredibly confusing. It was a mystery to put together which scenarios were real and which ones Adelaide was imagining in her head. That might be a by product of the ARC formatting, but overall it left me feeling conflicted and unaware of the story's main plot.