As the cover seems to indicate, Begin Again is a title for young adults.

Andie has LOTS of plans in mind. She wants to transfer from her community college, get an education and be somebody. All good goals but perhaps a bit difficult to achieve. Readers will hope, though, that Andie succeeds.

In this book, there are friendships, romances and college life to navigate with all of their many challenges. While Andie tries to solve the problems of others, will she solve her own?

What is one place that becomes important to Andie on her way? What is its connection with a family member? Will things work out for her…even if events don’t unfold exactly as planned?

I think that this title will appeal to its target audience. There are good characters and story lines, along with some welcome humor.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this title. All opinions are my own.

A sweet college romance. The characters had their quirks but once you got to know them, you couldn't help but love them. It was a sweet, read all at once, novel and I look forward to seeing what the author delivers next!

After Annie Rose's mother's untimely death 7 years ago, Andie felt like the whole town treated her differently. Andie has grown up wanting to attend Blue Ridge State to a point that it has become part of who she is - as she yearns to live up to her mom's legacy that she left behind.

Not only is it her parents' Alma mater, but it is also where they met and fell in love. Andie's mom founded the Night Watch radio program - a famously popular program that Andie dreams of leading herself one day. When Andie gets accepted as a mid year transfer student accepted into Blue Ridge State, and her boyfriend in a comedy of errors transfers back home to community college, Andie quickly finds herself in over her head.

As she navigates this new setting, she meets new friends, learns to both stand up for herself and to forgive old grudges. She realizes that life doesn't necessarily follow even the most perfectly laid plans and some things have to fall apart so that other things can come together.

While I love Emma Lord, this one fell a bit short for me. I'm not sure whether it's the YA category or my lack of connection with Annie, but I couldn't connect with the story and found the dialogue almost trivial. Connor was not my favorite, and it made liking the story difficult.

Thanks to NetGalley, Emma Lord and Wednesday Books / St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I wouldn't classify this as a romance. It falls squarely in the coming of age and starting over genre, and it does that well. I enjoyed the positivity and raw approach to feelings and growth and facing adulthood. We follow Andie Rose as she makes the best laid plans and sees how things get in her way and throw her off track. She's the very epitome of the edict that true character is evident in how you deal with the challenges life gives you.

I look forward to every new Emma Lord book, and this one was worth the wait. It’s immersive and fascinating.

4/5 Stars

I adored this book. I cried and smiled. This was a great journey about finding yourself and a reminder that things don't always go as planned. I adored Andie and Milo. They were so freaking adorable. I never had the college experience but if anything I would've loved to have friends like these. They all really cared about each other and they were all a great support system. Honesty Emma Lord's books always get me right in the heart and I love it. I completely recommend this book and hope that everyone loves it as much as I do.

Emma Lord does it again! This was a beautifully written story about an 18 year old girl, Andie, who transfers to the college of her dreams mid-year, and is trying to fit in. It doesn’t take Andie long to make friends, but it takes a lot of heartache and introspection for her to realize how important true friendship is.

I loved the way the author wrote the character Andie. In some ways she was complex, dealing with some deep seeded grief, yet the overarching theme of self discovery was there, relatable to many. I also really loved Milo, Shay, and Valeria. Everyone should have friends like them!

While some of the coincidences in the story were a little far fetched, they worked well. I enjoyed the “cheesiness” of things. I also really, really want to try some of those bagel and cream cheese combinations now!!

Thank you to #NetGalley and #WednesdayBooks for an eARC of #BeginAgain by #EmmaLord in exchange for an honest review.
-4.5 stars rounded to 5

Thank you so much to Wednesday Books (St. Martin’s Press) and Netgalley for an arc in exchange for my honest thoughts

This was an engaging book about finding yourself, finding your family, finding your community, beginning again, and personal growth. I enjoyed Andie, her grandmothers, her group of friends and of course, Milo.

Begin Again was another absolute win from Emma Lord - a beautiful YA novel about figuring yourself out, finding your people, and just generally growing up into a person you want to be.

In Begin Again we follow Andie, a driven college student who transfers from a community college to a highly competitive Blue Ridge State, determined to make her life follow a rigid timeline - one small hiccup? Her boyfriend Connor just transferred to her old community college to be closer to her. Now Andie needs to figure out how to clean up this mess while juggling new friendships and a surprise new gig - being an advice-giving voice at her school's pirate radio station that her mother first founded. The more Andie's plans get derailed, the more she figures out that maybe life is more than just meticulous plans and that sometimes the most magical things happen when you let go.

I loved the friendships in Begin Again - from Andie's roommate Shay to the grumpy yet utterly endearing Milo, with these three at the center we got a small but fierce found family. Add to that the sheer confusion of growing while at college and finding your voice, and you have a nice, heartwarming contemporary novel. And let's not forget about the love story - the slow burn in the making from the start, that took its time and didn't come at an expense of someone else. I really loved this book and will be recommending it to anyone looking for a gentle yet very loud in the themes it covers older YA contemporary.

This book was very cute and very sweet, a great recommendation for fans of To All the Boys I Loved Before and The Summer I Turned Pretty Series.

Oh my goodness! This book! What a dream! I loved it from beginning to end. Emma Lord continues to amaze with her stories. This is a must-read for all.

I love Emma Lord books. She writes with humor and finesse, telling a story that always keeps me turning pages. Her characters feel real, only funnier. I didn’t love this one as much as some of her others, but I still recommend it.

I absolutely love Emma Lord’s writing. It is witty and addicting. The way she write characters make me relate to them and I love it!! I have love all of her books and this is another one! Perfect story.

What a fantastic, college centred coming of age story!

Emma Lord is a great story teller who masterfully wove a story about personal growth, found family and slow burn romance. I enjoyed following Andie’s journey in self discovery. The on-air aspect held a special place in my heart because that was something that played a part in my college years too. And I am past those years, but this felt nostalgic and cozy, making me reminiscent for those times. Lords descriptions of scenes and emotions was very well done and I felt part of every moment.

I liked the ribbon plot point as it felt like a fresh scenario to other college aged novels. Honestly, I thought all the plot points were placed well and helped drive the story forward at a good pace. I loved the friend group and Milo was an A+ character (maybe my only complaint is he was a good “friend” for too long).

Thank you Wednesday books for the copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I CANNOT believe that it took me so long to get to this book - because I loved it with my entire heart and it''s easily one of my favorite reads of 2023.

Begin Again is a beautifully cozy and atmospheric story full of incredible found family vibes, bagels that made me drool, and self growth. This book is a perfect representation of how impactful college can be and seeing Andie and her group of friends grow throughout this book was such a treat.

This story was packed with Emma Lord's signature charm and quirks! I especially loved the bagel shop full of weird flavors, Milo's addiction to a coffee called "eternal darkness", and the entire ribbon hunt concept. There are so many moments that I keep going back to in my mind that lead to me smiling and daydreaming. It was SUCH good book with countless moments that tugged at my heart strings.

Also the romance??? Chef's kiss. Milo and Andie were incredible and the romantic tension was perfect. I loved watching them grow together as friends before eventually things turned romantic. Their entire relationship throughout the book had me rooting for them and by the ending, I felt so happy with their relationship arc.

This book was incredible and such a joy to read!

Begin Again was a well-written college story. It actually brought me back to leaving for college, living in the dorms and how relationships progressed and changed because of the structure of college. Emma Lord deserves props for being able to send my memory back there. The story itself was pretty well-rounded. Personally I didn't really care about Andie collecting the ribbons and when she finally realizes she's basically just living her life for her mom and repeating what she did, I kind of wanted to smack her and say "DUH!"

MIlo was an interesting character and romantic interest, but I never had an RA like him. It was painfully obvious that he was into Andie pretty much from the beginning and she was just so damn oblivious. On the flip side, Connor was a douchebag. Like all of Andie's friends, I don't see whatever she saw in him and I was furious that she didn't actually break up with him right away and lied (letting her friends think she had).

Overall, Begin Again was a solid book. I can't see myself re-reading it, but I know quite a few people who would enjoy it. It would've been eye-opening in high school and the first few weeks of college.

Title: Begin Again
Author: Emma Lord
Release Date: January 24th, 2023
Page Count: 343
Format: Netgalley
Start Date: January 17th, 2023
Finish Date: January 18th, 2023

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:

This book had a healthy mix of hilarious and serious. Andie has worked hard to transfer to the college that her boyfriend is attending. Not because he's attending, but because it's been her dream school for as long as she can remember. She finally gets to the school only to find out that her boyfriend transferred to her old school just for her. Despite the hiccup, she moves forward and winds up fitting in really well to the school. She meets new friends and grows comfortable in her environment. I honestly loved this book so much that I would have read it all in one sitting if I could have. I am now very interested in reading other books by this author. If I'm not mistaken, I think I already own at least one of her other books. I could be wrong on that. I just love the way she writes. I love her sense of humor.

I absolutely adored BEGIN AGAIN, as I have all of Emma Lord's books. She's such a natural a nailing an authentic and earnest YA voice in a way that few other authors are. I particularly enjoyed the Gilmore Girls-esque vibes of the novel's setting (the small college town and the bagel shop gave me Stars Hollow vibes) and the plot device of the ribbons and the game. I continue to look forward to reading anything that Emma publishes!

I love everything Emma Lord puts out. This is a great freshman college story, right up there with Fresh by Margot Wood.

CW: Death of parents (in the past), troubled family relationships, cheating

Okay, this is my first time reading an Emma Lord book and now I want to read more. Begin Again was adorable and just bursting with heart and care. This is definitely a book about finding yourself, coming into your strength, and finding your forever friends. I couldn't help but connect with MC Andie--I too have had my best laid plans crumble enough times to figure out that sometimes that's the best thing that can happen to you.

This is definitely a slow-burn romance (for VERY good reasons) but good lord was I ready when it finally happened!! Normally a slow-burn wears down my patience...but I absolutely loved that this story wasn't solely about the romance, because the non-romantic parts of it were also SO GREAT. The way Andie roots down and grows and finds her place at her new school made my heart so full.

For those who want to know--this is definitely YA (Andie is a freshman in college) and the romance is clean--nothing spicy happening here.

I would definitely recommend!