Anna Bloom

I had a lot of fun reading Anna Bloom’s THE ART OF LETTING GO and adored Ben Chambers. If you haven’t read THE ART OF LETTING GO, it’s not necessary to enjoy THE SAVING OF BENJAMIN CHAMBERS.

Firstly, can I take a moment to talk about the cover? I’m totally digging it and I really think it reflects Ben and what he stands for. Secondly, ah, Ben! He was loads of fun in THE ART OF LETTING GO and I loved how his relationship with Lilah began. In THE ART OF LETTING GO, we find out Ben and Lilah met at her office Christmas party, but we don’t know exactly how the introduction occurred. THE SAVING OF BENJAMIN CHAMBERS answers this as well another important question regarding a particular gift Lilah gives Ben.

What I really enjoyed about SAVING BENJAMIN CHAMBERS is getting to know a side of Ben we didn’t know. One of the reasons I dislike first person narrative is that it limits us to what another character is thinking and we have to rely on the narrator and trust that person to give us the complete picture. I’m also not a fan of novellas or books written in another character’s point of view because a lot of the information of the first book is often recycled. Here Bloom gives us an original story and it was a real treat getting to know Ben. He spends 9 months waiting and hoping to find Lilah and it was so much fun reading the journey!

I wish I could go into detail about my favorite scenes, but I don’t want to give any spoilers. Let’s just say, I really liked the scene when Ben first spots Lilah. It’s easy to understand how and why she didn’t recall Ben. It does say a lot for Ben to keep an eye out for the woman who captured his interest and when he finally sees her again, you’ll be cheering (even if you’ve read LETTING GO and know the story). You’re heart will go out to Ben when you realize how unhappy he is with his life and we all can associate with him in that aspect.

If you’re a fan of New Adult, you really need to check out Anna Bloom’s THE ART OF LETTING GO. Feel free to read THE SAVING OF BENJAMIN CHAMBERS before LETTING GO or after, either way I believe you’ll have a great time getting lost in Bloom’s world.… (mehr)

A lot can happen in the course of a year and Anna Bloom’s The Art of Letting Go shows us exactly what happens when a twenty-five year old decides to enroll at university for the first time and gives up the life she’s settled for.

Narration is first person and Lilah is an engaging narrator. You’ll easily fall in love with her and want to be her friend. The Art of Letting Go is written in a form of a diary, but doesn’t read like one. Bloom has a talent for combining humor and sarcasm throughout the narrative. The Art of Letting Go is everything I’ve been wanting in a New Adult novel. Often times, New Adult authors get lost in the amount of required bedroom action and forget that New Adult is about finding yourself. Sure, sex is part of that, but there’s so much more from your first rented apartment to navigating adulthood and paying bills. Here Bloom gives us Lilah who is stumbling through life and we can associate with her mistakes. How many of us have put a limit on the amount of drinking we’re planning to do or going out with that cute guy when we’ve sworn off men? There’s a piece of Lilah in everyone of us and that’s what makes her so lovable. At times, Lilah does come off younger than her twenty-five years, but she was forced to grow up too quickly. University gives her the chance to let her hair down, try new things, and be the girl she lost along the way.

We have good character development and I feel like I got to know each person Lilah comes into contact with personally. There’s one exception and that’s Lilah’s ex-fiancé, John. I wish we had more scenes with him and what made him the toad he appears to be. Lilah becomes close friends with two university girls: Meredith and Jayne. I liked Meredith and she was the voice of reason when Lilah’s life became complicated. We don’t spend much time with Jayne, but she’s part of the group outings. Of course we have to have a yummy hero and oh boy, is Ben everything you want him to be! I won’t go into detail regarding him because I don’t want to spoil how great he is. We have a few secondary characters who also play a role including Lilah’s twin brother, Tristan. I’m glad our first introduction to him was via Lilah’s thoughts and I really enjoyed the process of getting to know him.

What I loved about The Art of Letting Go? Bloom captures the university culture perfectly and it brought back memories of when I did my postgrad degree in Glasgow. If you’ve ever lived in a residence hall or spent hours toiling away at the library, you’ll quickly remember your life as a student. Overall, I just freaking adored this book! I haven’t laughed so much in long time and it’s one of my favorites of the year.

If I can take a moment to discuss the use of spelling: it is British. Bloom does use a lot of Britishims, but nothing that will turn off readers. Also there are a few situations in which US readers might not find believable. For example, there’s talk of Lilah and friends going to a bar on campus and while most US universities are dry campuses there are a few with on-campus bars. The whole notion of a bar on campus was a foreign concept to me until I attended Glasgow University.

Anna Bloom’s The Art of Letting Go is a brilliant debut and a must read for any fan of Bridget Jones or New Adult. I can’t wait to get Ben’s narrative on spending Christmas with Lilah. Anna Bloom is an author to watch.… (mehr)

Today I am sharing with you the first honest to God New Adult Romance that I can get behind and say that if you don't read this book/series you will miss out on an incredibly witty, romantic, steamy love story that puts most other romances in this category to shame. Candace is always sending me emails saying "I think you'll like this one" as she gets me and my tastes. She is never wrong. She sent me this one and I said no because October has been the month from hell. But then I read an excerpt somewhere and I was hooked. So I asked to join the tour, because sometimes, you just know a book is meant for you. The Art of Letting Go was meant for me. I hope you love it as much as I do!

Lilah is such a fun character! She is funny, unaware of her finer qualities, very aware of her faults and seems to know quite a bit about Taylor Swift songs. She has just quit her job at the bank making gobs of money to become a student at the University and she finds herself living with teenagers at the age of 25. She believes she might have made a mistake until she meets Ben, the lead singer of the band playing at the "Fresher's Ball." After having broken some of her "rules" Lilah thinks:

"My life could be lived to a Taylor Swift album right now. If my life was ever made into a movie that is all there would be: Taylor Swift belting away in the background a song for every day that I sit here on my bed....She would croon about all sorts of teenage love and angst." (loc.1196)

Lilah keeps a journal so we can read about her escapades and feelings. She's stubborn. She is noble. But she also gets in her own way. She tries to do the right thing but it's really hard to say if she is doing the right thing. She definitely shows character growth, especially at the very end. She has proven that she can act like a grown up in some ways. She is laugh out loud hysterically funny. And April 14, because she writes in a journal and it is a journal entry, made me cry. I hope that Lilah has grown up enough to follow that question mark!

Ben, oh Ben! Who doesn't love a man who cooks for you, loves your "squidgy bits", fireman carries you home after you've had too much to drink, and sings "Hey there Delilah" to you since that is your name?" Ben gets Lilah. He loves her soul deep never caring about running down her face, night after makeup or that she can't cook. He doesn't care that at 25 she's still not a grown up. Ben love Lilah, all the ugly parts and the beautiful parts and the inbetween parts. And he doesn't cheat on her, or ever give up on her. He does this one thing, this one grand gesture, it is so amazing and any man that would do that for me, he would have my heart for as long as he wanted. It has nothing to do with singing to her, which he does. Nothing to do with romantic dates, which he does well. It is the most caring thing I have ever seen a man do. He's also funny and dishes it right back to Lilah. They are a perfect match.

Lilah makes great friends with Meredith in her dorm and she becomes friends again with her twin brother whom she has shared a flat with for years but has never really liked. These two characters serves as sounding boards for her and support when she needs it. She even has parents to whom she isn't speaking for most of the book as her father has disowned her for leaving the job at the bank he got her and going to Uni.

So why do you ask am I so besotted with this book? First Lilah, she's someone that I understand. She isn't sure of herself. She's not stick thin and beautiful and just doesn't know it. That is not her. Also she isn't a genius. No, if she's going to pass Uni, she's going to have to do a lot better than she's done this year. She's spent most of the year stalking, ogling, and obsessing over Ben. And then there was the drinking. I don't think you have it all figured out at 25. But I love that she followed her instincts to leave a job she hated and tried something new. And it led her to something amazing-Ben and new friends. And I love that she didn't knuckle under to pressure to go back to the job she hated when her father threatened to take the flat away that she and Tristan shared.
I loved her sense of humor, her honesty at least with herself and her compassion.

Yes, there was sex. Lots and lots, but it happens off the page, never described and it isn't needed for the story to work. That's why it's good. There is a real story here, not just sex with some words written around it. There are parents involved, both Lilah's and Ben's. The main characters are not broken individuals. No, they are pretty much everyday people who might have some insecurities, but nothing like what I think most NA has in it. There are no tragic pasts. The drama is pretty low key. What more can you ask for? It is truly a compelling novel and I need the next book in the series right now! The ending leaves you with a small, smidge of hope. But one book was not enough of Lilah and Ben so I am glad there will be more!

Thanks to the author for a copy of the novel for review purposes!… (mehr)