Book Review : The Story of You by Katy Regan


Title : The Story of You

Author : Katy Regan

Publication Date : September 2014

Publisher : Harper

Source : Sent by the publisher (Merci!)

Overall : 4.5/5

I want to explain it all to you. How this happened. How that summer – the summer I was 16 – made me the person I am today.

I want to share my memories with you: the happy memories are like sunbursts, sparkling on the sea. But then, like a current dragging me under, there's that summer of 1997.

The summer my life exploded.
The summer I had to grow up.
The summer you came into my life.

And so this is the story of you.


I love stumbling upon great books on Twitter and it’s one of the main reasons why I bloody love that blue bird. I didn’t know Katy Regan has a new book until someone posted the photo of its gorgeous blue cover on Twitter. The title captivated me and with no idea of the story, I decided to read and dived straight into it when it arrived. No press release and ooh, that made the whole reading experience even more exciting. Katy’s books are friends with my other books and The Story of You is not my first by Katy. I read one of her books and loved it. I read the blurb and I knew it is something I will love. I expected a bit of a teenage, ‘I fell in love with this boy when I was sixteen, now he’s back and I don’t know what to do’ kind of cute love story. It’s more than your typical, teenage love story. I finished The Story of You in less than 48 hours and loved the story so much that it brought tears to my eyes. It’s so worth losing sleep for! The plot was gripping and I had to keep reading to find out more.

The Story of You follows the life of Robyn (girl) thinking about that life-changing summer when she was sixteen. Young, free and reckless. Years passed and she moved on. When she thought she’s moved on, circumstances brought her back to where she was desperately running away from. Now that every feeling when she was 16 is evoked, will the past rewrite itself or will there be a future, a new life waiting for her?

Robyn is someone that you can't help but feel for her. She’s someone you can’t help but wish for all the happiness in the world to go to her. With everything she has been through in her life since that summer, I wanted her to have a happy, good life though she thinks she doesn’t deserve it. This book came with a strong message – to let go of the past and the past shouldn’t define a person. Why think of conversations that you know you can’t change? Life is too short for one to dwell on the past, so why not live every living moment to the fullest? Appreciate people and things, love and laugh till it hurts. I love books with beautiful messages as they often make me think about this life that I am living. Some chapters are about the past and some, the present. I enjoyed reading the flashbacks and the letters Robyn wrote to Lily just touched my heart. So much maternal love and I definitely shed a tear there. I was so desperate to find out more about her life. Joe, the male lead was such a lifebuoy! Such a patient, lovely man with a beautiful and genuine heart. He's loyal and he never gave up on Robyn even when she’s drowning in the pool of past.

A truly genuine tale from Katy Regan and such a roller-coaster of emotions that will stay with me for a very long time. The Story of You is a perfect cocktail of love, loss and life that will pierce your heart deeply and make you realise that living the moment and letting go of the past, both equally important. Katy Regan’s best book to date! Keep writing, Katy!

Comments

Popular Posts