Review for Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon!
Quick View Review
Characters: **** (4/5)
Plot: **** (4/5)
Writing Quality: (4/5)
Amazon Rating: **** (4.5/5)
Full Review
Maddy is allergic to the world. In her seventeen years of being alive, Maddy has never been outside, but she learns about the world through reading.
But one day, Olly moves next door: all in black, acrobatic, and mysterious, and he might just turn Maddy’s world upside down.
A quick and easy read, I finished this book in two sittings and was left simply mushy inside. I think (other than the plot twist, which I’ll get to soon) the story was mostly predictable; however, that didn’t mean it wasn’t great.
The characters were typical, yet I loved most of them. Olly was the classic mystery boy who we got to know and fall in love with throughout the novel, and despite knowing his non-uniqueness the ENTIRE book, I still managed to fangirl over him constantly. My two favorite characters, though, had to be Maddy and Carla. I could totally relate to Maddy (she’s a bookworm, how could I not?) especially since I haven’t traveled all that much and so totally get her wanting to experience the world without actually being there (although I obviously can’t relate to the not going outside part). And Carla… Ugh, she was the picture of a perfect character. I loved every single piece of advice she gave Maddy and loved her so much. She has to be one of my favorite characters of all time; she was one of the few memorable aspects of this novel.
As to the plot, I applaud Yoon for incorporating Maddy’s illness and for creating a unique barrier that introduced the universally-present theme of forbidden love; however, what made me give the plot a four out of five starts was the plot twist. I loved every single page leading up to it; I loved the twists and turns of Maddy and Olly’s relationship; I loved the new hurdles the lovebirds faced and their attempt to overcome it, but the twist just disappointed me. This book would have been one of my absolute favorites without it, and although it gave me the end result I craved throughout the entire novel, I just felt it was too easy. Even if a different twist had changed the ending, I think the book would’ve been so much better.
Yoon’s writing was great and wasn’t something I noticed really throughout the book. Her style fit perfectly with how I imagined Maddy, and I’m glad we only got her perspective, as this added to the mystery of Olly’s character and allowed me to usually see the best in all the characters (as Maddy was usually hopeful and an optimist).
Overall, this book, despite being a tad cliché and a total cheesy romance, was amazing and beautiful up until around the last 15 pages. I thought that Yoon made the ending too simple and I wish she had tied up the loose ends in a different way, but other than that, I highly recommend you read this book if you’re a cheesy romantic (like Zoe, for example) and if you’re just looking for a quick great read. If you’re in a book slump or have just read a really depressing book (like basically anything John Green), I recommend you give this book a try.
Make sure to come back next Wednesday for a new review!
Happy reading!
Jordan
