Again, yes, there are proper reasons why she cries a lot and why this whole book is one emotional mess, but at some time it simply gets too much. The beginning started promising, finally being happy and all, but wow, that went by fast. I still not know how I did it with the first one, but this time I couldn’t, and I still felt like Ella was very whiney. With Happily Ever After, I did not read the book in one sitting. Then, Kelly Oram packs a big revelation into the epilogue and expects me not to want a third book that unravels that? Either close the book properly or write another book to close that epilogue off, but do not leave the readers hanging like this. The whole plot took place within weeks, only to make the ending feel rushed and not really closed off in a way that made me say “yes, makes sense to end it here”.
Which, by the way, made the book feel more rushed. Maybe writing within a bigger time span where we could see Ella’s and Brian’s relationship unfold over time would have made more sense than focusing on a few weeks, only to make a time jump of three months in the Epilogue to surprise readers. Creating problems that aren’t necessary, as another big fight between Ella and her dad, or another scandal that shows how unprepared Ella is for stardom, was interesting while reading it, but all in all not that important for that bigger picture. Happily Ever After made me feel “lost in space”, floating around to find a motive why this book existed. That I could work with because I saw a goal and a motivation behind Ella, and Brian as well. Book 1 for me had the plotline that Ella has to find her way back into normality and has to figure out how to navigate her life with her new family while deciding whether to approach a serious relationship with Brian/Cinder. Yes, it was nice to read about Brian and Ella after they have revealed their relationship in public, but Book 2 made me feel like I’m swimming in nothingness. When one decides to write a second book, since the first one was a success, there needs to be an obvious reason why it makes sense to write another one. The sequel was nice and light to read, but I missed a serious plotline.
When an explicit interview hits public TV, Brian and Ella have to decide how to handle their future. Ella has to find out what she wants to do after school while Brian tries to break out of his teenage movie career. Brian and Ella finally are a couple and struggle to settle in the middle of a PR storm.
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