Review : The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things by Ann Aguirre

Summary (from Goodreads) 

Title : The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things
Author : Ann Aguirre
Publication Date : April 7th 2015
Publisher : Feiwel & Friends
Goodreads - Amazon - Barnes & Noble

Sage Czinski is trying really hard to be perfect. If she manages it, people won’t peer beyond the surface, or ask hard questions about her past. She’s learned to substitute causes for relationships, and it’s working just fine… until Shane Cavendish strolls into her math class. He’s a little antisocial, a lot beautiful, and everything she never knew she always wanted.

Shane Cavendish just wants to be left alone to play guitar and work on his music. He’s got heartbreak and loneliness in his rearview mirror, and this new school represents his last chance. He doesn’t expect to be happy; he only wants to graduate and move on. He never counted on a girl like Sage.

But love doesn’t mend all broken things, and sometimes life has to fall apart before it can be put back together again…

Personal Thoughts

The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things is Ann Aguirre's first YA contemporary novel. I've read a few of her past dystopia books and I've enjoyed her writing style, so I was thrilled to have the chance to read her latest book The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things. If you like your YA contemporaries sweet, then this is the perfect book for you.

The characters in The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things were very endearing. Sage, especially, as a protagonist, was a character I had no trouble enjoying. She was a complete sweet heart and I loved how she tried to make people's day better when they were having rough days at school through lovely and kind post-it messages. Sage was a particularly easy character for me to relate to because I identified with many of her characteristic traits. I was the studious and constantly volunteering high school student and I liked that Ann Aguirre provided us with a realistic portrayal of a teenager. Sage was also battling some fears and issues, but I loved how she remained optimistic for the most part. Her love interest, Shane, was also a sweet heart. At first, he seemed a little rough around the edges, but his character managed to win me over quite early on in the book. He was struggling with his own problems at home, and he seemed to be to the quiet and withdrawn guy. He did begin to open up as the story progressed and I liked what I read very much. I particularly enjoyed the fact that the author did not make him to be the typical bad boy musician.

The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things was more than anything a romance, and it had a lovely and romantic kind of romance. Watching Sage and Shane interact was a delight for me and it's what made the book quite the success for me. Their relationship was also relatively angst-free, which I appreciated whole heartedly and I liked that this was a couple that tried to communicate with each other. However, after a while, I felt like their relationship lagged a little, in that I didn't feel much chemistry between the two of them. Towards the end of the book, especially, I began to feel a little bored and found myself skimming instead of reading. I did really enjoy the relationship that Sage had with her aunt. I thought it was a sweet relationship and I loved how much they cared for each other. I think Ann Aguirre crafted a successful contemporary book with The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things and I hope she'll write more of them in the future.

If you're in the mood for a cute YA contemporary book, heavy on the romance, with some sweet characters, The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things is the book for you.

Rating 

Cover : 3/5
Plot : 3/5
Characters : 4/5
Writing : 3/5

**Overall Rating : 3.5/5**

Thank you to Macmillan for the ARC of The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things.