A Reader's Ramble- Along for the Ride

For this Reader's Ramble, I will be reviewing Along for the Ride by the wonderful and talented Sarah Dessen! I'm sure you've all read something by this author. I mean, who hasn't? If you haven't read ANY of her books, READ THEM NOW! 

Page count- 383

It’s been so long since Auden slept at night. Ever since her parents’ divorce—or since the fighting started. Now she has the chance to spend a carefree summer with her dad and his new family in the charming beach town where they live. 
A job in a clothes boutique introduces Auden to the world of girls: their talk, their friendship, their crushes. She missed out on all that, too busy being the perfect daughter to her demanding mother. Then she meets Eli, an intriguing loner and a fellow insomniac who becomes her guide to the nocturnal world of the town. Together they embark on parallel quests: for Auden, to experience the carefree teenage life she’s been denied; for Eli, to come to terms with the guilt he feels for the death of a friend. 
In her signature pitch-perfect style, Sarah Dessen explores the hearts of two lonely people learning to connect.

Plot- This story line was just so fun and realistic. If you have read any of Sarah Dessen's other books, you know how truly amazing she is. Everything that happens in any of her books could so easily happen in real life, and that's what I love about her books. There was never a point in this story when I was bored, there was always something grasping my attention. Whether it was family problems, friends, romance, mystery, and just all that jazz. I'm so glad I read this and I just loved the plot. It has a great ending. It's just such an entertaining journey of a girl who learns to let loose and stop blaming herself for everything that happened in her life.
The whole insomnia thing was really unique, I've never read a book where the character was a insomniac!

Setting- A small town called Colby on the beach! I love when stories are set on the beach, I just love that atmosphere and I wish I could live on a beach forever. I thought the setting was really clever and a great place for this story to happen. Underneath all those perfect sun kissed people lie secrets and problems like every other town.

Theme- Like I said above, I think the theme is letting loose and having some fun once in a while. And also, to not always blame yourself for everything that happens in your life. Like Auden and Eli thought their issues were ALL their fault, but in reality it was other peoples' too.

Characters- Amazing, like all of Sarah Dessen's characters in every single one of her books.
Auden, the main character and narrator of this story, is the one I could really relate to. She spent her entire life always studying and working on school, that was the most important thing to her. A social life didn't matter too much to her and she really didn't have the funnest parents ever. Whenever she was upset, she just stuck herself in school work. Once she moves to Colby, she finally learns otherwise. I loved her voice, her character, and just everything about her. (Except that all she did was school work, school is retarded. But if it's a way for her to vent, then that's cool with me.)

Eli. I didn't like him at first, the way he just shrugged Auden off and acted like he was too good to talk to anyone. But, once I learned his horrible secret, my opinion totally changed and I understood why he acted the way he did. He had this whole dark and mysterious thing going on, which makes you want to read more about him. He is the perfect character to be with Auden. Once I started to get to know him more, I fell in love with him. Auden and Eli=Perfect Couple.

Sarah Dessen is really good at creating perfect couples and romances. All of the minor characters were great too!

Cover- I love it! It has such a meaning in the story, and so does the title. I think it's fun and eye catching. But honestly, just because this is by Sarah Dessen, I wanted to read it. Not because the cover caught my eye or anything.

Overall- I loved it! I have no negatives what so ever about this amazing book. It is one of my favorites! I've read Just Listen and What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen, and I liked this better than WHTG. Just Listen will always be my first favorite, well so far anyway. I'd say Along for the Ride is my second favorite of hers that I read so far. I'll be reading This Lullaby, Lock & Key, and The Truth About Forever by her really soon, so that favorite list may change!
But overall, this was an amazing read I highly recommend it to any teenage girl with a brain.

With that being said, this book gets 5/5 stars! This is a must-read and one of my favorites of all time!

The next Reader's Ramble will be on Blood Red Road by Moria Young. I will not be reviewing Frostbite by Richelle Mead, because it is part of a series and I would be repeating myself. Check out my review of Vampire Academy a few posts down from this! 

Look out for a vlog tomorrow!