All Our Broken Pieces by L.D. Crichton ~ Review

Source: ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

All Our Broken Pieces by L.D. Crichton

"You can’t keep two people who are meant to be together apart for long...”

Lennon Davis doesn’t believe in much, but she does believe in the security of the number five. If she flicks the bedroom light switch five times, maybe her new L.A. school won’t suck. But that doesn’t feel right, so she flicks the switch again. And again. Ten more flicks of the switch and maybe her new step family will accept her. Twenty-five more flicks and maybe she won’t cause any more of her loved ones to die. Fifty times more and then she can finally go to sleep.

Kyler Benton witnesses this pattern of lights from the safety of his treehouse in the yard next door. It is only there, hidden from the unwanted stares of his peers, that Kyler can fill his notebooks with lyrics that reveal the true scars of the boy behind the oversized hoodies and caustic humor. But Kyler finds that descriptions of blonde hair, sad eyes, and tapping fingers are beginning to fill the pages of his notebooks. Lennon, the lonely girl next door his father has warned him about, infiltrates his mind. Even though he has enough to deal with without Lennon’s rumored tragic past in his life, Kyler can’t help but want to know the truth about his new muse.

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After reading (and LOVING) Every Other Weekend by Abigail Johnson, I was in a bit of a mood for YA contemporary. Which hasn't happened in so long, I was excited to go with it and jump into another book right away. All Our Broken Pieces has been on my shelf since late June, and I'd been eyeing it since then. So I picked it up. And I'm so glad I did!

I started the book in mid-November, and was so into it. I always get excited when a book has me enjoying it from the very beginning--because my attention span at the beginning of books is terrible and I get bored easily. I read the first ~80 pages, then life happened (aka, finishing my graduating semester of college and finding a job in the field of my soon-to-be degree) so I went a few weeks without picking it up.

Normally, when things like this happen and I have to step away from a book because of Reasons, it takes some effort to get myself to pick the book back up. Like I said before, my attention span can be terrible. But all those days I didn't have time to read, I had this book on my mind. And then when I saw my opening last weekend I jumped on it and finished the rest of the book in one sitting. And it was so good.

I'm so in love with these two main characters. Kyler is snarky and smart and I was a fan of his sense of humor. Lennon is sweet and down to earth and matched Kyler's humor all the way. Both individually and together, I enjoyed these protagonists. They each had their own issues and struggles, and seeing them work through them gradually throughout the story was awesome.

The romance was 100% my cup of tea. They gave me so many warm fuzzies and I smiled so much while reading. I also appreciated the slight parallels at Romeo & Juliet, for the sake of linking to their project. That said, I kind of wish they hadn't been QUITE so dependent on one another. Like, I'm here for a good, solid, strong bonded relationship. I WANT them to be together all the time too. But they were a little unreasonable at times. But THAT said, I realize that they are teenagers and that probably has a lot to do with the way this aspect was handled.

Another big, favorite aspect of this book for me was the friendships and sibling relationships. Kyler with his friends was great. They were conscientious of his struggles with performing and while they definitely pushed for him to bend on his resolve, it was more of a For the Best thing and not a selfish thing. Kyler was also so nice with his sister--in an older brother-tending-to-pick-on-his-little-sister way, but then when needed he gets so sweet. Lennon also had the cutest relationship with her little brother. She's so kind to him and patient, and I adored that kid.

I also want to say that I appreciated Lennon's relationship with her dad and stepmom. They are by no means perfect, but they clearly care a whole bunch. Honestly, on Lennon's side of the family situation the only real flaw was Andrea--and I think this is in part because that aspect wasn't developed to its full potential.

A few more things I enjoyed/appreciated about the book:
- Kyler's lyrics
- the OCD rep
- the band name suggestions ("Think about it.")
- man oh man this book made me so happy!

Overall, I loved All Our Broken Pieces. It wasn't quite a perfect read, but I'm thinking it's a new fav. Definitely one I would recommend!

4 stars - A new fav YA contemporary romance!