Saturday 15 August 2015

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart

After reading We Were Liars last summer (review here) and absolutely adoring it, it’s safe to say that I was quick to find and buy another book by E. Lockhart.  But as is the case with many of my summer reads this year, I soon figured that this second book by Lockhart could only truly be read in the summer holidays.  So, after managing to hold off from this one for many months now, I finally picked this one up and read it as my first official read of the summer.

To start, I really liked most of the characters in this book, particularly the range of personalities and just people in general.  This book was certainly not shy for introducing many different characters, with so many also having an impact, no matter how small, on the plot and the main character, Frankie’s, life.  I also liked how they were all shown to be who they were, such as how Frankie is described by some at the end, and how Matthew is also described in the same way at both the beginning and the end.

Moving on from characters, the plot was another thing which I really enjoyed, despite the fact that it took a while for everything to truly get going.  I loved reading about the different pranks, about the secret society and even about Frankie’s relationship with Matthew.  Saying this, I did find that the book held onto the story of Frankie and Matthew for just a little too long, with their relationship being the main focus of almost the entire first half of the book.  I hope it wasn’t just me who was just waiting for all the pranks and mischief to start!

I was also a little disappointed with some of the plot twists in this one, as I found some quite predictable and not all surprising.  This may be also down to the shock of the twist in We Were Liars as I found that one to be completely unexpected and quite the opposite of some of the ones in this.

Back to the positive points, once again I found myself in love with E. Lockhart’s writing, especially considering how different it felt from We Were Liars.  It felt so unique and I liked how captivating and intriguing I found it.  It definitely drew me and kept me reading.

As for the structure, once again I found this to be another aspect which kept me reading, thanks to the short and sweet chapters.  This really helped to keep the book flowing and the pace up, with the story flowing quickly from chapter to chapter.  I also liked how the book was wrapped up, with the same idea and extract that is placed on the very first page of the actual novel.  It was good to be able to look back, read it through again and understand it all a lot more than when it was just a clue to the plot.

So overall, I did like this book, but I doubt it will be one that will stick in my mind or that I will find myself coming back to in the future.  I loved the writing, the story and the characters, but I guess it just wasn’t a book I could love.

Favourite:

Character(s): Trish and Matthew
Scene(s): Debate between Frankie and Elizabeth in the café.
Quote(s): “It is better to be alone, she figured, than to be with someone who can’t see who you are.  It is better to lead than follow.  It is better to speak up than stay silent.  It is better to open doors than shut them on people.”

Relate a:

Song(s): Cool Kids – Echosmith
Buzzcut Season – Lorde
Other Book(s): We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

 Rating:

3.5/5

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