NEW RELEASE
The Year I Met You - Cecelia Ahern (2014)
At 33, Jasmine has carved out a successful career, creating and selling businesses. Aside from her sister, Heather, who Jasmine loves and protects with the fierce instincts of a mother, Jasmine lives for her job. So when she's placed on a year's gardening leave, giving her no option to work for a full 12 months, Jasmine is completely sideswiped. She's never been one to be involved in the minutiae of others' lives but her neighbour, the notorious radio DJ Matt Marshall, and his seeming ability to throw his life away fascinates Jasmine, until she is forced not only to watch from the sidelines but actually intervene despite her inherent dislike of the man. Across the year as Jasmine sees out her gardening leave, she is forced to reassess her life, her priorities and her future as well as her impression of Matt. I'm a huge fan of Cecelia Ahern and eagerly await the release of her books. As ever, Ahern seemed to have hit on an interesting concept... a friendship between two unlikely characters. However, unfortunately, for me, the novel never reached the heights that I've come to expect and love with Ahern's novels. A lot of the first 100 pages is Jasmine watching Matt from afar and even when they do form a relationship of sorts, we see very little of it and it never lives up to the implication that is given. There was so much more that could and should have been done but whether the structure of a year limits this, I'm not sure. Certainly the structure leaves a lot of loose threads at the end and it all felt a bit flat. Indeed, it was somewhat slow-going, in fact I found myself losing concentration on several occasions which I've never done with an Ahern novel before and the focus on literal gardening that emerges in the novel also adds to the sedentary, slow feel of the book. It could have done with an injection of energy and passion, which Matt seems to offer but without this relationship ever taking the central stage that is set for it, the novel's left plodding along. Part of the novel is about slowing down, taking stock and re-evaluating life away from the hustle and bustle of a busy work-a-day lifestyle, and some readers may enjoy this slower, more introspective read but for me it just didn't offer the grand affair that we've come to expect from Ahern and it simply lacked her usual prowess. (JC)
The Year I Met You, by Cecelia Ahern, is about two neighbours who form an unlikely friendship. The summary says: "Jasmine know two things: one, she loves her vulnerable sister unconditionally, and will fight to the death to protect her from anyone who upsets her. Two, she's only ever been good at one thing - her job helping business start-ups. So when she's sacked and put on gardening leave, Jasmine realises that she has nothing else to fill her life. Insomnia keeps her staring out of her bedroom window, and she finds herself watching the antics of her neighbour, shock jock Matt, with more than a casual eye. Matt is also taking a forced leave of absence from work, after one of his controversial chat shows went too far... Jasmine has every reason to dislike Matt, and the feeling appears to be mutual. But not everything is as it seems, and soon Jasmine and Matt are forced to think again." The Year I Met You is out in October 2014.