Review: P.S. I Like You

P.S. I Like You

By Kasie West

Published: July 26, 2016

Signed, sealed, delivered... 

While spacing out in Chemistry class, Lily scribbles some of her favorite song lyrics onto her desk. The next day, she finds that someone has continued the lyrics on the desk, and added a message to her. Intrigue! 

Soon, Lily and her anonymous pen pal are exchanging full-on letters -- sharing secrets, recommending bands, and opening up to each other. Lily realizes she's kind of falling for this letter writer. Only who is he? As Lily attempts to unravel the mystery, and juggle school, friends, crushes, and her crazy family, she discovers that matters of the heart can't always be spelled out... 

Kasie West brings irresistible wit, warmth, and sparkle to this swoon-worthy story of love showing up when you least expect it.

My review:

Lily hopes to be a songwriter someday and she carries around a notebook where she writes down lyrics and song ideas.  She loves playing the guitar and has her own sense of music and fashion style. She even makes her own clothes. I liked how she was so individual though she also had insecurities. Lily is hesitant about sharing her songs with anyone, even her best friend or her family. Lily comes from a close-knit if at times annoying family. Her parents are loving and she has an older sister she shares a room with and two mischievous younger brothers. I liked how devoted she was to them even though she also wanted her own space. 

Lily's life isn't perfect though as she is teased by Cade Jennings, her longtime nemesis. Cade used to date Lily's best friend Isabel when they were younger but he and Lily haven't gotten along since her gave her the nickname "Magnet" in gym class. Lily also faces some bullying from mean girl Sasha who just seems to hate her for being unique. My one complaint about this book would be that Sasha is so one dimensional. 

It was fun reading Lily's letters back and forth with her pen pal and seeing how much she changes because of it. She starts to realize some truths about herself and other people in her life like Cade. Lily has a list of possible "suspects" that could be her mysterious letter writer but she doesn't really want to know because it would ruin something special. What will happen when she does find out the truth? 

This was such a cute contemporary teen romance and a fast read. It had echoes of You've Got Mail, a movie I love. It was pretty obvious who the letter writer was and I couldn't wait to see how things resolved between him and Lily. I really liked how the author portrayed Lily's family and how the book was about more than romance. Lily has issues to work through and so does her love interest who has a difficult home life. The letters allowed the protagonists to share their feelings and family troubles and worries as well as lighthearted stuff in a way that might not have happened otherwise. I think this book would appeal to young teens who like Morgan Matson and Emery Lord as well as fans of You've Got Mail.

Note: I received an ARC for review purposes courtesy of the publisher and Edelweiss