Sunflower Reviews

Lina - More to Life

Reviewer: linalagosya

Review: More to Life

Client: voyageavecmoi

🌻

Opening Comments:

This is a delightful, uplifting story about a woman who has been torn apart learning to rebuild herself again, and figuring out what it is she wants. There's heartbreak, romance, food, fun, travel, and adventure. The characters are flawed and real, and you really believe their struggles. I really enjoyed reading this story and it sucked me in in a lot of different ways.

Summary:

The blurb is doing its job in terms of giving me information, but the first paragraph is lacking a bit of pizazz, so to speak. The second paragraph I think is working better, I think, especially in leaving the reader with the question of what will Maria do? I think the first paragraph could probably be condensed and written more stylistically. I.e. "When Filipina-Canadian foodie Maria gets her heart broken by Adrian, her first love, she realizes just how much her life was all about him. So when her cousin suggests she take over her job as a teacher in Thailand, Maria finds herself tempted. With no purpose and no clue what to do next, this might be just the thing she needs to figure out her life, and just maybe, get Adrian back. But adventure is not all it's cracked up to be. The stress of being a teacher..." I don't know if that's much better, but it's a little less plot-y and a little more mood/tone, I think!

Grammar:

This is going to be short because the grammar was great! You've clearly proofed your work very carefully and it was an easy read.

Character Building:

This is by far the strongest part of the novel, I think. The characters really come to life in the pages, and each one is unique and grounded and real. Maria is so relatable as a character. She is someone who has let someone else control her life and is now learning how to be her own person. That's such a great journey to follow her on, and she has such a clear arc.

Then there's Mitch. He's such a fun character and is so wonderfully different from Maria. Where Maria is overthinking and emotionally invested and sensitive to everything around her, Mitch is easy-going and free and has no rules to his life. It's clear there's also some backstory there with Mitch, that he has his reasons for being such a playboy and not wanting to get serious with a girl. My only regret of the book (SPOILER) is that we didn't really get too much of a hint as to what that past might be. I assume we're saving it for later books, but to make this book feel more complete, it would be great to get some of that mixed in.

And of course, there are characters that I loved to hate. The ex Adrian is so believable in his emotional manipulations and as a reader you hurt to see the ways Maria is drawn back to him. This may just be me but I also loved to hate Tom, another love interest. He was just so whiny to me! But it was great because he also was so believable. He reminded me of so many guys I know. It just goes to show how well-portrayed these characters are, that they're not all perfect and different readers will have different responses to them, which is exciting!

There's also a great friend group of girls to follow along with, like Prae and Emma. They round out Maria in a nice way and every character has different facets and different personalities, so it makes for a well-rounded story!

Writing Style:

This will be another short section! I thought the writing style was smooth and efficient. Not too complicated or flowery, its simplicity matched the genre and the story really well. It was emotional and effective. There may be a few times where some of the blocking or the description could be simplified or condensed a little, but overall I thought it was nicely paced and had a good style! So much of the writing and the description also had me reminiscing about Thailand in all the best ways! And for those who haven't been, it's fun to explore another country through the writing.

Plot + Uniqueness:

This is a pretty well-structured and plotted book, I have to say! The pacing felt right and it hit several nice plot points that are suited for a romance novel (even though this first book is often slated as general fiction for understandable reasons, it reads like a romance novel and the main story lines support that!). The food blogging and the travel aspect give the story a unique spin as well, and it reads fresh, like something you haven't quite read before, at least not in this way.

Overall, Maria arc, as discussed in the character section, is super clear. We see her life get upended and then she makes the decision to go to Thailand in a very clear act one break. The rest of the story shows the ups and downs of her figuring out who she is and what she wants. There's lot to explore in the plot, from heartbreak to new romances to a new job and a new place. The author balances these things really well throughout the plot.

My one note is that I think there could be more efficiency with some of the different story threads. Because there's so much going on, each chapter needs to contain more than just one aspect of the story. For example, a chapter about exploring Thailand needs to also speak to Maria's growing relationship with the girls and Mitch, etc. Rather than have Prae and Emma be separate friends, can their outings be combined to show how the friendship is growing as a trio rather than separately? How can the threads of her father's disapproval or her religion be worked into the story more in an efficient way? It can all fit, it's just a matter of making the most of every scene.

Final Comments:

This is a great story that I would recommend to anyone looking for something fun but meaningful, emotionally engaging, and well-written. It's transportive and adventurous but also grounded and real and full of heart. Also check out the sequels for a little more romance!!