Off the Page by Jodi Picoult
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
So, I just want to say that most of the time I have a hard time with sequels. Series are fine, but often I feel like sequels are a flop, because usually the author never planned to make another one, so the author is just trying to come up with problems to mess up the ending of a story that has already been tied up.
Off the page was not that kind of sequel, and I was so happy about it!
First of all, there were quite a few holes at the end of the first story that kind of bothered me the first time I read it. The second time, I was able to overlook them and just enjoy the story, but they were definitely holes worth acknowledging. I didn’t know the first time around that there was a second book, so now I’m actually glad that there was some kind of problem to build off of so this story didn’t have to suffer from sequel-syndrom (the disturbing occurrence I mentioned earlier when authors have to make up unrealistic ways to drag out the story to another book).
Anyway, I don’t want to say too much about this book for those that haven’t read the first one, but I found it thoroughly enjoyable. It evoked a full range of emotions. I laughed out loud a few times and I wanted to cry other times. The characters were true to themselves and did not disappoint. (Also, can I just say that I love Oliver? Oops… falling in love with fictional Oliver is what started this story, wasn’t it?)
I would recommend Between the Lines and Off the Page to anyone who enjoys fairy tales, romance, or just is looking for a good escape. (And if you are, you already have a lot in common with the characters!)