Just Finished Reading ... Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid

Let's Get Lost 
by Adi Alsaid
To be published by Harlequin Teen
on July 29, 2014

Source: Giveaway at BEA

Synopsis from Goodreads: Four teens across the country have only one thing in common: a girl named Leila. She crashes into their lives in her absurdly red car at the moment they need someone the most.  There's Hudson, a small-town mechanic who is willing to throw away his dreams for true love. And Bree, a runaway who seizes every Tuesday—and a few stolen goods along the way. Elliot believes in happy endings…until his own life goes off-script. And Sonia worries that when she lost her boyfriend, she also lost the ability to love.  Hudson, Bree, Elliot and Sonia find a friend in Leila. And when Leila leaves them, their lives are forever changed. But it is during Leila's own 4,268-mile journey that she discovers the most important truth— sometimes, what you need most is right where you started. And maybe the only way to find what you're looking for is to get lost along the way.

My take: I first became aware of this book at BEA -- it's an Alloy Entertainment title and had a big publicity push at BEA, with a car painted like the cover.

Photo from AlexaLovesBooks.com
The car is too cute! What did I think of the book? There were definitely things I liked about it, and others that weren't really for me. I'm a big fan of road trip books, and this book is, on one level, about Leila's epic road trip from the Southern United States to Alaska. The book has five sections, each of which describes Leila's encounter with a different person.

Then, the book is filled with 80s film references, which are ALWAYS fun -- in fact, many of the sections reminded me of a movie -- Hudson's chapter was one part Risky Business


(I mean, didn't Tom Cruise also have some kind of college interview in that movie?)

With a little bit of Something Wild...


Bree's section was one part Desperately Seeking Susan:


With a dash of Thelma and Louise.



In Elliott's section, characters reference both lovelorn Duckie from Pretty in Pink



and Lloyd Dobler from Say Anything....


.... but I wasn't a big fan of Elliott and his love quest. Same with Sonia's part, which had me skimming.

The final section of the book turns back to Leila. As the MPDG (manic pixie dream girl) of the book, she serves as the emotional catalyst for all these other characters. But by the end, she does have a bit of a story of her own, which helped make more sense of what came before.

I must confess that I'm not always a big fan of the multi-narrative structure in books, and I definitely preferred some sections and characters over others. But if you are looking for a YA road trip book that's something different, and don't mind a story with a bunch of detours and a changing cast of characters, you might want to give this a try!

Comments

  1. Hmmm...I'm intrigued. I love road trip books but I'm not a huge fan of changing narration, with the exception of certain dual POV's. I also grew up in the 80s so I usually love references to that decade in novels. I think maybe I'll check this one out from the library before purchasing.

    Great review! Thanks for sharing, Jen. :)

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    1. I agree with you -- YA books with multiple narrators don't always work for me as a) I have a harder time forming a connection to the characters and b) I tend to prefer one POV over another. That was definitely the case here.

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  2. I love that this has all these 80s film references! I tend to struggle with multiple POV books, but this just sounds too good to not read. Also, I love road trips!
    Great review! :)

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    1. I loved that it reminded me of all those classic 80s films!

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  3. I love books that have roadtrips in them and I don't know why! Maybe because the plot is always moving? But I'm really intrigued on this book and the cover and car are great! Picking this one up :)

    Happy Reading
    Patrick @ The Bookshelves

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    1. I think road trip books tap into our longing for freedom and adventure!

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  4. Awww classic 80's movies. Got to love them! This means I do have to give this book a try.

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  5. As much as I love the 80's and road trips the more I hear about Let's Get Lost the more I think this one isn't for me. I may give it a shot if I have time, but I have some other BEA books that come out this month that I want to read as well as a few TBR books so I don't know if it'll make the list.

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  6. I was really hoping wouldn't be a real manic pixie dream girl.

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  7. I like a good road trip book, and this does sound like it a pretty good one. I am glad that you enjoyed it. The car is pretty awesome. Great review.

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  8. Say anything! I love that movie :)

    I've read mixed reviews of this book and this is actually more of the positive ones.I'm one of those who enjoy multiple POVs but I'm like you, I will have my favorite characters and story. I'm not sure if this is for me as I like watching roadtrips more than reading about them, but when I do get in the mood for it, I will definitely keep this book in mind! Awesome review, Jen :)

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  9. Hm, I think I'll give this one a pass. As a 90s girl, all the 80s references fly by my head. I'm also not a road trip book fan, so this one probably isn't for me. Thanks for the review!

    -P.E. @ The Sirenic Codex

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  10. I always love a good road trip book. I like how it's divided up between people the MC meets on her trip. Not sure if I'll be picking this one up, but I think it sounds pretty good.

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  11. Very interesting! I love that there are 80's references. That just makes me happy ;). I tell my kids that the music and movies made during the 80's will always be the best. They just call me "old"...hehehe!

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  12. Great review! This book sounds interesting!

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  13. I love road trip books, too, but I'm not sure I'd like all the narrators in this one. Though the promise of some 80s style fun does intrigue me. April's reading this one now, though, and she's having a tough time getting into it. :(

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  14. I don't think I've read any road trip books so far - or it's so long ago I can't remember it. This book sounds interesting.

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