Thursday Oldie: The Avery Shaw Experiment by Kelly Oram

So as you guys know, I just moved here. And that means my old blog now lies abandoned... alongside all my old reviews. But because I feel like some of them don't deserve such an awful treatment, I'm going to slowly move my favorite reviews here, especially if my opinion differs than Megs. (though some editing may occur, as I'm a little OCD about my reviews, and the older they originally are, the more likely I am to have things I want to rephrase). 

The Avery Shaw Experiment by Kelly Oram
Source: own paperback & Kindle version
Publisher: Bluefields
Publication Date: May 4th 2013
Age Genre: Young Adult
Originally published: June 8, 2013

When Wendy Everly was six years old, her mother was convinced she was a monster and tried to kill her. Eleven years later, Wendy discovers her mother might have been right. She’s not the person she’s always believed herself to be, and her whole life begins to unravel—all because of Finn Holmes.
Finn is a mysterious guy who always seems to be watching her. Every encounter leaves her deeply shaken…though it has more to do with her fierce attraction to him than she’d ever admit. But it isn’t long before he reveals the truth: Wendy is a changeling who was switched at birth—and he’s come to take her home.
Now Wendy’s about to journey to a magical world she never knew existed, one that’s both beautiful and frightening. And where she must leave her old life behind to discover who she’s meant to become…

Okay, so to celebrate Kelly's upcoming release of Cinder & Ella, I'm dedicating the next couple of Oldies to this lovely lady and her lovely creations, starting with possibly the cutest and sweetest story I've ever read. If you're looking for a contemporary that will turn you to mush, make you adore every single character in it and laugh out loud - look no farther than The Avery Shaw Experiment. 

Honestly, just thinking about this book makes me unable to even. I read it again a few weeks back and it had the same impact as the first time - I enjoyed every second of it. It was all so funny, or adorable, or emotional, or swoon worthy. I laughed out loud, my heart broke for the characters at times (especially near the end), and I kind of wanted to hug everyone in it.

The best thing about this book are the characters. This is the first dual POV book Oram has ever done and she did it wonderfully. Each character had her own unique voice, but they moved and weaved with each other seamlessly. Just as Grayson and Avery do! 

Prologue #2
(Yeah, you read that right. If Avery gets one of these nifty prologue thingies to explain herself, then so do I. She's not the only one with a story to tell here!)

Now tell me honestly you didn't just fall a little bit in love with Grayson Kennedy right there and then! I mean, this guy is serious swoon, girls! He is so sweet and caring. Avery kind of hit the poor guy like a brick wall, you can't even tell he used to be a womanizer, because from the moment his brother breaks her heart (and she jumped in his shower) he was all about her, doing his best for her. And let's not forget, he was so good for her. He just brought all the best in her for the world to see! I mean, seriously, I'm in love with Grayson Kennedy. I want my own Grayson Kennedy! 

“Avery chewed her bottom lip. I was going to have to talk to her about that habit because every time she did it, it got harder and harder for me not to kiss her. One of these days I was not going to be held responsible for whatever actions I was driven to.”

His lady love was just about the cutest girl ever. Avery is sweet, shy, smart and funny. and she is actively trying to make the best out of a bad situation. To get over her heartbreak and move on. She's not some mopey Bella person who stops living her life just cause of some dude! Watching her grow and bloom throughout the book was nothing short of delightful! 

Surrounding these amazing duo, we've got a set of awesome characters - Libby and her quirkiness, Owen, Pan and Chloe and the Nerd Herd. It was pretty fantastic watching two very different groups mingle sort of successfully. I even liked the moms, and even Aiden to a degree--though the guy is a total idiot and who knows what Avery saw in him. 

"Definitely a cat in a past life," Owen muttered next to me. "But, like, a big scary one that ate people."
--Owen on Libby

As for the romance? Well, I can sum it up in one word - AWWWWWWWWWWWW. It was just so cute and sweet. They both made each other better and I swear - I was falling in love right with them, just as I should!

“I’ve got news for you, Aves. When a guy says he wants to take you out in the name of science, he’s totally full of it. He really just wants to take you out.”
“But you’ve taken me out like a million times for the experiment. You kissed me once in the name of science.”
“Exactly.”

I finished this book in one sitting - both times - and I started late at night on both occasions. I just... couldn't put it down. And then I couldn't take it out of my head after I finished, with resulted in a rather embarrassing amount of Facebook posts on the subject (thankfully buried long ago due to the, oh, year it's been since. Phew).

Also - thank you Kelly Oram for listening to my plea from last year and printing you books! *fireworks*

Nitzan★

Continue the Avery Shaw Experiment 

With these adorable shorts from Avery & Grayson's journals! 

I see London, I see French (Avery)

Purging (Grayson)

Too Hot To handle (Avery)

Self Control, or Lack Thereof (Grayson)

Most Definitely a Real Date (Grayson)

Post Shower Avery and Grayson Thing (Avery)