Trying to put my feelings about this book into words is like trying to explain the meaning of life. Wonderfully written and for my first book by JN possibly the best choice for me

Breathless is a coming of age story following our main character Claude. The story starts just before graduation, she’s counting down the days to summer and planning a road trip with her best friend. She has a seemingly perfect life, the only thing bothering her is how and when she’ll lose her virginity. However, all of that changes and her plans are thrown in to disarray when she finds out her parents are separating. Instead of the epic summer she had planned, Claude is forced to spend her summer on a remote island in Georgia with her mom and this is where she meets Miah.

I wanted to love this book so much and although it’s really well written, I found it a little slow and hard to stay interested in and for that reason I haven’t finished it yet (I’m at around 40%). I think because this book was such a contrast to what I’ve mostly been reading recently (lots of fast paced fantasy) that didn’t help me. I definitely plan to go back and try again at later date, I loved All The Brights Places and I enjoyed Holding Up The Universe too so I just know I’m almost certainly going to like Breathless, I guess I just need to be in the right mood?

2.5 stars

Thanks so much to NetGalley & Penguin Random House for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I have been so excited about this book since I heard about its release. I've adored Jennifer's previous books and All The Bright Places is firmly one of my all time favourite books. This book was everything! It's broke my heart and pieced it back together and broke it all over again. I loved how personal this story was as alot of it came about from actual events and people in Jennifer's life. She took a story about love, loss, growth and life experiences and turned it into this beautiful adventure that I soaked up and it left me wanting more. This book will hold a place in my heart. For now though I need to go and try to pull myself back together

I loved NIvens novel All The Bright Places so I was looking forward to reading this so much. This author writes for YA readers but I feel that she also caters so adults with her brilliant writing and important themes.
I would really record this and can't wait to read more from this author.

Breathless follows an 18 year old girl names Claude, whose life plans are thrown into disarray when her father tells her that he and her mother are getting a divorce. Claude and her mother then spend the summer away from their home on a remote island in Georgia.

I was so excited when I got approved for Breathless, as I love Jennifer Niven's stories and writing style. It's not quite lyrical, but metaphorical and wonderful to read. So when I saw this one available I felt compelled to read it. To find out if I would love it just like I loved her other books. And I did. I loved it all the same.

The romance in this book was earnest and passionate and young. It was a story of first sex, first love and embracing the changes that happen as you grow and experience sadness and hurt. It's meaningful and sad and melancholy and happy all at once. I loved this story, and although it had a trope in it I don't typically enjoy, it didn't ruin the book for me, and it hurt me but I feel that it was purposeful.

I will most certainly read anything else Jennifer Niven writes.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for giving me a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

I think I really need to accept that Niven books are not for me. I hated all the bright places and the way it portrayed my own mental health issues but I thought I’d give the author another go but I won’t be reading anymore of her books. I’m not a fan of her characters, plots or writing style.

A coming of age novel featuring Claudine who is just days away from graduation. Counting down the days until school finishes and summer begins before heading off to college. Chatting to her friends about plans for the summer, boys and virginity. ⠀
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Her plans go out of the window as her parents announce that they are separating. Forcing her to keep quiet about it for the time being, walking through her final days at high school feeling as the floor has been taken from beneath her. Instead of the carefree summer she had planned with her best friend, she is now spending it with her mom on a remote island whilst her mom researches her family history. ⠀
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She doesn't want to be there, she doesn't want to hear from her dad and she's fallen out with her best friend (who is too loved up to pay attention to her). Then she meets Miah on the island who despite a rocky start shows her the beauty of the island as well as opening her eyes to the world.

Firstly I have to thank NetGalley and Jennifer Niven for gifting me an eARC for an honest review.

Breathless is a YA coming of age romance that focuses on MC Claude who has the perfect life and the only thing that is bothering her is how and when she will lose her virginity. Until her father sits her down and announces her parents are getting a divorce and the floor falls from beneath her feet. Claude and her mum move to a small island in Georgia where Claude meets Miah Crew.

I cannot express how much I enjoyed this book. I loved watching Claude evolve into a woman and truly becoming herself. Her summer romance with Miah was beautiful because they were so open with each other, sharing each others deepest feelings and working through them together. The adventures they went on read so well with the brilliant descriptions of the beaches and the dunes and the sea! Also, plenty of sex scenes that made me question my knowledge of YA books! I enjoyed the suggestion throughout of ghosts and souls on the island that were powerful ancestors of Claude. Also, that she and her mum were both writers was lovely.

I could feel for Claude throughout with the situation with her dad and all the emotions she went through as each revelation came up. I loved the feeling of community on the island and it really is a true coming of age story. Reading the acknowledgements it was lovely to see how much this story meant to the author and that she found her own Miah Crew and they are married! I have to say I was crying at the end and my heart broke with Claude's but I feel like the story really showed her growth and that she would be okay and make a success of her life.

I have been a fan of Jennifer Niven’s YA books for years, so I was always eagerly anticipating her new one. Without reading a single synopsis, I dived right in.

Claudine Henry is on the brink of high school graduation and has dreams of becoming a writer in California with her best friend Saz. She also finally wants to have sex and she isn’t even too bothered about falling in love first. Then her dad pulls the floor out from underneath her life and Claudine and her mother flee to an island off the coast of Georgia. Cue a summer of sun, turtles, family history and of course, Jeremiah Crew.

Claude’s determination to live her life on her own terms is extremely admirable for a teen. She could come across as self-centred but I’d argue that she’s actually just displaying huge amount of self-respect and self-love. She has these little daydreams sometimes that veer wildly off-track of reality, often driven by anxiety, but in this, I found her extremely relatable.

Her friendship with Saz is also beautiful. Saz is a lesbian who has recently fallen in love for the first time and Claude is afraid that the new girlfriend Yvonne will take her place in her best friend’s life. However, despite their occasional tiffs, their conversations are full of unwavering love and the intensity that only lifelong female friends have. I really believed that they would both risk their lives for each other and reading friendships like that really makes my heart sing.

I think my favourite passage in the whole book is when Claude is ruminating over where love and romance of the past goes. Niven is great at writing lyrical, profound thoughts about deep emotion and making them burrow deep into your heart. Her most well-known book All The Bright Places is full of heartbreaking, gorgeous quotes like this and Breathless also had its fair share of them. The above quote really resonated with me and caused me to enter the exact same thought spiral as Claude. Where do the great loves of the past go when they’re over?

Claude’s romance with Miah has the kind of fragile innocence to it that can only be present between two teenagers. It is a great first love story infused with the kind of passion that you know will leave a permanent mark on the lives of the characters forever. Of course, the fact that there is an expiry date on it leaves it tinged with tragedy but the fact that both Claude and Miah have resigned themselves to it ending encourages the reader to live in the moment, as they are.

Completely cut off from the outside world, the island is a haven for escaping and for becoming someone new. The inhabitants only have limited resources and each other and many of them are only temporary summer fixtures. It is literally a world that exists all on its own and I thought this was the perfect mirror for the romance itself. Life on the island stays on the island, much like Claude and Miah.

Claude learns about all kinds of pain and heartbreak during the course of the narrative. Her mother is writing a book inspired by the lives of her brilliant female ancestors who lived on the island and Claude picks up on a lot of the stories uncovered from her research. There are so many awful, dark tales within their own family and a lot of them have been buried and erased. Inspired by her own pain, Claude becomes determined to get her own story down on paper.

Breathless is a soaring coming-of-age story wrapped in the haze of an emotionally-charged summer. It didn’t trigger the tears in the way that All The Bright Places did and I don’t think I was as fully invested in the characters in the same way but I did thoroughly enjoy it. It’s full of risks, love and life, offering the perfect remote escape for anyone who needs it.

I know every book is different and shouldn’t really be compared to another, but when I listened to the audiobook of All the Bright Places it really got to me, emotionally, and I was concerned that Breathless wouldn’t quite live up to that expectation or have the same impact.

Breathless didn’t bring out the same emotions because they are very different books but it certainly felt emotional at times. This book is so real and raw. It captures what it’s like to be let down by your parents and be in love for the first time. It’s all encompassing, messy and painful. As well as bright, beautiful and hopeful. It’s confident yet insecure. Makes you weak but also stronger. I think that’s captured accurately in this story.

Don’t get me wrong the book isn’t perfect.
It’s slow to get started, the beginning felt too drawn out for me and only really picked up when they were on the island. I felt that Claude read more like a 16 year old than an 18 year old and her attitude was a little annoying at times. The story itself has flaws however I still enjoyed it. I liked that it was open about sex and sexuality and didn’t shy away from talking about it. I also loved the setting. The island sounds amazing and the perfect place to spend the summer.

Overall I enjoyed the book, as I say it isn’t perfect and there are lots of triggers (TW: suicide, drowning, sex, cheating) to be aware of but I liked that it felt real and honest.

3.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (rounded up to 4)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Claude's world is about the change when instead of going on a road trip with her best friend, she is forced to go stay on a remote island off the coast of Georgia with her mother. Claude will do anything to get back to her normal life until Jeremiah, or better known as Miah, comes alone and changes her experience and outlook on island living.

The book started off fairly slow and it wasn't until I was 1/4 to 1/3 of the way in that I really got into it. I liked Claude as a character, trying to navigate her life on a completely new axis when the world she once knew and grew comfortable with is completely shattered. Miah is there to give her an experience that she never thought possible and never saw coming.

But it's only for one summer, and when the days are up will she be able to let go and keep living in a completely new life as she plans to go to college in New York.

Miah, as the blurb describes, is mysterious and honestly, I was quite fond of his character. Even when it seemed like he was doing bad it was the complete opposite, and the chemistry between both himself and Claude was pleasant to read about.

The book was a great read, full of adventures and new experiences. A lifetime of memories and heartache that I was grateful to discover.

I absolutely loved this. It was so raw and true and perfectly captured that age of uncertainty and change and first loves. Absolutely beautiful. Highly recommended.

My first read by the author and I absolutely loved it, this book was fantastic, it’s addictive, I thought the characters were great and the romance lovely, a real life affirming read

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Jennifer Niven is developing a track record of writing books that completely draw you in. This book started as pretty mediocre for me. Yes, I know I'm not the target audience for YA books, but it doesn't mean I don't love getting lost in them. So if you're also not the typical target audience, stick with it. It's worth it. Once I got over the initial drag the rest of it was glorious.

We meet Claude who is finishing up high school and trying to figure out who she is. When one day the floor falls out beneath her. The likelihood is, you've been there too. It won't necessarily have been for the same reasons, but we all find ourselves on shaky ground unsure if we can trust that it won't happen again and again. This book is really about letting yourself open up to the possibility that it will keep happening, but that we all have the strength to overcome that, whatever changes are going on.
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When her parents announce that they are separating, and with her Father saying he 'isn't ready for a family anymore' Claude feels the floor beneath her suddenly disappear. Everything seems to be changing, her best friend has a girlfriend, they'll be going to different colleges and now this, so when she finds herself spending the summer alone with her Mum, on a remote island off the coast of Georgia without phone signal, Claude is less than impressed. That is until she meets the mysterious and charming Jeremiah and although they only have a few weeks together, neither can resist the other.

A story of first love, your first time and of first heartbreak, I couldn't wait to read Breathless after loving Jennifer's other books and I wasn't disappointed! Niven always manages to capture just how it feels to be a teen and throws you right back to your teenage years - with themes of a broken family, of love, loss, sex and adventure her story was a real rollcoaster ride of emotions. The character of Claude is hugely relatable, I think we've all felt we weren't quite enough at some point in our lives and Jeremiah brings excitement into her life just when she needs it the most. Highlighting the struggles that many teenagers face, the story is honest, personal and at times a little heart wrenching. Jennifer writes that it is the book she needed when she was younger and I do believe it's the type of book, that someone, somewhere will also feel exactly the same way about.

2.5 stars

I’ve found this to be a hard one to find a comfortable rating and so I’ve settled at the 2.5 point after much pondering. Reading BREATHLESS proved to be a frustrating experience. The main character Claud felt all over the place and while she had reasons, the drama whiplash was severe at times.

I felt a little more settled in the story when Claud got to her island summer home, I liked the vibe of the place and the eclectic mix of people. Claud however, remained chaotic and sex-obsessed when she got there. I did feel that she seemed written a little young for her character’s age.

Sadly the story, whilst it had some definite highlights like the parental story line and Claud’s relationship with her father, there were a lot more dull periods. And then there’s the ending, which I hated as much as drinking a glass of sour milk. Sadly, this book didn’t hit the spot for me and there was more I disliked than liked.

There are triggers for days in this book, so if you need that information, please go and look for warnings.

Thank you to Random House for the early review copy.

As hard as it is, I've had to come to terms with the fact I am probably not the targeted audience for this one (somehow I turn 25 in December, even though I'm pretty sure last time I looked I was turning 18?), however, that didn't take away from my reading experience of this one.

Claude is left blindsided when her Dad announces that he is leaving and that her parents are getting divorced. Claude and her mother decide to spend summer on a remote island. She's devastated to be leaving her friends behind and is in a state of despair. That is, until she meets the mysterious Jeremiah. They're drawn to each other, as things start to accelerate, they promise each other this is just a summer fling. But what if that isn't enough?

In the acknowledgments Niven mentions this is the book she needed at 18, and I can't put it any better myself. This is passionate, raw and an honest insight in to first loves. It really portrayed the constant overthinking and self doubt as you enter a relationship.

I loved Claude and Jeremiah, they were complex in their own ways, but felt authentic. Also, big applause for consent being discussed in this! I feel like it is often overlooked in YA.

The separation and divorce element in this was also well done. I really felt for Claude as she came to terms with her emotions.

I also loved how the ending was everything I wanted but also everything I didn't want (it's hard to explain!). I even shed a tear or two..

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Penguin for providing me with a copy to read.

Claudine has had a happy childhood and is just finishing high school when her dad announces he wants to split up from her mum. Claude is left spinning in the shock of it all and with strict instructions not to talk about it with any of her friends, she has no outlet for the tidalwave of emotions threatening to engulf her.

Claude and her mum travel to a remote island with a lot of family history to get away from it all. Here she meets Jeremiah and is instantly drawn to him even as she is trying to deal with the shock from her dad's news. Miah has a difficult family life and a lot of responsibilities at home so his time on the island is special to him.

There are some beautiful descriptions of the island and a focus on nature. I also really enjoyed the way the author wrote about the history of the island as well as the present.

This is a story of first love, first sex, growing up and learning to deal with change. I couldn't put it down! I give this 5 out of 5.

Having been a fan if Niven and her previous two books I went in with high expectations.

I sadly had to dnf this one 20% in. Honestly I feel like the book started off weirdly and incredibly sexualised for a YA book, especially in comparison to her previous works. Maybe that's just me but it was a bit much.

I also found myself unable to connect with the main character and didn't care where the story was going. I'm gutted I didn't enjoy it as this was one of my most anticipated reads for 2020.

Don't let my review put you off. This book is incredibly loved but it just was not for me

BOOK REVIEW: Breathless by Jennifer Niven

2 stars

TW: Talk of multiple suicides, drowning, parental separation, worrying & negative behaviour, alcohol as a crutch, sex talk & sex scenes.

I went into this book SO excited as I have enjoyed Niven's past books and with a great start filled with feminism and open positive talk about sex, I thought this may be a great YA book. I was unfortunately completely let down.

If I could sum up this book in three words it would be pretentious, confused and lacking.
Breathless is about an 18 year old girl called Claude and her mum who after her Dad separated from them are randomly shipped off to an island. The mum HAS to have Claude there, ruining all her summer plans with her best friend but then barely spends time with her daughter when they are there.
Claude meets a guy called Miah and the story begins. I won't be giving away any spoilers but here are my general thoughts...
The characters seem way too self important, Caude is incredibly selfish. Claude and Miah have obvious issues that they bond over and become the basis for their romance. I found it really unhealthy. Claude displays a lot of very worrying actions which noone picks up on and they seem to be glamourised rather than called out as wrong. I found both characters to be rather pretentious and constantly talking a load of hot air.
The storyline was questionable. The major plot lines seemed to end up nowhere and the ending was an absolute cop out. I didn't see why so much time went into the background of Claude's ancestors as it simply didn't lead anywhere.
I did enjoy the island. The wildlife and nature sounded incredible and I got a real sense of being there and immersed in the sounds of nature, the smell of the ocean and the feel of muggy heat. The writing was also decent which helped with the overall atmosphere.

This obviously wasn't for me and it talks ALOT about sex and so should be 16+. I am hugely disappointed!

Please note that I was #gifted this book in exchange for an honest review.