Re-Read.
I'm still chasing that charm from book 1; while I think this one was better than book 2 it's still not as easy breezy or feels as natural as the first book. The plots aren't as engaging, the girls are still navigating life but it just doesn't feel as organic or as fun as the first book. Like Tibby's whole thing here is her sister has an accident (and gets better and is fairly cool with it) but Tibby is battling like depression because of it? Carmen's mom keeps another big life event secret from her daughter, and Lena wants to go to art school. Oh, and the still underage Bridget meets up with Eric again and still struggles with feelings for him and he still is too old for her and it's still creepy.

Like this book is fine, it wasn't offensive and I did enjoy it, it's just not to that first book level, ya know? I remember finding it engaging as a teen when I read it originally and I think teens today can still relate to these girls; I'm just a bit removed from it.

Finally a storyline for Carmen that isn't SOLELY about jealousy (still a bit though). I don't even know what Tibby was doing. Bee needs to stay single for a bit imho. Lena is still drawing and pining 24/7.

I adored this book! I think it was a little less exciting than the last two in the series, but it was still the perfect combination of cute, poignant, and beautiful as always!

It was so cool how Ann Brashares put the girls into situations that were similar to the ones they were in during the first book, especially Bridget and Carmen! Although the Septembers are all too real and far from perfect, these almost mirror situations really show how much they've grown as people since the first book! I was really happy that none of the characters repeated their past mistakes. (Lena stood up for herself, Bridget was more mature about her feelings and used more reasoning, Carmen also used more reasoning and didn't give into her feelings, and Tibby learned to appreciate more things in life.)

I think that my favorite part of the book was Carmen's perspective! I especially related to seeing her struggle with her opinions of herself compared to other people's opinions of her. Also, I think that the whole thing with Valia was just really funny in general! Carmen and Valia are both such strong personalities, so it was interesting seeing them clash. and also absolutely heartwarming when Carmen told Mr. Kaligaris that Valia should go back to Greece. (Plus Win is such a cutie)

Reread in February 2021 - yeah this is Carmen's book. I love her so much but we are so much alike - in all the good and the bad ways - that it's always a whole experience reading about her adventures. Really enjoyed this.



Reread in February 2019 - Oh I loved this so much! Carmen's story was my favourite but really just hanging out with all the girls is such a treat.
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Absolutely perfect.