Review ~ Meant To Be by Lauren Morrill

Meant to Be
by Lauren Morrill

Publishing date: November 13th 2012
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers

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It's one thing to fall head over heels into a puddle of hazelnut coffee, and quite another to fall for - gasp - the wrong guy. Straight-A junior Julia may be accident prone, but she's the queen of following rules and being prepared. That's why she keeps a pencil sharpener in her purse and a pocket Shakespeare in her ... well, pocket. Julia also believes in fate, and that Mark, her childhood crush, is her MTB - her meant-to-be.

But this spring break, Julia's rules are about to get defenestrated (SAT word: thrown from a window) when she's partnered with her personal nemesis, class clown Jason, on a school trip to London. After one wild party, Julia starts receiving romantic texts ... from an unknown number! Jason promises to help discover the identity of her mysterious new suitor if she agrees to live a little along the way. And thus begins a wild-good chase through London, leading Julia closer and closer to the biggest surprise of all: true love.

Because sometimes the things you least expect are the most meant to be.

I have wanted to read Meant To Be ever since I saw this beautiful cover (I'm a sucker for pretty covers, but then, who isn't?) The second reason why I really wanted to read this book was the setting. London is my favorite city in the world, and every book that is happening there, will be in my hands eventually. The third reason why I wanted to read Meant To Be is because it just seemed like a prefect cute read. You get that feeling where you just have to read the book! Something was telling me that I'm going to enjoy this one.

"Dad was right. Screw Paris; London is the city for me."

Julia and her classmates are going on a school trip to London, but Julia's best friend and friends from her swimming team weren't able to come which leaves Julia with people she doesn't particularly hang out with. To make the trip even worse, she gets paired up with Jason, a guy who is the total opposite from her. While she is a stuck-up-goody-two-shoes, Jason is relaxed and he does what he wants, when he wants. Which also means, regularly rules breaking.

The week they spent in London together was so cute! I loved reading about their interactions, their adventures and the time they spent together. You could see that they liked each other, but Julia was oblivious to that. In her mind, she only saw Mark, her childhood friend, her MTB (mean to be). I was so anxious for the moment when she finally realizes how awesome Jason is, and what a douche Mark is (this is not really a spoiler).

Another thing why I liked this book so much is the similarities I have with it. I also went on a school trip with my classmates to London, and we did the exact same things they did! We visited the Tate Museum, we rode on London Eye, we went to Piccadilly Circus, to Globe theater, to Stratford-upon-Avon... Lauren described all those things so vividly, that even if you never actually were there, you got that the feeling that you were there, and for me, it was like reliving one of the best memories I have.

When I finally finished the book, I was grinning for the next few hours. I just couldn't stop. That ending was just too cute! Lauren Morrill definitely got on my list of authors whose books I read no matter what. I can't wait to read Being Sloane Jacobs and to see what her future works will be like!