Review: When You Were Mine

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Title: When You Were Mine

Author: Rebecca Serle

Series: None

Age Group: Young Adult

Format: Hardback

Pages: 334

Release Date: May 1, 2012

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Source: For Review (thank you!)

My Rating: * * * * * (5 stars)

"What's in a name, Shakespeare? I'll tell you: everything."
ROSALINE KNOWS THAT SHE AND ROB ARE destined to be together. Rose has been waiting for years for Rob to kiss her--and when he finally does, it's perfect. But then Juliet moves back to town. Juliet, who used to be Rose's best friend. Juliet, who now inexplicably hates her. Juliet, who is gorgeous, vindictive, and a little bit crazy...and who has set her sights on Rob. He doesn't even stand a chance.
Rose is devastated over losing Rob to Juliet. This is not how the story was supposed to go. And when rumors start swirling about Juliet's instability, her neediness, and her threads of suicide, Rose starts to fear not only for Rob's heart, but also for his life. Because Shakespeare may have gotten the story wrong, but we all still know how it ends.

The Cover: 
I felt conscious of the cover the whole time I was reading it. And I will say, I did get stares at school when I was carrying around When You Were Mine. But, I will say, this is a cover that draws attention, and I actually kind of liked the cover. After a while, you got used to it. Cover Rating 4/5


Review:
This book deserves five stars! I liked this book better than the original Romeo and Juliet story by Shakespeare. This was intoxicating and fresh! Ms. Serle will make a great addition to the YA field.


If I had to pick a favorite character, it would definitely be Len. I liked him since the beginning. He was different, and sweet, in his own way. Charlie would be my second favorite character. I loved her wittiness!


When You Were Mine basically just throws you into the plot. There are lots of flashbacks sprinkled all throughout the book. The flashbacks usually involve Rosaline and Rob when they were children. I wish I could have seen more Len and Rose. They were so cute together!


The only complaint I have about this book was the feud between Juliet's and Rose's family. I wanted it to be a complicated feud, and when I found out the reason that began the fight, I was disappointed. But, besides that, this book was a quick, tragic and cute read. The depressing parts in the book were not executed to a point where it made you want to cry.


The Author:

Rebecca Serle is a full-time writer, which means she gets to wear pajamas to work. She went to the University of Southern California, then got here MFA from the New School in NYC. (She likes New York much more than LA, but don't tell anyone that.) Rebecca loves shiny hair, coffee, yoga, and pretending to be British. She, too, experienced heartbreak once. It worked out okay, though, because she turned the experience into this book. When You Were Mine is her first novel.