Good morning everyone!
I am proud to share with you today's stop on the Beauty of the Moment Blog Tour, hosted by Penguin Teen Canada. I read this one last month, and it truly surprised me how much I enjoyed it.
Tour Schedule:
Title: The Beauty of the Moment
Author: Tanaz Bhathena
Publisher: Penguin Teen
Release Date: February 26, 2019
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary
Synopsis:
Susan is the new girl—she’s sharp and driven, and strives to meet her parents’ expectations of excellence. Malcolm is the bad boy—he started raising hell at age fifteen, after his mom died of cancer, and has had a reputation ever since.
Susan’s parents are on the verge of divorce. Malcolm’s dad is a known adulterer.
Susan hasn’t told anyone, but she wants to be an artist. Malcolm doesn’t know what he wants—until he meets her.
Love is messy and families are messier, but in spite of their burdens, Susan and Malcolm fall for each other. The ways they drift apart and come back together are testaments to family, culture, and being true to who you are.
My Review: 4.25/5 ⭐
The Beauty of the Moment is a modern novel following Susan, the new girl in town, who just arrived from Saudi Arabia. She dreams to be an artist, but her family has different plans for her. While she is trying to meet exceptionally high academic standards and dealing with her parents her inevitable divorce, she meets Malcolm. He's a bad boy type and has a quick temper, ever since his mom died of cancer a few years ago. As they get to know each other, trust, family, and their own hearts are on the line.
I really enjoyed this book, Susan and Malcolm were easy to connect with as characters. I actually enjoyed Malcolm's character a bit more, I found his development more prominent. However, the family dynamics and the varying cultures were engaging either way, and I liked how realistic it felt. Some contemporaries have a lot of fluff, but this one was genuine and reflective of youth in Toronto. It is one of the only books I remember reading that was set so close to me. I loved being able to know the landmarks and malls that they discuss in the novel, and I have even been to a few of the locations that they highlight. The racial differences were well written, and it is important to have books share these topics, as diversity a key part of today's culture.
I do wish readers could have found out a bit more about if they ended up together, or their feelings afterwards. I loved that there was an epilogue, and it might have been too long with more details, but I did want to keep reading about their story.
Overall, contemporary fans will adore this sweet novel, and for readers in the GTA, it will be easy to connect with for sure!
Review on Goodreads
* Thank you Penguin Teen Canada for the opportunity to be apart of the blog tour *