Title: A British Girl’s Guide to Hurricanes and Heartbreak
Author: Laura Taylor Namey
Publication: September 26, 2023
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Genre: Romance, Teens, YA Fiction
Pages: 320
SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)
Winchester, England, has always been home for Flora, but when her mother dies after a long illness, Flora feels untethered. Her family expects her to apply to university and take a larger role in their tea-shop business, but Flora isn’t so sure. More than ever, she’s the chaotic “hurricane” in her household, and she doesn’t always know how to manage her stormy emotions.
So she decides to escape to Miami without telling anyone—especially her longtime friend Gordon Wallace.
But Flora’s tropical change of scenery doesn’t cast away her self-doubt. When it comes to university, she has no idea which passions she should follow. That’s also true in romance. Flora’s summer abroad lands her in the flashbulb world of teen influencer Baz Marín, a Miami Cuban who shares her love for photography. But Flora’s more conflicted than ever when she begins to see future architect Gordon in a new light.
REVIEW
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
I’m a sucker for a good teen romcom, and when I saw the cover of A British Girl’s Guide to Hurricanes and Heartbreak I knew I had to check it out. One, I am a current Florida resident, and two, I love a good love triangle. Never having read Laura Taylor Namey before, I was pleasantly surprised by her book.
A lot of romcoms are great, but a little fluffy. By this, I just mean they are predictable, and sometimes do not have much meat to them. Nothing wrong with that, of course, because sometimes I just need to feel good when I finish a book. Namey did a thing here though. This book took that fluffy romcom portion and intertwined it with really deep-seated trauma and emotions with Flora trying to deal with her past, come to terms with mistakes she had made, and grow into a new person. This is an honest-to-God coming-of-age story.
I really enjoyed the “side” characters in this book too. While they were side characters and Flora was obviously the main character, these side characters really formed this perfectly crafted ball of perfection. Each character brought something huge to the plotline and we got to see all the characters really progress in their own storylines and lives. While I love Gordon, I have to say I was cheering for Baz the entire book. I won’t give anything away, but the ending kind of threw me. I was pleasantly shocked by it and happy I didn’t really see it coming. I honestly thought the story was going a different way, and I truly appreciated that because a lot of romcoms are predictable to an extent.
A British Girl’s Guide to Hurricanes and Heartbreak flows so well and I went from laughing out loud to trying to (unsuccessfully) hold back tears. I felt the entire spectrum of emotions while reading Namey’s novel and I am totally hooked now. I cannot wait to read more of her work. This is an absolute must-read for everyone… do not be fooled by that RomCom categorization and colorful cover. This book digs deep!
