**Disclaimer: I was given a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review from the publisher.**
I’d like to begin by thanking The Fantastic Flying Book Club and the publisher for choosing me to be a part of this tour. Please check out the other stops along the tour for other reviews, playlists, and other fun posts about this book and the authors, Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Cruz.
Check out the full tour schedule here!
PRE-ORDER CAMPAIGN
Win a tea tin when you pre-order JO & LAURIE (US ONLY)
Link to the promotion and submission page: https://woobox.com/8jrorg
GIVEAWAY
Prize: Win a copy of JO & LAURIE by Margaret Stohl & Melissa de la Cruz (US Only)
Starts: 27th May 2020
Ends: 10th June 2020
Direct Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/d9681b86504/
Title Jo & Laurie
Author Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Cruz
Release Date June 2, 2020
Publisher G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
Description from Amazon
1869, Concord, Massachusetts: After the publication of her first novel, Jo March is shocked to discover her book of scribbles has become a bestseller, and her publisher and fans demand a sequel. While pressured into coming up with a story, she goes to New York with her dear friend Laurie for a week of inspiration—museums, operas, and even a once-in-a-lifetime reading by Charles Dickens himself!
But Laurie has romance on his mind, and despite her growing feelings, Jo’s desire to remain independent leads her to turn down his heartfelt marriage proposal and sends the poor boy off to college heartbroken. When Laurie returns to Concord with a sophisticated new girlfriend, will Jo finally communicate her true heart’s desire or lose the love of her life forever?
Initial Thoughts
I saw this book a while back when browsing the 2020 releases and I passed it by. I always liked Little Women, but it wasn’t my favorite novel. I always disliked the ending. But, when I saw this tour, I decided that I would give this book a try. The day my digital copy arrived was the first day of YALLWEST (or YALLSTAYHOME) and Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Cruz (who will henceforth be known as Margaret and Melissa like we’re best friends) were the opening keynote speakers. Listening to them describe this book and their passion for it made me run, not walk, to my kindle to start reading as soon as the Zoom meeting was over.
Some Things I Liked
- “Babbling Brooke” and other witty gems. I loved the writing style in this book. It felt completely seamless from Little Women. Margaret and Melissa have truly captured Jo March’s voice from the original novel and represented her character so well. The witty banter and overly dramatic sarcasm were phenomenal and I found myself laughing out loud as I read certain scenes.
- History and the events of the time. Margaret mentioned in the keynote mentioned above that she is a scholar of American Studies. That was my minor in college and I have literally never met another person (outside of the classroom) that studied the same subject. I absolutely loved how she utilized her academic background to round out the setting and activities the March sisters found themselves a part of. I loved that Jo got to see Dickens and she referred to herself as a peer of Emerson’s.
- Two authors. I have to applaud the fact that two distinctly different authors came together to write this book. At no point did I feel like there were two voices speaking for any character. Again, everything felt organic and seamless from page to page.
- That ending. Now that’s an ending I can get behind. No spoilers, but this was much better than the original novel.
Series Value
In a way, this book could be considered a sequel of sorts to Little Women. In other ways, it’s also a retelling. While I would love to see more of Jo and the other March sisters as written by Margaret and Melissa, I was very satisfied with the ending here. I think they have laid the groundwork for more adventures but I wouldn’t be disappointed if this was a stand alone story.
Final Thoughts
I loved this book. I read it all in one sitting after watching that keynote. This book reminded me of the best parts of studying American Studies in college, made me remember why I enjoyed Little Women, and was the perfect balance of strong female lead, romance, and comedy. I highly recommend this book for all fans of Little Women, anyone who has a sister, or anyone who enjoys historical fiction.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommendations for Further Reading
- Alex & Eliza by Melissa de la Cruz – if you liked the historical fiction element and you enjoyed the writing style, definitely try this series by Melissa de la Cruz. It’s a fantastic telling of the romance of Alexander Hamilton and his wife.
- Madame Tussaud’s Apprentice by Kathleen Benner Duble – again, if you liked the historical fiction element as well as a strong female lead, try this shorter novel set during the French Revolution.
- The Jewel Thief by Jeanne Mobley – if you liked the themes of a strong female character who would do anything to provide for her family, try this new release set during the time of the Sun King’s reign in France.
Author Bio
As an award-winning young adult author, she has been published in fifty countries and thirty-two languages and has sold more than ten million books worldwide. Beautiful Creatures debuted as the Amazon #1 Teen book of the year; seven of Margaret’s books have reached bestseller lists around the world.
She has published fifteen novels and graphic novels, as well as contributed to several games and countless comics since her debut. Her last book, Cats Vs Robots: This is War, was a family affair, illustrated by her child, the artist Kay Peterson, and co-written with her husband, Lewis Peterson. It also starred three of her family’s five cats.
After Beautiful Creatures was released as a feature film from Warner Brothers and Alcon Entertainment, Margaret began working with Marvel on her bestselling Black Widow: Forever Red duology; in 2017 she began writing the ongoing Mighty Captain Marvel comic, followed by the acclaimed Life of Captain Marvel miniseries, where she established a new origin story for Carol Danvers in preparation for the theatrical debut of Brie Larson as “Captain Marvel” for the MCU.
When not roaming the halls of Seattle game developer Bungie – where she oversees the creation of new global IPs – Margaret can often be seen at a Comicon or at one of the teen and youth book festivals she co-founded, YALLFEST (Charleston, SC) and YALLWEST (Santa Monica, CA), the largest in the country. Wherever she goes, you can find out more about her (and invariably her cats) at @mstohl on twitter or margaret_stohl on instagram or margaret_stohl on snapchat or at mstohl.com
She is the New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of many critically acclaimed and award-winning novels for teens including The Au Pairs series, the Blue Bloods series, the Ashleys series, the Angels on Sunset Boulevard series and the semi-autobiographical novel Fresh off the Boat.
Her books for adults include the novel Cat’s Meow, the anthology Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys and the tongue-in-chic handbooks How to Become Famous in Two Weeks or Less and The Fashionista Files: Adventures in Four-inch heels and Faux-Pas.
She has worked as a fashion and beauty editor and has written for many publications including The New York Times, Marie Claire, Harper’s Bazaar, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Allure, The San Francisco Chronicle, McSweeney’s, Teen Vogue, CosmoGirl! and Seventeen. She has also appeared as an expert on fashion, trends and fame for CNN, E! and FoxNews.
Melissa grew up in Manila and moved to San Francisco with her family, where she graduated high school salutatorian from The Convent of the Sacred Heart. She majored in art history and English at Columbia University (and minored in nightclubs and shopping!).
She now divides her time between New York and Los Angeles, where she lives in the Hollywood Hills with her husband and daughter.
BOOK LINKS
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48895207-jo-laurie
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3eKjILC
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/jo-laurie-margaret-stohl/1136270761?ean=9780593112861
iTunes: https://books.apple.com/us/book/jo-laurie/id1489092197
Book Depository: https://www.bookdepository.com/Jo-Laurie-Melissa-de-La-Cruz/9781984812018?ref=grid-view&qid=1587559819389&sr=1-1
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/jo-laurie-1
Google Books: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=8Pe_DwAAQBAJ&rdid=book-8Pe_DwAAQBAJ&rdot=1&source=gbs_atb&pcampaignid=books_booksearch_at
AUTHOR LINKS
MELISSA DE LA CRUZ
Website: https://melissa-delacruz.com/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21911.Melissa_de_la_Cruz
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MelissadelaCruz
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorMelissadelaCruz/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authormelissadelacruz/
Tumblr: https://authormelissadelacruz.tumblr.com/
MARGARET STOHL
Website: https://mstohl.com/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2895707.Margaret_Stohl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mstohl
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/margaret_stohl/
May 27th
The Unofficial Addiction Book Fan Club – Welcome Post
May 28th
Moonlight Rendezvous – Review + Favourite Quotes
Belle’s Archive – Review
Adventurous Bookworm – Review + Favourite Quotes
The Clever Reader – Review
Ya It’s Lit – Review + Favourite Quotes
May 29th
A Gingerly Review – Review
Happily, Hedy – Review + Favourite Quotes
Colbywilkens – Review
justicereads – Review + Favourite Quotes
Books Over Everything – Review
May 30th
L.M. Durand – Interview
Bookishly Nerdy – Review + Favourite Quotes
Gwendalyn’s Books – Review
Emelie’s Books – Review + Favourite Quotes
Jill’s Book Blog – Review
May 31st
The Shelf Life Chronicles – Review + Favourite Quotes
Book Briefs – Review
Kayla Reads and Reviews – Review + Favourite Quotes
ReadwithMiki – Review + Dream Cast + Favourite Quotes
Heidi Reads… – Review
June 1st
Biblioxytocin – Review + Favourite Quotes
@onemused – Review
Ohana Cascadia – Review + Favourite Quotes
Nose Stuck in a Book – Review
Paperbacks and Pen – Review + Favourite Quotes
June 2nd
Kait Plus Books – Interview
Odd and Bookish – Review
Sometimes Leelynn Reads – Review + Playlist + Dream Cast
Hauntedbybooks – Review + Favourite Quotes
Eating Between the Lines – Review
Books Over Everything 
New author for me, sounds good!
LikeLiked by 1 person