Review~ You Have a Match

You Have a Match
When Abby signs up for a DNA service, it’s mainly to give her friend and secret love interest, Leo, a nudge. After all, she knows who she is already: Avid photographer. Injury-prone tree climber. Best friend to Leo and Connie…although ever since the B.E.I. (Big Embarrassing Incident) with Leo, things have been awkward on that front. But she didn’t know she’s a younger sister. When the DNA service reveals Abby has a secret sister, shimmery-haired…

As with Emma Lord’s previous book, I really enjoyed this story. It was full of a lot of feels and some great characters, but I questioned a few of the plot points. I don’t want to spoil anything, so I won’t get into those questions now, but will just dive right into the characters.

I felt a lot of pieces of my teenage self in Abby. The crush on her best friend that she doesn’t act on for fear of ruining her friendship, feeling like she isn’t good enough and a disappointment. But finding out you have an older biological sister is something I’ve never experienced, and I applaud Abby for having the courage to not only meet Savvy, but to plot to get to figure out the story and what happened all those year ago. Abby goes through a lot of emotions throughout this book and has a lot of serious downs and a few, very wonderful ups. She’s left questioning everything she ever knew and wondering just who she can actually trust.

Savvy is also a bit like me, in that she is a staunch rule-follower. I think she also feels some inadequacies that she tries to make up for by being perfect, or at least seeming that way. While she initiated the meeting with Abby and it was her idea to meet at the camp, she continually pushes Abby away and seems hyper-critical of everything she does. She also goes through an emotional roller coaster throughout the story.

Abby and Savvy are very much the focus of the story, mostly Abby as it is told from her point of view. There are some pretty great support characters as well, not limited to Leo, Mickey, and Finn, though they are the most memorable to me. They each contribute to helping Abby and Savvy figure things out and create a bond as sisters. I would have loved to see more of Abby and Leo interacting more throughout, but I recognize this wasn’t their story as much as it was Abby and Savvy’s. I do hope the author considers a story for Finn down the road, he is an adorable, trouble-making marshmallow who deserves a story.

I can’t leave off this review without mentioning the parents. The rift between them and the separation of the sisters is where all of my questions reside. Abby’s parents made some mistakes and had hoped to protect Abby from them, but ultimately caused her a lot of hurt and doubt. Savvy’s parents made decisions out of fear and anger that they continued to carry and in trying to protect her, end up causing pain by trying to separate the sisters again.

Ultimately, the story ends happily, but it’s a roller coaster at times and really got me in the feels! I look forward to Emma Lord’s next book!

Disclaimer: I was offered an eARC of this book by the publisher (St. Martin’s Press) through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.