Not my favorite of hers. It was pretty mediocre, to be honest. I haven’t read any of her books in a long while and I really like most of what I’ve read. But if I recall correctly, this whole series was weaker than her other books. They are written in the style of a series of texts, emails, news articles, etc. And because of this, the second chance romance had no romance. The Hero comes back to town and he is able to talk the heroine into a date and they are all hunky dory after that. It was just too superficial for me.

Ok, so this wasn't my favorite Meg Cabot. I admit that The Princess Diaries series will always be my favorite, and I haven't loved Cabot's adult books, but I wanted a little more from this book. I did love the way Cabot tells the story, in texts and emails and Facebook messages. That is a format I, more often than not, really appreciate. The fact is that it was just a mediocre story. I liked Becky, Carly, and Nicole, but felt ambivalent about the men in the book, and the plot progressed in a predictable way. This was certainly a fun read, but I don't know that I'll jump on any more of Cabot's non-Princess books any time soon. ( )

I was supposed to have received this as an early review copy, but the book never arrived. So I tracked down a copy to read so I could finally review it. I normally love Meg Cabot's books, but this one was a little hard for me to get lost in. I think it was the format of the texts/emails. Or maybe because I haven't read any of the other books in the series. It's not a bad book, just not one I felt myself getting lost in. ( )

I'm a newbie to the "The Boy" series, which I honestly feel may have contributed to why this book and I didn't click as much as I wanted it to. I fully admit that I didn't do my research to find out that this book was the fourth in a series so, although Meg Cabot does do a valiant job of trying to bring new readers in, I spent the first few chapters feeling a little bit lost. Becky and Reed's story took off right from the beginning, which I'm certain is going to make fans of this series extremely happy. There isn't a moment to waste, as Meg Cabot dives into these characters and their own particular brands of quirkiness.

Now let me say that Meg Cabot's writing always shines, no matter what book she is writing. She has this uncanny ability to write stories that are equal parts melodramatic and heartbreaking. This book was no exception. Although a majority of this story is written through text messages, email threads, online reviews and journal entries, I could still feel the personalities of the characters shining through. They were funny, a bit cliche at times, but always felt like real, genuinely flawed people. I admit, it made me want to go back and read the first books in this series. My need to know their backstory is strong.

On the flip side, my gripe with this method of story telling is that the scenes themselves didn't get as much love. While Cabot was able to show the personalities of the characters through their digital banter, the important scenes in this story didn't get the same benefit. These exchanges were short, and flew by, making it so that there wasn't as much depth as I would have liked. The idea here was wonderful. Two old flames, rediscovering one another. I'm a sucker for that type of story. Unfortunately, although I loved their exchanges, I didn't feel the same kind of love for their actual physical relationship. I wanted that sappy, descriptive kind of writing that makes you want to swoon. I missed that here.

So, The Boy Is Back fell right on that middle line for me. I enjoyed the characters, despite feeling lost at first, but I really wanted more from the overall story. I've heard that the first books in this series were more focused on emails, versus today's use of social media, and that makes me want to go back and compare. I feel like the difference is in the amount of emotion that can be poured into a more lengthy exchange, like an email, versus a short text. So I'm definitely wanting to go out and see if I'm right.

If you're a fan of this series though, I'm sure you'll love this installment! Like I said above, it takes off instantly, so you won't have to wait long to see what your favorite characters are up to now. ( )

I wasn't a fan of the all email/chat/phone text instead of prose, and it took a long time to get into it. I should have know better though. I should have trusted in Meg. The story ended up snagging me in like all of hers do, and by the end I was pretty pleased by it all.

Reed returns to his hometown when his parents start to go a bit batty. Who is the senior moving consultant his sister hired though? Oh yeah, his high school girlfriend. Whom he ditched right after high school prom's incident of ending up with a golf cart in a pool at the country club and hasn't spoken to since. ( )