Review: Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult

Posted by Jessi (Geo) on June 26, 2015 | 5 Comments


Review: Between the Lines by Jodi PicoultBetween the Lines by Jodi Picoult
Series: Between the Lines #1
Published by Simon Pulse (6.26.2012)
Genres: Romance, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Format: Hardcover, 353 pages
Source: I own it


4 Stars

Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book—one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.
And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He’s sure there’s more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.

My thoughts

I’m going to be honest, this is a book I would never have picked up on my own. The cover just screams “contemporary” and I’m not a big contemp reader. I also wouldn’t have pegged it as YA. Not to mention the average Goodreads rating is only 3.53, which typically scares me away from reading. But, I got the companion/sequel novel, Off the Page, from the publisher for review and everyone told me that I should read this one first. I ended up being pleasantly surprised!

This story was so cute! It’s definitely perfect for us female readers who wished a fictional boy was real, ha. Jodi Picoult brought to life the fantasy of every YA female reader! (I may or may not have stared expectantly and somewhat wistfully at the Warner parts in Unravel Me after reading this…)

The only complaint I have about this book is that I found the writing style to be a bit juvenile. It doesn’t have much depth, and I couldn’t connect to the characters like I’d hoped. Although, I do have to say that I loved Frump! He was my favorite. In the first chapter, I was thinking, “Wow, this is the most generic story ever…” until I realized that was kind of the point. So if you think that at first, keep going!

I looooved the idea of this. As soon as it got to the part where Oliver was talking about life when the book was closed, I was hooked! As it turns out, they’re all actors playing a role. Oliver doesn’t really love the damsel in distress. The bad guy isn’t really all that bad. I loved it! I’ve never read anything like it before.

I enjoyed the journey Oliver and Delilah took in trying to find a way to get him out of the book. I was totally intrigued, wondering how it was going to end up working eventually (because obviously it was going to work somehow). It was very imaginative! I think this book would make a great movie! This book was adorable, if a bit fluffy. I know it’s one that will stick with me, though! I wish I had read it when I was younger, it probably would have been a favorite.

Overall Assessment

Plot: 4/5
Premise: 5/5
Writing style: 3/5
Originality: 5/5
Characters: 3/5
Pace: 4/5
Feels: 2.5/5
Cover: 2/5
Overall rating: 4/5

Jessi (Geo)

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5 responses to “Review: Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult

  1. I saw this one when I went to Costco, but I looked at the cover and assumed it was an adult book (it was sitting next to a stack of Danielle Steel and Nora Roberts books). I can’t count the number of times I wished a book character was real! I think I’m going to give this one a shot. Great review :)

  2. If you liked Between the Lines, you will LOVE Off the Page! I felt the same way about the writing in Between the Lines how it feel so young or juvenile is the word you used. Off the Page has a lot more happening in it that had me turning the pages quicker! Great review!

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