Again, but Better by Christine Riccio

Again, but Better by Christine Riccio
Published: May 7th 2019 by Wednesday Books
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult
Page: 377
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Review by: Tina

Synopsis
Shane has been doing college all wrong. Pre-med, stellar grades, but made zero friends and unhappy with her life. Shane signs up for a semester abroad in London. She's going to right all her college mistakes: make friends, pursue boys, and find adventure! She is soon faced with the complicated realities of living outside her bubble, and when self-doubt sneaks in, her new life starts to fall apart.


Review
After following xtinemay on booktube for years, I was surprised to learn that she has published a book. The book is inspired by xtinemay's semester of studying abroad during her college years.
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Again, but Better is separated into 2 parts: year 2011 and year 2017. The story begins with a youthful Shane traveling abroad to England with big shining eyes and a bright smile. She makes long lasting friendship with her flatmates and meets a guy named Pilot who has her heart. Her journey is one of self discovery as she tries to follow a different path that's different from one chosen for her by her parents. A hiccup happens during her semester and it wasn't all roses and sunshine.

Now it's year 2017. Shane is brilliant in her career but lost touch with her cousins, no longer speaks to her parents, have an unfulfilling love realtionship, feels jaded. She thinks back to 2011 and wonders if she could do it all over again. What choices would she make? How would she heal her relationships?

She seeks out Pilot in 2017 and they were given a chance to redo and live 6 years again. Shane discovers so much about herself and those around her. She relives 2011 as a 26 year old knowing what she knows, she chooses her paths carefully and makes better informed decisions.

I think Again, but Better is a really cute contemporary romance. I can see the changes in Shane as she grows from a naive fearful child to a capable independent woman. I enjoyed the plot dramas and heavy conflicts. If I hadn't known this story was written by Christine, I would have thought it was written by any contemporay author. Well done for a debut novel.