Lara Jean has loved five boys in her sixteen years. She writes them letters after she’s done being in love with them, after she is able to return to herself. She never tells the boys she loves them; she writes the letters but never mails them.

But one day, shortly after her older sister leaves for college, all of Lara Jean’s letters get mailed somehow. All the boys who Lara Jean has ever loved get a letter, including her sister’s ex-boyfriend, Josh, and Peter Kavinsky, her school’s most popular boy.

In order not to betray Margot by going out with Josh , who seems like he might like her back, Lara Jean concocts a plan to date Peter, who wants to date Lara Jean to make his ex-girlfriend jealous. As Lara Jean starts hanging out with Peter, she realises he isn’t as selfish and arrogant as he always seemed. But before she knows it, things spiral out of control, and Lara Jean has no idea who she likes and who she’s trying to make jealous.

I adored this book!

If I were to describe this book in one word, it would be: cute.  Seriously, this book won me over with its cuteness and I found myself swooning every few pages from the cute dialogue, Lara Jean’s personality, and just the combination of the characters.

I bought this book on Saturday, after reading several glowing reviews of it, despite having 7 unread books on my shelf! I picked it up right away, also ignoring my stash of library books and proceeded to read it all through Sunday, and finished it early Sunday evening. It was SO good!

Han excels at capturing teenage emotions and the essence of love in those critical years. Her tone is sweet and whimsical, and perfectly reflects all the emotions that Lara Jean feels as her sister leaves for college, as she’s left in charge of her youngest sister and her dad, as she falls in love with a boy she has no intention of. Han’s writing is so perfect that I didn’t only feel like I knew Lara Jean, but that I was her. Her every heartbreak and joy made me feel the same way.

Lara Jean is such a sweet character. In the beginning, her voice sounded a bit too immature and whiny, but then I realised she was only sixteen years old. Most teenagers in YA fiction sound much older, and after a while, it was actually refreshing to read her voice, as it was so optimistic and sweet. It was also nice to watch Lara Jean grow and change throughout the book; as her sister leaves for college, Lara Jean is left in charge of the house and she really matures and grows up.

The love story takes up a bulk of the story, and I loved bouncing back and forth between Josh, Lara Jean’s first true love and her older sister’s ex-boyfriend, and Peter, Lara Jean’s fake boyfriend and the guy every girl wants. Prior to reading the book, I felt like I knew who the main love interest in the book would be, but in classic Jenny Han style, that wasn’t the case! Watching Lara Jean fall in love was just so cute and sweet, especially since she’s so scared of having her heart broken that she backs out of things before she even begins them.

Something else that Han excels at is her supporting cast of characters. From Peter to Josh to Margot to Kitty, I loved getting to know all of the other characters, especially Kitty. She is one fierce kid! None of the characters are what you expect, and I loved getting to know more about them.

With quirky cast of characters, a sweet romance, and a loveable heroine, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before had me tearing through the pages to get to the end, and still has me dying from cuteness overload hours later! I absolutely loved it and cannot wait for the sequel.

So for that: 5/5.

Thanks for reading,

Ikhlas