The Unexpected Everything: A Book review

Do you believe in the Murphy’s Law that says ‘there is no perfect plan‘? I do. And I do it with such vigor that I dread making plans. And reading about Type A personalities that have all their plans fail does no good to me at all. Yet the things we do for the love of reading. Read about one such summer plan in The Unexpected Everything and find how it turns out.

Have you read The Unexpected Everything? Have you found any other book of the author's and liked them? Do you believe in Murphy's law? Let us chat. Click To Tweet

About The Unexpected Everything

Unexpected everything

Book Name: The Unexpected Everything

Author: Morgan Matson

Genre: Fiction – Young Adult, Drama

Characters: Alexandra Walker (Andie), Palmer Alden, Sabrina Choudhury (Bri), Tobyhanna Mlynarczyk (Toby), Alexander Walker.

Setting: Connecticut, The USA

Plot Summary of The Unexpected Everything

Andie is the type A daughter of the Congressman, Alexander Walker. She has been told what to talk, when to smile and how to live. She has a close knit group of friends who are supposed to be together forever. Her love life is designed to last for three weeks and without much heart break. This summer everything changes. 

Her father takes a leave from his office due to some political scandal and her pre- pre -med internship falls through and all the good spots are taken. Her on-off relationship with Topher is getting dangerous and even he has an internship at his father’s office. And to make matters worse her friends are fighting over a boy. 

But there are a few good things as well. First she meets a very cute and nerdy guy, Clark. Then she get to be a dig walker (Trust me it is good). And her relationship with her father improves or they at least try to. You need to read the book to know more. 

Book review of The Unexpected Everything

I had seen The Unexpected Everything being raved by so many of my favorite bloggers for a while now, so I was excited to read it for my A-Z 2018 reading challenge. So I knew I was not going to disappointed by this one.  And I wasn’t.

On the positive side, it has all the ingredients of a perfect read – a group of smart girls who are best friends, a lot of dogs, and a super nerdy male lead, who is an author. Sounds perfect right? Sadly, it took me a lot longer than I thought it would take and I don’t think it is a good thing.

Things that worked for me

  • I loved Morgan Matson’s writing. The dialogues are witty yet very realistic. 
  • Andie’s friends are super normal (and that is a rare thing these days) and the author makes sure we are engrossed by their tale right on.
  • The chemistry between Clark and Tom was just perfect. They are “cool guy friends” and it didn’t feel forced. Usually I hate how forced the friendship is between the boyfriends of besties. 
  • I also liked that Andie and Clark were not all consumed with love. I mean I liked the romance but it is just part of the whole story. 
  • The scavenger hunt theme was awesome. Why are my friends not having one?

Things that didn’t work for me

  • The book is sooooo long. It is a YA contemporary, it need not be over 400 pages. At times I just wanted to give up. 
  • There were places where the pace of the story fell and I just couldn’t keep myself awake. And then all of a sudden it ends. Sigh. 
  • The story line is super predictable and there is nothing that you have not read elsewhere. 
  • I never got how the father – daughter dynamic improved. I mean they did have years of strained relationship, and a couple of dinners made it all good? Hmm. maybe I am over thinking this. 

Bottom – line

Despite its flaws, The Unexpected Everything is definitely a cool YA contemporary that glorifies friendship and is perfect for a summer beach read or a snuggled up read on a rainy afternoon. I will definitely read Morgan Matson’s other books, if they were a tad shorter than this one.

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Let us chat

Have you read The Unexpected Everything? Have you found any other book of the author’s and liked them? Do you believe in Murphy’s law? Let us chat.

24 Comments

  1. the orangutan librarian

    So glad you weren’t disappointed with this one cos it was on my tbr. That’s so good about the relationships as well. Pity it was long and predictable. But glad it worked this was good despite its flaws. Excellent review!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I kept hoping it was worth reading the draggy bits, and it did.

      Reply
  2. Katiria Rodriguez

    Great review, I haven’t read any of Morgan Matson books yet but I have heard amazing things about her books. Maybe one day I can check out her books, thank you so much for sharing your awesome post.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Yes her writing style is engrossing and this is my first one as well.

      Reply
  3. Robin Taylor

    An excellent review. I love how you say what you liked and what you didn’t.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Thanks, that is a new thing I am trying off late.

      Reply
  4. Sim @ Flipping Through the Pages

    I have never ever read a Morgan Matson book but I heard good things about her books. I have her Since You’ve Been Gone on my shelf so I guess I will start with that 😀
    I do agree that a contemporary should be below 400 pages. Long books really bother me.
    And hey you too are doing A-Z challenge? I have some letters still left. How about yours?

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I have about 8 letters left and I have ideas only for a few of them. What about you?

      Reply
  5. Vidya Tiru

    Love the name and the cover but your review makes me think I will skip this one

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Yes I had so much hope on it.

      Reply
    • Gayathri

      Thanks.

      Reply
  6. Stormi

    I will keep this one in mind next summer if im looking for an easy ya read

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      It is such a cute summer read for sure.

      Reply
  7. Jenn @ Bound to Writing

    Great review! I love when a book has believable relationships between characters. And when the romance is not the only thing happening in the book. Though I do enjoy romance stories!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I understand what you mean and I would like that as well.

      Reply
  8. Tasha

    Brilliant review but it doesn’t sound like the area of YA that I read but I do like the synopsis so may add this to my TBR

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I loved the plot but it was too long to hold my attention.

      Reply
  9. DJ Sakata

    Hmm, I don’t think I’m patient enough for this one

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Yes I agree!

      Reply
  10. Sophia @ Bookwyrming Thoughts

    It usually isn’t a good thing to feel like you’re reading long – at least, that’s how it is with me. 🤷 Some people enjoy 400 pages of contemporary, some don’t.

    I’ve never found her books appealing for some reason though, and the fact they’re long makes me feel a little relieved. 😅

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I would not mind so much if it were a little bit fast and less dragging.

      Reply
  11. Norrie

    I was super curious about this one, cuz first of all that cover is so cute, and then i liked her other book Since You’ve Been Gone.
    But then i wasn’t so keen on Save the Date cuz it felt kinda too long. So i’m torn…
    Great review and the pro/con list is defo helpful 🙂

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I just had soo much hopes about it and I was super disappointed.

      Reply

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Gayathri

Gayathri

Gayathri has been reviewing books since 2010. When she is not reading books or creating online content, she works as a writer and a digital marketer. Head over to meet me!