The Statistical Probability Of Love At First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith {Review}

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Age Group: Young Adult

Publication Date: January 2nd 2012

Pages: 256

Format: Kindle

Source: Netgalley 

Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything? Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. Having missed her flight, she's stuck at JFK airport and late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's sitting in her row. A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more? Quirks of timing play out in this romantic and cinematic novel about family connections, second chances, and first loves. Set over a twenty-four-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver's story will make you believe that true love finds you when you're least expecting it.

My Review:

What caught my attention about this book immediately was the cover. It's very eye catching and just called out to me. The story sounded sweet and romantic so when two of my closest friends told me they loved I knew I had to grab this one off Netgalley.

I found that I could totally relate to this story as 17 year old Hadley Sullivan is on a transatlantic flight to London for her fathers marriage to a woman she hasn't even met yet. It's on this flight that she meets Oliver who is also on his way to London. The entire flight Hadley is battling feelings of sadness and anger that her family has been torn apart by her father who was only supposed to go to London for a short time with his job. When he ends up meeting Charlotte and falling in love he stays over there ultimately leaving Hadley behind. Or so she feels. It wasn't necessarily the situation I could relate to but the feelings of anger and sadness. My parents weren't married and my dad wasn't around much but when my mom started dating I hated the guys she brought over. even if they did buy me a new bike or let me stick wet frozen toilet paper in their noses or lay on my couch with their balls hanging out of their shorts. Oliver ends up sitting next to her and helping keep her mind of the cosed space of the airplane so she doesn't have a panic attack and the two get to know each other over the seven hour flight.

I really liked both Hadley and Oliver's characters. Where she was shy and reserved at first he was out going and charming. Hadley was a typical stubborn 17 year old girl but it wasn't hard to sympathize with her. I felt myself getting pulled into her turmoil and wanted to cry for her. She couldn't understand why her seemingly happy and whole family was broken and her struggle to overcome that anger was something I felt deeply. She had a lot of character growth throughout the story that I loved being able to witness. Once she gets to the wedding i absolutely expected her to throw a tantrum but she handled herself so mature and with adult poise it surprised me. where I would have been a total brat in the situation she actually took time to listen to her father and get to know the step mom. 

Oliver was such a great guy even though he didn't have much of a part aside from sharing the plane with Hadley. From what I gathered about him he had his own family struggles. He shares some details with Hadley and she naturally assumes he's on his way to a wedding as well but once she gets to London she finds out differently. I was so sad for Oliver when I found out what he went through. His father never showed him much attention and he too has been struggling with feelings of anger and resentment so he was a perfect fit for Hadley. His role int the story was a much needed buffer to open Hadley's eyes to what she has now instead of what she lost. When he wasn't closing himself off to not dredge up the pain of his past he was very playful and fun. He was able to help Hadley take her mind off of the fact that they were stuck on that plane for hours to come. One of the main reasons I fell in love with him was his ability to make Hadley smile. She really needed someone to be there for her so I was very pleased she met him when she did.

Watching Hadley go through this journey of healing was emotional yet uplifting for me. Ir was really great to see her talk everything out and finally come to a place of understanding. This was such  great story and I really loved the characters I just wish I would have gotten more from Oliver's character. I know it was supposed to be about Hadley but I just felt like I wanted to get into Oliver's head more than what I got but I understand it would have ruined some aspects of the story. The writing was unique to me in that at times it felt like it switched from a third person narrative almost to a first person perspective at times. It wasn't anything to keep me from enjoying the actual story it just kind of caught me off guard. Going from something like "Hadley felt this way" to "Dad was calling again" confused me a little bit but it wasn't hard to keep up with the story.There wasn't really much to dislike about this book. The characters were deep and endearing that I connected with, the actual story was sweet and heart warming and the way it ended fit perfectly with the overall tone of the book. It's a mouth full to say but The Statistical Probability Of Love At First Sight was a quick read I think readers of all ages would enjoy.

Quotes:

She felt a tiny seed of resentment take root inside of her. It was like the pit of a peach, something small and hard and mean, a bitterness she was certain would never dissolve. Netgalley ARC 8%

There's something different about him, something broken, an emptiness in his gaze that makes her certain this was a mistake. But his eyes hold her there, nailing her to the ground where she stands, torn between the instinct to run away and the urge to cross the space between them. Netgalley ARC 62%

There's a star in the sky that refuses to stay put, and Hadley realizes it's actually a plane, that just last night, that star was them. Netgalley ARC 84%

About The Author:

Jennifer E. Smith is the author of The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, The Storm Makers, You Are Here, and The Comeback Season. She earned her master's degree in creative writing from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, and currently works as an editor in New York City. Her writing has been translated into 28 languages.

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