Now That I’ve Found You by Kristina Forest

ARC, 324 pages
Release Date: August 25, 2020
Published by: Roaring Brook Press
Read from: August 18-22, 2020
Stand-alone/Companion
Source: Publishers
TW:
For fans of: Contemporary Romance, Realistic Fiction, Acting, Stand-alone, Companion, Enemies to Lovers, Diverse Authors, POC MC, POC, Own Voices, YA

        A YA novel about searching for answers, love, and your eccentric grandma in all the wrong places.
     Following in the footsteps of her überfamous grandma, eighteen-year-old Evie Jones is poised to be Hollywood’s next big star. That is until a close friend’s betrayal leads to her being blacklisted . . .
     Fortunately, Evie knows just the thing to save her floundering career: a public appearance with America’s most beloved actress—her grandma Gigi, aka the Evelyn Conaway. The only problem? Gigi is a recluse who’s been out of the limelight for almost twenty years. Days before Evie plans to present her grandma with an honorary award in front of Hollywood’s elite, Gigi does the unthinkable: she disappears.
     With time running out and her comeback on the line, Evie reluctantly enlists the help of the last person to see Gigi before she vanished: Milo Williams, a cute musician Evie isn’t sure she can trust. As Evie and Milo conduct a wild manhunt across New York City, romance and adventure abound while Evie makes some surprising discoveries about her grandma—and herself.

*MY THOUGHTS*

I LOVED I Wanna Be Where You Are, so when I saw Forest’s next book coming out, I knew I had to read it! Y’all don’t know how important she is to me, as a lover of diverse contemporary romance. And although IWBWYA is still my favorite, I still liked this one a hell of a lot!

“And I’m not your grandma’s assistant, just a friend.” “A friend?” Now I’m wondering if Gigi has turned into some kind of Manhattan sugar mama.”

pg. 13

When trusting her best friend goes wrong, Evie is worried that she won’t be able to follow in the footsteps of her grandmother. She does whatever she can to help herself get back on track with becoming the actress she knows she can be. Until her beloved grandmother goes missing. With the help of the weird boy her grandmother knows, can she find her and help her career all at the same time?

“You are very blessed, Evie Marie,” she said. “You’ve never had to struggle for anything. Be grateful for that.”

pg. 81

I flip-flopped on the rating for this book because of the main character. Evie was mean and stuck-up for a lot of it. Or maybe it’s just because I liked Milo so much, but she really worked my nerves. Buttttttt, I also felt bad for her. I really couldn’t blame her for pushing everyone away after the way that “friend” did her. I wouldn’t trust anyone either. But I think in a situation like this, you need all the help you can get and she shouldn’t have acted that way to him.

“I want to be just like you when I grow up, Gigi” I say. She’s silent for a long moment, and I can’t place her expression. Finally, she says, “You’ll be better than me, surely.”

pg. 101

And then there’s Milo. I REALLY wish we had a gotten a look in his head or like a small novella from him. I would kill to see an inside look at his performances or some of the interactions he’s had with Evie’s grandmother. Milo was a really sweet kid and he was the perfect soft love interest for someone as stubborn as Evie.

“I tend to like girls who are unavailable and/or unattainable. You fall into both of those categories, so I can see why Raf would make that assumption.”

pg. 207

As for the plot, I thought it was really interesting to see some of the messy sides of Hollywood. All the drama that comes with being a legacy in a world where talent is most important, where Black people are snubbed from certain awards time and time again, etc. Speaking of that, I thought it was pretty cool that Forest mentioned that the movie that was beloved for 50 years was popular because it was a high profile Black romance that was widely successful. I think it was cool because that’s how I felt about HER. She wrote I Wanna Be Where You Are when there were hardly any YA books about two Black kids falling in love. I remember asking on Twitter for just one rec of a fluffy Black romance, and I was sent interracial romances, more, but none of what I wanted. And then someone sent me info on that book. There may be others out there from a long time ago, but this is the one I read and that stuck with me. I see this as my bookish, “Every Time We Meet.”

“Maybe being different isn’t so bad.”

pg. 256

This book was very different from Forest’s first novel. In a way it felt more serious. To me that showed the depth of her writing style. I love that she’s so versatile. I hope we get more of both in her next book.

“Then his easy smile appears on his face. He sighs. “Well darling,” he says in a slow drawl, “I’m sure glad you showed up.”

pg. 323

An interesting topic and 2 teens falling in love, what more could I ask for?And by one of my favorite authors too? I knew it would be a hit before I even cracked it open! She is definitely an author that’s making her way up my auto buy list!

Overall, I give this

What about you? Have you read this? Have you ever read something so completely YOU before? Let me know in the comments!