This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills

Summary from Goodreads:

Sloane isn't expecting to fall in with a group of friends when she moves from New York to Florida—especially not a group of friends so intense, so in love, so all-consuming. Yet that's exactly what happens.

Sloane becomes closest to Vera, a social-media star who lights up any room, and Gabe, Vera's twin brother and the most serious person Sloane's ever met. When a beloved painting by the twins' late mother goes missing, Sloane takes on the responsibility of tracking it down, a journey that takes her across state lines—and ever deeper into the twins' lives.

Filled with intense and important friendships, a wonderful warts-and-all family, shiveringly good romantic developments, and sharp, witty dialogue, this story is about finding the people you never knew you needed.

Review:

I really enjoyed this one. Emma Mills is really making a name for herself. I loved First and Then, and when I saw that the author had a new book coming that would involve art, I got really excited.

I really connected with Sloane. Basically, I love my friends (like she grows to do), but also, like her, I’m super independent and love being alone. I really connected to a teen character who liked being alone and didn’t feel like she had to have friends because it was expected. I get her not wanting to be disappointed also.

That being said, I love the group of friends she falls into. Vera is fascinating. I love that she’s in a successful long distance relationship with her girlfriend. I love how positive she is. I also love her addiction to social media and found it very believable and endearing. I also found the serious Gabe to be just as interesting. I had some really shippy moments in this book.

I also enjoyed the other side characters like Remy who went on the painting adventure with Sloane. I liked that Sloane worked so hard to help Remy with what he was going through too. And I loved that not everyone’s stories were wrapped up with a pretty pink bow. There’s sadness, growing up, fighting, and figuring things out here, as there should be in any good YA novel.

I also super loved the family component. Sloane’s dad is the best. For starters, he’s a famous writer that kind of sounds like Nicholas Sparks. Also, I loved watching him become obsessed with fan fiction, and passing it along to Sloane. I loved their relationship, which often times felt more like good friends, than parent/daughter. It’s not often, that the father/daughter relationship is stressed so much, and I loved it.

I liked her relationship with her little sister too. It was equal parts sibling rivalry/jealousy and pure love. I loved when Sloane read out loud to her. And when she picked the girl up from a friends group and compared herself to her, I was like yeah, that’s what being a sister feels like.

This book just has so much going for it: good family drama, dramatic fights, excellent party scenes, fan fiction, excellent friendships, romance, and well, just everything you could possibly want in a good YA contemporary. I give it a 10/10.