Review "Something Like Fate" by Susane Colasanti

"Something Like Fate"

by Susane Colasanti

5

Pub. Date: May 4, 2010

Pages: 240

Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Lani feels an instant spark with Jason, but tries to ignore her feelings because he's dating her best friend, Erin. When Erin goes to summer camp, Jason breaks up with her and Lani starts seeing him in secret. Lani and Erin are both obsessed with fate--horoscopes, birth charts, dream analysis, etc.--and Lani must decide if her relationship with Jason is meant to be, even if it is what a fortune teller predicted will destroy her bond with Erin. Readers will understand both Lani's connection with Jason, who "feels like home," and her bond with Erin, which was crystallized when they were in a car accident years earlier, but has been weakening. Erin's reaction to the romance is intense, and Lani soon find herself a social outcast, while her friendship with her closeted gay friend, Blake, is strained after he's outed and harassed. Lani's obsession with the mystical can feel more like a device than an innate part of her personality, but her struggle with fate nonetheless adds needed depth to this familiar romantic triangle.

I haven't read any of Colasanti's other books, but I fell in love with the cover and just had to read it. I absolutely loved this book and couldn't put it down. I loved Lani, Jason, and Blake as characters, they had terrific chemistry and I wanted to be friends with them. They just brought the book to life. Lani's relationship with Erin was complicated but believable. I feel like I could relate to the characters very well because I had similar experiences with friendships going poorly when I was in high school. It is amazing how destructive teenage girls can be and I thought Colasanti hit the nail on the head in that aspect.

I also liked the role that fate played in the book. I truly believe that everything happens for a reason and sometimes it is hard to see how anything good can come out of such terrible things. Even though Lani and Erin seemed to take fortune telling and astrology to the extreme, I still enjoyed seeing how they played out in the book. It almost felt like an ancient play where you are told by The Fates that terrible things are going to happen to the characters but this only draws you in more.

I feel like a lot of the reasons I enjoyed this book is because I could relate to it on a very personal level. I'm not sure if everyone will have this reaction to the book, but I highly recommend it. I think fans of Sarah Dessen books will also enjoy "Something Like Fate". I will definitely be picking up more of Colasanti's books; I already bought "When It Happens" and "Take Me There". To learn more about Colasanti's books check out her website here.