Let Me Live - Queen

You're (Not) the One

Author: Alexandra Potter
Pages: 371
ARC Acquired from: Penguin via NetGalley

Brief Summary:
Ten years ago, during her student days, Lucy Hemmingway took a trip to Venice and fell in love with an American student studying abroad there. Their time together was magical and, when they parted, they kissed under the Bridge of Sighs while bells rang, in an aim to fulfill an old legend which would mean that they would be together forever. Of course, this is real life, so Nate married someone else and Lucy, now living in New York (rather than her native London) is still single and hung up on Nate, who she believes was The One. Then, they meet by chance and fall in love all over again. And promptly fall out of love again. Only the legend will not let them part. What do you do when the One just won't leave?

Review:
When I was in high school, I just ate up chick lit. I read pretty much any chick lit novel I could get my hands on, and loved most of them. I envied the romance, the sex, the adventures, and liked to pretend I would get to experience such things some day. As I got older, though, I found that I no longer had a taste for such unrealistic plot lines, which just help to feed high expectations and disappointment with the real world.

You're (Not) the One is about as unrealistic as they come, but in the very best way possible. This definitely falls into the category of chick lit novels that rock, even to my older, more critical eye. For one thing, the whole story is delightfully tongue in cheek. Everything is over the top and poking fun at itself. Plus, the whole theme is that sometimes you do get it wrong. Love at first sight does happen here, but it turns out to be a different kind of love, not the good kind. It also doesn't hurt that Lucy is British. I just love the lingo.

This novel definitely has a bit of a Sarah Addison Allen type feel to it, as it has some very light, subtle, adorable magical realism woven throughout. I loved the way the Legend of the Bridge of Sighs functioned in the story and how it all played out. The legend chases Nate and Lucy in incredibly hilarious ways, like jukeboxes and facebook. Really the only thing/person I did not like was Nate, which is okay, because the title tells you right from the beginning that he's not going to work out.

Chick lit is not for everyone, but if you're willing to give it a go, this is definitely an excellent one. Recommended to fans of reading about real life, only with a dash of magic thrown in.

"So let me live (so let me live)
Let me live (leave me alone)
Let me live, oh baby
And make a brand new start"