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blut_binden's review against another edition
3.0
Alright, so Guyaholic is the sequel to Vegan Virgin Valentine. If you’ve read my reviews before (which I am sure a good deal of you haven’t, lol) then you should know that VVV is one of my rare cotemporary YA favorites that I read when I was in high school. So, fast forward a great deal of time until maybe last month. I found out that, wow, VVV had a sequel not from Mara’s POV but from her niece’s—V’s.
I was ready to rock this book. It’s pretty short and something I ate up in a day. The dry humor is hilarious. The characters were fun, and I cared about what they did and how they handled situations. There were also these wonderful moments of prose where I could just feel like I was there. Especially while driving around the Midwest, aka, my hometown. I felt like I was right back in my high school days nodding along with the pangs of the teenage protagonist. I liked that V recognized that she was repeating the cycle her mother started and was able to understand how to get out. That’s why I was a little disappointed that the book kind of ended where it did. I mean, it was a poetic ending, but there could have been, like, a part two. I thought I was going to get some closure in this book that I never really got from VVV, but I ended up having more unanswered questions coming out of this book than when I was going in.
Oh, and if you were a fan of the original VVV and loved the Mara sections but were stunned by a certain reveal……well, Damn. Damn, Damn. Triple Damn. That sure isn’t what I wanted to hear. I was so upset after reading what happened that I almost wished that I never read this book at all. And for that reason alone I’m warning original VVV fans to steer clear from Guyaholic because your heart will be broken.
Anyway, this book was short but fun. I hoped it could have been longer and that we had more of Sam instead of just memories of him. I also wish that we didn’t sneak in that earth shattering information about Mara and…ouch…it still hurts. So! There it is. That’s what I think. I hope the 0 people that read this review got something from it, haha!
I was ready to rock this book. It’s pretty short and something I ate up in a day. The dry humor is hilarious. The characters were fun, and I cared about what they did and how they handled situations. There were also these wonderful moments of prose where I could just feel like I was there. Especially while driving around the Midwest, aka, my hometown. I felt like I was right back in my high school days nodding along with the pangs of the teenage protagonist. I liked that V recognized that she was repeating the cycle her mother started and was able to understand how to get out. That’s why I was a little disappointed that the book kind of ended where it did. I mean, it was a poetic ending, but there could have been, like, a part two. I thought I was going to get some closure in this book that I never really got from VVV, but I ended up having more unanswered questions coming out of this book than when I was going in.
Oh, and if you were a fan of the original VVV and loved the Mara sections but were stunned by a certain reveal…
Spoiler
Mara and James decided that long distance isn’t for them and break upAnyway, this book was short but fun. I hoped it could have been longer and that we had more of Sam instead of just memories of him. I also wish that we didn’t sneak in that earth shattering information about Mara and…ouch…it still hurts. So! There it is. That’s what I think. I hope the 0 people that read this review got something from it, haha!
swilcox2's review against another edition
2.0
The way V throws men around is comical. The main character in this book goes through men like candy. But, when she is faced with a man she actually wants to stay with, she does not know what to do. She is used to dumping a guy before she can get too emotionally attached to the relationship. Just like her mother does.
The relationship between V and her mother, Amy, is strained and awkward. V wants to be more like her Mom by going through do many guys, but her desperate actions are not getting her any attention from her Mom.
The plot of the book is that she breaks up with Sam (commitment issues) and then goes on a cross-country roadtrip to go see her mother in San Antonio. But when her mother decides she does not want to see V, V makes a decision that can impact her life for the good. She decides that it is possible to take a leap of faith, and to trust your instincts sometimes.
The relationship between V and her mother, Amy, is strained and awkward. V wants to be more like her Mom by going through do many guys, but her desperate actions are not getting her any attention from her Mom.
The plot of the book is that she breaks up with Sam (commitment issues) and then goes on a cross-country roadtrip to go see her mother in San Antonio. But when her mother decides she does not want to see V, V makes a decision that can impact her life for the good. She decides that it is possible to take a leap of faith, and to trust your instincts sometimes.
sarahblessing's review against another edition
4.0
I didn’t expect to like this book as much as I did by the end of it. The first book is still definitely my favorite but it was nice to get a deeper dive into V’s character.
readsinbed's review against another edition
3.0
Boy, I wish this book didn't have such a stupid title!!! I almost didn't read it due to the ridiculous title, but I gave it a shot since I loved Mackler's first book, The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big, Round Things. I'm glad I did, as it ended up being a very sweet YA book. Contrary to the title, this was really the story of a girl who sorts out some things about her life after graduating from high school. It was a sequel to an ok book, but it can easily stand alone, and I enjoyed it much more than the first book, Vegan Virgin Valentine (another not-so-great title). The title Guyaholic, in my opinion, trivializes the main character's struggle with her past and her journey (a literal one, too) to discovering who she is, and more importantly, who she isn't.
snarkywench's review against another edition
3.0
V is the more vibrant and dominating character in Mackler's previous work, Vegan Virgin Valentine and it's great to see her have a story of her own. What I loved about revisiting this character is exploring why she behaved in certain ways throughout the previous book. Why she had the obscenity written over her fingers when she got off the plane. Why she resisted auditioning for musical theatre. What her life had been like with the nomadic, flighty Aimee.
Mackler has a talent for creating stories that mine the humour of a situation while exploring matters of the heart. While Sam is an important figure in Guyaholic (he loves V for her flaws), he isn't the heart of this tale. This story is ultimately about how many chances you can give a parent, how many times can you be cruelly deserted, before you write that person off?
That being said, V's journey and continual act of self-destruction grate after awhile. Yes, it is very realistic that a person lashes out, when another hurts them, but V's primarily driven by her libido. She will be missing Sam and then suddenly kissing another guy (and more) and I cannot help but wonder if she deserves Sam. Yes, she's been hurt, yes she's a product of non-parenting but does that justify her actions?
A great read, it is a Mackler after all, but I wouldn't say it's on par with the butt book that I love so dearly. Regardless, you need to give this a whirl.
Mackler has a talent for creating stories that mine the humour of a situation while exploring matters of the heart. While Sam is an important figure in Guyaholic (he loves V for her flaws), he isn't the heart of this tale. This story is ultimately about how many chances you can give a parent, how many times can you be cruelly deserted, before you write that person off?
That being said, V's journey and continual act of self-destruction grate after awhile. Yes, it is very realistic that a person lashes out, when another hurts them, but V's primarily driven by her libido. She will be missing Sam and then suddenly kissing another guy (and more) and I cannot help but wonder if she deserves Sam. Yes, she's been hurt, yes she's a product of non-parenting but does that justify her actions?
A great read, it is a Mackler after all, but I wouldn't say it's on par with the butt book that I love so dearly. Regardless, you need to give this a whirl.
runa's review
4.0
You know what? This was a really rare instance of a sequel that I enjoyed significantly more than its predecessor. This main character's flaws ran much deeper and made for a more engaging read. It's still nowhere near being a perfect book, but I much preferred V's journey of self-exploration to Mara's somewhat shallow one. I wish we had gotten to see more of Aimee, I wish we had gotten to see more of Michael, I wish there had been more. I got so confused when I reached the end, literally flipping around to see if I'd skipped something or if there was more afterwards, and was surprised to find nothing left. I'm all for books that leave open endings, that's fine, but this one just felt unfinished. I wonder if there will be a third book in the series? I really hope so. On another note, what an attention-bait of a title. This book is not about V being a 'guyaholic' (although a case may be made for it actually being about Aimee). This is about V's strained relationship with her mother. Questionable marketing decision is questionable.
rovertoak's review
3.0
This was a one-sitting read for me! It picks up with V's life a few years after Vegan Virgin Valentine. I seem to remember VVV having more humor than Guyaholic, but let's be frank -- it's a different place V's at in her life. V, attempting to escape western NY, facing college and running away from a botched relationship, does a solo road trip to Texas. Her goal is to spend time with her mother who never gets her act together enough to actually make it to any of V's milestone events: birthdays, high school graduation, etc. While [b:on the road|6288|The Road|Cormac McCarthy|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21E8H3D1JSL._SL75_.jpg|3355573], V does a lot of looking back -- ex-boyfriends, hookups, family moments (ruined and pleasant) -- and will discover what she's really looking for at the end of the trip.
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