Happenstance: A Novella Series (Part Two)

On a personal level, the subjects that Jamie touched on throughout this story, are REAL! Bullying takes place everywhere and sadly, real life people have to deal with people like the 'Bradys' of the world! For those people in the world I want to say sorry you have to or have had to put up with trash like Brady! This story hit very close to my heart. McGuire reaches inside your 'teenage' heart and puts you right back into high school! She makes you feel what her characters are feeling at that very moment. Whether it be sad, mad or happy! <--You feel it all! I call that BRILLIANT writing, she calls it a BEST SELLER! (worth every bit) Happenstance part two allows us a little further inside the 'what has become of' a very tragic event in a very small town, and sheds light on what so many of us 'outsiders' have had to deal with. (regardless of the situation) The behind the scenes of not being in the 'cool crowd' or the 'inner circle of the social ladder' and STILL overcoming the battles of life! Happenstance part two teaches us that even though the situation isn't 'ideal' or 'picture perfect' there's room to LOVE, and who your heart 'loves' isn't always your choice! Kudos to you Mrs. McGuire! You can always tell when an Author pours their heart and soul into their work and for THAT reason alone, we thank you! #BulliesSuck #BestThingThatCameOutOfBlackwellOK <-is Jamie!

****This review will contain spoilers if you have not read Happenstance Part 1. When I read and wrote my review for Happenstance, I believed the story written by Jamie McGuire was a stand-alone novella. I recently learned this was not the case, when I discovered that Happenstance is actually a young adult novella series. Through the course of events surrounding the tragic accident that took the life of Erin Alderman, we were able to learn that Erin Easter was raised in the wrong home, having been switched at birth. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that we will be able to read more about Erin Easter as she adjusts to her life as the true daughter of Sam and Julianne Alderman. Imagine the changes that might take place in your life if you learned you were switched at birth. Not only has Erin Easter lacked a parental support system, but she has lacked being loved. She has essentially raised herself, having been neglected by her mother. Erin has been working at Dairy Queen to earn spending money and to save for a college education. All of these circumstances combined have made Erin very mature for her age. Happenstance Part 2 focuses on the aftermath of the tragedy and changes to her life, going forward. Erin has been taken in by her biological parents, one of the wealthiest couples in Blackwell. She suddenly has a new bedroom in a new home. She now has parents who care about her emotional and physical well-being. Sam and Julianne want to provide for her and make up for lost time. Erin Easter finds herself literally walking in Erin Alderman's shoes. Bullying continues to be the primary issue of the Happenstance novella series. Erin is still being bullied, although the focus of the bullying has changed with her new circumstances. It remains a mystery to Erin why her best friends, Erin Alderman and Erin Masterson, turned on her in the fifth grade, but she is about to uncover the hidden truth with the discovery of Erin Alderman's journals. And, although her relationship with Weston Gates has progressed, he seems to be holding on to his own secrets. Happenstance Part 2 follows on the heels of a very strong first novella. In my opinion, this second novella started off slowly, with the beginning of the story primarily focusing on the changes taking place in Erin's life. However, the author definitely captured my attention about halfway through the story. I found myself intrigued by the contents of the journals and the truth of what they revealed. Sometimes the truth isn't so straight forward, creating more questions than answers. Although Happenstance Part 2 is not as strong as the first novella in the series, I did enjoy reading it. My rating is 4 stars. I look forward to what I think will be a fantastic ending to this series!

I love this novella series! I'm happy to say each book ends up making you feel good, unlike other novella series, you usually get left with a cliff hanger. These books have a way of making you feel a lot of emotion. It kind of breaks your heart then puts it all back together again. Jamie mentions in the back that someone encouraged her to write things that are hard to deal with and this book is definitely that. Bullying is a huge deal and a lot of times it get swept under the rug. People get treated poorly because of their social standing or amount of money they have. I expected it to delve a little more into the journals. I immediately knew something was up when they were found. I do find it a bit unsettling that the parents would be like sure go through the journals that our 'daughter' wrote. I get it in the same way though because obviously no one knew this girl. I really love Erin. She's so strong after all the sh*t life has handed her. Weston though, for obvious reasons I wasn't crazy about in this book. I'm still feeling a bit unsettled over him. I look forward to continuing this story. I feel like it could've been drawn out into 3 full length novels.

Erin is getting used to her new life and it's quite an adjustment in this second volume. Julianne and Sam are like the perfect parents for her, they dote on her, care about her, want her to be happy and they fully support her. They also want to know everything about her personal life, which comes off a bit much into Erin's personal space, understandably so. What's interesting is the contrast from Erin's life before compared to now, and not just because of things like living in a nicer house or having a car, but also the attention and supervision. I enjoyed watching Erin process all of this seeing how she's nearly a grown adult and having already been independent while missing out on a lot of things while growing up. For the first time, she has people she can lean on. She's always been really mature and honest with herself and she doesn't stoop low to the bullying of others. However, Erin is hard on herself in this one, about some of the choices she makes because they have repercussions to them. At the same time, her emotions are all over the place because she has to reconcile being a daughter at the expense of someone else's death. Julianne and Sam are pretty transparent overall, but I am curious to know how they really feel about the loss since they don't like to show it outwardly in Erin's presence. Erin really struggles with letting people in, including Weston and her parents but I admire her realistic attitude and she really does try because she loves them. I've always liked Weston, he hasn't made the best choices in the past as a bystander but he does fully participate in anything to do with Erin, sometimes too much, though. He walks that fine line of honesty where he wants it all out in the open from Erin, but at the same time, he has to withhold certain things from her to protect her. Weston winds up having to redeem himself and I liked seeing his character become stronger and more persistent in going after what he wants and believes in. Erin is actually inspirational to Weston and her parents and I do love getting to know her because she is so unique and she handles this situation way better than most people would. I'm really looking forward to the last segment and how Erin gets closure from what she alluded to in this volume.

Happenstance 2 was fantastic! While I enjoyed Happenstance 1, I have to say I really, really loved the second one even more. The continuation of Erin and Weston’s story is so many things: fun, emotional, touching, moving and enjoyable. It’s a quick read with a great plot that will leave you wanting more. I love YA books and Jamie touched on some real life issues that occur at this age. I was so impressed with Erin for many reasons. She embodies a strong girl who despite the many adversities life has thrown at her, doesn’t let life get her down. We all know high school is hard enough but the things Erin has had to face (Weston too, but especially Erin) aren’t easy. The way she handles adapting to her new life, family and all the challenges is amazing. She’s mature and grateful and I was so happy her life has taken a turn for the better. Weston is a sweetheart. He hasn’t always made the right choices but we have to remember he’s only in high school. My favorite line of the book was by him to Erin “All I am is all we are”. I can’t wait for Happenstance 3 to read the continuation of Erin and Weston’s story! I’m curious to see what the future has in store for them- where their relationship will go as they graduate high school, how they will spend their summer together and how the next year apart will affect their relationship. Read The Happenstance novellas- you won’t regret it! For more reviews, go to www.lovenbooks.com

The second Happenstance novella starts soon after the first one begins. Erin's life has turned upside down and this installment focuses on her new life and relationships wirh her parents. Suddenly she is surrounded by love and affection, something she has never known before. At times, it felt a little forced and that acceptance came too quickly, but in retrospect, it seems right. It was an unusual circumstance, with everyone trying to do the right thing and not overstep. And for Erin, it was a strange place to find herself after a lifetime of essentially raising herself. In the first novella, Weston wasn't always my favorite character. As much as I understood him, I wanted him to be a little more upfront in his support of Erin. No, she didn't need a hero, but it seemed as if Weston wasn't always as strong as he should be, even for himself. But now that Erin's truths have been revealed, it was somehow easier for him to be open about how he felt and to be more openly supportive of her and I am not sure I loved the social implications of that easier acceptance. But the reality is, he had secrets, too. And those secrets began to surface, shattering Erin's tenuous hold on trust. She learned the reasons behind the Erin's suidden switch to mean girl bullying, and Weston's part in that. Initially, this definitely did not endear me to Weston, no matter how much I realized it was not something he wanted, but as the story unfolded and explanations were given, I came around! Weirdly, I was happy that the bullying didn't entirely stop. If it had, the message would have been that money was all that mattered in social acceptance. But her newfound familial wealth didn't change the opinions of those who had bullied her entire life. Instead, they saw her as a usurper, trying to take the place of someone she would never be. But what these people didn't realize is that she never wanted to be anyone other than who she was and that money was immaterial to her. In many ways, she felt more comfortable without it. The only thing that I felt uneasy about, in this novella and the last, was the lack of contact/connection with Gina, the woman who raised Erin. I realize that Erin's life with her was largely unpleasant, but I felt like there was a level of compassion that was lacking. When things changed for Erin, they changed irrevocably for Gna, too. She lost a daughter, too. My Recommendation: I love these stories! They tackle hard issues and do so realistically. I love that things don't fall into place too easily, but that there are obstacles and periods of adjustment.

First let me start out by saying, I LOVE Jamie McGuire. Her books are always so good and I can't put them down till the end. Happenstance Part 2 was a good book. It's a continuation to Happenstance- which in my opinion was one that lingered in your thoughts for days. I waited from the moment I put Happenstance Part 1 down to read Part 2. Maybe I built it up in my head too much. Happenstance Part Two is a middle book. It gives you just enough progression in the storyline to stay interested, but leaves you thinking "that's it? I waited for that?" I understand the concept of a Novella and she's self publishing this book, but I kind of feel like maybe Happenstance would come across better if it was all one book. Not because we want to know what happens to Easter, but because book two seemed like it suffered from Middle book syndrome. Now onto the good parts.... There is an "Oh Wow" moment in the book that made an already complicated situation even more extreme. Which in turn made the book interesting- giving you the back story of how Easter's life changed and she became the ridiculed child in school. The story line between Easter and Weston was good. Their relationship will be an unbelievably hard one to keep given the circumstances it was created under and the oddity which is Easter's new life. Would I recommend this book? Absolutely. It may be a definate middle book, but it's still a good read and I believe Jamie will lead us back in Part 3. Happy reading.

This is my weak attempt to praise the awesomeness that is Jamie McGuire and anything that she writes. I finished this novella in a few hours because I was compelled to keep going. This story sinks into your pores, burrows into your heart, and doesn't ever let go. I could not believe how deeply the emotion of these novellas affects me. At one point in Part 2, I wanted to scream, because I just couldn't accept something as true. I was so glad to be proved wrong later, but in the meantime I was experiencing such heartbreak right along with Erin. And the last chapter - give me a freaking heart attack! Oh my gosh, I was so afraid. Yet the novella closed on a happier note, and I cannot wait for Part 3.

Waited patiently for this second book.. Hopeful that Erin would have a happy turn of circumstance going forward. Loved that she is still being true to herself and not drowning in heartache and emotions. A bit suspicious still of Weston. Can't wait to find out what happens next.. Definitely recommend you read it. Another fabulous book from a fantastic author.. Love it..

I love everything Jamie writes and this is no different. I can't wait for the last book in this series.

Amazing book. Amazing author. Love all of Jamie McGuire's books. I recommend her to all of my friends and family

Great book, just wish it was longer.

In preparation for the release of Happenstance 2, I have decided to re-read Happenstance 1 and then just continue on to the next part. It was a good capturing read, but far too short to my liking. I love the story of Erin and her turbulent High School experience. She is such a lovely unassuming humble person. I love her strength and focus to achieve life goals. In spite of constant bullying and uncaring mother. A strong female character - loving it. Westin is rather weak guy and although likeable, he mainly gains sympathy through his admiration and dedication for Erin Easter. I am hoping to see more strength in Westin as well as some perspective on the situation through Julienne and Gina's eyes. There is so much depth that these two characters could potentially bring into the story. It would help in giving it multidimensional perspective. I am already counting days until the release of Happenstance 3.