I haven’t added to this feature in more than a year, so I figured I should make an epic comeback. My main problem with posting this feature regularly is that I like to read all of an author’s works before I feature them, and, as you can imagine, there aren’t a huge amount of authors whose entire collection I have read, or authors who have written more than one series. But I’m going to try harder this year, and I already have a bunch of ideas in mind.
For this epic comeback, I’m going to be featuring one of my favourite authors: Morgan Matson! I have enjoyed every single book of hers so far, and Morgan is such a sweetheart on social media that it makes me really happy to shout at you all about her books.
Amy’s mother moves across the country, and agrees that Amy and Roger can drive the car by themselves. Of course, they take an epic detour, and they end up seeing a bunch of places that they really shouldn’t have. Amy is trying to deal with her father’s death – he died in a car crash – so this book had my emotions all over the place.
Second Chance Summer was actually the first book I read by Matson, and I am so glad that I took the chance. I don’t normally read books that feature cancer, but I made an exception for this one and it was the best choice. In this book, Taylor’s father is terminally ill. As in, he’s going to die. Definitely. So the family go for one last vacation together, and it’s about Taylor learning to deal with what’s to come and realising that she will be able to carry on after her father dies. I’m nearly crying just thinking about it.
Since You’ve Been Gone IS MY FAVOURITE!!!! I wasn’t expecting to love it more than Second Chance Summer, but I did. I so did. Emily is someone who is incredibly shy and suffers from anxiety, and her best friend, Sloane, brings her out of her shell. Sloane disappears, though, and leaves Emily a list of things that she should accomplish over the summer. It’s an amazing book, and I don’t think I’ve ever connected to a character the way I did with Emily. She is me.
This is Ms. Matson’s upcoming book. It’s not out for another couple of months, but I was given a copy by the publisher to review. AND IT’S WONDERFUL. The main character of this one is Andie, whose mother has died and whose father is in politics. She and her dad don’t have a relationship at all in the beginning, but they start to work on it and it’s the most adorable thing. Andie also learns a lot about herself and how to deal with people, and she realises that she’s not exactly treating them in the best way. AND the love interest is an author. Guys. GUYS.
Broken Hearts, Fences, and Other Things to Mend
Everyone probably knows that Morgan Matson and Katie Finn are the same person, right? I hadn’t read any of these books before December last year, but I have now read the first two books and I’m eagerly anticipating the last book in the trilogy. Broken Hearts is about Gemma, who goes to stay with her father in the Hamptons. She reconnects with her childhood best friend, whose life she kind of ruined, but it’s under a fake name. So Gemma is trying to make everything right with her again. The sequels, Revenge, Ice Cream, and Other Things Best Served Cold and Hearts, Fingers, and Other Things to Cross are a direct continuation full of revenge and hilarity.
I love Morgan Matson’s books! She is one of my favorite authors! I have a copy of The Unexpected Everything too and it makes me really happy you loved it, Amber! I didn’t know the love interest was an author, but ahhh! So exciting!
I haven’t read her books as Katie Finn either, but they sound super cute and you say they are funny too, so I should get to them.
She does contemporaries so well! Especially the friendships. The love interest in TUE is ADORABLE. Absolutely adorable.
The Katie Finn books give me so much stress because there’s a TONNE of drama, but they also make me laugh out loud.
This is such a fun idea! I don’t know if you’re look for input and I hope it’s not too bold of my to offer, but I’d love to see you spotlight some authors that aren’t as popular that you think should be. I love finding and supporting those authors.
Morgan Matson isn’t for me, but I’m so glad that you enjoy her books! I’ve only read SINCE YOU’VE BEEN GONE and it didn’t call to me. That being said, I ADORE the covers for both SINCE YOU’VE BEEN GONE and THE UNEXPECTED EVERYTHING.
Thanks, Elizabeth! And of course, I love input from other people XD Do you mean a post full of different authors, or a separate post for each underrated author? I have some ideas, although most of my favourite underrated authors haven’t released more than one book.
I can see why SYBG is very hit and miss in the community. I related to the main character on a DEEP, DEEP level, so that’s why I loved it so much 🙂 Second Chance Summer is amazing, if you ever wanted to pick up another one of her books 😉
I’ve never read a Morgan Matson book but I definitely want to give them a try one day! I’ve heard so many amazing things about these how could I stay away?