I See London

by Chanel Cleeton

Maggie Carpenter is ready for a change–and to leave her ordinary life in South Carolina behind. But when she accepts a scholarship to the International School in London, a university attended by the privileged offspring of diplomats and world leaders, Maggie might get more than she bargained for.

When Maggie meets Hugh, a twentysomething British guy, she finds herself living the life she has always wanted. Suddenly she's riding around the city in a Ferrari, wearing borrowed designer clothes and going to the hottest clubs. The only problem? Another guy, the one she can't seem to keep her hands off of.

Half French, half Lebanese and ridiculously wealthy, Samir Khouri has made it clear he doesn't do relationships. He's the opposite of everything Maggie thought she wanted…and he's everything she can't resist. Torn between her dream guy and the boy haunting her dreams, Maggie has to fight for her own happy ending. In a city like London, you never know where you stand, and everything can change in the blink of an eye.

This is a New Adult romance recommended for readers 17 and up.

"I See London is fun, sexy, and kept me completely absorbed." –Katie McGarry, author of Crash Into You

• ISBN13: 9781474006828
• Publish Date: 1 October 2014 (first published 1 January 2014)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: HQ
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 250
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.co.uk

Reviews

[Sam@WLABB]

Maggie uproots her whole life when she is rejected by Harvard. She enrolls in a college, overseas, in an attempt to forget all the disappointments in her life. At the International School in London, she discovers a whole new side of herself. She is growing, changing and taking chances. Sometimes, Maggie makes bad choices. Sometimes Maggie makes decisions that will infuriate you, but this is all part of the process. Along the way, she makes some great friends and shares some amazing experiences with them. It was a fun read. I liked having a front row seat for lifestyles of the rich and famous, and enjoyed getting to know Samir, Maggie, Michael, Mya and Fleur. But the ending!!! Be aware, it's a cliffhanger.

[Nicole Lynn]

review coming, but lets just say I cannot wait for the next book!

--
UPDATE: Finally posting my review from my blog

This review was previously posted on my blog, PopCrunchBoom Books


My Review:


I See London follows Maggie Carpenter’s adventures attending the International School in London. She needed a change from her ordinary life in South Carolina & when she got a scholarship to attend a school in London–she took a deep breath and accepted it. Now she’s living in London and attending a university filled with the privileged offspring of diplomats and world leaders. This leads to nights at the hottest clubs and wearing designer brands borrowed from new friends. Soon, Maggie finds herself swept up in the life she’s always wanted while also dating older, twenty-something Hugh. There’s just one problem. Maggie can’t seem to keep her hands off the hot, yet very arrogant Samir Khouri. Half French, Half Lebanese, and ridiculously wealthy, he seems way out of her league. Plus, he’s not the one-girl relationship type of guy–leaving Maggie torn. But in a place like London anything can happen and everything could change in the blink of an eye.


This novel had a different style than what I’m used to. I haven’t been reading a lot of contemporary in a while and it was refreshing. Maggie was a little annoying in the beginning, but I’m going to just blame it on her age and let it go. She does grow tremendously throughout the novel–a reason I’m really enjoying the New Adult genre. Maggie transitions from the childishness of her teenage age into the semi-maturity of womanhood as a young adult. What I really enjoyed in this novel was seeing this evolution in Maggie. Watching her adapt to her new surrounding, make mistakes and grow from all her experiences. I think I enjoyed this part the most (and this genre as a whole) because I relate to it so well as someone in her early twenties. I’ve been through those transition years, but I’m also still growing into adulthood. It’s great being able to see this in fiction (not that I’m dissing my YA, cause I LOVE ME some YA!). Cleeton does a great job of illustrating this and I See London fits seamlessly into the New Adult genre.

I do have to admit that I wasn’t the biggest fan of either of Maggie’s love interests. Hugh never really did anything for me and Samir took a while for me to like. However, I appreciate the way Cleeton wrote Samir. He had faults and the reader, like Maggie, wasn’t really suppose to like him either. Even so, as the story continues the reader and Maggie begin to see a clearer (more rounded) picture of Samir and the world his character lives in.

Maggie comes across a lot of new experiences and faces some challenging choices, especially when it comes to her love life–one that was non-existent before London. Her struggled attraction to Samir was a major challenge in the novel and Cleeton did a great job with their sexual tension.

In the end, I really enjoyed this novel. From Maggie’s growth as a character to her relationship with Samir, this novel was really enlightening and entertaining. In true New Adult fashion it had growth and romance. This genre is quickly becoming a new favorite of mine :) I can’t wait to pick up the next installment in Maggie’s time abroad: London Falling!

[Cocktails and Books]

Wasn't feeling this one. I'm sure it was more me than the book. May try it again later.

[kimbacaffeinate]

3.5 Romance, friendship, parties and exploration abroad made this a fun read.

Cleeton introduced an array of multi-culture characters and gave them unique voices while exposing their flaws, problems and social interactions. Maggie was abandoned by her mother, and raised by her grandparents while her absentee father traveled extensively for his job. Her teen years were spent studying to achieve her goals leaving her little time for friendship let alone kisses. She is eager for love and to embrace life to the fullest. Sometimes she is confused, awkward, and a tad smitten by a ridiculously wealth half French, half Lebanese ladies man. Samir Khouri doesn’t do relationships, and he confuses the heck out of Maggie as he befriends her, and then flirts relentlessly. There are these moments when he says the most tender things, unlike a boy looking for just a good time. Cleeton slowly peeled back Samir’s layers allowing us to see that he is more than the shallow, fun loving tramp he personifies. Enter, Hugh a successful twenty-eight year old bar owner who shows an interest in Maggie. They are dating, but he’s made it clear he isn’t looking for commitment and while he seems like the perfect guy, thoughts of Samir keep popping up. While this appears to be a triangle trust me when I say, it isn’t really. Maggie may be sharing some kisses, but she honestly is conflicted. Watching her figure it out was quite a ride. Maggie has roommates and friends at the university, and I loved how diverse and complex they were. We actually get threads of their lives as Cleeton forms a little small-town community vibe.

I See London offered some uniqueness to this already saturated genre from the university abroad to the travels amongst the elite and privileged. Cleeton has a nice flow to her writing, and the prologue shows us an event and then we step back in time to ten months prior. The characters were all a little damaged or unsure of themselves making this coming of age tale about everything from first loves to family issues and I enjoyed seeing this side of the characters. Maggie was sweet, unsure and at times snarky. She struggles as her body and heart tell her one thing, and her brain screams no. While I would have preferred a little more communication between the characters, Cleeton acknowledges their fears and insecurities, but I wanted someone to put it out there. Instead, we encountered a game of cat and mouse and suffered through some hot and cold moments. Thankfully there was no insta-love and the other characters created a nice balance to the romantic thread. I never doubted whom Maggie would end up with and while we see progress the ending still left things tender and unresolved. Cleeton is taking her time developing this romance, and I appreciated it, even as it frustrated me. Despite the bumps and twists, it felt tender and genuine. I have to talk about the setting, we see a lot of Europe, and while Cleeton talks about a lot of wonderful sites I wish the details were more than those of the people in their hustle and bustle down busy streets.

Copy received from publisher in exchange for unbiased review that originally published @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer