Nobody's Girl

by Sarra Manning

[Leah]

Bea thinks she's the most boring teenager in the world and even her Saturday job - at Wilson's - is boring. So when Ruby and her posse (Ayesha, Chloe and Emma) invite her into their gang, Bea wonders if it's supposed to be some kind of joke. She hesitantly joins the group and it turns out that Ruby and co. do really like Bea. They even invite her on holiday to Malaga with them. Within 48 hours of being in Malaga though, Bea finds herself at a train station and she decides, on a whim, to head to Paris to find her absent father. Bea hooks up with a group of American backpackers on the way, including gorgeous Toph, and the group head off to Paris. Is Bea in danger of falling in love with more than Paris, though?

For a while now I've been getting into the genre that is Young Adult (YA) and Sarra Manning is billed as the Queen of Teen so who better to introduce me to a new genre? Sarra has a great writing background and Nobody's Girl is her 11th book so since Nobody's Girl was her most recent release, I decided to buy it for myself. It was one I was really looking forward to reading and after completing Dorothy Koomson's new book I decided to give this a go!

As I mentioned, I'm relatively new to the YA genre but I've been told many a time that some YA books are similar to the chick lit books I love so much so I wasn't too worried about giving Nobody's Girl a try. Especially since the blurb makes the mention of a potential romance between Toph and Bea and who doesn't love a good romance? The book starts as Bea is at the train station in Malaga but quickly goes back to when Ruby and co. suddenly wanting Bea as their new best friend. Like Bea, I was wary of what Ruby was up to and as it came clear exactly what it was, I felt so sad for Bea. What Ruby does to Bea is something everybody hears of all of the time - not to mention a lot of people have experienced it - so everyone will be able to relate to just how angry Bea gets about the whole thing before heading off to the train station.

As Bea decides that she is going to go to Paris to find her absent father - and defy her mother in the process since her mum so is anti-anything that could relate to boys and going to Paris could certainly bring boys into Bea's life - Bea buys herself a train ticket and rushes off to find her train. After falling asleep Bea wakes up confused and finds out she isn't exactly in Paris. Turns out Bea is still in Spain. In Bilbao in fact. A group of young, American travellers then take Bea under their wing as they're heading to Paris, too, and the group set off. Bea immediately takes a shine to the beautiful Toph but does he feel the same way?

That may sound like a lengthy plot but so much more happens in this book that really, my description is nothing! What I mention above is all on the back of the book and I thought that was all that would happen but there is so much more. There are quite a few secrets revealed - particularly concerning Bea's dad - which really surprised me. What also surprised me that on the blurb of my book it says Bea and Toph search for Bea's father in Parisian cafes and that is every so slightly misleading. In fact, it's very misleading and a strange inclusion to the blurb.

I immediately warmed to Bea and I think that's mainly because I'm kind of a dull teenager and I sometimes wonder if I fail at being a teenager. Like Bea, I'm not really into parties or anything like that so I could relate to her right from the off. Although I haven't yet gone on holiday to Malaga before running off to Paris and I don't think it's going to happen! Most teenagers will be able to relate to Bea because not only does she feel incredibly dull but her mum is rather over-protective and worries constantly. It's no bad thing, of course, but if it happens to you, you'll know and understand why it irritates Bea. Bea's family seem very important to her and I really liked her family unit. Her mum was over-protective, yes, but she was still a lovely character. James and the twins were also great characters but my favourites of Bea's family had to be Grandma Major and Minor. I adored them and thought they were hilarious. I loved Toph right from the off although there were a few scenes where he appeared to be off with Bea. Bea and Toph seemed to sink into their friendship really easily and I wondered how long it would take for Bea to fall for Toph.

Sarra Manning's writing is really fantastic. She very easily conveys what it's like to be a teenager and I'm always astounded how writers who aren't still in their teens are so able to get into the mind of a teenager. The book spends a lot of time in Paris and the descriptions were outstanding. I've never been to Paris but Nobody's Girl took me a lot lot closer and I could practically see everything Bea was seeing. Manning must have really done her research and she made Paris sound as magical as Bea seemed to believe it was.

I hugely enjoyed reading Nobody's Girl and it seems I am falling in love with the YA genre. I'm now sorely tempted to buy the rest of Sarra's books although that would be a hugely expensive thing to do but I'm sure it would be totally worth it. Nobody's Girl is a fantastic read and I'm so pleased to have found a YA author who has quite a few books out so I get the chance to read all of her previous works. If you love a good teen romance book then Nobody's Girl is definitely for you!