Review: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight By: Jennifer E. Smith

Title: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight
Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Publisher: Poppy, 236 Pages (January 2nd, 2012)
From: the Publisher, Thank You!
Format: Hardback

Synopsis: Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. She's stuck at JFK, late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon to be step-mother that Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's in seat 18C. Hadley's in 18A.

Twists of fate and quirks of timing play out in this thoughtful novel about family connections, second chances and first loves. Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver's story will make you believe that true love finds you when you're least expecting it.

Review: 4 Stars - The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight By: Jennifer E. Smith was one of the most eagerly awaited contemporary titles to be released in 2012. I know I was one of the many that couldn’t wait to hold the book in their hands, look at the cover in the flesh… er paper and find out more about the characters and what exactly is the Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight.

Hadley is flying to London to attend her dad’s wedding when she wants nothing more but to let the day pass without mention. She ends up missing her flight by a few short minutes and has to deal with the chance of missing the wedding all together. She has issues with her parents’ divorce and her father’s move to England, issues that she doesn’t seem to want to come to terms with.

Oliver, originally from England is heading home too and befriends Hadley in the airport after she spills her bags at the gate. On the same plane, around the same age and a lot of time to occupy, the two start to form a friendship. Oliver’s just an extremely sweet guy. I mean he had a lot going for him from the start, he’s British for one and he helped Hadley for two and.. I could go on and on about him. He was just one of those characters you can easily warm too.

As the two get to know each other during the flight, it’s not until after they land that you get a better idea who they both are. It’s during the flight that they both affected each other and then during their somewhat sad departure once they landed that you see the changes, especially in Hadley. She hasn’t seen her father in over a year and she has to make some choices, all while meeting her Step Mother for the first time.

One thing I wish I would have had some closure and additional details on was Hadley’s’ dad and why he did the things he did. It was a bit frustrating to me to understand his motives and actions for the whole move other than to just do it. Did anyone else feel this way?

The ending of the story was a tad heart wrenching, on more than one story ark. I had no idea what was around the corner until it came barreling straight for me and slammed right into my heart. And I have to say that there were a few moments when I couldn’t help but notice I had a huge grin on my face or even a couple of times I think I giggled. Smith did an amazing job making sure that both characters felt real and each had some fantastic lines.

All in all I was thoroughly ecstatic, what felt like a long wait for this one was over a few weeks ago and I can say that it was a pleasure to read a contemporary title such as this one!  Smith packed a lot into her characters and I was easily sucked in, I highly recommended this title for anyone who loves contemporary YA…oh and British boys. Make sure you have time to devour this title in one sitting because you will lose time and not want to put it down.

FTC Disclaimer: I did NOT pay for this book, nor have I been compensated at all in any way or means for reading and writing this HONEST review.