Title and Author of the Book: Izzy + Tristan by Shannon Dunlap

Plot Overview (from Goodreads): Izzy, a practical-minded teen who intends to become a doctor, isn't happy about her recent move from the Lower East Side across the river to Brooklyn. She feels distanced from her family, especially her increasingly incomprehensible twin brother, as well as her new neighborhood.

And then she meets Tristan.

Tristan is a chess prodigy who lives with his aunt and looks up to his cousin, Marcus. He and Izzy meet one moonlit night, and together they tumble into a story as old and unstoppable as love itself.

Critique: My favorite character was Marcus because I felt like he had the most development throughout the story. In the beginning, Marcus is a person who isn’t likely to show his emotions. When he meets Izzy, at first he only wants to be in a relationship with her for the purpose of revenge. The author makes the change in his personality very noticeable as Marcus reveals his true feelings about Izzy to his cousin, Tristan. In the end, Marcus’s true personality is shown. He is a person who cares deeply for the people who are close to him.

I felt like the conflict in the story was a little superficial. Romance stories, in particular, tend to be a little cheesy at times. I thought that this book didn’t have anything that made it special or different from other romance stories that I’ve read in the past. If I could change something about the book, I would try to make the conflict more complex or detailed and add something unique to the story. I also didn’t really like how the story ended either because I felt like it was a typical kind of ending. I would try to make the ending something that would make the reader want to read more.

Cover Critique: What drew my attention to the book was the summary on the back of the story, not really the cover. I like the cover because it is related to the story but I feel like it could’ve been better. From the cover alone, a reader can only tell that the book is about a romance and that it takes place in a big city.

If I could change the cover, I would try to incorporate a little more about the story or the characters in the story without revealing too much of the plot. This could be done by maybe going deeper into the relationship between Izzy and Tristan or expressing the conflict present in the story.

Star Rating: I would rate the book 3.5/5 because I don’t feel like I wasted my time reading it. The story was still interesting, just didn’t quite meet my expectations of the book.

From Ms. Yang: Thanks for sharing your review! Did you know that this story is supposed to be a retelling of Tristan and Isolde, a legendary medieval romance/tragedy? You can read a short synopsis of the basic tale here. Does your reaction to the modern day version change if you know more about the original?

Additional comments from reviewer: I didn’t know that this story was based on another story, but I just read the tale of Tristan and Isolde, which was really interesting. I thought it was intriguing, and I enjoyed reading it. Although the modern day version was a little bit different, I can tell where the author of the book incorporated parts from the original. My reaction to the modern day version is a little different now that I know a little more background information about where the author got her inspiration from, and it helped explain the story a little more. I think I actually prefer the original story over the modern day version though.