Review: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

"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."

- Goodreads

Stats:

• Publisher: Poppy/ Little, Brown & Co.
• Release date: Jan. 2, 2012
• Page count: 236
• Would appeal to: Fans of an amazing love story, Sarah Dessen fans, Sarah Ockler fans

Favorite Quotes:

"She felt a tiny seed of resentment take root inside of her. It was like the pit of a peach, something small and hard and mean, a bitterness she was certain would never dissolve."

"She wishes they could turn around and fly back in the other direction, circling the globe backward, chasing the night they left behind."

"'Those are cumulus clouds. Did you know that?...They're the best ones.' 'How come?' 'Because they look the way clouds are supposed to look, the way you draw them when you're a kid. Which is nice, you know? I mean, the sun never looks the way you drew it.' 'Like a wheel with spokes?'"

"...Hadley wonders if they'll be able to stop at all. But they do, of course they do, and everything goes quite again; after traveling nearly five hundred miles per hour for almost seven hours, they now commence crawling to the gate with all the unhurried speed of an apple cart."

"Even when she was old enough to read herself, they still tackled the classics together, moving from Anna Karenina to Pride and Prejudice to The Grapes of Wrath as if traveling across the globe itself, leaving holes in the bookshelves like missing teeth."

I'm still left squealing from how cute and perfect this book is!

First of all, this is a quick read. Cuddly but somewhat bumpy love story, multi-dimensional family relationships, funny dialogue, and believable characters.

What girl doesn't imagine falling in love at an airport or with a guy next to her? The great thing about this story is we've all been there-- getting into a conversation with another passenger and never even exchanging names. Learning all about someone's family history and goals and job, and it doesn't even matter because we don't plan on seeing that person again. You might be the other type who never says a word, but it's such close quarters. I remember when my husband said the lady next to him clutched his hand on takeoff because she was so scared. Close proximity provides a level of comfort.

Though I'm a huge fan of the love story element, the backstories of the characters were entirely believable and allowed me to forget I was reading fiction. Some of the flashbacks from Hadley's life delivered such an emotional punch and were perfectly placed. She can't seem to accept that her dad has moved on and is getting married. He's made several mistakes in the route he took, sure, but she is determined to hate her new stepmother because she's a reason their family is broken. I enjoyed watching the relationship between Hadley and her dad go from awkward to a lesser version of the term. It was very realistic in its development.

The story is told in 3rd person present tense, which threw me at first. After I gave it a chapter two, I couldn't imagine it being told another way.

Oliver, the cute British guy who helps Hadley with her bags, is so funny. He is doing a summer research study at Yale, though it could be about a number of things because he likes to make jokes. Also, on the plane, Hadley and Oliver talk about the most interesting topics. In some ways, they avoid what's important, in other ways, they cover everything that's important. The seven hour flight becomes much too short. Hadley and Oliver might never see each other again. Except for the fact that both revealed tiny details about where they were going. Or big ones, as in Hadley's case.

Great twist in the story that it took me a while to see coming. Seriously, go get this one! It's a combination of heavy and light, fun and sad. Love, love, love the romance!!!