Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between by Jennifer E Smith

Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between by Jennifer E Smith
Series: No
Publisher: Headline
Publication Date: September 1st 2015
Source: Bought

One night. A life-changing decision. And a list...

Of course Clare made a list. She creates lists for everything. That's just how she is.

But tonight is Clare and Aidan's last night before college and this list will decide their future, together or apart.

It takes them on a rollercoaster ride through their past - from the first hello in science class to the first conversation at a pizza joint, their first kiss at the beach and their first dance in a darkened gymnasium - all the way up to tonight.

A night of laughs, fresh hurts, last-minute kisses and an inevitable goodbye.

But will it be goodbye forever or goodbye for now?

Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between follows Clare and Aiden during their last 12 hours together before setting off for University on the opposite side of the country from one another. It follows their journey through their past and trying to figure out whether they should break up or stay together.

Clare and Aiden have been together for the past two years and are now heading off to Universities on the opposite side of the country from one another. Clare is a realist and is trying to be practical about their relationship and thinks they should end it. She's trying to be strong, but Clare doesn't really want to end their relationship, but she also doesn't want to be pining after Aiden. Aiden is more of a romantic and he's determined to convince Clare to give long distance a chance and prove that it'll work for them.

Being introduced to a couple who have been together for years and are thinking about ending it was pretty odd. I don't think I've ever read a book that begins with a couple talking about breaking up, but even though we didn't get to see exactly how they ended up together, we still got a pretty good idea from Clare's trip down memory lane. It was clear how much Clare and Aiden cared about each other, and I was honestly thinking Clare was crazy for thinking about breaking up, but I also kind of got her point too. Everything in their town is wrapped up with memories of the two of them, so they revisit their high school, a pizza place, a bowling alley, and everywhere else with memories of their relationship to try to figure out what to do. But the whole book doesn't just surround Clare and Aiden. There's also Stella - Clare's best friend - who Clare feels has been growing distant from her, but it isn't just Stella's fault. Scotty - Aiden's best friend - is staying behind in their town to go to community college instead of heading of to California with Aiden. Also, Aiden's dad hasn't been speaking to him since he decided he didn't want to go to Harvard. So, other than decided whether or not to break up, Clare and Aiden have a lot to sort out on their last night.

I completely adored Clare and Aiden's trip down memory lane. It was super sweet hearing some anecdotes of what happened before they got together, hearing about their first kiss and everything else. It was also pretty sad because I had no idea what they were going to do in the in - would they break up or stay together? The last chapter before the Prologue at the end had me sobbing. 

And then we had the Prologue at the end. Everything was kind of unresolved in the prologue, and I wasn't sure whether Clare and Aiden would have a chance in the future. It was kind of an open ending, but also, you kind of know how everything is going to turn out for Clare and Aiden, which I really liked.

Overall, Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between was a super cute and adorable read that had me tearing up quite a bit. It's extremely relatable because the main focus of the story - long distance relationship - is something that loads of people have to deal with, and I loved the way Jennifer portrayed it. It was an amazing read, and definitely one I'd recommend!