Book Review: In the Age of Love and Chocolate by Gabrielle Zevin

In the Age of Love and Chocolate by Gabrielle Zevin
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Publication date: October 2013
Length: 8 hrs 28 min
Source: Audiobook from Library
For: Fun
Series: Birthright, Book 3

Summary (from goodreads): *Spoilers are inevitable for the first two books*

All These Things I’ve Done, the first novel in the Birthright series, introduced us to timeless heroine Anya Balanchine, a plucky sixteen year old with the heart of a girl and the responsibilities of a grown woman. Now eighteen, life has been more bitter than sweet for Anya. She has lost her parents and her grandmother, and has spent the better part of her high school years in trouble with the law. Perhaps hardest of all, her decision to open a nightclub with her old nemesis Charles Delacroix has cost Anya her relationship with Win.

Still, it is Anya’s nature to soldier on. She puts the loss of Win behind her and focuses on her work. Against the odds, the nightclub becomes an enormous success, and Anya feels like she is on her way and that nothing will ever go wrong for her again. But after a terrible misjudgment leaves Anya fighting for her life, she is forced to reckon with her choices and to let people help her for the first time in her life. 

Things I Liked:
I really enjoyed this series, though it's been so long since I read the other two I couldn't remember much of what happened, just broad stuff.  Still, this one seemed very different than the other two. I still really like Anya and how tough and unyielding she can be (which is also annoying at times).  This one covered a lot more time - several years.  I liked seeing her change her family and defy what she was supposed to have been.  Good story. Glad I finally got some endings for these characters.

Things I Didn't Like:
The more I think about banned chocolate, the more horrified I become.  Actually, I was thinking how implausible that idea is, even with the sort of legit explanations I recall from the first book.  Still, the story was good, even if I was a bit bored in places.  I listened on audio and Ilyana Kadushin's voice was quite good for Anya. 

Read-alikes:
Not really sure...maybe Curse Workers series by Holly Black?
Start with All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
maybe a few

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->
a bit

Overall rating: ***

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