Lost in Wonderland: Review- The Avery Shaw Experiment (Kelly Oram)

Synopsis

When Avery Shaw’s heart is shattered by her life-long best friend, she chooses to deal with it the only way she knows how—scientifically.

The state science fair is coming up and Avery decides to use her broken heart as the topic of her experiment. She’s going to find the cure. By forcing herself to experience the seven stages of grief through a series of social tests, she believes she will be able to get over Aiden Kennedy and make herself ready to love again. But she can’t do this experiment alone, and her partner (ex partner!) is the one who broke her heart.

Avery finds the solution to her troubles in the form of Aiden’s older brother Grayson. The gorgeous womanizer is about to be kicked off the school basketball team for failing physics. He’s in need of a good tutor and some serious extra credit. But when Avery recruits the lovable Grayson to be her “objective outside observer,” she gets a whole lot more than she bargained for, because Grayson has a theory of his own: Avery doesn’t need to grieve. She needs to live. And if there’s one thing Grayson Kennedy is good at, it’s living life to the fullest. - Goodreads.com

My Review

Avery Shaw is a science nerd. Her most recent experiment, to rid herself of a broken heart by going through the 7 stages of grief. Her lab partner, the hunky older brother of her former best friend and the boy who broke her heart.

Avery’s world falls apart when her best friend since birth Aiden, who she has grown up doing EVERYTHING with, decides that he wants to spend time apart and with other people. Shocked and heartbroken, since Avery is convinced their friendship would develop into more, she decides the best way to get over him is to document it scientifically through the 7 stages of grief. Enter Aiden’s older brother, Grayson. A notorious player and womanizer who takes Avery under his wing and makes it his mission to help her get over his geeky little brother. But things start to get interesting when Grayson finds himself falling for the adorably naïve and nerdy Avery.

'"I think I need a little space for a while."
For just a brief moment, time stopped...like a heart that had skipped a beat. When it started back up, my life had been forever altered'

- Kelly Oram (The Avery Shaw Experiment)

This book is much more than I expected. Yes its light, yes it’s fluffy, yes the main male protagonist makes me swoony. But this book has heart as well and actually has a story more complex than boy meets girl and falls into insta-love.

Throughout the book Avery is convinced she’s meant to be with Aiden despite the fact she’s heartbroken and he no longer wants to spend time with her. She looks to Grayson as like an older brother who has always kind of been around and loves to annoy her. Then when Avery is left in the lurch for her science fair project Grayson steps up to help out, while Avery in return helps raise his Physics from a failing grade. But along the way of their mutually beneficial relationship, something magical happens, and Grayson starts to see Avery as more than his little brothers best friend. Although, whether Avery will return those feelings is a mystery.

Of course, as Avery travels through those stages, particularly Anger and Depression stuff gets real and without a doubt you know that once Aiden realises he’s made a big mistake there’s going to be a showdown between the siblings.

Grayson is an easily likeable character. At the start he is played out to be his sweaty, horny jock who’s a big flirt. But after seeing Avery so distraught over his brother his sweet and protective instincts for her emerge and he is constantly looking out for her. The moment he sees her as more than just his little brothers best friend is utterly adorable.

"I was scared for her, which was kind of a new feeling for me because I never really pay that much attention to anyone. Aves was just so destroyed after New Years that I couldn't help myself. I was either stepping up my role of overprotective big brother, or I'd developed an impossible crush. "

- Kelly Oram (The Avery Shaw Experiment)

Avery is also not your typical main protagonist. She’s smart, into science and suffers from anxiety. She manages to go through all 7 stages of the grief process with hilarity and realistic emotions that any teenager/ young adult can relate to.

Things I loved about the book:

Despite being cutesy and a little corny at times. it was highly addictive and the characters were hilarious.
The human and realistic characters that were easy to relate to.
The whole boy falls in love with his little brothers best friend thing just totally gets me every time.