Review: Still Me by Jojo Moyes

Title: Still Me

Author: Jojo Moyes

Series: Me Before You, #3

Published: January 2018, Pamela Dorman Books/Viking

Format: ARC Paperback, 400 pages

Source: Publisher

Summary:

From the #1 New York
Times bestselling author Jojo Moyes, a new book featuring her iconic
heroine of Me Before You and After You, Louisa Clark

Louisa
Clark arrives in New York ready to start a new life, confident that she
can embrace this new adventure and keep her relationship with Ambulance
Sam alive across several thousand miles. She steps into the world of the
superrich, working for Leonard Gopnik and his much younger second wife,
Agnes. Lou is determined to get the most out of the experience and
throws herself into her new job and New York life.

As she begins
to mix in New York high society, Lou meets Joshua Ryan, a man who
brings with him a whisper of her past. Before long, Lou finds herself
torn between Fifth Avenue where she works and the treasure-filled
vintage clothing store where she actually feels at home. And when
matters come to a head, she has to ask herself: Who is Louisa Clark? And
how do you reconcile a heart that lives in two places?

Funny,
romantic, and poignant, Still Me follows Lou as she navigates how to
stay true to herself, while pushing to live boldly in her brave new
world.

My thoughts: I don’t think there has ever been as charming and endearing a character as Louisa “Lou” Clark and I have to admit, Jojo Moyes has given her readers so much time to fall in love with her – three books, of which at the onset, I’m not sure Jojo knew she’d take this character so far along. 

Before I get into talking about this book – which, spoiler alert, I absolutely loved!!! – I will say this. This is a series that really does need to be read in order. There are quite a lot of references to not only the first book but also the second book and I really do think a lot of the nuances and overall meaning will be lost if you don’t read those other two. You will have a better connection to Lou having read the prior books.

I admit, I loved the first book of this series, Me Before You – was on such a reader’s high from it, that I needed time to process it before moving on to book 2, After You. I only  just read that one last week…and it was ok. But this latest book, Still Me – OMG, I loved it. I once again finished it and felt that same reader’s high. One thing I will say for this series as a whole, though – it will definitely make you think…and to me as a reader, there is nothing better.

I loved that this book finds Lou moving to NY for a job. She is still trying to find herself after all that has happened in her past and is trying to live up to the advice Will gave her a while back – you only get one life, make the most of it. Oh, she is trying…and I love her all the more for it! The ups and downs she has during this book are both heartwarming and heartbreaking. It will take you through a range of emotions – but isn’t that what we’ve come to love and expect from Jojo Moyes and her writing?

This book is filled with not only some of the familiar characters we have already come to love from the previous books, but also a whole new set of faces, some that you will end up loving and some you will end up not loving as much. But they are all vividly drawn and all have a part in helping Lou find herself. 

I’ve come to love Jojo Moyes and her writing and this just proves why. She has taken a beloved character from an emotionally charged book and given her a life of her own. She has taken risks with this series and it has worked. I adored these books and look forward to seeing what comes next from this talented author. 

Books in this series: 

1. Me Before You
2. After You
3. Still Me