The Bibliophile's Bookshelf

Title: I Am Not Jessica Chen

Series: Standalone

Author: Ann Liang

Genre: Young Adult, Magical Realism, Contemporary, Romance

Rating: 4.75 stars

Review:

Jenna Chen has spent her whole life in the shadow of her perfect cousin, Jessica Chen. Jessica Chen is so perfect she gets the top score on every test; she is so beautiful people stop and stare at her in the hallway; and she is so perfect she got into Harvard. Jenna Chen, though, will only ever be a disappointment. So, when Jenna makes a desperate wish to be her cousin, she doesn’t expect for it to come true- literally. Suddenly, Jenna is able to the live the life she has always dreamed of. The life of an honor student at cutthroat Havenwood is what she thought it would be. And people seem to be forgetting that someone named Jenna Chen even existed. But isn’t being Jessica Chen worth trading everything- her artistic talent, her home, and the change of Aaron Cai loving her back?

It was a slow start, but I ended up loving this book! It had a similar feel to Ann Liang’s other books. At the same time, it was completely different from her other works.

Staying true to myself, I didn’t really start loving the book until Aaron truly entered the story. He really made the story come alive and everything started to connect. Also, everything he said was spectacular!

One thing I really enjoyed about this book was that the characters already had a developed relationship before the start of the story. In the previous three books, all of the characters were either strangers or rivals, but in this book, they were friends. It was a nice change. Aaron also felt a little more real because of this. Jenna knew him, and it was easier for his emotions and thoughts to be displayed without his perspective.

I didn’t expect Jenna to be so relatable. I think Aaron helped do that. It’s hard for me to explain this, but I shall do it to the best of my ability. Jenna was a little misguided on her outlook on life, which is completely understandable, and Aaron really helped show her flaws and what she is like from the perspective of others. These flaws though are probably the ones I relate with the most out of all of Ann Liang’s super relatable characters. I also really loved how she was super hesitant to change back. I feel like in most books it is the only they can focus on, and I think it was more realistic that she was struggling with it.

I really loved this book! It had me super emotional, too, which was a shock for me. I think her books just keep getting better and better. This book was more reminiscent of If You Could See the Sun, and it was a nice addition to her collection.

I know I mostly talk about the romantic aspects of the book, but all the relational aspects were wonderful. The different friend interactions and how they changed pertaining to the person. The parental relationships. It was all so beautifully done.

I feel like all of the main characters were developed really well, with maybe the exception of Jessica. She was kind of just there. I know she wasn’t really in the story, and we did get to see what her life was like, but I don’t think I really got to know Jessica as a character, which is a shame because I think she would have been an interesting character.

This was amazing! I don’t think I could say enough good things about I Am Not Jessica Chen. The characters were relatable, the book conveyed so many emotions and the human experience, and the story was just plain amazing. I cannot recommend this book enough.

Quotes

“It’s such a suffocating thought- that everything I will ever feel and know and accomplish must begin and end with my own mind.”

“I wanted him the only way I knew how to want anything- obsessively, fervently.”

“We turn pain into a story, because then it has a purpose. Then, we reason, there was a point to it all along. But sometimes pain is just pain, and there’s nothing particularly noble about clinging to it.”

“If I’d kissed you, you would have wanted me for an afternoon, and I would have wanted you for the rest of my life.”

“I can’t live for the recognition or the applause or the illusion of a dream life. I- I have to life for myself. I want to live for myself.”