Happy Friday!

Another end to another week and another week closer to breaking up from work, going away on holiday and then Christmas. I have so many things to look forward to this month, I’m so excited for December. I hope you have something you’re able to look forward to this month.

Book 📖

This was a totally random book choice for me. Somehow I didn’t realise that audio books were available via Kindle Unlimited and now that I do, I’m stalking it all the time looking for books. Third Wheel by @nick.spalding was a book that caught my eye and so I decided to give it a listen whilst I did some cross stitching.

Description 🔖

Jake Carlisle is very aware that he is fortunate to be living his best life. The influencer channel that he started with his best friend Sy has done nothing but grow and grow since they started and means that neither of them have to work a 9-5 and they’re essentially being paid to have fun. The two of them make videos reviewing different adventure and experience days.

It all starts to take a turn for the worst when they bring another person into the team; Helena. Sy soon finds himself head over heels with her and the dynamic between them all very much shifts. Unfortunately for Jake, he has become the third wheel. Is this how it’s going to be from now on? Will Jake live in the shadows of his business and his friendship or will he learn to stand on his own two feet and rebuild his life and his friendship?

General Thoughts 🤔

I have read two of Nick Spalding’s books before and really enjoyed them so I anticipated that I’d really like this one. What I didn’t know before I started was that this was actually a young adult book. I very quickly realised when I started listening, but it didn’t make me stop. I had started so I decided to give it a chance and finish it. I’m glad that I did because I absolutely didn’t hate it. It wasn’t childish to the point that I found it annoying which is what usually puts me off YA. There were some really funny scenes and it was entertaining to listen along to without having to invest my entire focus in it.

Characters 👫👭👬

I did feel sorry for Jake. There is nothing worse than feeling like your best friend is moving on without you and you’re left behind, clinging onto the life the two of you used to have. On the flip side, I thought he behaved very immaturely about it. Not the sabotage, that was funny. He was unable to communicate his feelings and be honest with his best friend; one of the people in the world you should always be able to be honest with.

I flip flopped on my feelings about Helena. At first I thought she was in such a sticky situation. She’d been invited to join a team whereby one of the existing members blatantly didn’t want her there. That must have been very awkward. Then again, she definitely had her own plans about how the business was going to go and I didn’t think it was her place to be calling the shots.

Writing Style ✍️

Nick Spalding is definitely talented at writing funny scenes. He is able to create scenarios that you can envisage playing out in your head and it’s difficult not to giggle. They’re absurd and ridiculous, but funny all the same.

I know that this was a YA but the characters weren’t super young, yet they behaved like they were. This irrationally aggravated me a little bit. I don’t think that the characters ages matched the way in which they were written.

Conclusion & Scoring 🎖

This book was a lovely antidote to how busy my life is at the moment. It was very easy to listen to and had some super funny laugh out loud moments. I’m not sure I’ll ever burn the vision of a man in a tartan thong from my mind. Thanks for that. If you’re looking for a light hearted YA with characters that find themselves in some right pickles, then this book is worth giving a go. Don’t take it too seriously and enjoy.

😍😍😍😐😐