The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson

Title: The Last Little Blue Envelope

Author: Maureen Johnson
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Acquired: Received free for an honest review
Age Group: Young Adult

Grade: 92% or A-
Buy It: Amazon

Ginny Blackstone thought that the biggest adventure of her life was behind her. She spent last summer traveling around Europe, following the tasks her aunt Peg laid out in a series of letters before she died. When someone stole Ginny's backpack—and the last little blue envelope inside—she resigned herself to never knowing how it was supposed to end.

Months later, a mysterious boy contacts Ginny from London, saying he's found her bag. Finally, Ginny can finish what she started. But instead of ending her journey, the last letter starts a new adventure—one filled with old friends, new loves, and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Ginny finds she must hold on to her wits . . . and her heart. This time, there are no instructions.

My Thoughts::
I feel like it's been forever since I read Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes, and just like most others, I gasped at the ending and just had to accept that I would never know what was in the last envelope. So when I found out that Maureen Johnson was going to reveal the contents in a continuation, I was absolutely ecstatic.

Ginny is still absolutely amazing, but I think I liked her even more in this book. She had some traveling experience and seemed to have a better and clearer head on her shoulders. The addition of more characters and the whole road trip like scenario was a pleasant addition. This book wasn't wholly about Ginny's growth, so we got to know some characters and I think that really added to the story. What I liked the most about the continuation was that I think the first book just needed more. It felt unfinished in a lot of areas, so it really needed a whole book to clarify a lot and to firm up Ginny's future.

I am so happy with the couples and relationships at the end. So so so so pleased. There could have been so much more drama and confusion than there was and I'm thankful that Maureen didn't go down that path. All of the characters were really reasonable, so it would be hard to imagine much hatred and immaturity. The book was a bit predictable but it was a really fun journey. The ending was so amazing, I couldn't have asked for anything more. It all wrapped up nicely and even left a little to the imagination.

Overall I think this was a fun read with enough serious moments thrown in to make it not a "fluff" book. It had a little bit of almost everything, without needing the frills of fantasy. I'd recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed the first one, use this as your incentive to read them both.