Bittersweet [Hardcover]

Sarah Ockler (Author)

Book Description

Release date: January 3, 2012

From the author of Twenty Boy Summer, a teen pushes the limits to follow her dreams--and learns there's a fine line between bitter and sweet... Once upon a time, Hudson knew exactly what her future looked like. Then a betrayal changed her life and knocked her dreams to the ground. Now she's a girl who doesn't believe in second chances, a girl who stays under the radar by baking cupcakes at her mom's diner and obsessing over what might have been.      So when things start looking up and she has another shot at her dreams, Hudson is equal parts hopeful and terrified. Of course, this is also the moment a cute, sweet guy walks into her life--and starts serving up some seriously mixed signals. She's got a lot on her plate, and for a girl who's been burned before, risking it all is easier said than done.
     It's time for Hudson to ask herself what she really wants, and how much she's willing to sacrifice to get it. Because in a place where opportunities are fleeting, she knows this chance may very well be her last....

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Ockler concocts an appetizing blend of personalities, drama, and passion in a story of bitter disappointments and sweet successes... [Hudson's] love of the sport is deeply felt, and her regrets about the past and her fears about the future are heart-wrenchingly real." --Publishers Weekly

"Bittersweet is a book worth recommending." --School Library Journal

"If this doesn't make you want to eat a cupcake, cuddled up under a warm blanket on a cold winters night with a mug of hot chocolate than I don't know what will. This book is so well crafted from the sweet winter romance, to the icy back drop from the winter season in the small town of Watonka, NY to the ice skating and ice hockey subplots and the deliciously described cupcakes. I adored everything about this well-written story." --mundiemoms.blogspot.com

“An entertaining read with an engaging, relatable protagonist. Hudson’s lively first-person narrative is both wry and sympathetic, and it incorporates issues ranging from self-discovery to family and relationship complexities, along with identifying and following your dreams.” --Booklist

"Any reader who has ever wondered or worried about their place in the world will easily connect to this charming, funny novel." --teenreads.com

"At its heart, this story is about family, community, and communication, and Hudson narrates it with warmth and wry humor. Bittersweet is a book worth recommending." --School Library Journal

"Hudson’s conflicting emotions are richly realized...  an engaging and sometimes emotionally challenging read..." --Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

About the Author

Sarah Ockler is the bestselling author of Fixing Delilah and the critically acclaimed Twenty Boy Summer, a YALSA Teens' Top Ten nominee and IndieNext List pick. She is a champion cupcake eater, coffee drinker, night person, and bookworm. When she's not writing or reading at home in Colorado, Sarah enjoys taking pictures, hugging trees, and road-tripping through the country with her husband, Alex. Visit her at SarahOckler.com and find her on Twitter and Facebook.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Simon Pulse; First Edition edition (January 3, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1442430354
• ISBN-13: 978-1442430358
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (57 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #839,696 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sarah Ockler is the bestselling author of critically acclaimed young adult novels Twenty Boy Summer, Fixing Delilah, and Bittersweet. Her books have been translated into several languages and have received numerous accolades, including ALA's Best Fiction for Young Adults, Girls' Life Top 100 Must Reads, IndieNext list picks, and more. Her short fiction and essays are featured in two young adult anthologies: Defy the Dark and Dear Teen Me.

Sarah is a champion cupcake eater, coffee drinker, night person, and bookworm. When she's not writing or reading, Sarah enjoys taking pictures, hugging trees, and road-tripping through the country with her husband, Alex.

Her latest novel, The Book of Broken Hearts, will be released in May 2013.

Visit her website at sarahockler.com or find her on Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful January 3, 2012

By Khy

Format:Hardcover

Settings are one of my absolute favorite things about any book, and because they are often underutilized, I always jump at the ones that are well done, including this one. The snowy setting makes Hudson's dilemmas seem even more isolating and serious, especially as she tries to decided just how much to tell everyone around her. The snowy setting also makes for incredibly fun subplots, mainly Hudson's own ice skating and the inclusion of her interaction with the boys' hockey team. The boys are so delightfully crazy and funny, especially around Hudson, that I couldn't help but always be amused when they were around.

However, even with all the fun, there is plenty of serious business too. There's so much going on in Hudson's life-- skating, baking cupcakes at the diner, helping the diner survive, taking care of her family, and trying to balance time with her friends as she does so much-- that there's no chance that Hudson could be perfectly emotionally stable. She has plenty of angst over all the things falling apart to go along with her pent-up emotion over the betrayal mentioned in the summary. It makes for an emotional read and also helps make Hudson perfectly realistic and sympathetic, even though she totally deserved a smack at certain points for making such bad mistakes. The supporting cast is equally wonderful-- Dani, her best friend, is the perfect match for Hudson because of their differing personalities, and although I don't want to give away too much about Hudson's Potential Boys, I will say that even the infuriating one is sweet to read about because of the drama he brings.

Bittersweet is simultaneously fun, complex, and emotional, and it's snowy setting makes it perfect for winter; a proper testament to my love for it is that my biggest complaint is only that it made me want cupcakes rather badly.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars More bitter than sweet. June 15, 2012

By Maria @ Bookchilla

Format:Hardcover

Thank goodness for Bug, Josh and Dani, or else i'll be trashing this book completely. Hudson has no balls, so to speak. and what an awful, awful friend! Bittersweet started out good for me (esp her first meeting with Josh). Then lets-make-out-with-Will episodes came in. followed by i-like-Josh-but-Will's-here-so-let's-make-out-some-more scenes. And after all she's been through to get back to skating, she realized it was not her dream in the end. Screw you, Hudson Avery! Grrr.

I like Ockler's writing. It was so easy to get into. But the story was unbearable! Let's see: Hudson wants to get back to skating. In the process, she disses her best friend (dissing friends is her hobby), disappoints her mom, and completely abandons her brother (just to sneak into a New Year's Eve party!). All this, while baking to-die-for cupcakes, flirting with Josh, and... oh! tonsil-hockeying with Will. and yeah, a little skating practice here and there. Yet, when skating stares at her head-on, she bails. Again. WTF.

If Hudson making a fool out of herself was not enough, her Mom and friends at the diner gives her crap when she finally decides to pursue her so-called dream, skating. Great way to appreciate Hudson, Mom.

I believe this is my first book that i would like to be rewritten. Major overhaul on the plot, please. Gah.

There are swoon moments, yes, and Josh is... let's just say i'll give him my kidneys too if he wants it. :)

Bittersweet. Three parts bitter, two parts sweet. Man, i was ready to fall in love! Sigh. Hudson ruined it for me.

C'mon, Bug, how about you and I play with Mr. Napkins, instead?

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Bittersweet Won My Heart January 5, 2012

By Lori Lawson VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

This book was after my heart from the start (I'm a poet!). It won it over very quickly, too. Then it was all giggles and cupcakes for the rest of the book. Really, I just loved this book. Let me count the ways:

Firstly, it's Sarah Ockler. She can write some great contemporary. This book, like Twenty Boy Summer, was the perfect balance of serious and fun. Hudson is definitely facing some obstacles. She's in way over her head, but she is witty and just utterly likeable. I laughed out loud on several occasions!

Secondly, I loved, loved, loved the restaurant aspects of the story. Hudson's Mom owns a dinner and Hudson makes her cupcakes there. She also moonlights as a waitress, much to her dismay. The reason I loved all that is because I was a waitress for 5 years. Starting when I was 17. I had a love hate relationship with it (mostly hate, though). But it was so fun to see all the restaurant terms used, like back of the house, sidework, and the water in the lap trick. It brought back lots of memories and made the book even more fun for me.

Thirdly, there's hockey boys. I'm from the South where hockey is nearly unheard of. It was fantastic to get to have lots of hockey talk and...well boys. I love that Hudson really didn't know what she wanted when it came to these boys. That felt really realistic to me. She'S 17 and never even had a boyfriend so of course she's confused. I loved the entire romantic storyline. I was never once frustrated. It was just fun to sit back and see how it played out.

There are lots of other reasons I loved this book, but I'm going to keep them short: There's ice skating. The cupcake chapter titles were marvelous. There are lots of delicious sounding cupcakes. There's a awesome best friend and a even more awesome little brother. It's a perfect wintery read. There's lots of kissing. There's even a hamster. Really you guys, just read this book. You will not regret it!