Book Review: London Belongs to Us by Sarra Manning

Along the way Sunny meets a whole host of characters she never dreamed she'd have anything in common with - least of all the devilishly handsome (and somewhat vain) French 'twins' (they're really cousins) Jean Luc and Vic. But as this love-letter to London shows, a city is only a sum of its parts, and really it's the people living there who make up its life and soul. And, as Sunny discovers, everyone - from friends, apparent-enemies, famous bands and even rickshaw drivers - is willing to help a girl on a mission to get her romantic retribution.

Review: What a fun read London Belongs to Us turned out to be! It all happens in 12 hours but what 12 hours! They couldn't be any more fun and adventure-packed even if they tried. It all starts in a park far, far away (well, actually, in Crystal Palace) where Sunny and her best friend are meeting some friends for a picnic. And then, she gets a text and Sunny's world turns upside-down. She needs to find her boyfriend asap. Slight problem though, he is in Camden... so to get there Sunny finds herself in the back of a vespa with a gorgeous French boy. From here, she starts a quest around the whole city to try to find the elusive boyfriend and basically having the time of her life.

Sunny is a very interesting and entertaining character to read. She doesn't like confrontations and prefers to be told what to do and how to behave than rather decide for herself but as the night progresses and she finds herself in the most crazy and challenging situations, she slowly discovers that she has her own voice, opinions and aspirations. Maybe always being told what to do is not the best way to life your life? I loved discovering this new and more secure Sunny, she really was like a ray of sunshine and once she started believing more in herself, she found out she could do anything she put her mind on it.

So as we follow her around London, discovering all its areas (I really enjoyed the small introductions with fun facts and figures for every area), we also meet the most interesting and diverse cast of characters. They all help Sunny in her quest (sometimes quite unwillingly) and also in becoming this new self. Certainly not a moment to get bored in this novel.

If you love London (who doesn't'?) or even if you haven't been there but would love to visit it (who wouldn't?), this read is for you. Plus, it has a kick-ass heroine (even if she started a bit too hang up on her boyfriend, we soon forgave her), craziness galore and even pie charts! Giggles guaranteed. Go pick it up. 

Rating: 4 stars

I would like to thank the publishers for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*