It's Complicated

by Laura L. Smith

When four college roommates lose pieces of their lives, the pain isolates and the tension rises. Emotions are hard to hide and even harder to tackle. How can the girls move forward, when there is so much pain in letting go? Together, Claire, Kat, Palmer and Hannah learn to lean on God and each other, and through it all they learn loss is a part of life.

Genres: Christian

Kindle Edition

First published March 26, 2013

About the author

Laura L. Smith lis a best-selling author and speaker. She loves Jesus, her husband, her four kiddos, music,books, coffee, France, and chocolate. Smith lives in the college town of Miami University, Oxford, Ohio.

Reviews

[Laura Kurk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story for every girl—in fact, Smith ensures that by using four highly relatable narrators. Claire, Palmer, Kat and Hannah begin the story with one thing in common—their choice of college. All four recent high school graduates meet on their new campus and decide to live together in a suite, a decision that forges strong bonds and forms the heart of the story. If you’ve ever wondered how important female friendships are, this book settles it. They are monumentally important—especially to four girls who’ve left home for the first time and are dealing with above average crises.

Smith depicts female friendships masterfully. I became so absorbed with the details of the lives exposed in this book, that I felt like I was back in my dorm room, talking to my own roommates. She brings a level of comfort and honesty to the story that is rare in YA fiction these days. There’s no biting sarcasm or irony here—just good, clear-eyed discussion of the parts of life that are most meaningful.

High school girls will adore these characters and find themselves in one or more of them. College girls will appreciate knowing there are fictional examples of what they’re living through right now. Life is tough—even on carefree university campuses—and Smith seems to get that better than most.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Review by Sarah Faulkner
I’m always a little bit wary when it comes to Christian Fiction, and even more so when it comes to Christian YA. After all, what better place to lead people to the Lord than in their teens.
I’m pleased to say that books such as It’s Complicated are slowly changing my opinion of Christian YA fiction, and I couldn’t be happier.

This book follows four college freshmen as they try to navigate the stress, responsibility, and drama of college. It more specifically deals with the challenges Christian teen girls encounter when dealing with boys.

Each roommate, Hannah, Kat, Palmer, and Claire, faces a different problem—or sometimes more than one—with the boys in their lives. Hannah just wants to get a nice boyfriend to start off her freshmen year right, but it seems all the hot boys on the college campus are spoken for. Well, all except the two which are chasing Kat. She hardly has time for school and soccer practice, and certainly isn’t looking to add a boyfriend to the mix even if she knew which boy she’d choose.
Palmer on the other hand, is perfectly content with her high school boyfriend, although being at separate colleges is putting some strain on her relationship. Until her boyfriend starts putting on the pressure for her to go farther than she’s really looking to go.

Petit little Claire just wants to survive her year without being noticed or losing her scholarship. After a brief summer “flirtationship” turned into something much darker, the last thing she’s looking for is a boyfriend.

The interactions of these four girls with each other and a slew of hot college boys will have you turning pages, laughing, and crying. The way these four girls find their strength in God without the book turning “preachy” is truly a breath of fresh air.

However, this book does deal with some mature content and the pressures girls in relationships often face. If you’re looking for a book for your middle-schooler, I would encourage you to keep looking. If you’re an upperclassman high-schooler or college girl, though, this book might be exactly what you need to read. As a high-school girl myself, I can say that this book was a really worthwhile read and it just might change the way you look at relationships. I think this would also be a great book for Moms to get a glimpse of what their teen girls are facing the world of “Boy.”

Laura Smith did a wonderful job with voice of this book. The tone sounds just like older teenage girls, which I think some YA authors struggle with. The point of view shifts were sometimes confusing, but other than that, I really, seriously loved this book and can’t wait for the next one in the Status Update series.

[Arlette · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's complicated is a story about love, crisis in life and best friends forever. 3.5 out of 5 stars. NON-SPOILER REVIEW

The book starts with where we meet, and where they meet each other, the four soon-to-be roomies: Claire, Palmer, Hannah and Kat. After meeting them and each other, we jump into their holidays where the story really kicks off.

I liked the pace the book has. It covers the story, but you are not endlessly lingering at a certain scene. We get chapters from the POV's of all 4 girls which is really nice as well. That way you get to know them one by one, instead of just one if it would have had only one POV. Definately a plus! There are scenes within the book that can make you laugh and swoon, but also cry, desperately cry. Some of the scenes are really that heart-breaking, I still feel for them.

In the book there is a role for religion and god. I'm not religious myself, but I can still very much appreciate the way it was written into the story. It's not the main element, but it is still present and shown that it is something important for the girls. Done in a very beautiful way.

The reason it has 4 stars (or well 3.5 if that was an option) is that I would have loved a little more background. We get the explanation of all that happens in the book, which is done very very well, but sometimes I had hoped to get a little bit more into depth information. But hey, I'm definately not going to complain here, the book was really good and very easily to relate to I would say.

[Katelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book.

Claire was my favorite character. She just. . . she was just a character that drew you in. I wish she'd had more chapters.

Hannah was my least favorite. It annoyed me with the whole, "I want a boyfriend now" attitude. I didn't really get why she had this need for a boyfriend. She just seemed a little desperate, and I didn't like that.

Palmer and Kat were in-between for me. Palmer just didn't seem to "get" it for a while. I hated Keegan. I mean, really, dude? You can't just respect Palmer? Ugh. And Kat had her own little love triangle thing going on.

AND THERE WAS A HUNGER GAMES REFERENCE! *raises hands and jumps up and down* I almost died when I read it. My heart . . . STOPPED. Did any of you experience this? (hehe, Hunger Games reference.) Okay, okay, I'll shut up about that now. Anyway, great book. If you're looking for a book filled with drama and friendship, check this out.

[April Nichole · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s Complicated is told in the point of view of its four main characters telling their individual stories and how they intertwine. I really like stories that are told from the first person point of view because I feel like it lets you get a closer connection to the character.
Claire and Palmer are the ones I connected with the most. Not because I have gone through what they did but with the emotion that was conveyed for them.
It’s Complicated is a story of friendship and strength. These girls come together to hold each other up and see the strength inside themselves. I’m looking forward to reading the next book to see what else happens to these girls.

[AnyKname · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok it says Kindle edition but I read it paperback. I finished this earlier this week. I think I’m going to give it 3 1/2 stars. Just because the first half of this book was more of a 3 star read and the second half of this book was more of a 4 star read. The reason I started reading this series is because Laura L Smith’s writing draws me in. But I feel like with this book it’s harder to get drawn in because it’s a about 4 girls and we get all of their POVs. This is especially true about the first half cause even though this is about college girls the first half of this book describes the rest of these girls’ summer vacation. It’s not necessarily bad and it is necessary to the story but it’s hard to get drawn in because once you start to get drawn into one girl’s story the next chapter is a different girl’s POV. The second half was definitely a lot better, it’s when they actually get to college which is what I wanted to read about in the first place. There were moments when reading the second half where I held the book to my chest like “I love this book!” But changing gears I have a question: why are all our four main characters Christian? I remember in her other series there were two girls in the friend group who didn’t seem to be Christian: Gracie and Raven. But those girls didn’t get their own book. So, is Laura L Smith just incapable of writing a main character that isn’t Christian?
Now I’ve decided to do the rest of this review by going through each of our four main characters and their stories which will contain spoilers but I’ll use the usual spoiler feature to hide them.
Before I continue I want to warn anyone who wants to read this unless you want to go in completely blind (which in that case you wouldn’t be reading this review if you wanted to go in completely blind) there is a rape scene. I don’t think it’s graphic Laura L Smith is pretty good at describing sexual situations without being too graphic. Now on to the characters:
Claire
Claire is the character whose POV starts the book. She comes to orientation and she doesn’t know anyone it seems and she meets the girls who will eventually become her roommates: Hannah, Palmer and Kat. They all decide to become roommates and then they continue their summer vacation apart from each other. For Claire she spends the rest of her summer vacation in Paris, which is a big deal for her and her mom because they struggle to get by financially. I believe they were able to come because Arnot (the man whom Claire’s mom is in a relationship with) paid for their trip. Now in the front of the book, on the page where it has all the publishing information there’s this section of what seems to be tags (it’s not unique to this book, a lot of books have these) and one of these tags is sexual assault. That started me trying to guess who was going to get sexually assaulted. My guess was either Claire or Palmer. I’ll get to why I thought Palmer when I talk about her. I thought Claire because I thought Phillip, Arnot’s nephew, was sketchy. I was right. Phillip takes Claire to his hotel room and rapes her. I don’t know if I mentioned this in my review of Jasmine but in that book I don’t like how we don’t see much of how this rape affected Jasmine. In this book we get to see a whole lot more. We see how she’s affected immediately after it happens. We see her struggle to find the words to describe what actually happened to her. We see her in conversation with God about what happened. We see what happens when she tells her roommates and later her mom. We see the different ways she tries to deal with it. There’s just so much more we see here that we don’t get to see in Jasmine. Also I think the scene where she talks to God at the cathedral and the scene where she tells her roommates what happened are the most beautiful scenes in the book. You may read them and think that they’re not that great, I could probably read them again and think they’re not that great. One thing I have to comment on is that in the scene where she tells her roommates, they’re asking her about how her Paris trip was, not knowing what happened and Claire’s like “oh no, I can’t tell them cause if I tell them I’ll unravel” and then she tells them anyways so it’s kinda like “ok.” Also I for some reason thought that Claire was going to tell her mom right away and her mom wasn’t going to believe her. I was wrong, she does not tell her mom right away. In fact at that point she’s still not sure what to call what actually happened to her. She doesn’t even realize it’s rape until she tells her roommates and Kat calls it rape. When she actually does tell her mom her mom does believe her, that scene is also arguably beautiful but it didn’t have the same effect on me like those other scenes did. Going back to Jasmine (I didn’t think to include this when first writing this review and I wasn’t sure where to put this so I’ll put it here) reading that book made me realize I hate the pregnancy trope. I’m guessing Laura L Smith doesn’t like the pregnancy trope either because when Claire tells her roommates about the rape the question arises about whether or not she’s pregnant which Claire didn’t even think of, but then she takes a pregnancy test and it turns out she’s not pregnant. And this is not the first time in a Laura L Smith book where a character might be pregnant and she turns out to not be. I appreciate this, although it’s unclear how long this was after the rape so it could have been to early for a pregnancy test to tell if she was pregnant, but I don’t know, I hope she isn’t pregnant. Also Claire’s a dancer. And not only a dancer but she also teaches dance. I have to ask: was Laura L Smith a dancer? Because in her other series Melissa and Lindsey were also dancers. I appreciate this because I myself am a dancer and I hope to teach dance. The song that I think describes Claire’s story is: Hope is Rising by Downhere. There’s not much of a reason for it to be this song it’s just that I listened to this song after reading the rape scene and I thought: “This describes Claire’s situation so much.” It really doesn’t but I can’t think of a song that better describes it. Enough said about Claire.
Hannah
I don’t know how to start this section on Hannah. There’s not much I have to say about Hannah from early on in the book. I wouldn’t call Hannah a funny character but there’s something that happens with a guy that she meets during summer vacation and she’s like “I HATE ALL BOYS!” But then she gets to college and she’s like “I met a guy.” “Your brother’s so hot.” I just thought that was funny. One thing I love about Hannah is that she doesn’t get the guys she’s after. The guy she met during summer vacation: Reed, is implied to be in a relationship with another girl. And the guy she met at college: A.J. Has a girlfriend. I like this because in too many books written for Christian teenage girls (particularly Melody Carlson books) the main character gets into a relationship with a guy and it’s usually a guy she’s interested in. When that does not happen to a lot of us girls. Do not give me the escapism argument. Melody Carlson books are by no means escapism. They deal with very serious issues. They are supposed to depict the reality of teenage girls. So when that’s the goal yet in almost every single one of them the main character is in a relationship with a guy she’s interested in at some point in the story, you’re doing it wrong. Melody Carlson, if by any chance you’re still writing books for teenage girls take notes: it’s ok for your main character to get rejected, it’s ok for your main character to find out her crush has a girlfriend, and it doesn’t have to be resolved by the end of the story cause that just doesn’t happen for some of us girls. So yeah I appreciate that about Hannah’s story. I don’t know if she’s going to remain single for the rest of the series, it does seem like in this book there is a guy interested in her but it’s a guy she can’t stand so I’ll let it slide. Hannah’s story is probably the one I related to the most. The one thing I don’t like about Hannah was the stuff she said about Claire. After Claire told them that she was raped Hannah was saying stuff like “Why didn’t she do this? If I was her I’d do this.” Not in front of Claire, at least not at first. Now this book was published in 2013 and I don’t think people then were as sensitive about the way people talk about rape victims as people are now. Still when reading this I can’t help but be like: “You should not be saying this.” Now later in the book Hannah is talking to Palmer and saying this kinda stuff about Claire and Claire overhears and gets upset. After finding out that Claire overheard Hannah immediately regrets what she said and later apologizes to Claire, so that is good. The song that describes Hannah’s story is Plain by Zoegirl. I’m guessing Hannah probably feels plain because no guy’s interested in her.
Palmer
Palmer is probably my favourite character. She’s the one character whose description I remember. Another character described her as looking like Megan Fox but prettier. I also love how when they first get to college Palmer quickly becomes friends with Claire. I just think that’s really beautiful especially when it comes at a time when Claire needs a friend the most. Sadly we don’t see a lot of their friendship in this book. I hope we get more of Claire and Palmer’s friendship in the other books. So I mentioned in my Claire section that my other guess for who was going to get raped was Palmer and that is because Keegan, her boyfriend: he sucks. In pretty much every scene he’s in he is only interested in being physical with Palmer. Early on in the book he’s only interested in kissing/making out with her. Then later he’s trying to pressure her into having sex with him as a way to prove her love for him. No Keegan, if you really loved her you would respect her boundaries. Now in my original edition of this review I wondered why Palmer didn’t just tell Keegan why she didn’t want to have sex with him. Which is kinda ironic given what I said about Hannah but reading over the conversation she had with Keegan on the phone and her inner monologue that goes along with it I think the reason why she doesn’t is because she’s a little confused on what God’s plan is for sex, and she thinks that her reasons for not wanting to have sex are wrong. At least that’s how I’m interpreting it. I have to mention a conversation she had with Hannah about this situation where Hannah’s like “Well maybe God has someone better for you. Maybe you need a break from Keegan.” And I feel Palmer when she responds by saying: “I don’t want a break! I don’t want someone else. I just want Keegan.”(189) I’ve been there. Yeah Keegan sucks but when you’re in love you don’t want anyone else. Also Palmer’s POV has my favourite lines in the whole book: “I would much rather be in the passenger seat, daydreaming and noticing the details of a split-rail fence, or the way cows cluster in a field.”(231) I love car rides so much so I feel this. And this isn’t from Palmer’s POV but it is something Palmer said “I want everything with Keegan to read like a romance novel, but it’s more like a chorus from a Taylor Swift song. I want things how they were, but instead they’re how they are.” (254) speaking of Taylor Swift let’s talk about the song I think fits Palmer’s story. I wasn’t sure what song to do for Palmer’s story then it hit me while writing this review since Palmer says her situation with Keegan is more like the chorus of a Taylor Swift song why not pick a Taylor Swift song? To be historically accurate I decided to pick a song that would have been out during the time the book takes place in. The Taylor Swift albums that were out during this time were: Taylor Swift, Fearless, Speak Now and Red. I was thinking of going through the lyrics from every song from these albums but then I remembered a song that I was already familiar with from this era: Forever & Always from her Fearless album. I especially love the piano version from her re-recorded Fearless album but it wasn’t out in the time this book takes place in. I think this song suits her story because both her and Keegan thought their love story was going to last for a long time and lead to marriage but by the end of the book it looks like that isn’t going to be the case. If there’s a Taylor Swift song from this time that you think better describes her situation please let me know.
Kat
Now when Kat was first introduced I was a little annoyed because she seemed at first to be just a carbon copy of Raven from Laura L Smith’s other series. That was because of her southern accent and her playing soccer. Now, I can’t think of any big differences between Kat’s and Raven’s character but as I got later on in the book it didn’t bother me as much. Kat’s story is about there being two guys fighting over her: Tony and Nicholas. I would say trying to pick between the two but I don’t know if I’d say she does that. There isn’t that much for me to say about Kat. The one thing thing I do have to say about Kat’s story is that when the girls are talking about the two boys Kat says of Tony: “he’s not exactly the kind of boy I’d take home to Mama.” (182) when I first read that I was like “Oh snap.” It spoke to something I was dealing with at the time and here in this review is not a good place to give details. I don’t really know what song suits Kat’s story. I tried looking up songs about love triangles and most of them seem to be where the one person is already in a relationship and that does not seem to be the case here. If anyone has any idea of what songs suit this situation please let me know.
I don’t really know how to end this review.

[Kathrese · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s Complicated is the first book in the Status Updates which follows the story of Claire, Hannah, Palmer, and Kat, new freshman college roommates. The four friends learn to pull together as they navigate through life changing circumstances.

Ms. Smith deftly portrays four very different girls, as they tell their stories–both individual and collective–in their own words. The author tackles some difficult topics in a realistic manner, but she manages to keep the story hopeful and inspiring.

Young Adult readers will relate to the dilemmas and decisions the main characters face. Drama and trauma are interwoven with funny and embarrassing moments.

It’s Complicated introduces the main characters during the end of their summer and first weeks of school. Readers will definitely want to tune back in for the remaining four books in the Status Updates series to find out what happens to Claire, Hannah, Palmer, and Kat.

Due to a couple of adult situations, parents and teachers may determine that this material is inappropriate for middle grade students.

I must confess that contemporary realistic books–especially books written in present tense–are not my favorite cup of tea, but it’s my opinion that other mature adult readers who–like me–frequently read YA fiction may find the style too telling. These accounts read like a young girl’s diary. That’s fine, up to a point, but the constant emotional input from the four girls, revealing all of their feelings through “I feel” and “I felt” statements exhausted me.

That said, Laura L. Smith hits the sweet spot for her intended audience of young women on the threshold of life. This is an inspirational novel that fits neatly under the heading of Christian contemporary YA fiction. However, at least in the first book, there is no overt “altar call” as is found in some inspirational fiction. This is the way Christian fiction should be written, keeping things real and addressing the difficult questions we face.

For Young Adult/New Adult readers, It’s Complicated will fly past and end too soon, and they will want to pick up each new installment as soon as it’s available.

For the complete review, including spoilers and a book trailer, visit momsread.com.

[Bethany Baldwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. Laura has a very engrossing style of writing that kept me reading, wondering what was going to happen to the characters. Since the story is split up between four girls, sometimes it would jerk you out of a tense moment in one character's life, and put you in another girl's. I would want to see what was going to happen to the first girl, but pretty soon I'd be taken in with the second girl's world.

Mrs. Smith writes very real, truthful, hard-hitting books. She puts these girls in real life situations, with real life emotions. Though I may not approve of some of the girl's dating decisions, or other decisions they make in the book, she's woven a story that is very true to most teenagers these days.

I appreciated the faith element in the story, and how God was telling the girl's to lean on Him. Sometimes we have to be strong enough to let things go, and let God have His way.

This book is under Young Adult as far as I'm aware, though I will warn younger readers: There is some very mature issues addressed, things that some girls have had to go through. If I had to pick an age group for this book, I would actually say fifteen and up. Maybe it's just because I never read anything with such mature issues when I was fourteen and younger, or something else. I just feel that this is a story for older teens who aren't uncomfortable getting into the nitty gritty part of life that many girls have to navigate.

In the end, I thought It's Complicated was a well written book. It's a good story, with characters girls can relate to. I also loved the references in the novel, like Les Miserables. I can't wait to get my hands on the sequel.

[Kasey Giard · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Claire meets a girl looking for a third and fourth college roommate, she takes a chance and accepts. Sharing a room with Hannah and her friends will be awesome. Hannah is bubbly and bright. Palmer, Hannah’s bestie is looking for friends to fill the gap that will be left when she moves away from her long-time boyfriend. Despite her excitement about being on the college soccer team, Kat is thrilled at the possibility of friends off the field. But just as roomie preparations are finally in place, the unthinkable happens, and one of the girls is raped. How can she face her new friends now? Maybe she’s too soiled to fit in with them anymore.
As the four girls juggle classes, homework, living space and boy interest, they learn they have more in common than they initially thought. And they’ll need all their strengths if they are to band together and help each other through the heartaches and hardships of freshman year at college.
When it comes to dating and relationships issues, author Laura L. Smith doesn’t mess around. Hitting heavy topics like date rape and peer pressure, she remains frank but not intensely graphic. The rape victim asks real questions and endures a grieving process. As the characters face peer pressure, they respond with realistic emotional confliction and growth. The spiritual journey by comparison begins deep for each girl, but doesn’t seem to undergo the same beautiful blossoming as the emotional journey of the girls. Over all, this first novel in the Status Updates Series is a warm, fun read about having great girl friends.

[Jennifer Murgia · Rating 5 out of 5]

College is the birth of a new beginning. At least it should be. It’s the time to be on your own, meet new people, and get on with the life you’ve always wanted. But how do you move on when you bring your past with you? How do you incorporate what has meant the most into your new beginning, or rather, try to forget something that doesn’t belong at all?
College Roomies, Kat, Hannah, Palmer and Claire are standing on the brink of their futures—an aspiring athlete, ballerina, a girl searching for love, and one trying to hold onto it. Author Laura L. Smith has done a remarkable job of allowing each girl to shine in her own light then bringing them together beneath a shadow of doubt—allowing them to see that together they are a million times stronger than alone.

[Jessica Andrews · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a book about 4 girls who become room mates in university, it's so cool because they just kind of find each other, it's like god wanted them together. They all have lots of different issues which surround them and this novel introduces all of them and their individuals lives and issues. I fell in love with them all from the beginning ( Especially Claire) and they had me on a little emotional roller coaster all the way through. I was never sure what they were going to throw at me next. I really really really loved it and I cannot wait to read the second book in her series when it's released. Since I'm on the street team I have some little facts to share with you about the author and the book:

[Reaganstar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful story of four girls who start our as college roommates and become friends, all completely unique but learning that together anything can be accomplished. Follow the girls stories as through trials and tribulations they learn and grow, laugh and cry with them even get outraged. There are religious tones in this book, but please don't shy away from it because of that. It truly is a wonderful novel and the beginning of what can only be a great series of books. Laura write out what is a beautiful story, covering many topics from your favorite to taboo. Fans of Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants, you will love the starting book in this series.

[Stephanie Morrill · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's Complicated follows four very different girls into their first moments of adulthood. I loved the blend of their unique personalities and struggles. The way the girls work together and are for each other despite their differences reminded me of The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants. Laura Smith does a wonderful job of balancing fun, girly moments with the serious issues that face young girls today. A great read for older teens and twenty somethings!

[avery joy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was very disappointed in this book. I loved and hated it.

The writing was amazing and it sounded like a great story. Until it got too romantic. After reading parts of this book I was shocked that it is a Christian book. I'm just speechless. I would not recommend this at all. I am not finishing this book. :(

[Angelina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laura Smith tells a beautiful story of four incoming college freshman. The emotional and spiritual lives of four girls who face boy trouble, from the regular sad to the truly heart wrenching kind, are carefully crafted and compelling. The student athlete who plays soccer, the pretty girl, the ballet dancer who's trip to Paris ends up including a horrible night, and the girl with the long term relationship to her high school sweetheart are sweet, insightful characters that portray what it's like to start on the exciting, terrifying, and game-changing journey that is college. The best part is that in spite of their differences, the four girls become best friends and fierce champion's of each other's well-being, happiness, and success. I'm excited to read the next book in the series.

[Barb Hankins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laura L. Smith writes good, honest, hard-hitting books. She puts the characters in realistic situations, with raw emotion, which I enjoy.I believe this book is a good one for teens.

[SparksofEmber · Rating 2 out of 5]

Out of all the books from the book club, It’s Complicated (Status Updates #1) by Laura L. Smith was very unique in several ways. For one – it alternated between four different points of view. For another, it’s intensely issue-driven. I ended up enjoying the book but I wasn’t sure I would at first. It took quite a few chapters for me to get all the girls straight and be comfortable with the head hopping. I liked Kat the best – partly because of her name – but I also liked how she seemed to have a level head though she took some risks driving around with boys she barely knew. Oh, and I didn’t realize Palmer was olive-skinned until almost the very end of the book.

Also I was so confused after the prologue when suddenly Claire was in Paris. I was expecting the story to start with the girls in college – I hadn’t realized half the book would be the summer beforehand with all the girls separated. Plus I was expecting a main plot with a beginning, middle and end. This felt more… slice-of-life is what I want to call it? Each of the girls just living their lives and encountering various real-life guy issues and many of the arcs not having any closure. (Presumably they are addressed in the rest of the series?)

The biggest thing was I knew a date-rape was coming at some point (thanks to another reviewer) but since I didn’t know who, I felt like that part was hanging over my head lurking around every corner and I couldn’t enjoy the book until it was behind me. I did think the rape was handled very well, though. I’m very sensitive to anything involving children or SVU situations. I put down the book after the rape scene and had a hard time sleeping afterwards – I was glad to get that part over with but it bummed me out for the rest of the night. But if I hadn’t known it was coming, I would have been taken aback and furious, so I’m not sure the book is marked well in that regard.

I can definitely see where this book is fantastically realistic for what teens that age go through. I spent the entire book thinking the girls were attending the most liberal Christian college I’d ever heard of only to learn afterwards it was a secular school. Well that explained the mixed-gender dorms and alcohol! lol Thankfully I didn’t encounter any of the situations the 4 girls did when I was in college, but I was blessed in that regard.

[Unabridged Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s Complicated is a beautiful story about four girls getting ready to go off to college, and how they deal with the obstacles in their way. It’s Complicated is Christian Fiction, not something that I tend to read because if it is not written just right, to me it can sound too preachy or forced. That is definitely not the case with It’s Complicated. The story about the girls takes the focus of the story, their faith factors in but does not overshadow the story.

The story is told from alternating views of all four girls, Hannah, Palmer, Claire, and Kat. All four of the girls share a dorm room and bond instantly to each other. As we begin to learn about each character, something life changing happens to one of the girls, and how they deal with it will shape their entire friendship. It’s Complicated is a powerful story, because it deals with real issues and gives them a voice through the characters.

The surrounding and the characters are very well developed so developed they feel like real people at a real college, because the story is about girls finding themselves and their way through the college experience. With each girl having a completely separate personality, it is beautiful to see it come together and form a tight group of friends.

Whether you are into Christian fiction or not, It’s Complicated is necessary read especially for those college bound. It is a beautiful insight into the anxiety and fear or moving away from the parents and trying to live for once on your own. I know that I liked It’s Complicated so much that I will be coming back for the next installment in the Status Updates series.

**Unabridged Bookshelf received this book in exchange for an honest review**

[Alexa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was all right, but there were a couple of things that I didn't really like about it. For one, the chapters ended too abruptly. I mentioned in one earlier review of another book that the chapter endings were weird because they went on too long. Well, in this book, I felt like the chapter endings were often abrupt. There would be a scene that seemed pretty important, I was on the edge of my seat, and all of the sudden, it'd be be over when there was so much more that could have been -- in fact, needed to be -- said.
Also (and this one may have been just me) there was a lot of description about them getting ready in the morning, about their makeup and stuff. It was a bit more than I needed to know, I think, especially at one point when they're out looking for Claire in the rain, and Palmer stops and looks in a bathroom. She notices her hair and everything is messed up and then we get into a paragraph-long description of her primping while one of her best friends is still missing. I mean, they could've kept it simple, "she fluffed her hair and threw on some lip gloss," maybe, but with the whole paragraph, Palmer came off as a bit too obsessed with her appearance, and I don't think that's what the author meant.
All-in-all, I did enjoy the story. But, the above mentioned things kind of turned me off a little.

[Gretchen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Readers who love buddy-chic literature like The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, will love the Status Updates series. It's Complicated is edgier than most Christian fiction but realistic. I loved how each of the characters had distinct personalities and tastes. I enjoyed this book and want to read the series to follow their stories.

[Lisa Godfrees · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved it. The four POVs worked really well and I'm interested to read the rest of the series. I loved that it was issue driven fiction. What a great book for teen girls!

[Angie · Rating 1 out of 5]

not my kind of book. Could not finish.

[Sheila Holmes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable read!

[Melinda Freeland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another enjoyable Christian YA novel by author Laura L. Smith!