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Jo & Laurie
by
Bestselling authors Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Cruz bring us a romantic retelling of Little Women starring Jo March and her best friend, the boy next door, Theodore "Laurie" Laurence.
1869, Concord, Massachusetts: After the publication of her first novel, Jo March is shocked to discover her book of scribbles has become a bestseller, and her publisher and fans demand a ...more
1869, Concord, Massachusetts: After the publication of her first novel, Jo March is shocked to discover her book of scribbles has become a bestseller, and her publisher and fans demand a ...more
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Hardcover, 384 pages
Published
June 2nd 2020
by G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
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If everyone can rate this one star without reading it, I will rate it 5 stars. Why is this wrong? It's just fiction, really. I read about books with Romeo ending up with Roselina, The prince ending up with a reedemed Stepsister, Christine ending up with the Phantom of the Opera... REALLY NOW. This book is not saying THIS IS HOW THE STORY SHOULD HAVE ENDED, just explores the possibility of what if.
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Jan 26, 2020
Enne
marked it as no
i miss ten seconds ago when i didn't know this existed
...more

Feb 09, 2020
Ann
marked it as to-read
Sounds like it could be fun, I dunno. Let's actually read it before we judge it, ey? Peeps need to chill out and stop 1-starring this just cuz they dislike the idea of it.
...more

it's 2020, let's not shove a gal who is clearly not attracted to men together with her childhood guy friend come on
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Jan 24, 2020
Olivia Williford (LivTheBookNerd)
marked it as never
Initial thoughts upon reading the synopsis for the first time: ABSOLUTELY NOT! TAKE IT BACK!
Not only is this complete LW sacrilege *insert academic swoon*, but it’s also a massive F-you to the queen that is Louisa May Alcott.
This fanfic should never have left the drafts. This completely screws over Jo, her autonomy, and completely undoes the point that LMA made by asserting Jo’s independence and desire to find who was right for her.
SHE (Jo) SAID NO, LET IT CONTINUE TO BE NO!
Jo and Laurie are b ...more
Not only is this complete LW sacrilege *insert academic swoon*, but it’s also a massive F-you to the queen that is Louisa May Alcott.
This fanfic should never have left the drafts. This completely screws over Jo, her autonomy, and completely undoes the point that LMA made by asserting Jo’s independence and desire to find who was right for her.
SHE (Jo) SAID NO, LET IT CONTINUE TO BE NO!
Jo and Laurie are b ...more

I am a HUGE fan of Little Women. I’ve read the book countless times, and, well, y’all know all about my obsession with the movie already. So obviously I was really excited, yet slightly nervous about this, and know the story very well!
The second thing I wanted to talk about is the fact that people are prejudiced against this book without even reading it. This isn’t mere fanfiction, nor a simple retelling. The storyline itself takes place in between part one and part two, and even the characters ...more
The second thing I wanted to talk about is the fact that people are prejudiced against this book without even reading it. This isn’t mere fanfiction, nor a simple retelling. The storyline itself takes place in between part one and part two, and even the characters ...more

Let's complete disrespect Louisa May Alcott's intention in writing Jo as a strong character who chose whomever she knew was best for her, let's take her agency as a woman just so you can sell your fanfic...
As a fanfic writer myself, I'm here to tell you this should have never left FF.net or AO3...
Maybe it should have stayed in the drafts!
Count me completely out of it! ...more
As a fanfic writer myself, I'm here to tell you this should have never left FF.net or AO3...
Maybe it should have stayed in the drafts!
Count me completely out of it! ...more

I cannot wait for this!! I totally respect Laurie and Amy but I’m also completely down to read about a Jo and Laurie ship because little Sue was heartbroken when I first read LW and realized they weren’t getting together. Let me dream!
Maybe I’m just a romantic but I’ve never had trouble shipping characters both canon and otherwise. Hermione and Ron? Yes. Hermione and Draco? Hell yes. Draco and Harry? Sure. Alina and the Darkling? Hot. Alina and Mal? Perfection.
REVIEW:
So I finished the book, ...more
Maybe I’m just a romantic but I’ve never had trouble shipping characters both canon and otherwise. Hermione and Ron? Yes. Hermione and Draco? Hell yes. Draco and Harry? Sure. Alina and the Darkling? Hot. Alina and Mal? Perfection.
REVIEW:
So I finished the book, ...more

Feb 08, 2020
Rosa
added it
THE UTTER DISRESPECT. Leave Jo fucking be.

May 24, 2020
Grace Mullins
marked it as to-read
Many years ago I was a preteen who HATED that Laurie and Jo did not end up together. So shut up and take my money cause I need a fluffy retelling like this after over a decade of still being heartbroken.

Jan 24, 2020
Dana Al-Basha دانة الباشا
marked it as to-buy
Oooh la la!!! This seems amazing! There has always been a part of me that wished for Jo and Laurie to have ended up together though I love his love with Amy but Jo is special!





...more







When I first read the original "Little Women" by Alcott, my heart was broken in two by Jo and Laurie's relationship. I shipped them HARD. Once I got into the acceptance stage of my grief I fell in love with the newly adapted movie and all the relationships and the growth between the sisters and love interests. BUT I was thrilled to jump into another parallel universe in which Jo and Laurie could possibly end up together.
The language and the characters felt true to the original story. I was wrapp ...more
The language and the characters felt true to the original story. I was wrapp ...more


As if 2020 hasn't been enough of a mess. Take it back. Let's pretend this never happened. ...more

I received an ARC of this book from Penguin Teen through NetGalley!
I have neither read Little Women, nor have I watched it, and as embarrassing as it is, I don't know what it is about either. My review is not based on how accurately I think the original story and characters transfer over into this book, but on how I enjoyed this book as a whole, independent of anything else.
Overall, I enjoyed this book―it was wholesome and cute! I found it really easy to read and it flowed really well. Conside ...more
I have neither read Little Women, nor have I watched it, and as embarrassing as it is, I don't know what it is about either. My review is not based on how accurately I think the original story and characters transfer over into this book, but on how I enjoyed this book as a whole, independent of anything else.
Overall, I enjoyed this book―it was wholesome and cute! I found it really easy to read and it flowed really well. Conside ...more

Jan 29, 2020
Toni
marked it as not-interested
(My initial review for this book was driven by a hasty and uninformed decision, so I am removing it. Nonetheless, what with my backlog and all, I'm unlikely to read this book in the foreseeable future.)
...more

Okay, I want to start this review with just mentioning that this book is getting an unnecessary amount of hate because of what it's about. The Goodreads rating has been going down because people who haven't read it are rating it! If this isn't your cup of tea, no problem, but I'm here to judge the book on the content, not just on the idea. Personally, I thought this book was cute. Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Cruz both know how to write a solid book, so I didn't think there were any glaring
...more

hm.
I consider myself a pretty hardcore little women fan, as in like i have a vintage copy, sobbed my eyes out the first time I read the whole book, and consider the recent adaptation one of my favorite movies of all time. I come from a family of four girls after all.
so whilst I do agree with many, many reviews on here stating that canon Jo should not be with Laurie, this is not canon Jo. It's a completely different character.
therefore, I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would.
there ar ...more
I consider myself a pretty hardcore little women fan, as in like i have a vintage copy, sobbed my eyes out the first time I read the whole book, and consider the recent adaptation one of my favorite movies of all time. I come from a family of four girls after all.
so whilst I do agree with many, many reviews on here stating that canon Jo should not be with Laurie, this is not canon Jo. It's a completely different character.
therefore, I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would.
there ar ...more

Wonderful and heart-warming novel that takes place immediately following the end of Little Women. It re-imagines some of the events of Little Women and gives the reader a chance to revisit the characters. It's labeled a YA book but I would recommend it for Little Women fans of any age.
...more

Regardless of one's opinions on this book's whole concept, one has to admit that this is a good book. If you subtract Jo and Laurie's romance, you are left with a narrative and a writing style that mirrors Louisa May Alcott's.
I was thoroughly shocked by how well Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Cruz captured Little Women's tone, humour, the March family dynamic, the language, the setting and the characters. It was beautiful. Absolutely stunning. As soon as I read the first page, I knew where I ...more
I was thoroughly shocked by how well Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Cruz captured Little Women's tone, humour, the March family dynamic, the language, the setting and the characters. It was beautiful. Absolutely stunning. As soon as I read the first page, I knew where I ...more

Thank you so much to MBC books for sending me an ARC.
“Because of all the other little sisters- the ones you’ll never know or meet- who you’ve made believe they could tell a story on their own.”
I grew up reading classics like Little Women and The Secret Garden and Heidi. So when I say that I think these authors did an amazing job of this retelling, I mean it. They captured the vibe of Louisa’s writing perfectly, it honestly didn’t even feel much like a retelling and felt a lot like it could have ...more
“Because of all the other little sisters- the ones you’ll never know or meet- who you’ve made believe they could tell a story on their own.”
I grew up reading classics like Little Women and The Secret Garden and Heidi. So when I say that I think these authors did an amazing job of this retelling, I mean it. They captured the vibe of Louisa’s writing perfectly, it honestly didn’t even feel much like a retelling and felt a lot like it could have ...more

I love retellings of my favorite fairy tales and Austen stories, but this is the first one I've read about Little Women. I had no idea what to expect, and it was an interesting read. Jo is much younger than I expected her to be at this point in the story- they have her at seventeen, and the timeline seems a bit off from the original story. Beth has died, and Jo is a successfully published author of Little Women, but is struggling with the sequel she is contracted to write. The authors did a good
...more

Mar 31, 2020
˗ˏˋ janet ˊˎ˗
marked it as do-not-support
jo is not attracted to males say it with me !!!!

This book was just eh. I was super excited leading up to it because Jo & Laurie should have ended up together, but this didn’t do their relationship justice. It was boring and I had a hard time getting through it. Almost 300 pages were just set to developing the characters in Little Women and setting them up for the plot of this book. The authors’ seemed to get better with writing Jo & Laurie’s romance as the book went on, but it really just wasn’t up to Louisa May Alcott’s standards. The last 6
...more

I devoured this in 12 hours, that doesn't happen near as often as I would like. I have always been a fan of Little Women and its beloved characters. More so, I am a big fan of Jo & Laurie as a couple. As a reader and a fan, I am thrilled that this did not disappoint in the slightest. A little "what if" retelling is good for the soul. How it unfolded was fun, emotional, and creative; not what I was expecting at all. I loved every word, consider my whalebone corset thoroughly melted. 😉 The banter
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Mar 31, 2020
Ron
added it
what is DIS hunny?
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Challenge Corner: Jo & Laurie by Margaret Stohl --> Starting November 20th, 2020 | 26 | 7 | Dec 01, 2020 04:18PM | |
Bookish First Rea...: Jo & Laurie by Margaret Stohl | 8 | 36 | May 01, 2020 01:14PM |
Margaret Stohl is the #1 New York Times, PW, USA Today, LA Times and Internationally bestselling co-author or author of twelve books, including the BEAUTIFUL CREATURES NOVELS, the DANGEROUS CREATURES NOVELS, the ICONS NOVELS, MARVEL'S BLACK WIDOW NOVELS, ROYCE ROLLS & CATS VS ROBOTS THIS IS WAR (forthcoming!) She writes the MIGHTY CAPTAIN MARVEL comic for Marvel Comics (ongoing) and has contribute
...more
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