13 LITTLE BLUE ENVELOPES is one of my favorite books. It brought me to new places as Ginny traveled all across Europe on a quest to fulfill her dead aunt’s wishes. Maureen Johnson gave me adventure, romance, character growth, and lots and lots of laughter. So when I discovered she had completed a sequel—THE LAST LITTLE BLUE ENVELOPE—I couldn’t wait to reconnect with my old friend Ginny and see what escapades Johnson has up her sleeves now.
First, the jacket copy:
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.
I am pleased to say that I enjoyed the sequel even better than the first. A surprising thing I loved in this story was that even though I figured out almost all the major twists and turns almost immediately, it only increased the tension and the desire to swallow the story in one big gulp, waiting for Ginny to put all the pieces together. Oliver, the mysterious boy who contacts Ginny, was a great twist and I could tell from the moment he stepped on the page that not only did he have his own past, but that he would make a great love interest.
Keith, Ginny’s flirtation from book one, is back and as crazy as ever. Only this time, he has a girlfriend in tow—one he has kept secret from Ginny despite their months of rampant emailing. Ellis is charming and as much as Ginny and the reader would love to hate her, she is simply adorable, which makes things all the harder for poor Ginny. Add in Oliver, the blackmailing, hot, quintessential English boy, all squeezed into a tiny box of a car traipsing across Europe and you have yourself one interesting travel arrangement.
The relationships and character exploration was key in this sequel, a slight shift from the spotlight on travel in its predecessor. The relationship with Richard—Aunt Peg’s husband—and even with Aunt Peg herself are given more time to develop, and the question of what is up with Keith keeps the reader turning the pages. I must say that Oliver was my favorite character and I got a little impatient for the reader to discover his secrets, learn what a not so bad guy he really is, and start the romance already! But with the ending leaving the possibility of Ginny coming to England for college, I can only hope another story in the works.
Bottom line? If you enjoy exploring different places and cultures, this book has it. If you love watching nuanced and complex characters forced into crazy situations with tons of sexual tension to boot, this book is for you. And if adore love stories with heart and protagonists who are witty and real, you must check out this book.
Maureen Johnson’s hysterical voice keeps you laughing, and her gift of creating lovable characters is never better displayed than in Ginny’s stories. My fingers are crossed that we have not seen the last of Ms. Ginny.
