View source for The Diaries of Bluebell Gadsby: After Iris by Natasha Farrant

{{infobox1
|title=The Diaries of Bluebell Gadsby: After Iris
|sort=Diaries of Bluebell Gadsby: After Iris, The
|author=Natasha Farrant
|reviewer=Robert James
|genre=Teens
|rating=4
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=978-0571278213
|pages=320
|publisher=Faber and Faber
|date=July 2013
|website=http://www.natashafarrant.com
|summary=Touching and well-written, this is a good start to the Bluebell Gadsby series, and I'm already looking forward to the next book.
|cover=0571278213
|aznuk=0571278213
|aznus=0571278213
}}
A few years after Iris's death, her twin sister Bluebell is still getting used to life without her. She's also having to cope with her parents' frequent absences, the new au pair, and the cute boy who's just moved in next door. Can she solve all her problems? And are the rest of her family coping with Iris being gone any better than she is?

I was expecting this to be a massive tearjerker - partly due to the subject and partly because Natasha Farrant's [[The Things We Did for Love by Natasha Farrant|The Things We Did for Love]] had me in floods of tears. Actually, though, much of it is a surprisingly light read, as Bluebell and her siblings try to cope with the new au pair and the absence of their parents, while Blue falls for the older boy next door. Once it gets closer to the end, it's definitely more likely to make you cry than laugh, though. It didn't have as much of an impact on me as ''The Things We Did For Love'' did, but it's certainly a touching read. 

Farrant's characters are a little hit and miss here. Bluebell herself is wonderful - trying her hardest to keep things going in a somewhat madcap family - and I found Flora, her older sister, and boy next door Joss to be realistic. As for Bosnian au pair Zoran, kind, caring and funny, he steals nearly every scene he's in! Her parents, on the other hand, and former friend Dodi, felt relatively weak. Despite this drawback, Farrant's easy to read writing style - including transcripts of videos Bluebell films, which really add to the story - a good plot, and some hilarious scenes mean that it's well worth checking out. I'll look forward to reading the next in the series!

Recommended to young to mid teens. 

I think fans of this one will really like another book about a great family of siblings, the delightful [[Debutantes by Cora Harrison]].

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