Review: I Made Lattes for a Love God

When almost 16-year-old Elly Pickering finds out the Jake Blake, teen heart-throb and box office sensation, is coming to film his latest movie in Oldcastle she can’t believe her luck. She will get a role as an extra in the movie, someone will notice that she deserves so much more and move her into a speaking role, she’ll meet Jake, they’ll fall in love and the rest will become Hollywood history. *sigh*

Unfortunately, things don’t quite go as Elly plans, which isn’t surprising when she failed to factor in her boyfriend Will, her older sister Tilly’s crush on Jake and the fact that every teenage girl in Oldcastle is also trying to get Jake’s attention.

Elly’s dreams quickly collide with reality and before she knows it, she has lost her dignity, her job and her best friend. What can Elly do to get everything back to normal?

I loved Wendy Harmer’s debut YA novel I Lost My Mobile at the Mall and I was pleased to discover that I Made Lattes for a Love God returns readers to Oldcastle, Britannia so that we can follow the further adventures of the delightful Elly Pickering.

Harmer perfectly captures the voice of her teen characters, weaving an entertaining and humorous story with the kinds of issues and concerns that tween and young teen readers will easily relate to – peer pressure, friendships, relationships, issues with parents and siblings, and trying to navigate the rocky road to adulthood.

I Made Lattes for a Love God is fun young YA fiction. There is some appearance vs. reality Hollywood dramas, daggy dad jokes, a touch of romance and lots of laughs with Elly and her friends. I’ve got my fingers crossed that Harmer has another Elly Pickering story in store for us in the future.


Title: I Made Lattes for a Love God
Author: Wendy Harmer
Publisher: Allen & Unwin, $19.99 RRP
Publication Date: November 2012
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781742379913
For ages: 12 - 18 years
Type: Young adult fiction