The Making of Mila and Blake | Estelle Maskame
Published: 5th May 2022 by Ink Road
Rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars
The conclusion to the Mila series by Estelle Maskame, The Making of Mila and Blake is a fitting conclusion that has a good dose of drama, whilst wrapping up loose ends nicely.
It’s been two years since Mila and Blake last saw each other. Much has changed for both of them and Mila’s on a mission to put the past behind her before heading to college. Goodbye family drama, Hollywood crises . . . and Blake.
Until she finds out Blake is also back in their hometown for the summer, with his troubled father and a brand-new girlfriend in tow. With no way of avoiding each other, it’s impossible to forget what happened between them, and buried feelings soon erupt to the surface.
Has enough time passed that they could try one last time, or has it been too long since they were on the same path? Will this be the making of Mila and Blake . . . or their undoing?
Mila and Blake's journey was a dramatic and fun one from the get go. With lots of family drama, celebrity gossip and small town vibes, all three books in the series are lighthearted, enjoyable, and embody the YA tropes of hopefulness and bright eyed determinism so well.
Whilst the stories are quite simplistic, I really found myself invested and rooting for the characters throughout. The emotional undercurrent is always intense and really evokes the feelings of first love. Their relationship is also wonderfully honest and I enjoy how they are depicted as individuals as well as as a couple. There was also a great level of character development in this book, with the leads really coming into their own and forming their own views and opinions away from their families and surroundings.
An aspect of The Making of Mila and Blake that I really enjoyed was the lovely side characters. Mila's best friends Tori and Savannah have a great bond and even when obstacles arise they are loyal to one another and are a great example of a strong friendship. It was lovely to see the world Mila had created for herself and how she was flourishing. There's also the addition of the new stable hand Teddy, who adds another level of drama and is enjoyable to read about. All these characters added necessary scope and development to the stories and I can certainly anticipate a spin off story about them.
Alongside the upbeat vibes of the blossoming romance, there's also some deeper, more heart-wrenching moments which are sensitively broached and bring further depth to the book.
Overall The Making of Mila and Blake is a sweet as pie closing to Mila and Blake's journey that packs a lot into a short book and is really entertaining. If you're a fan of YA romance then definitely pick this, and the previous books in the series up!
*I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review, all views and opinions are my own