Introduction
Nick and Charlie is the novella following the relationship of the main Hearstopper characters Nick Nelson and Charlie spring, written by Alice Oseman and published in July 2015. This novella is essentially an epilogue for the Hearstopper series that follows their relationship even though it was released before the novels.
Storyline / plot
This is a short story that takes place a year or two after the original series. It describes the relationship Nick and Charlie have as an inseparable pair as well as hinting at a couple events within the first few books.
We get to see Charlie on his recovery from anorexia which we also saw in solitaire. In the novella there are discussions on how Charlie feels about being away from Nick while he goes to Universtiy and Charlie stays in their hometown to complete his final year of A levels.
The couple of course have had miscommunications before, but Charlie is unable to express his concerns about the distance to Nick as he doesn’t want to make him feel bad for being excited about such a huge change in his life.
Nick senses Charlies concerns and sees his change in behavior and fears the worst from past experiences, but is worried the wrong words may have a dangerous effect on charlie. Will the couple see eye to eye before Nick leaves?
Writing style
The novella differs from the rest of the series as it is written as a standard novel not a graphic novel which is what so many fans fell in love with in the hearstopper series. Again we do get glimpses of the other characters within the series but we get much more of a focus on Nick and Charlie.
Alice Oseman has a way with writing stories where the characters are mostly young adults/ late teens, but the characters are written so well you really do get the image of teenagers as they are, not over exaggerated or stereotyped.
Pros/ cons
I felt like as a novella it was the perfect way to end Nick and Charlie’s story. We got to see how their relationship progressed through time, and how they each grew and supported each other through their own difficulties. It was also nice to see how the worry of a long distance can affect any relationship no matter what age along with the concerns of a change in dynamic can concern people in the relationship. In future I would love to see more of Nick and Charlie, and how their relationship was while Nick was away at University but, I am satisfied with the ending we have.
Conclusion
Overall I rated the novella five stars, I thought it was a really good ending, with good closure on the series. The wrap of all of the characters was written well and the plot was a nice continuation from the series, and it picked up in a nice place that wasn’t confusing from the main series. Overall I really enjoyed this novella and was sad for the Hearstopper series to come to an end.