I have been putting off writing this review because I really wanted to give myself time to process how I felt about this book. I was SO excited to read it. The cover is amazing, the blurb was intriguing and the reviews were overwhelmingly positive.
So, I read it...and, I think I liked it- a lot. It started off SO great. I thought, "now this is different and gritty and slightly uncomfortable."
It set us up for what would be the main points of tension in the book and introduced us to Elizabeth (our heroine) in a way that really laid her bare.
So far, so great:
Chapter 1 is two years later and she has moved onto a different phase in her life, even though she is still holding firm to the difficult lessons she learned in the prologue. That is where is starts to devolve for me. We meet her best friend who is childish and insensitive. She has another best friend, Blake whose role in the story was a little problematic for me. Spoiler(view spoiler)[ He was so in love with Elizabeth for the whole book, but then somehow he hooks up with her other BFF and that story line just didn't fully develop or flesh out for me. But maybe they will have their own book? (hide spoiler)] Declan (our hero) and the heroine Elizabeth eyes on each other for the first time and there is supposed to be some sort of awareness that runs between them - at least I think there is- but I couldn't quite tell. Then they meet at some frat party and their angst ridden, back and forth banter begins. Elizabeth is very blunt while at the same time sends mixed signals. Declan sends mixed signals until suddenly (and without any real reason or motivation) he doesn't and he just wants her for himself forever. I typically don't read NA/YA novels. I spent my 20s in grad school, drinking, dating, partying and just being young. I can't imagine being 21 and deciding that I've met the love of my life. But, I know that some people have done that so I don't discount that experience, it's just hard for me to relate. Every once in a while, I will read a YA novel that has mature characters that you can actually believe have the presence of mind and emotional maturity to fall in love forever and do the work it takes to make it work Art and Soul. This book falls a little short for me in this department. Look, Declan is ALL off the charts hot. He's got that bad boy vibe going for him. He is wealthy, an independent thinker, really into Elizabeth, and not afraid to let his feelings show. Our heroine on the other hand is not very likable. She does have some hard things to deal with, but she seems slightly self destructive and I don't exactly get what makes Declan fall so in love with her. But, I guess love doesn't have to make sense for anyone but the two people involved with each other. And because I thought the writing was actually pretty good, I was able to finish the book and really wanted to see how things would end, because I decided that it was okay if I didn't understand what drove them to the HEA. It's a short read and if angsty YA is your thing, I would recommend you gobble it up.
