****4 Stars****
This to me, was a story of misconceptions, more so because Samantha's mother, a Senator, a person who supposedly acts on behalf of the people, ironically knows nothing about the people.
The Garrett's have moved next door and OK they were larger than the average family (there's the mum the dad and eight kids). Samantha's mother is appalled at the unkepmt appearance of the Garretts, in so much as the garden is untended, the mother openly breast feeds on the front step and the younger children run around virtually naked.
This YA book, was by no means an easy one to read. The sheer number of Garretts, took some time to absorb, but then throw in a few more characters, which I felt could have been characterised a lot clearer and it took some time to actually work out who was who. In addition to this, the book is clearly aimed for a US audience because much of the terminology wasn't something I, as a Brit, was particularly familiar with and in today's market of eBooks and the fact these books have become available worldwide, I do feel that the author could possibly be isolating a potential market.
There were some grammatical errors which also meant often having to refer back, to work out what was actually meant.
This book is ultimately about two people who meet i.e. Samantha Reed and Jase Garrett, and the obstacles that get in their way i.e. Samantha's over opinionated mother. I felt on occasion there were too many distractions from the actual romance itself, because quite frankly I loved Samantha and Jase and the basic story itself was awesome. I loved Tim, he was perfectly imperfect which made him stand out from so many of the other characters.
There are some parts or the story which I felt were what I can only describe as 'brushed under the carpet' and this, for me, gives the book an unfinished feel.
Maybe I have been overly critical in my review, especially considering I've given it 4 stars, but for me there is such a huge potential for this book to be amazing and quite possibly a 5 star read.
Reviewed by Louise Dale
This to me, was a story of misconceptions, more so because Samantha's mother, a Senator, a person who supposedly acts on behalf of the people, ironically knows nothing about the people.
The Garrett's have moved next door and OK they were larger than the average family (there's the mum the dad and eight kids). Samantha's mother is appalled at the unkepmt appearance of the Garretts, in so much as the garden is untended, the mother openly breast feeds on the front step and the younger children run around virtually naked.
This YA book, was by no means an easy one to read. The sheer number of Garretts, took some time to absorb, but then throw in a few more characters, which I felt could have been characterised a lot clearer and it took some time to actually work out who was who. In addition to this, the book is clearly aimed for a US audience because much of the terminology wasn't something I, as a Brit, was particularly familiar with and in today's market of eBooks and the fact these books have become available worldwide, I do feel that the author could possibly be isolating a potential market.
There were some grammatical errors which also meant often having to refer back, to work out what was actually meant.
This book is ultimately about two people who meet i.e. Samantha Reed and Jase Garrett, and the obstacles that get in their way i.e. Samantha's over opinionated mother. I felt on occasion there were too many distractions from the actual romance itself, because quite frankly I loved Samantha and Jase and the basic story itself was awesome. I loved Tim, he was perfectly imperfect which made him stand out from so many of the other characters.
There are some parts or the story which I felt were what I can only describe as 'brushed under the carpet' and this, for me, gives the book an unfinished feel.
Maybe I have been overly critical in my review, especially considering I've given it 4 stars, but for me there is such a huge potential for this book to be amazing and quite possibly a 5 star read.
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/22TTjA2
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1UH7nXr
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