Review: Infinite Repeat by Paula Stokes

Title: Infinite Repeat
Author: Paula Stokes
Series: companion novella to The Art of Lainey
Publisher: HarperTeen Impulse
Publication Date: August 5, 2014
Source: purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Seventeen-year-old Micah Foster is looking forward to the return of his girlfriend, Amber, who's been away in Los Angeles recording an EP with her band. But when Amber returns home on the anniversary of Micah's dad's death, something feels different and Micah pushes her away.

Over the next week, as Micah tries to repair his relationship with Amber, he relives the events of the past few years and recognizes a pattern. His friends and family are right--he self-destructs every April, right around the time his dad died, hurting people he cares about in the process. Will Amber be this year's casualty? Or can Micah escape his past in time to fix his present?

Sometimes when you pay $1.99 for a novella, you end up with buyer's remorse: either it was too short to justify $2, it was a totally unnecessary addition to the story or series, or it just fell flat for whatever reason. Infinite Repeat was none of those things. It wasn't as happy-go-lucky as Paula's full-length The Art of Lainey, but that's the point. This is Micah's story pre-Lainey...and if you've read Lainey, you know that the mohawked hottie has had a rough time over the last six years.

Coming in at 128 pages, Infinite Repeat is the perfect length and a STEAL at $2. I loved Micah in Lainey, and I knew I wanted more of his story...especially how he got to the place he was at when we first met him. And though he did eventually tell Lainey the full story of the night that irrevocably changed his life, I feel like hearing it in his own words in this novella was somehow more meaningful.

And the oh-so-sweet relationship with Trinity, his fourteen-year-old sister, was unbelievably cute. I loved them together in Lainey but I was happy to see that this was the way they'd always been. That even after the tragedy they'd suffered, they were as tight as ever and looked out for one another.

Seeing his interactions with Amber, too, helped me to understand the boy who loves to bake. I don't know if it was ever stated in Lainey how much time had elapsed since the break-up and subsequent plan to get back the exes, but I'd like to see that period covered, too. Then again, I think any story that features Micah is necessary. =) Especially if it shows him developing feelings for a certain soccer star.

Infinite Repeat was sweet and sad and hopeful. No real swoons from Micah this time around, but I think he needed this. I needed this. I also now have a mighty need to go and re-read The Art of Lainey so that I can properly swoon over Micah and his mohawk. But this was a nice look at the boy at the heart of it all, and I hope we haven't seen the last of him.

GIF it to me straight:

Can I get an "aww" up in here?

About the author:

Paula Stokes is half writer, half RN, and totally thrilled to be part of the world of YA literature. She started out writing historical fiction under a pen name and is now branching out into other YA genres.

When she's not working (rare), she's kayaking, hiking, reading, or seeking out new adventures in faraway lands. She's petted tigers, snuggled snakes, snorkeled with stingrays, and once enjoyed the suction-cuppy feel of a baby elephant's trunk as it ate peanuts from her palm. Her future goals include diving with Great White sharks, learning Krav Maga, and writing a whole slew of novels, not necessarily in that order.

Find Paula:

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