Review: I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios

Title: I'll Meet You There
Author: Heather Demetrios
Series: stand-alone
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
Publication Date: February 3, 2015
Source: ARC received from publisher
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

If seventeen-year-old Skylar Evans were a typical Creek View girl, her future would involve a double-wide trailer, a baby on her hip, and the graveyard shift at Taco Bell. But after graduation, the only thing standing between straightedge Skylar and art school are three minimum-wage months of summer. Skylar can taste the freedom—that is, until her mother loses her job and everything starts coming apart. Torn between her dreams and the people she loves, Skylar realizes everything she’s ever worked for is on the line.

Nineteen-year-old Josh Mitchell had a different ticket out of Creek View: the Marines. But after his leg is blown off in Afghanistan, he returns home, a shell of the cocksure boy he used to be. What brings Skylar and Josh together is working at the Paradise—a quirky motel off California’s dusty Highway 99. Despite their differences, their shared isolation turns into an unexpected friendship and soon, something deeper.

For me, it's always hardest to review a book I absolutely loved because there's practically no adequate way to express my feels. This is the third novel I've read by Heather Demetrios, but it is by far my very most favorite. It's so raw and earnest and impassioned, and it left me with all the feels. I'm not as new to contemporary novels as I once was, but I am picky as hell, even now. But my finicky, romance-loving heart adored this novel, and I'm pretty sure most everyone who reads it will feel the same way.

The characters in I'll Meet You There are so flawed, so perfectly imperfect. And even if I hadn't shared similar circumstances, I would still have found them easy to relate to and care for. Living in a small town, far from civilization, can really suck. You make do and do what you have to in order to survive and hopefully one day leave that dreary existence. Or you don't. And that's what these characters face, what they've been facing and hoping for practically all their lives. Mistakes are made along the way, but it's hard to fault the characters for them when you know how much of an effort they're putting in to make it out of there.

“I loved taking these pieces and making them part of a whole, giving them a place to belong. More beautiful than when they started.”

I love that we don't just get to know the characters through their narration and dialogue, but also through their interactions with friends, each other, and in Skylar's case, her art. She creates these beautiful collages from scraps of paper that make up her life, and it's her ticket out of Creek View. Josh is still trying to decide where his future is headed, whether it's back to the Marines he goes or if the world holds something more for him. His struggle is seen through short snippets of his thoughts in between Sky's chapters, and these are some of the most raw, heartfelt sections of the book...at least they were for me.

These two characters barely knew one another before this summer, but once Josh returns to Creek View, it's obvious he's a different person than when he left. He attempts to maintain the bravado of his cocksure youth, but it's taking a toll on him, and the only one who doesn't seem to expect something from him is Skylar. The two develop a comfortable friendship as they work together at the motel, but it's obvious that something more is growing between them, and it was one of the most poignant, beautiful, and utterly realistic relationships I've read in YA. Not to mention sexy.

“The Josh I grew up around, with two legs and an ego that couldn’t fit through the door? I didn’t love him. I didn’t even always like him.” One corner of his mouth turned up. “This is who you are. The real you.” I rested my forehead against his. “And I want you so fucking bad.”

From a distance, this story reminded me of Something Like Normal by Trish Doller, with the flawed love interest who'd recently returned from a stint in the military overseas and was dealing with some really difficult stuff as a result. But I think it's the author's emotional attachment to her story that makes I'll Meet You There that much better. Not saying Doller didn't have the same attachment, just that it shone brighter from these pages as Demetrios laid her characters' hearts bare. Plus, there are the acknowledgements and author's notes that made it all the more evident how special this story was to Demetrios. Still, if you enjoyed Something Like Normal, you'll love this story...and the opposite holds true, as well.

I'll Meet You There was an emotional read, and it was genuinely difficult to read at times, especially during those portions Josh was narrating, but the end result is a story that I'll hold as a favorite for a long time to come. This review doesn't even begin to do the book justice, but it's a start.

GIF it to me straight:

About the author:

When she's not traipsing around the world or spending time in imaginary places, Heather Demetrios lives with her husband in New York City. Originally from Los Angeles, she now calls the East Coast home. Heather is a recipient of the PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award for her debut novel, Something Real, which Publisher's Weekly calls “[An] addictive yet thoughtful debut” about reality TV stardom. She is the author of EXQUISITE CAPTIVE, a smoldering fantasy about jinn in Los Angeles and what Kirkus called in its starred review "an intoxicating, richly realized realm of magic, politics, spirituality and history" (#1 in the DARK CARAVAN CYCLE). She is also the author of the upcoming I’ll Meet You There (Winter 2015). I’ll Meet You There is a love story about a young combat veteran and a girl trapped in their small town, both struggling to escape the war at home. Heather is the founder of Live Your What, an organization dedicated to fostering passion in people of all ages and creating writing opportunities for underserved youth. She is proud to have an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. You can always find her on Twitter (@HDemetrios), ogling the military dogs she wants to adopt (but can’t because her NYC apartment is way too small). Find out more about Heather and her other books at wwww.heatherdemetrios.com and www.darkcaravancycle.com.

Find Heather:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | YouTube

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Labels: beautiful covers, contemporary, favorite authors, favorites, heather demetrios, i'll meet you there, macmillan, military, post hs ya, summer, tough subject

Judging a Book By Its Cover: I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios

We so borrowed this idea from Sara at Forever 17 Books, who got the idea from an article on Babble called Judging a Book by Its Cover: A 6-year-old Guesses What Classic Novels Are All About. Basically, it's about getting a child's perspective on the story inside the book based on just the cover art. It can be hilarious, but it can also be enlightening.









This week, the girls are working on the following book:

Title: I'll Meet You There
Author: Heather Demetrios
Series: stand-alone
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
Publication Date: February 3, 2015
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

If seventeen-year-old Skylar Evans were a typical Creek View girl, her future would involve a double-wide trailer, a baby on her hip, and the graveyard shift at Taco Bell. But after graduation, the only thing standing between straightedge Skylar and art school are three minimum-wage months of summer. Skylar can taste the freedom—that is, until her mother loses her job and everything starts coming apart. Torn between her dreams and the people she loves, Skylar realizes everything she’s ever worked for is on the line.

Nineteen-year-old Josh Mitchell had a different ticket out of Creek View: the Marines. But after his leg is blown off in Afghanistan, he returns home, a shell of the cocksure boy he used to be. What brings Skylar and Josh together is working at the Paradise—a quirky motel off California’s dusty Highway 99. Despite their differences, their shared isolation turns into an unexpected friendship and soon, something deeper.

Behold, the girls' attempts at recreating I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios...

Aubrey's masterpiece & guess:

Aubrey says:

"I think it was about people going to a hotel and spending time in the pool."

LoL, I can see where she got that idea. I haven't read this one yet but I hope to soon. Jen said it was really great, so it's gotta be worth checking out. :)


Katie's artwork & thoughts:

Katie says:

"Two people meet each other, and they might be friends when they meet. And those two people see a sign and they want to go to the motel."

Ah, the innocence of youth. Or is it just that I'm incapable of dragging my mind out of the gutter? :P Either way, Katie's guess is pretty good. Except that they don't want to go to the motel...they work there. =) I'll Meet You There is already one of my favorite reads of 2015...it brought all the feels, and I still can't stop thinking about it. Loved this one SOOOO much! I hope you'll stop by next week to check out my review!


Have you read this book or do you plan to? What do you think of the girls' artwork and their thoughts on the story's premise?

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Labels: aubrey, beautiful covers, contemporary, cover art, favorites, heather demetrios, i'll meet you there, judging a book by its cover, katiebug, macmillan, military, post hs ya, summer, tough subject

Review: 99 Days by Katie Cotugno

Title: 99 Days
Author: Katie Cotugno
Series: n/a
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Publication Date: April 21, 2015
Source: received from publisher via Edelweiss
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Day 1: Julia Donnelly eggs my house my first night back in Star Lake, and that’s how I know everyone still remembers everything—how I destroyed my relationship with Patrick the night everything happened with his brother, Gabe. How I wrecked their whole family. Now I’m serving out my summer like a jail sentence: Just ninety-nine days till I can leave for college, and be done.

Day 4: A nasty note on my windshield makes it clear Julia isn’t finished. I’m expecting a fight when someone taps me on the shoulder, but it’s just Gabe, home from college and actually happy to see me. “For what it’s worth, Molly Barlow,” he says, “I’m really glad you’re back.”

Day 12: Gabe got me to come to this party, and I’m actually having fun. I think he’s about to kiss me—and that’s when I see Patrick. My Patrick, who’s supposed to be clear across the country. My Patrick, who’s never going to forgive me.

I'm just going to get to the point straightaway: there probably won't be many in-betweeners on this one. 99 Days is a book that you're likely to either love or loathe, depending on your stance on cheating and love triangles and how open-minded you are to either concept. I don't particularly enjoy reading about these things, but I'm not opposed to reading for great writing, despite what happens in the story. And I really, really liked How to Love, so I knew I had to give this book a chance.

I'm really glad I didn't let ideas that make me uncomfortable keep me from picking up this story. 99 Days was genuine, gritty, and realistic. It was complicated. It was messy. But there's so much more to the story than just cheating. It also explores society's tendency to automatically assume the girl is at fault when something like this happens, to start with the insults and end with harassment while the guy sees no punishment for his actions. This book also features a unique mother-daughter relationship that was painful to read about and probably much worse to endure in real life.

Every single character in this book is just so flawed. I don't think you're necessarily supposed to like them, but I actually found that I did, even if I didn't always (read: ever) agree with their choices and actions. But I get it. At eighteen, you don't always make the best decisions. I know I didn't. I always feel the need to divulge too much when a story likes this comes along, but I'm going to refrain from that now. Instead, I just think it crucial to point out that many of us have made mistakes of this proportion, even if they weren't necessary of this caliber. Also, everyone deserves a second chance.

The relationships in this book are just as complicated as the characters in them. From the flawed mother-daughter relationship I mentioned earlier to the brother triangle the main character finds herself in, these characters have issues. I appreciated that self-deprecating Molly was able to acknowledge in the end that it wasn't just her own actions that resulted in her current circumstances but a culmination of hers and those that loved her. She started this book out so miserable and alone, and even though the ending was rather bittersweet -- but entirely of her own making -- I still smiled at the fact that Molly was getting her second chance.

99 Days was a hard book to read but also a very difficult story to put down. There's just something so addicting in reading about someone else's misery, especially when it's so relatable. It's hard to look away from something like that, and this story is no different. It's not even 2015 yet, and this book has already made my favorites list for the year.

GIF it to me straight:

About the author:

Katie Cotugno went to Catholic school for thirteen years which makes her, as an adult, both extremely superstitious and prone to crushes on boys wearing blazers. She routinely finds herself talking about the romantic endeavors of characters on TV shows as if they actually exist in the world.

Katie is a Pushcart Prize nominee whose work has appeared in The Iowa Review, The Broadkill Review, The Apalachee Review, and Argestes, as well as on Nerve.com. Her first novel, HOW TO LOVE, is out now from Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins. 99 DAYS will follow next spring.

The great loves of Katie's life include child's pose, her little sister, and mozzarella and honey sandwiches. She lives in Boston with her husband, Tom.

Find Katie:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Tumblr

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Labels: 99 days, contemporary, favorites, harper-collins, katie cotugno, post hs ya, reviews, tough subject

Review: Not in the Script by Amy Finnegan

Title: Not in the Script
Author: Amy Finnegan
Series: If Only..., book #3
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Publication Date: October 7, 2014
Source: ARC received from publisher
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

Millions of people witnessed Emma Taylor’s first kiss—a kiss that needed twelve takes and four camera angles to get right. After spending nearly all of her teen years performing on cue, Emma wonders if any part of her life is real anymore . . . particularly her relationships.

Jake Elliott’s face is on magazine ads around the world, but his lucrative modeling deals were a poor substitute for what he had to leave behind. Now acting is offering Jake everything he wants: close proximity to home; an opportunity to finally start school; and plenty of time with the smart and irresistible Emma Taylor . . . if she would just give him a chance.

When Jake takes Emma behind the scenes of his real life, she begins to see how genuine he is, but on-set relationships always end badly. Don’t they? Toss in Hollywood’s most notorious heartthrob and a resident diva who may or may not be as evil as she seems, and the production of Coyote Hills heats up in unexpected—and romantic—ways.

This novel in the deliciously fun If Only romance line proves that the best kinds of love stories don’t follow a script.

Not in the Script was kind of adorable. And I expected as much, having read the previous two novels in the IF ONLY series and finding them each decidedly cute. I'm never sure what to expect with a story based on movie star characters, though, whether the book will glorify Hollywood or whether the characters will be over-the-top and stereotypical. Lucky for me, Not in the Script felt genuine and though some of the characters did come off as obnoxious and over-bearing, those were the exceptions and not the rule for this book.

Emma is a rising star who has been burned several times in the dating department. So, for her next project, she's put love on the back burner in order to focus on her career and keep her name out of the tabloids. She tries, anyway. Somehow, the paparazzi are always there. And, of course, so is gorgeous former model-turned actor Jake Elliott. The two attempt to keep their relationship strictly platonic and focus on the show, but their chemistry is off the charts.

Though there are a lot of external factors complicating their relationship -- including but not limited to a former crush on her heartthrob of a co-star, the fact that Emma's BFF has had dibs on Jake "The Bod" Elliott since before Emma met him or even put a name to the face, and most importantly, Emma's desire not to date another co-star -- despite all of that, Emma and Jake's budding romance is really mature. They discuss all of the reasons they shouldn't be together, why it might not work out and what the repercussions could be. They also really get to know each other by hanging out platonically off of the set. Jake never pushes Emma for more, but he doesn't hesitate to let her know what he wants and that he's willing to wait until she's ready for that type of commitment. What they have is so genuine and scorching hot at the same time...it's hard to believe they were able to deny themselves each other for as long as they did.

That heartthrob co-star does complicate matters further when he shows genuine interest in Emma, but I promise you, no legitimate love triangle develops. Actually, Brett reminded me a lot Reid in Tammara Webber's BETWEEN THE LINES series, and his character's role in this novel played out in much the same way. Even the budding actress/main character shares the same given name. I really enjoyed that series, so it's no surprise that I loved this novel so much. However, I think I liked this one just the tiniest bit more because it showed the more technical side of acting: all the time spent in the makeup chair, the drama on set and the director's reaction, the last minute changes to the script, etc. I think including those aspects made this book that much more realistic, and it's my favorite so far in what I'm now going to coin the "bringing Hollywood to the page" subgenre.

Pretty much, I really just liked Emma and Jake and what it took to get those two together. The side characters all seemed pretty one-dimensional and none of them really stand out in comparison. I'd kind of like to see their stories expanded on in subsequent novels, though, much like the series I've already compared this book to. However, I will say that I truly enjoyed how important family was to the main characters in this story. They both craved some kind of normalcy, and we all know how easy it is for family to knock you off your pedestal and bring you back down to earth. Emma's and Jake's family situations were completely different, but they were still similar in that this was what kept each of them grounded, made it so that they continued to pursue their dreams but did so with level heads.

Not in the Script was a clever, humorous read, and though the characters are out of high school and living on their own, nothing explicit or untoward happens, so it's still perfect for a YA audience. Labeling it as a new adult novel might change some opinions toward the book prematurely, but it's new adult in the way that Fangirl was new adult, if that makes sense. I liked how the author approached the growing-up situations and did so without becoming preachy or making a lesson out of the story. She let her characters make mistakes but expressed through them how easy those mistakes were to fix if one relied more on open communication. That's a biggie for me.

Actually, now that I think about it, Not in the Script wasn't kind of adorable...it was unbelievably adorable. I pretty much wore a smile on my face the entire time I was reading. It was kind of light and fluffy, but while it wasn't silly, it also didn't deign to take itself too seriously. All in all, it was exactly my kind of read. The slow-burn of a romance itself is worth giving this book a try. Like Emma, you'll be caught off guard by Jake's genuine charm before you know it!

GIF it to me straight:

No, it's not in there...this kind of love can't be scripted! =)

About the author:

Amy Finnegan writes her own stories because she enjoys falling in love over and over again, and thinks everyone deserves a happy ending. She likes to travel the world—usually to locations where her favorite books take place—and owes her unquenchable thirst for reading to Jane Austen and J.K. Rowling. Her debut novel, NOT IN THE SCRIPT (Bloomsbury, Oct 2014), came about after hearing several years of behind-the-scenes stories from her industry veteran brother. She’s also been lucky enough to visit dozens of film sets and sit in on major productions such as Parks and Recreation and Parenthood.

Find Amy:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Facebook | Instagram

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Labels: all the swoons, amy finnegan, bloomsbury, contemporary, favorites, funfunfun, if only, movie star, new adult, post hs ya, reviews

{Audiobook} Review: Unteachable by Leah Raeder

Title: Unteachable
Author: Leah Raeder
Narrator(s): Grace Grant
Series: n/a
Length: 9 hrs 49 mins
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Audio
Publication Date: August 19, 2014
Source: from publisher
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

Maise O’Malley just turned eighteen, but she’s felt like a grown-up her entire life. The summer before senior year, she has plans: get into a great film school, convince her mom to go into rehab, and absolutely do not, under any circumstances, screw up her own future.

But life has a way of throwing her plans into free-fall.

When Maise meets Evan at a carnival one night, their chemistry is immediate, intense, and short-lived. Which is exactly how she likes it: no strings. But afterward, she can’t get Evan out of her head. He’s taught her that a hookup can be something more. It can be an unexpected connection with someone who truly understands her. Someone who sees beyond her bravado to the scared but strong girl inside.

That someone turns out to be her new film class teacher, Mr. Evan Wilke.

Maise and Evan resolve to keep their hands off each other, but the attraction is too much to bear. Together, they’re real and genuine; apart, they’re just actors playing their parts for everyone else. And their masks are slipping. People start to notice. Rumors fly. When the truth comes to light in a shocking way, they may learn they were just playing parts for each other, too.

Smart, sexy, and provocative, Unteachable is about what happens when a love story goes off-script.

I had no idea what this book was about, but I kept seeing it pop up on my feed a few months ago as buzz for the title grew. Then I read the synopsis and decided the book wasn't for me, not with my aversion to squicky situations like teacher-student relationships. But I just kept seeing this book everywhere, and practically all of my friends were raving about it. So, me being me, I caved to the hype when I was offered a review copy of the audiobook.

And I can honestly say that the buzz was deserved. The fact that the student is eighteen and the legal age of consent in the state where the story takes place did much to assuage my doubts, as did the fact that when they realized their positions, they tried to step back from what was happening...even if that did only last like two seconds. Also, this book is hotness personified. I'm not a prude...I don't need fade-to-black sex scenes. Nor am I a fan of erotica, of those novels that feature too many details in said scenes. Unteachable reaches a happy medium when it comes to describing the couple's most intimate encounters, though admittedly, it probably wasn't the greatest idea to listen while at my desk at work. ;0)

I'm not always the biggest fan of the new adult genre, but I feel like this novel was honest and gritty in a way that most new adult novels I've read haven't been. Maise isn't an innocent virgin testing the waters; she's an 18 year old woman who knows what she wants and goes after it. She expects Evan to be just another in a string of random hookups in an attempt to fill the daddy-sized hole in her life. But Maise and Evan have a genuine connection, one that remains even after the deed is done.

I'm not opposed to a much younger woman being in a relationship with a much older man. I've tested those waters myself and I found them to my liking until I realized I still felt like the mature one out of us both. Sure, it's a bit creepier in the case of this novel because Evan is nearly double Maise's age and he's her teacher, but I'd have liked to see that aspect explored a bit more. We got to see their connection but what about all of those things that made -- or should have made -- these two characters so unsuitable for each other? Maise even had an older, wiser sage-like figure to extol the virtues of this type of relationship while also serving as proof that they're not likely to work out. And instead of showing the ugly side of things, the story wraps up rather picturesquely, with Maise having her cake and eating it, too. Not that they don't have their problems and those problems aren't taken into consideration -- they do and they are -- but it was a tad unrealistic how easily things worked themselves out...for everyone.

This is only my second experience with a novel narrated by Grace Grant, and I thought that having only just recently listened to the other one would make it hard to distinguish the characters she voiced, but on that count, I was wrong. While this character is a bit similar to the last one she portrayed, especially in her awareness of her sexuality and the way that she knows what she wants and goes after it full-tilt, I never reverted back to thinking of Grace's voice as anyone's but Maise's. Her inflections and intonations made each character sound different and stand apart, even the most minor characters. I thoroughly enjoyed her performance of Unteachable.

This novel really surprised me. I wasn't expecting to like it nearly as much as I did, even despite the hype, but I'm glad that I did because her next novel sounds just as good. Maybe better. And probably just as hot, if that synopsis is to be believed.

GIF it to me straight:

About the author:

Leah Raeder is a writer and unabashed nerd. Aside from reading her brains out, she enjoys graphic design, video games, fine whiskey, and the art of self-deprecation. She lives with her very own manic pixie dream boy in Chicago.

(And she still writes pretentiously lyrical fiction.)

Find Leah:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Facebook | Pinterest

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Labels: audiobooks, favorite narrators, leah raeder, new adult, post hs ya, reviews, simon schuster, unholy hotness, unteachable

{Audiobook} Review: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas

Title: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line
Author: Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham
Narrator(s): Kristen Bell
Series: Veronica Mars, book #1
Length: 8 hrs 42 mins
Publisher: Random House Audio
Publication Date: March 25, 2014
Source: audio borrowed from library
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

The first book in an original mystery series featuring twenty-eight-year-old Veronica Mars, back in action after the events of Veronica Mars: The Movie. With the help of old friends—Logan Echolls, Mac Mackenzie, Wallace Fennel, and even Dick Casablancas—Veronica is ready to take on Neptune’s darkest cases with her trademark sass and smarts.

First, if you have not seen the awesome full-length Veronica Mars movie, I recommend doing so before reading this book. The movie picks up nine years after the end of the show, or ya know, Veronica's first year of college. The book picks up shortly after the end of the movie. And though the book does a slight recap, you'll benefit more if you watch/read in the proper order.

Second, this audiobook was amazing. Not only because it was narrated by Veronica Mars herself -- also known as the fantastic Kristen Bell -- but because it reads like an episode of the show. I mean, I'm sure it helps that the voice-overs that I'm used to in the show were narrated by the woman who plays the role, but I could perfectly envision each character as they made an appearance in the story. And I loved them all as much as I ever did, even that jerktastic Dick Casablancas.

I just love the adult Veronica and that even though she's grown up, she's still the same mixed up girl she was. She's still questioning her choices and her romantic entanglements, but even those have a darker edge to them now. The movie and this book together helped to make the nine years since the show's demise feel legitimate, like nothing and everything has changed.

The mystery is just as twisty as you've come to expect from VM, too. You always think you have the perp pegged, and then BAM, Veronica blows all of your theories out of the water with her shrewd sleuthing techniques. There are surprises, and then there are SURPRISES. I honestly can't imagine that fans of the show will be disappointed in this most recent installment in the Veronica Mars world. But if you have the opportunity, I highly recommend you go the audiobook route. It's just as phenomenal as watching an episode.

My only complaint, besides being on the wait list at the library for weeks for this title?

NOT ENOUGH LOGAN.

GIF it to me straight:

About the author:

Born in Sunnyside, WA. Previous credits include the Veronica Mars television show, which ran for three seasons, and Rats Saw God. Forthcoming from the author besides The Thousand Dollar Tan Line is the second book in the new Veronica Mars series, Mr. Kiss and Tell, due out October 28, 2014

Find Rob:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

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Labels: adult, contemporary, favorite narrators, favorites, murder mystery, must-read, new adult, post hs ya, random house, rob thomas, veronica mars

New Adult: Let's Talk About Sex, Baby!

So, now that April's joined the blog, we can have candid discussions about all things book-related and then post the results here for you guys to comment on.  This week, it seems that April has a special dislike for New Adult novels, so that's what we're going to kick things off with.

*Disclaimer:  This topic is not suitable for some of our younger audience.  While we try to remain family-friendly, there are times when we may need to be graphic to get the point across. We don't mean to offend anyone, but we really wanted to have an honest conversation about New Adult.

April:  I haven't read all the new adult books out there, but I've read quite a few and the things we discuss below I've noticed in a lot of them.

Jen:  I honestly haven't read all that many new adult novels because I'm so wary of them and these tropes...

A:  #1 - The guy is often a musician/rock star or just a bad boy with tattoos.

J:  This. One notable exception is the Losing It series by Cora Carmack. In the second book, the roles are reversed and it's actually the female love interest that's a musician and covered in tattoos.

A:  #2 - The love interest is almost always a jerk.

J:  Yes, why are women drawn to men who treat them badly? I mean, I know plenty of women who are this way, so it's a legitimate issue, but maybe if we didn't portray it in fiction as if it were alright, women would feel they deserve the love of someone better than that.

A:  #3 - They both have emotional baggage. A lot of it!

J:  I don't think anyone's without some amount of baggage, but you're right. The protagonists in these new adult stories have more than their fair share. And it always seems like it's being used as a plot device to keep them from the love interest.

A:  #4 - The female is often weak and needs protection from the guy. Even if she's a cheating scum ball. (Example:  Torn by K.A. Robinson)

J:  Apparently, all men love a damsel in distress. I prefer female leads to have a sense of independence and the ability --or at the very least, the desire -- to take care of herself.

A:  #5 - Sex is the main focus of the relationship. Which I kinda get because I was a little promiscuous back
in the early days, but even in my prime, I did not have sex THAT MUCH.

J:  I think you may have just hit upon the thing that bothers me most about new adult novels. I am not a prude. I do not mind reading a sex scene or two in the middle of a good book. But I hate when sex scenes are just thrown in gratuitously. They need to belong at that point in the book, and they need to be realistic. I found this post on what not to write in a sex scene from Smart Bitches Trashy Books to be highly entertaining.

A:  #6 - Love confused with lust. This happens in adult and I suppose some young adult novels, too, but it's over abundant in new adult. When all they are doing is having sex, it's hard to believe they have any kind of true emotional connection.

J:  Like I said, I haven't read nearly as many new adult novels as April, so I can't comment on this one, except to say that I think that most love starts out with at least a tiny bit of lust. I think that it's when the lust doesn't grow into love that it becomes an issue.

A:  #7 - College students, but there's no talk of college. I read a few that took place at the college, while the student was going to college, but there was barely any talk of college itself. How can you have a character going to school for a whole year and have no idea what they are even there for? Like they went to class. But what class? Doesn't matter, there was a hottie a few rows back.

J:  This is another pet peeve of mine, but I don't think it's strictly limited to new adult. It's a problem in young adult, too. And I get why there's not a lot of talk about class because it's pretty boring, unless something actually happens besides the learning. But I don't think it's asking too much for characters to interact within the classroom setting.

A:  #8 - The females are virgins! Not always, but a majority of the ones I've read are, for example:  Like Falling by Jaden Wilkes and True by Erin McCarthy. And the first time is always mind blowing O's! Get real!

J:  Haha...that virginity thing is just ridiculous. How many college-aged women do you know or have you known that were still virgins when they got to campus? I'm sure there are some -- and I'm sure that my parents would prefer to think that I was still a virgin when I moved out of the house, or even better, that I was still a virgin until the day I married my husband, ha! But that's not the way of the world. I think it's terribly unrealistic to portray probably 90% of new adult protagonists as virgins when so many young adults are using those formative teen years for practice. Because, yeah, that first time is not going to be so great, at least not for her.

A:  #9 - Going back to the obnoxious amount of sex being had, it's also pretty raunchy in these new adult books! Particularly the Abbi Gline ones. And you know, I'm not afraid of a little raunchiness. I'm completely okay with joking around about it, but when it comes to sex scenes in books, I prefer it to be meaningful and a little less dirty.

J:  I wholeheartedly agree...as I said before, no gratuitous sex scenes. Make 'em few and make 'em count. If I wanted raunchy, I'd pick up one of my mom's old Harlequin romance novels. And before you ask, yes, that is how I learned about sex. My mom sure as hell wasn't sitting me down to discuss it. I am so glad I had an older sister who could impart some of her wisdom on me in times like these.

A:  #10 - Miscommunication is usually the big conflict in the story. This one thinks this, that one thinks that, they don't talk, they fight, and then they make up and have sex. Because SEX FIXES EVERYTHING!

J:  *sigh* This is true of A LOT of stories. Granted, miscommunication happens...a lot. But in these books, it's as if the characters are KEPT from discussing anything that might put them on even ground. And I dislike that when a couple does fight in one of these stories, it's never about the thing that needs to be discussed. They walk on eggshells around each other, fight about things that don't matter. I haven't really seen all that much of the make-up sex in my limited experience with new adult, so I'll take your word for it.

A:  So there you have it, some of the many reasons I have it out for new adult novels.  In Torn, the girl goes to college with two of her best friends. Her best guy friend is in love with her. She meets a wanna be rock star. They boink, he cuts her off...treats her like total crap. So she dates her best guy friend, boinks him. Then cheats on him with Rocker again. When shit hits the fan, they still both love her and want to protect her from her crazy mom...because she needs protection. GAG

J:  Well, first, I don't like books about cheaters, so already I'm not impressed, but just based on your observations, I don't think that's a new adult I'd ever pick up.

A:  Oh, I've got another little mini-rant:  Those Abbi Glines books have become ridiculous. They are all sex. And to me, it's not sexy sex. In Twisted Perfection, the girl starts gagging on his dick. And he's all loving it.. and she's thinking how she loves to gag on it. That is not sexy. Maybe it's just me, but if I'm gagging, there may be puke following. Lol. It's a shame though because they started out great.. her Sea Breeze books were good, and then While It Lasts came out, and they all started going down hill from there.

What I don't understand is, what is the appeal? These unhealthy relationships based off of mostly sex...why are they so popular? Isn't this what the Erotica genre is for? The Glines books were originally self pubbed, but then Atria bought them. I thought to myself, did these people read them first? I guess that doesn't really matter since they already had a huge fan base.

J:  I was just thinking this...that most new adult novels were self-published first. There's got to be some correlation between the fan-base and the material presented, but I think that if I wanted to read sex, I would have opted for an adult novel rather than a new adult. Unless it's primarily that age group that's reading these and they don't want to read about old people getting it on. And I mean "old" relatively...I'm sure we're ancient to a college freshman and that they think they'll never be in our shoes. Pfft. It happens to everyone. :P

A:  I actually read a book that was originally an erotica but was then branded as new adult. Now that thing made Abbi's books look like the bible.  The title on Amazon says New Adult May December Romance. Not so much. This girl does her best friend's dad. Then the best friend asks how it was while masturbating with the friend. The friend even does it with the dad while the daughter is asleep in the bed next to them. It's clearly Erotica but the New Adult genre has become so widespread that books are being put out there with that label just to get attention.

They aren't all bad though. Colleen Hoover's stuff is great. I even enjoyed Nyrae Dawn's new adult series, Games. They have the characters with baggage but they are genuine and there is sexy times, but it doesn't over-pollute the plot. Oh, and the K.A. Tucker books. I like those. Ten Tiny Breaths wasn't my favorite, but I loved One Tiny Lie. Also, Easy by Tammara Webber was good.  I'm on a quest to find more decent New Adult. I know there are some out there. I bought Jamie McGuire's Beautiful Disaster because it's raved about. We shall see though.

J:  I haven't read many, but I've had pretty good luck with the ones I have picked up, like those from Colleen Hoover, Cora Carmack, and K.A. Tucker. Two of my favorites, though, are Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell and One & Only by Viv Daniels.  I'm not even sure that Fangirl is technically supposed to be new adult, but it fits the bill...except for all of the gratuitous sex.  There isn't any of that, and I think the book is better because of it.  I think new adult novels are supposed to focus on that transitional time in a young adult's life, not just the sex, and Fangirl succeeds in that aspect where many others have failed.  In One & Only, there's a bit of sex, but there's also a focus on the protagonist's schoolwork and future career.  It's also written by Diana Peterfreund under a pseudonym.  :)

A:  So that's all I really all I can think of to say about New Adult. It blows. Literally. Like in just about every chapter. Lol.

J:  Bahaha...well, that's one way to put it.  =)

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Labels: discussion, new adult, post hs ya, sex