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Limpet, Steffan and Jared. Three best friends crammed into a clapped-out rust bucket of a car on a whirlwind road trip to forget their troubles and see out the end of the summer. But no matter how far they drive, they can’t escape the hidden secrets and slow-burning romance that could upset the balance of their friendship – perhaps forever.

There are two things I love a lot in YA – the first is road-trips, the other is romance. Another favourite is Unconventional by Maggie Harcourt, and I ordered this book as soon as I finished that one.

He smells of beginnings.

I love the romance in this book. It’s so slow-burning that I didn’t know what was going to happen, and that was great. I love the anticipation of not knowing, and finding out what was going to happen at the very end.

Beginnings set in motion a long time ago and overlooked.

I found this book a lot different to Unconventional. The whole voice of this book is completely different, but I actually liked that! I love the way Harcourt could write about such meaningful and serious subjects while keeping the story and experiences lighthearted.

Beginnings which no number of endings could bury.

This book is a good all-round contemporary. It has all the ingredients for a great YA – good characters, strong writing, some great experiences and coming-of-age topics. It tackles deep subjects like grief yet shows romance, friendship and family.

I only had one issue with this book – the plot development. Maybe it’s just me, but it felt like a weird mixture of being both slow and fast-paced. I felt like the book went quickly but for a long time we weren’t really heading anywhere. But I have to say, I think that might be what Harcourt was aiming for. And getting to the end, everything became clear. I kind of understood.

★★★★

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

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