Amber, Evie and Lottie: three girls facing down tough issues with the combined powers of friendship, feminism and cheesy snacks. Both hilarious and heart-rending, this is Amber’s story of how painful – and exhilarating – love can be, following on from Evie’s story in Am I Normal Yet?
All Amber wants is a little bit of love. Her mum has never been the caring type, even before she moved to California, got remarried and had a personality transplant. But Amber's hoping that spending the summer with her can change all that.
And then there's prom king Kyle, the guy all the girls want. Can he really be interested in anti-cheerleader Amber? Even with best friends Evie and Lottie's advice, there's no escaping the fact: love is hard.
| This was a fun, summer romance read. Though it's considered the second book in Bourne's "Spinster Club," series, each book acts as a stand-alone, with a different girl at the center of the story. While there are references to events or people from the first book, you can read this one alone and it's just as enjoyable. I thought Amber was an interesting character to read - at times, she is very difficult because she has a lot of emotional baggage (and represses a lot of it), but there are times where you see her spunky, fun side come out and you get a sense of how strong she is as an individual, despite all the things in her life that might have broken her. This is a romance story, but this is also a mother/daughter story - Amber leaves England to spend the summer with her mother (albeit helping out at a camp that her mother and her step-father run). Her mother, a recovering alcoholic, is a difficult character to like - she continually pushes Amber away or deflects Amber's attempts to remember good memories or make new bonds. She often pushes blame away from her - but one of the things that makes this book a strong book is that Bourne doesn't shy away from discussing alcoholism, and how it affects a family. Amber is hurt that her mother is not living up to how she used to be, she's frustrated that her mom has never apologized for the terrible things she did while she was an alcoholic, or that she left her in England to start a new life, with a man Amber despises, in America. While Amber's feelings are valid, Bourne doesn't place all the blame on her mom, giving space in the novel to talk about alcoholism as a disease (one that is for life and that her mother must struggle with continually). It makes the story stronger, gives it an element of realness that doesn't let the reader shy away from. The romance in the book is light and cute and just what you'd want from a summer read. Kyle, the All-American Boy is handsome, nice, but think's he's totally boring. The growth that happens as Amber helps coax him out of his shell, and how he helps her see how amazing she is as a person, is the kind of mutually-beneficial relationship I'd like to see more often in YA books. They are adorable together and their exchanges bring a lightness to the novel that balances out the darker bits. The only nit-pick I would have is that whoever Bourne's editor is didn't seem to see fit to take some of the Britishisms out of the American characters speech. Often Kyle, Russ, or some of the other American characters will say things that are completely British, such as "at the weekend," "whinge," or even the exclamation of, "oi!" It's a bit awkward, as an American who never hears such terms said, read American characters saying those things. While this is not a deal-breaker, it is jarring and takes me out of the story every time I come across it. Otherwise, a solid read and I'll definitely continue on reading the rest of the series. I would recommend to any teen or young adult looking for a cute summer romance story (and doesn't mind a bit of drama of the serious kind, aka: alcoholism and broken families). |
