This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.

This book was just okay for me. I have had a review copy of this book for over 4 years but never felt compelled to actually read the book until now. I must say that I am happy to finally be able to mark this book off of my list of books to read. I found this to be a pretty quick read that held my attention but it was never the kind of book that totally grabbed me. 

My feelings are pretty mixed about this book. I think one of the main things that I didn't care for in this book was the fact that it was another teen romance featuring a love triangle. I am not usually a fan of love triangles. In the case of this book, Allie has two boys falling for her. Aaron is always there to support her and gets her through a lot of tough times. Damien is the dangerous older guy that drives a motorcycle and has a few stalkerish behaviors. Guess who she picks? 

I think that Allie's behavior was another major hurdle for me to overcome with this book. I am the mother of a teenager and not a teen so I do realize that I am probably not the target audience for this story but Allie was too much at times. She kept telling everyone that she was going off to college soon so she could make her own choices. Of course her father was telling her what she needed to do because on her own she wasn't doing too great. 

I had a few other issues with the story. I thought that Damien's past was way to easy to figure out. We do eventually get more details but even then I thought everything seemed a little too perfect. Allie has a moment towards the end of the book where she suddenly remembers something that she had forgotten for the past year and it just felt really odd. I also could not believe that Allie's father and step-mother never addressed her step-brother's behavior towards her. He was terrible to Allie and then suddenly they started getting along. 

There were some things that I did like about the story. Allie had a lot of grief and guilt to deal with from an event in the past. It has obviously had a great impact on her life and I did like seeing her work through those emotions. Allie and Aaron's friendship was a high point of the book. Aaron was probably my favorite character in the story and I liked his connection with Allie. While the big action scene at the end of the book seemed far-fetched, I still found it to be rather exciting.

I do think that a lot of readers will like this one a lot more than I did. I was entertained by the story even when I was questioning a character's behavior. I am glad that I read this book even though I feel like it was a pretty forgettable read.

I received a digital review copy of this book from Clean Teen Publishing via NetGalley.

Initial Thoughts
This was okay. It's probably not a book that will really stay with me long term but I was entertained. The book does pick up the pace towards the end with most of the excitement happening during the last 25% of the book. I thought that a lot of the story was predictable.

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Synopsis

I snagged a copy when this book was available as a 'Read It Now' on Netgalley. 

This novel was in a recommended reads email from Netgalley, the blurb sounded good so I snagged it. After a few pages, I read some reviews, and admittedly thought I probably wasn't going to be very impressed with this one. I was wrong. Turned out to be a very good read. 

My only real issue with it was the plot was completely predictable. Two damaged teens with troubled pasts coming together and working through the obstacles to resolve things and fall in love. In spite of that, the novel was exceptionally well written. The narrative was quite moving in certain parts. The characters were believable (even jerk-ass step brother Nick who I disliked intensely showed some growth as a character)

The story is told from the point of view of Allie, who feels responsible for an accident that involved her little cousin Maddie. Her recently remarried father drags her off on a summer vacation to "help" her move on from the incident before she starts college in a few months time. She vacations with her annoying stepbrother Nick, Nick's friend Aaron, stepmom Clara, her dad and her friend Brooke. She meets Damien, a hunky mysterious local boy. Allie is very likeable, if a little stubborn and selfish at times, but at least there are some good reasons as to why. She has an iffy relationship with her Dad, and her step mom is not a horrible character, she was quite a nice lady. Damien was a smooth talker, with a hidden past, and some of the typical "bad boy" characteristics - stubborn and mysterious and manages to conveniently show up at the right moments. 

***very mild plot spoilers****
The relationship between Damien and Allie is slow growing, their feelings for each other develop throughout the story. He brings out feelings Allie hasn't dealt with and she warms to him.

 Once the grizzly story is mentioned its obvious where the plot is going. But I found I didn't mind the predictable plot because the story was so well written. 

One thing I liked particularly was when certain characters realised there were issues, talked about them and tried to figure a logical way to deal with them. The story was wrapped up nicely as well. One or two loose ends, but I figure its things that can be left to a reader's imagination. 

So overall, a very enjoyable read highly recommended to anyone who likes YA contemporary romance with plenty of feels.