Series: standalone
Author: Kasie West
Publisher: Point (Scholastic)
Release Date: July 9, 2019
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Told: First Person (Sophie), Past Tense
Content Rating: Teen (kissing)
Format Read: ARC
Find On: Goodreads
Purchase: Azon | B&N | BookDepo | Indiebound
Summary:
One year. Nine events. Nine chances to . . . fall in love?
Weddings. Funerals. Barbecues. New Year's Eve parties. Name the occasion, and Sophie Evans will be there. Well, she has to be there. Sophie works for the local florist, so she can be found at every big event in her small hometown, arranging bouquets and managing family dramas.
Enter Andrew Hart. The son of the fancy new chef in town, Andrew is suddenly required to attend all the same events as Sophie. Entitled, arrogant, preppy Andrew. Sophie just wants to get her job done and finish up her sketches so she can apply to design school. But every time she turns around, there is Andrew, getting in her way and making her life more complicated. Until one day she wonders if maybe complicated isn't so bad after all . . .
Told over the course of one year and following Sophie from event to event, this delightful novel from master of romantic comedy Kasie West shows how love can blossom in unexpected places.
* * *
Like Sophie with Andrew, I didn't get along with this book at first. I was put off by their antagonistic banter, defensive personalities, and strained parental situations. Although it had the easy style and engaging plot Kasie West is known for, her signature banter was too sharp to be fun for me - inflicting pain instead of encouraging play - and unexpectedly heavier contemporary elements weighted the story.
But as Sophie and Andrew grew on each other so did they grow on me, not only as messy and therefore realistic characters but as a cute couple. And as the heavier elements brought realization to the struggling teens, they added a lot of character depth that I've found missing in Kasie's last few books. I still wasn't a complete fan of Sophie (or Andrew), but I became fully invested in their lives was very satisfied with their sweet end.
Conclusion: Was I glad I read it? Heck yes. And while these weren't my favorite characters, thanks to some strong character depth I'm once more excited to continue reading every book Kasie puts out. Would I recommend it? Definitely, especially if you enjoy hate-to-love relationships and like your contemporary romances a little heavier on the contemporary.
Scribble Rating:
4 of 5 Scribbles
Kasie West is one of my favorite authors. So glad you enjoyed this book I can't wait to read it next month!
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