Review Detail

Abby's goal in life is to become a serious artist. Her hope is to get into a special art camp. To accomplish this she must put more heart into her work so Abby makes herself a bucket list. Abby is also dealing with an agoraphobic mother, a deployed father, and a growing crush on her best friend Cooper.

I have read a couple of Kasie West novels and enjoyed them. They are generally fun, young, romantic, novels. I really enjoyed 'Lucky in Love', so I was really excited to read this one.

I did enjoy the storyline in general. I loved the idea of experiencing life in order to give yourself a wider perspective. I just didn't connect with the characters. Maybe, I'm just too old or maybe I just don't get the California lifestyle thing. For me Abby and Cooper were both blah. I just had no chemistry with Abby. She seemed more than a little bratty to me and Cooper came across as a typical, distant, self-obsessed teenage boy. I did have a favorite character, and without a doubt, it is Abby's grandpa. He seemed really feisty and interesting and I felt like he could tell some interesting stories and add a different perspective if he were allowed to. Sadly, he wasn't.

I also found Cooper and Abby's romance to be boring. Cooper acted like a jerk to Abby throughout much of the story so I really didn't get why they were friends much less why Abby liked him.

I really didn't feel the Kasie West magic in this one. Like I said previously, I did enjoy the list part of the story but the romance and most of the characters just didn't do it for me. I plan to read Kasie's other books and look forward to finding some characters and a story that I can relate more towards.