Review Detail

It really pained me to have to give this book the rating that I did. I am a huge Sarah Dessen fan and have loved all of her previous books. I found myself somewhat struggling through this one when it got slow at times. Perhaps because Sarah Dessen is my favorite author my expectations were too high and it didn't quite reach those high expectations.

My favorite part of any story is of course the love story. I really found it lacking in this book. We have Luke who has been Emaline's boyfriend since the 9th grade but they end up having a falling out. Enter Theo, a New Yorker who is staying at one of the properties that Emaline's family manages. I really didn't like Theo at all. He seemed controlling and snobby to me. Their relationship was awkward and didn't seem real. There was no chemistry there.

While I didn't enjoy some of the characters or the lack of a love story I did love the message that this book tries to get across to us. Be true to our roots and don't change yourself for anyone. The writing as with any Sarah Dessen book was excellent. She has a way with words.

Perhaps my favorite part of any Sarah Dessen book is when we see characters from other books pop up. I definitely enjoy the beach town of Colby and look forward to reading many more Sarah Dessen books. While this might not have been my favorite book by her she is still my favorite author and I can't wait to see what she will come up with next.