The Six Rules of Maybe

The wrong kind of love abounds in The Six Rules of Maybe by Deb Caletti. As a general rule, I like her books and this is no exception. Scarlet is seventeen and her older sister Juliet is twenty one. Juliet skipped college and moved away to pursue her singing career. All of the sudden shes back home with a new husband, Hayden, in tow. Oh, I forgot to mention&shes pregnant and wants to be home for the babys birth.

Juliets never really been in a stable relationship and Scarlets afraid shell try to rekindle a relationship with her old flame, Buddy Wilkes, hurting Hayden in the process. Wrong kind of love, # 1. Scarlet thinks shes in love with Hayden. Wrong love #2. The girls mother is dating the stuck-up Dean Neuhaus, who criticizes her every move. Wrong love #3. Nicole, Scarlets best friend, is in love with Shy (aka Jesse) who seems to have a crush on Scarlet. Wrong love #4. And Im probably forgetting one or two.

The only right love is that of Hayden for Juliet. He writes her astonishingly romantic letters, despite her ambivalence towards him.

Caletti writes extremely readable books. Shes populated The Six Rules of Maybe with an interesting cast of ancillary characters. There are Scarlets next door neighbors on one side who are seemingly being entrapped by an internet scam. One the other side, theres Clive Weaver, a retired postman, who is losing it a bit and runs outside to get his non-existent mail in his birthday suit and sllippers. Across the street are young twins Jacob and Jeffrey who provide comic relief. And finally Goth Girl, an artist who draws in chalk on her driveway. Scarlet, a do-gooder at heart, has to help everyone.

You cant go wrong with a Deb Caletti book. This is one probably my favorite, with The Fortunes of Indigo Skye as a close send and The Nature of Jade coming in at number 3. If youre looking for a little romance, a little heroine grows up, a fun story, some action, then I highly recommend The Six Rules of Maybe. We could all learn from the actual six rules of maybe, as well.