Seventeen-year-old Danny Cummings' life is far from a fairytale, but that's okay since he doesn't believe in happy endings. After spending a year in juvenile hall for maliciously beating his sister's boyfriend, Danny embraces his badass image. Spending most nights drinking, fighting and collecting gambling debts for his Uncle, Danny's life is out of control. His addiction to the bad boy lifestyle won't let him do anything about it, even with his family begging him to go straight. But, when fifteen-year-old Lauren McIntosh stumbles into one of his nightly escapades, the self-proclaimed anti-romantic can't concentrate on anything except Lauren and the fact that she's on the same path his sister was on. Danny knows true love happening for the villain is as common as gamblers paying their debt on time, but he's never backed away from a challenge before and he hates the idea that history will repeat itself.
Growing old with the man she loves-in the small town where she was born-is the only dream Lauren McIntosh has ever had; that is until her family is practically run out of town amidst rumors of arson and adultery. So, when she meets Danny at her new school and hears the rumors about his activities from her new friends, she wants nothing to do with him or the gossip that seems to follow Danny everywhere. After a dangerous and ill-fated attempt at sneaking out, she develops unwelcomed feelings for Danny that he seems to reciprocate. But, Danny's unrelenting pursuit makes Lauren nervous, especially since he's the only one that wants to know the secrets surrounding her family's move. Lauren can't tell if Danny's intentions are true or if he has other plans for their newfound and unlikely friendship. The only way to figure out is to let him in and that could destroy everything, including the popularity and social acceptance she desperately seeks.
Growing old with the man she loves-in the small town where she was born-is the only dream Lauren McIntosh has ever had; that is until her family is practically run out of town amidst rumors of arson and adultery. So, when she meets Danny at her new school and hears the rumors about his activities from her new friends, she wants nothing to do with him or the gossip that seems to follow Danny everywhere. After a dangerous and ill-fated attempt at sneaking out, she develops unwelcomed feelings for Danny that he seems to reciprocate. But, Danny's unrelenting pursuit makes Lauren nervous, especially since he's the only one that wants to know the secrets surrounding her family's move. Lauren can't tell if Danny's intentions are true or if he has other plans for their newfound and unlikely friendship. The only way to figure out is to let him in and that could destroy everything, including the popularity and social acceptance she desperately seeks.
(From NetGalley)
My Review:
The story is told from the first person point of view of the two main characters, Lauren and Danny, and at first, this might seem a little jarring, but after a couple of times, you manage to settle into the rhythm. Lauren is fifteen, the new girl in town, wanting to put a troubling incident in her family's recent past (which spurs the move) behind her and reinvent herself in the image of her more popular older sister, under whose image she languished back home. Though her sister (and equally popular older brother) is in college back in their home state and doesn't make an appearance in the story physically, she still plays a significant role in Lauren's life and her creation of the perfect image/life. Danny doesn't figure into that perfect life. For one thing, he's been to juvie, he gets into fights, he likes to drink and has a string of girlfriends. So of course the two of them finding themselves drawn to the other.This is a book that let me with mixed feelings. On the one hand, the story really sucks you in and before you know it, you'v been up all night when you should be sleeping and still, you want to read more. On the other hand, it didn't really have much of a resolution, which left me feeling empty and craving more. It's one of those situations where the answers to questions just inspire more questions. Frustrating!
But there are many complications along the way. One is Lauren's insistance on becoming the girlfriend of the most popular jock in school and she will stop at almost nothing to get him, despite all of the warnings Danny gives her about him. But Lauren doesn't listen because alll she can see is how perfect Josh is and how well he fits into the new life she's imagined for herself. So it comes as kind of a shock to Lauren that her straight-laced mother prefers Danny over Josh. Another complication is the people Danny surrounds himself with, namely, his sister Sara and cousin Jess. Lauren really likes them and likes spending time with them, but she's not crazy about Danny's friend, Brandon, who tries to warn her away from Danny.
There are many twists and turns in this book. It often goes in a direction that I didn't foresee (which is a good thing), but that makes total sense. It is a true slice-of-life story written in an ogten gritty style that really captures the essence of teen life and how difficult that can be at times. It reminded me a lot of the style of Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles. So if you like that book (which I did), you will probably like this one, too, which I did. The only real issue I had with it was the ending, but it ended in such a way that I had to wonder if it's going to be part of a series. I certainly hope so. Otherwise, that was a terrible place to end! I want to know more!
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