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My Life Next Door
by Huntley Fitzpatrick (Goodreads Author)
by Huntley Fitzpatrick (Goodreads Author)
Kelly's review
bookshelves: could-not-finish, ya-fiction, read-in-2012
May 11, 12
bookshelves: could-not-finish, ya-fiction, read-in-2012
Read from May 10 to 11, 2012
I think this is a book that'll appeal to Sarah Dessen fans. But it did not work for me and I quit it a little after 100 pages.
There were a lot of characters to keep straight from the get-go, and not just because Jase's family has a lot of kids. There was a lot of required navigation in Samantha's family and in her friendships (everyone seemed to be dating someone else, which was the tricky part -- it was hard to get to know the primary character, like her best friend or her mother or her sister, because there was a guy attached to each of them who took up unnecessary page time from the start). I felt a little overwhelmed. I was hoping for more character development from the start, and for me, Jase felt a little unrealistic. That said, I DID like the family dynamic in his home a lot. Despite feeling overwhelmed by character, it was a fun family and the kids all felt real. I appreciated, too, how Sam wasn't boy-driven, despite living in a world where everyone else was attached to someone.
My other challenge was that there wasn't a true inciting incident. I can usually buy this for lighter reads, like this one, except I couldn't here. The reason: (view spoiler)
I was hoping for a kissing book, but 100 pages only got me mom kissing her boyfriend. This is a long book. It read fast enough but I wasn't getting what I wanted out of it. No doubt in my mind there's appeal here for readers looking for a sweet romance, as well as those who love a Dessen story, but it didn't work for me.
There were a lot of characters to keep straight from the get-go, and not just because Jase's family has a lot of kids. There was a lot of required navigation in Samantha's family and in her friendships (everyone seemed to be dating someone else, which was the tricky part -- it was hard to get to know the primary character, like her best friend or her mother or her sister, because there was a guy attached to each of them who took up unnecessary page time from the start). I felt a little overwhelmed. I was hoping for more character development from the start, and for me, Jase felt a little unrealistic. That said, I DID like the family dynamic in his home a lot. Despite feeling overwhelmed by character, it was a fun family and the kids all felt real. I appreciated, too, how Sam wasn't boy-driven, despite living in a world where everyone else was attached to someone.
My other challenge was that there wasn't a true inciting incident. I can usually buy this for lighter reads, like this one, except I couldn't here. The reason: (view spoiler)
I was hoping for a kissing book, but 100 pages only got me mom kissing her boyfriend. This is a long book. It read fast enough but I wasn't getting what I wanted out of it. No doubt in my mind there's appeal here for readers looking for a sweet romance, as well as those who love a Dessen story, but it didn't work for me.
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Reading Progress
| 05/10/2012 | page 100 |
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25.0% |
Comments (showing 1-4 of 4) (4 new)
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Drea
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rated it 4 stars
May 31, 2012 08:55am
Just an FYI, the roof thing is explained later. I don't remember if it's in the first 100 or not, but he's known for years that she sat up on the roof watching him.
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Drea wrote: "Just an FYI, the roof thing is explained later. I don't remember if it's in the first 100 or not, but he's known for years that she sat up on the roof watching him."It wasn't in the first 100 pages from what I remember. Either way, kinda weird for me. But I'm laughing because you loved this one and I didn't -- how it goes!
We never like the same books. There was more to why he went up that night, but I can't remember the exact reasons. But I do know he's watched her watch them for years--and I think it was something about how sad she looked or something about seizing the day. I'd have to go back and look. And in a way it was just how the Garrett's were, especially Jase.
