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Return to Sender

(Letters to Nowhere #2)

Julie Cross (Goodreads Author)

3.66 · Rating details · 386 ratings · 44 reviews

Follow up to Letters to Nowhere, an Amazon #1 Bestseller in teen sports fiction!

IMPORTANT! Note from the author—Karen and Jordan's story will continue in shorter installments with more frequent releases. If you haven't already, please check out the full length novel, LETTERS TO NOWHERE to read how the story began.

ABOUT RETURN TO SENDER (Letters to Nowhere Volume 2)

If only Follow up to Letters to Nowhere, an Amazon #1 Bestseller in teen sports fiction!

IMPORTANT! Note from the author—Karen and Jordan's story will continue in shorter installments with more frequent releases. If you haven't already, please check out the full length novel, LETTERS TO NOWHERE to read how the story began.

ABOUT RETURN TO SENDER (Letters to Nowhere Volume 2)

If only summer could last forever…

Karen and Jordan might be out in the open with their relationship, but that doesn't make it any easier for them to face events looming in the future. Like Jordan leaving for college halfway across the country. Or Karen's win at a big international gymnastics competition setting the bar high for her future and adding pressure like she's never experienced before.

But when Nina Jones (aka-US Gymnastics Dictator), makes plans for Karen and teammate Stevie to train at a gymnastics camp for a month—the same camp where Jordan coaches—romantic summer interludes replace their fears of being apart. Both Jordan and Karen know that when fall comes, some very tough decisions will have to be made, but for now, it’s stolen kisses, racing hearts, and whispered words.

EXCERPT FROM RETURN TO SENDER

CHAPTER ONE
~KAREN~

Bars.

If I had to pick one event I’d rather not begin with during my very first senior international competition, it would be uneven bars. So naturally, that’s exactly where Team USA is starting for Day One of the Pan American championships.

I’m leaning over the chalk bowl, reminding myself to breathe, and watching my oldest teammate, Stevie Davis, warm up her routine when Coach Bentley comes up behind me, resting his hands on my shoulders.

“Words of wisdom,” he says.

I inhale and nod, staring straight ahead. I could use a few notes from the former World Champion.

“Enjoy it while you can,” Bentley says.

I turn around, my forehead wrinkling. “What?”

He cracks a smile, but his focus is one hundred percent devoted to Stevie, who’s finishing up her routine. “The National Team committee wants you here for the experience. If you screw up, it’s no big deal, but after this—”

“I get the veteran label.” I swallow back the fear and shake out my arms.

Bentley rushes up to the competition stage as Stevie lands her dismount. Each of the four pieces of equipment gets its own podium to sit on so the crowd has a good view of each performance. Of course this set up only happens at major elite gymnastics competition. He’s right beside her, giving corrections and advice quietly, making large gestures with his hands.

I pace in front of the chalk bowl, blowing air through my cheeks. It’ll be fine. I’m gonna nail it and then no UCLA this month. No leaving Jordan.

Focus. Boys out. Gymnastics in.

My gaze travels up the stands until I spot Blair and Ellen, my younger teammates who train at my gym in St. Louis. They’ve already won their competition. The junior teams competed this morning. Both are wearing identical warm-ups and have gold medals hanging around their necks.

I really want a gold medal.

My stomach cramps up. I rub my knuckles over the front of my blue and white Team USA leotard, making sure not to ruin the perfect chalk-job I did on my grips. Brazil is hot and the food is weird. We’ve been here two weeks and my digestive system is just now going back to normal. Hopefully, I can get through a bar routine without an emergency run to the bathroom.

The Canadians over on floor exercise are stirring up loud cheers from the full-house crowd and there’s a Brazilian gymnast on vault whose name is screamed from the stands at least once a minute. We aren’t the favorites here. Though we are favored to win. It gets a bit uncomfortable when those two things don’t line up.

I wish my parents were here. I wish they were alive to witness this. My lawyer father often walked into courtrooms with half the room hating his guts. He’d have the perfect joke about this crowd’s animosity toward Team USA to loosen me up. Or he’d reference some rock band from his time that I’ve never heard of, but were apparently famous for “sticking it to the man,” and lecture me about how they performed despite negativity because they believed in their music so strongly. And then I’d Google image search the band and ask when I’d be allowed to tattoo my body to show my passion for gymnastics.

My chest tightens, thinking about my parents. Thinking about all the conversations that we won’t have.

God, I miss them.

Alicia, another Team USA member, finishes her warm-up bar routine, signaling that it’s my turn to charge up the steps. Bentley’s already adjusting the bars to my settings, chalking the high bar for me. He gives me a nod and I jump into my mount.

I haven’t competed up on a podium in nearly a year and never for a crowd this big and diverse.

While swinging through my circling skills to a handstand on the low bar, I’m thinking about Bentley’s words of wisdom. Enjoy it while you can. But what does that mean? What am I going to feel at the next meet? More pressure, more nerves? Will I want to hold back and not go for more amplitude and height out of fear of falling on my face?

I catch my release from low bar to high bar perfectly and after changing my grip in preparation for my new release move, a layout Jaeger, I decide my method of enjoying the moment means going full-out and taking this release as high as I possibly can.

Coach Bentley is positioned underneath me. This new skill still makes him nervous, though he hides it very well. I swing under the bar, my back and hips leading the way at first, my toes flying past my coach and heading toward the high arena ceilings. I release the bar, flipping high above it, giving me tons of time to see the bar and reach for it.

I reach.

And reach.

My fingertips make contact with the high bar and then just as quickly, they’ve slipped off and my body is heading for the deep blue sea of mats beneath the uneven bars. ...more

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ebook, 110 pages

Published October 20th 2013 by Long Walk Press

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· 386 ratings · 44 reviews

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Start your review of Return to Sender (Letters to Nowhere, #2)

Sep 21, 2013 Julie Cross added it · (Review from the author)

Shelves: books-i-wrote

Thanks so much for checking out my Letters to Nowhere series. The first book titled, Letters to Nowhere is a full length novel. The remaining books will be released in shorter more frequent installments, basically TV episode style. I realize this may seem unconventional, but I have so much I want to do with this world and these characters and the idea writing and releasing more often, expanding the world and giving more point of views from new and old characters was too appealing for me to pass ...more

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May 04, 2014 Maida rated it did not like it

Shelves: trauma, worst-books-i-ve-ever-read, abandoned-series-boycotted-author, series-trilogies, coming-of-age, disappointing-sequels-finales

I honestly don't know how to rate this one. What was the point of this novella? Nothing really happens. I would have much preferred a full-length novel as a sequel to Letters to Nowhere. The story is moving slower than snail's pace.

*1/5 stars* ...more

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Dec 31, 2017 K. rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: short-stories-and-novellas, audience-young-adult, own-it-kindle, 2017, contemporary, setting-usa, setting-south-america

Trigger warnings: death of a parent (in the past), mental health

I really enjoyed the first book in this series, so much so that I bought the novella sequels as soon as I finished it. And then promptly forgot all about them... So they've been languishing in the depths of my Kindle for literally years. But what better time than New Year's Eve to polish off a bunch of novellas?

This...was fine? Ish?? Like, it's a novella, so it was never going to be a particularly well fleshed out addition to the s ...more

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Sep 22, 2013 Krista rated it it was amazing

Shelves: own-kindle, 2-pov, 2013, sequels-i-covet, swoon-worthy-guys, male-pov, cute-romance, contemp, mature-ya, romance-ya

Letters to Nowhere was such a stellar YA contemporary with a great romance that I couldn't wait to pick up a copy of the sequel Return to Sender. Fans of the series may be disappointed that the series is continuing in short installments, but I actually found it refreshing and fast-paced. It's like little bursts of one of my favorite YA couples!

The most notable difference about Return to Sender is that we get Jordan's POV. I've said it before and I'll say it again -- Julie Cross does a fabulous j ...more

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Dec 07, 2013 Barb Lie rated it it was amazing

Return to Sender by Julie Cross is her return to the lives of Karen and Jordan, whom we met and loved in Letters to Nowhere. I loved Letters to Nowhere and was thrilled when Julie decided, due to the wonderful feedback, to continue their story. However, in Return to Sender, Julie will be doing short stories, as we follow Karen in her quest to rise up in the Gymnastic world. If you remember my review of LTN; being part of this world, watching them practice, and fight to make the National team and Return to Sender by Julie Cross is her return to the lives of Karen and Jordan, whom we met and loved in Letters to Nowhere. I loved Letters to Nowhere and was thrilled when Julie decided, due to the wonderful feedback, to continue their story. However, in Return to Sender, Julie will be doing short stories, as we follow Karen in her quest to rise up in the Gymnastic world. If you remember my review of LTN; being part of this world, watching them practice, and fight to make the National team and eventually make the Olympic team was great. In the middle of this, we spend more time with Karen, as she recovers from the loss of her parents, and trying to move on. We continue to fall more in love with Jordan, who is such a great character, as he is the perfect young man for Karen. He wants to take things slow, as she is still very much deep in her emotional grief, and vulnerable. Jordan loves Karen, and she too loves him. But gymnastics is everything for her, and this is where she must concentrate, and Jordan is always there for her.

For her own counseling, Karen’s therapist still has her writing her letters to nowhere to allow her to express her emotions. Very nice touch. What is nice about this series is watching Karen daily, as she handles the pressures of her gymnastics hopes, especially after coming off winning an international competition; as well as trying to come to terms with her parents’ death. One of the most emotional moments was when Karen went to help clean out her old home with her grandma, her best friend Blair and her therapist, Jackie. We watched Karen fall apart as she put on her mothers jewelry, and especially when she sat in the closet surrounded by her mother’s clothes. I loved when Blair joined her in the closet, then they both picked an outfit to try on. It was the perfect cleansing of her soul.

Return to Sender allows us to follow Karen and Jordan, as their relationship grows. We also get to see how Karen will do on her quest to make the Olympics, as well as to follow the daily life of elite gymnastics. Letters to Nowhere gave us a full story, and Julie now allows us to continue this story in what is probably the best way…a little glimpse at a time. This is well written story of two young people slowly falling in love; a young girl trying to cope with tragedy and life; and a background of what it’s like to be an Olympic hopeful gymnast; it is family and friends being there for each other. I look forward to reading more about Karen and Jordan, and learning more about this fantastic look at gymnastics.

Barb
The Reading Cafe
...more

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Jan 10, 2014 Rachmi rated it liked it

Shelves: contemporary, ebook, romance

When I heard there will be a sequel to Letters to Nowhere, I was really excited. I learn something new when I read it, a gymnastics world, and add it with Jordan and Karen story, made the book was hard to not love.

This sequel takes place right after Letter to Nowhere ended. Karen goes to Pan-Am in Brazil while Jordan graduated from high school and will be a coach in gymnastics camp all summer.

I think this is a good sequel but it's more a novella than a full-length novel like its prequel. I didn' ...more

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Sep 22, 2013 Ciara rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, sequels

Yet again...Julie Cross has brought the fan girl out in me. I mean you couldn't let out a short little giggle at the relationship the two protagonists (Karen and Jordan) in this book share.
When I found out 'Letters To Nowhere' (the first book) was going to have a sequel, I could barely contain myself as the characters in this series just seem so real and relatable and the situations they find themselves in aren't otherworldly like Julie's other books, Tempest and Vortex. See what I did there ot ...more

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Sep 22, 2013 Amy R rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2013, young-adult

Return to Sender by Julie Cross is a follow up story to Letters to Nowhere. I am told that Julie will be publishing shorter stories for this series rather than additional full length novels. That is great for readers that want more of Jackson and Karen but don't want to wait.

In Return to Sender, we catch up with Jackson and Karen in the summer. Jackson has graduated high school and is preparing for college in the fall. Karen just won an international competition and is moving further along in he ...more

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Dec 01, 2013 Lauryn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arcs

I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Return to Sender starts out at the Pan Am event and it follows both Karen and Jordan. It is different from the first book as it is less focused on the letters and it allows you to read from both Jordan and Karen's POV. I really enjoyed this sequel. It sets up the story nicely and I can't wait to read my copy of the third book in the series. I think that I am starting to appreciate these short novella like serial stories. It allow ...more

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Dec 07, 2013 April rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2013

I truly enjoy Karen and Jordan's story. The characters are easy to love and the story is well-written. I am not 100% sure how I feel about the shorter bursts of the story coming even though it is more frequent. I almost felt like this one was too short and if I hadn't already been invested in Karen and Jordan, I don't know if I would have come back for more. However, it is nice to get into their story on a regular basis and not have to wait forever and ever to get another peek. I think maybe I w ...more

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Dec 04, 2014 Buonaraya rated it liked it

Shelves: 2014-reads

This is just a novella, and I avoid these in general due to this weird thing I have where I think what happens in novellas aren't real (yep, because the full-length fiction book is totally real.) Must be all those Sweet Valley Christmas editions messing with my head. I mean how
many versions of Christmas could Elizabeth and Jessica have experienced?
Anyway, I guess I'm grateful for more Karen and Jordan. Jordan lost points by letting me into his POV though. I thought he was less whiny than that. ...more

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Sep 22, 2013 Ashley - Book Labyrinth rated it really liked it

Shelves: my-books, young-adult, ebook, new-adult

A short instalment, but a fun one nonetheless. I liked hearing more about Karen's gymnastics and future plans, as well as her continuing to deal with the loss of her parents. It was also fun to hear from Jordan's POV and see where his head is at with everything. Can't wait to see what's next! ...more

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Nov 07, 2013 Laura rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2013

I liked the continuation of the story and I loved the dual perspectives. Karen has an amazing voice, but hearing from Jordan just made the story even richer.

I was so sad that the story was so short. I could have read three times as much and loved it.

I can't wait to see what happens next! ...more

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Sep 27, 2013 Nath rated it really liked it

Shelves: contemporary, romance, ya, e-books, read-2013, new-adult

4.5/5 (B+)

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Oct 21, 2013 Shannon rated it really liked it

Good addition, just short. Wish it was longer.

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Nov 07, 2013 Ira marked it as to-read

SO BADLY WANT TO READ THIS BOOK!!! UGGGH I LOVE KAREN AND JORDAN. UNFORTUNATELY THIS ISN'T AVAILABLE HERE IN PH :((((( ...more

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Dec 07, 2013 Cecilee rated it liked it

Good but way too short!

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Mar 02, 2017 Jessica rated it did not like it

Book one was awesome so I don't get how this can be such bullshit :-( Why not take the time to write a proper book instead of these awful novellas?! ...more

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Dec 19, 2018 Claire Binkley rated it liked it

Now, I understand that Return to Sender is a short update on Jordan and Karen for a reason but I still wish it was longer!! ahh

Just like the first book in this series, I enjoyed Jordan and Karen's story. In book 2, the characters begin to experience a "public relationship" for the first time, Karen develops ways to get over her grief, and the couple grows deeper in love at camp. I loved all of these things, especially the camp aspect of the story and thought it was the perfect way to continue K ...more

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Aug 28, 2018 Nancy rated it it was amazing

Cute cute cute! It’s so much fun seeing Stevie and Karen try to one up each other. 😊

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Jan 22, 2019 Lily rated it it was ok

Shelves: female-authors, young-adult, 2019

While excellent sick day reading, this was not particularly well fleshed out. Which I guess makes sense because it’s a novella.

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Nov 06, 2019 Taylor rated it liked it

It was cute and fun to read more about Jordan and Karen but so short it's more like a short story. Also, not enough excitement in the book. ...more

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Oct 16, 2014 T.H. Hernandez rated it really liked it

After finishing Letters to Nowhere, I couldn’t wait to continue Karen and Jordan’s story and picked up all three sequels. The first is Return to Sender and is really only a third of the story. The biggest difference in this book is the addition of Jordan’s point of view which we get starting in chapter 2. It’s refreshing to read a teen male POV that is not angry, swearing every other thought, or always trying to get laid. He may be one of the most authentic teen male characters I’ve read. Certai After finishing Letters to Nowhere, I couldn’t wait to continue Karen and Jordan’s story and picked up all three sequels. The first is Return to Sender and is really only a third of the story. The biggest difference in this book is the addition of Jordan’s point of view which we get starting in chapter 2. It’s refreshing to read a teen male POV that is not angry, swearing every other thought, or always trying to get laid. He may be one of the most authentic teen male characters I’ve read. Certainly the most authentic recently. He’s just as unsure about his future as Karen is about hers, even though he’s been accepted to Stanford.

With Jordan heading off to Stanford in the fall and with plans to work at a gymnastics camp over the summer, tension and uncertainty increase. At least until Karen discovers she’ll be spending the summer training at the very same camp where Jordan will be working.

Karen struggles more with gymnastics in this go round, but I think that’s understandable given her recent success. The pressure mounts and she’s having a hard time juggling her ongoing grief, indecision about her future, expectations about her athletic performance, and an increasingly serious relationship with Jordan that is becoming both more emotional as well as more physical.

Plot
Because this is only the first of three parts, it’s hard to really distill the plot in this first third. But there are some decisions made and Karen confronts her grief head on, so I feel like it’s really setting up well for the next two books. The emotional punch that Julie Cross delivers is powerful. I don’t cry much when I read books, but I must admit to wiping a few tears with this installment. They were the good, beautiful, bittersweet tears, though, not the rip my soul out and stomp on it kind.

World Building
The world of gymnastics is still front and center and still solid as a rock.

Characters
Karen and Jordan are both growing and we see some of that growth developing already. Jordan’s camp roommate, TJ, is a welcome addition. I have a feeling he’s really going to shake things up, as is Liberty, Jordan’s girlfriend from the previous summer.

Top Five Things I Love About Return to Sender
1. Jaren – Still cute as ever.
2. Karen’s Uncertainty – I love that she’s still struggling with her future. Even though things worked out so well at the end of Letters to Nowhere, the fact that she’s still sorting it all out makes her more three-dimensional.
3. Karen and Stevie – The complex nature of their friendship is so real. It’s neither perfectly chummy nor antagonistic. It is a friendship that is forged on a common interest, driven by competition, and sustained by genuine respect.
4. TJ – There is so much more to TJ than meets the eye and I can’t wait to find out what it is.
5. The Big Emotional Scene – I won’t spoil what it is, but it has been building for some time and it was just the release the story and Karen needed.

Bottom Line
Return to Sender is a worthy follow up to Letters to Nowhere. It’s the first of three parts that sets the stage for the remaining two installments, but still manages to provide a satisfying read. ...more

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Oct 19, 2013 Hannah Harvey rated it liked it

Shelves: given-to-me-for-review

This book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Return to Sender is the second book in the Letter's to Nowhere series. I read and reviewed Letter's to Nowhere earlier this year, so if you want to check out my review you can do so by clicking here.
I really enjoyed the first book in the series, so when I got the chance to review this one as well, I was really excited. However for me the second book doesn't quiet live up to the first.
When I'm reading a series, I want each b ...more

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Dec 04, 2013 Samantha rated it it was amazing

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for honest feedback.

Karen and Jordan are back in this second installment of Julie Cross's series about love, overcoming obstacles both internal and external, and the exciting drama of gymnastics. They are both nervous about their future as a couple and on their own. Now in shorter installments, they face a summer together full of twists and turns.

As always, Julie Cross's writing has a way of putting you right into the story and feeling a deep and ...more

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Dec 28, 2013 Cynthia rated it it was amazing

Shelves: reviewed

Now, Letters to Nowhere is a full lengh novel, imagine my shock when I got to the end of book 2 and saw that it's short! I was like, where's the rest of my book?!

However, it is as emotional and awesome as the first.

Karen is learning to deal with her parents death and learning to be a "normal" teenager with a boyfriend now that she and Jordan are together.

We see Karen grow up in some ways. She's dealing with more presure from competition and at the same time she has another thing to worry about.. ...more

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Jul 11, 2014 Sophie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: summer-2014-reads

Okayyy... Can someone explain to me why I'm missing like 50% of the book? Please, Please, Please tell me that this CANNOT just ends with them on riding back to camp on their jet ski.

What just happened!? I'm reading this and totally loving the relationship between Jordan and Karen.Especially being able to read in Jordan's perspective. I LOVE IT! They are so freaking adorable!! I love how they can totally understand each other and just be brutally honest. To be honest, I'm devastated that the se ...more

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Dec 17, 2013 Marci rated it it was amazing

i received ARC for my honest review and this is the second book in the series, and it takes off where book one left. doesn't disappoint Karen and Jordan are now a couple and going strong. Jordan is having doubts that he wants to go to summer camp and be away from his girlfriend, its already been long enough. with Karen competing the good thing is that she did get several medals so she is back to where she should be. and now she has got the best news she will be joining Jordan in summer camp. so ...more

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Dec 19, 2013 Sarah Elizabeth rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, read-2014

(Source: I own a copy of this book.)
This is part two of Jordan and Karen’s story.

This was an okay novella, but it felt unfinished.
I still liked Karen and Jordan in this book, I thought they were sweet together, and I liked the way they thought of each other when they were apart.

I liked the storyline. It was great following Karen as she competed, and it was also good to see her making steps in her grief process.
The romance was good, and I really liked the sexy parts. Jordan was also really sweet! ...more

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Nov 29, 2014 Kay rated it liked it

Shelves: contemporary

3/5 stars.

This is a short novella about Jordan and Karen. It's summer, and Karen is getting busier as she experiences more pressure to perform well on the US Team, while Jordan is preparing for a move to Stanford. Long distance is hard, but thanks to Nina Jones (US Gymnastics Director), they get the chance to go the same gymnastics camp for a month.

This is really just a fluff read. I don't have much thoughts on it because it's so short and there's not much purpose to it, except you get to see a ...more

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About Julie Cross

Julie Cross

1,675 followers

Julie Cross is a NYT and USA Today bestselling author of New Adult and Young Adult fiction, including the Tempest series, a young adult science fiction trilogy which includes Tempest, Vortex, Timestorm (St. Martin's Press). She's also the author of Letters to Nowhere series, Whatever Life Throws at You, Third Degree, Halfway Perfect, and many more to come!

Julie lives in Central Illinois with her h ...more