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Defying Gravity

(Finding Perfect #2)

Kendra C. Highley (Goodreads Author)

3.79 · Rating details · 489 ratings · 78 reviews

Disclaimer: This book contains enough sexual tension to melt snow, the hottest near-kiss in the history of near-kisses, and a sexy snowboarder determined to win the heart of the girl he loves.

Zoey Miller lives for her holidays in Aspen. Her time up on the mountain with the Madison brothers, Parker and Luke, is everything. But for the first time, it’s not enough. This time, ...more

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ebook, 233 pages

Published July 25th 2016 by Entangled: Crush

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· 489 ratings · 78 reviews

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Jul 25, 2016 Stacee rated it it was ok

Shelves: netgalley, read-in-2016

2.5 stars

I loved the premise of this and BFF to more is one of my favorites.

Right from the beginning I was annoyed with Zoey. She's so wishy washy and that continues through the entire book. The push and pull and constant miscommunication between Parker and Zoey was just exasperating.

I did love both sets of parents and there are some really sweet moments. I liked the setting and the use of snowboarding, but I hated the bet and I loathed Luke. And sadly, those were both huge plot points.

Overal ...more

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Jul 01, 2016 Deniz rated it really liked it

Shelves: adore, young-adult, cute-and-fluffy, entangled-crush

For ALL of you out there who want to have more of Luke...
Read Luke's side of the Story and interview by K.C. Highley over at Closet Geeks and Slow Mo

7/18/16
3.5Stars
Why? Why does Goodreads not have half-stars?!
This is right between good and great for me-- so 3.5stars
Now hover I'll be hanging round having to decided if I am rounding up or down ...

Review: 7/25

Let's just put it out there: I rounded up. Because simply put Defying Gravity is a well written and entertaining cute & fluffy and I found my ...more

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Jul 24, 2016 Kaitlin rated it really liked it

Actual Rating: 4.25

Find my FULL review and others at this link: http://kaitbooktopia.blogspot.com/201...

Overall, this was an sweet YA contemporary with a swoon-worthy romance between a girl trying to figure out who and what she wants and the boy who knows who he is and what he wants which is her. Highley wrote a highly relatable and cute book and I am certain that she will have great success in the near future when it comes to writing. This book will definitely give you a new book boyfriend! ...more

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Nov 17, 2016 Kara added it · review of another edition

DNF @ 25%.

Totally a me thing, nothing to do with the writing at all. I just couldn't connect with the heroine. She knows Luke's a douche and a player, but she wants him anyway. Not my thing. Loved Parker, though. Definitely not a bad book, I'm just not in the mood for it at the moment.

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Jul 01, 2016 Dani (Dani Reviews Things & Love in a time of Feminism) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2016-release, friendship, read-2016, lol, relatable-mc, swoon, young-adult, contemporary, arc, jocks

Disclaimer: I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Rating: 4.5 stars

I'm a firm believer that there is no such thing as a completely unbiased review, so I want to preface this one by saying that I've been stressing hard recently about a few things. This external stress can make me really hard to please sometimes, but, in this case, it made me love this book so much more. Defying Gravity helped me do j ...more

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Jul 24, 2016 Elaine rated it it was amazing

Having thoroughly enjoyed the first book in this series, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to read this sequel. Again, the main characters are eighteen, finishing school soon and deciding where to study next. This time, however, the story is set in Aspen and involved snowboarding, family holidays and many choices to be made….and the title is highly appropriate but you'll have to read it yourself to find out why!

The Miller and Madison parents have been friends since college and have regularly spe Having thoroughly enjoyed the first book in this series, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to read this sequel. Again, the main characters are eighteen, finishing school soon and deciding where to study next. This time, however, the story is set in Aspen and involved snowboarding, family holidays and many choices to be made….and the title is highly appropriate but you'll have to read it yourself to find out why!

The Miller and Madison parents have been friends since college and have regularly spent holidays together, especially after they had children. Their children have therefore grown up together, even though they lived miles apart. The Millers have a daughter, Zoey, whilst the Madisons have two sons, Luke and Parker. Luke is a charismatic risk taker, always enjoying being the centre of attention, especially when that attention is from attractive females. Parker is younger, a similar age to Zoey, and this holiday he is planning on letting Zoey know that he’d like to be much more than best friends with her. Well, that was his plan till he spotted that Zoey is flirting with Luke and Luke has also noticed that she is no longer a child and flirting back. The young men have always been rivals but never quite like this. When Luke challenges Parker to let them see which of them can win her attention things are going to be fun - until one of them has to admit to losing . . . Get ready for snow bunnies flirting with the young men, a hot incident with a towel, a serious competition, illness and a nasty accident as Zoey learns more about the young men and finally makes up her mind.

The author has maintained her brilliant character writing, with each of the main characters growing and developing through the course of the story. It was great to follow them maturing through their experiences in the story. There are some great laugh out loud moments and some that have you gasping in shock, a total emotional roller coaster ride that keeps the reader engaged and turning pages. I highly recommend this to anyone seeking a cute YA romance, a delightful, easy and engaging read with superb characters to escape into.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. ...more

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Aug 09, 2016 Lisa Brown Roberts rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ya-romance

Hi Friends,

True confession: I like to read Entangled Teen's Crush books as much as I like to write them. If I'd had these books when I was a teenager I would've been delirious with geeky, drama-loving, book boyfriend joy. As an adult, I'm still pretty gaga about these fun YA romances.

Defying Gravity by Kendra Highley should absolutely go on your to-read list if you like YA romance. Parker is a snowboarding god, plus he's a sweetheart. His brother Luke is a whole bunch of hot trouble and I have a ...more

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Jul 23, 2016 Sophie Marsden rated it it was ok

RTC

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Jul 15, 2016 Rê rated it it was amazing

Shelves: loved-it, made-me-feel, shipping-so-hard, young-adult-contemporary, we-should-be-friends, book-boyfriend, arc-netgalley, 2016

4.5 “Best friend and snow” STARS

ARC via NetGalley

Thank you, Entangled!

Sometimes you just start reading and you enjoy the story so much you can’t even stop to update your Goodreads status. That’s what happened here.

I started “Defying Gravity” thinking it’d another super cute YA love story published by Entangled Crush – I’ve been having a lot of luck with those – but I didn’t expect to fall in love with it as fast as I did.

I mean, by the end of chapter one I already had a major crush on Parker. Ma ...more

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Feb 11, 2017 Stephanie rated it it was ok · review of another edition

2.5 Stars. Zoey was a pretty unlikable character. I hated how wishy-washy and shallow she was - while we were supposed to think she was the opposite of shallow. Luke's character make absolutely no sense whatsoever. I liked Parker, he was the saving grace of the book.

I read a lot of YA, even though I am around twice the age of the main characters. Usually I can still really appreciate them, but this is one of those books that makes me think I'm getting too old for YA.

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Jan 08, 2019 Natalie rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, wintry-reads, read-in-2019

I love BFFs who fall in love, so I was all set to love this one, but I just....didn’t, mostly because of how wishy-washy Zoey was about her feelings. She’s back and forth between the two brothers constantly, and it made her seem really fickle. Luke’s motivations were strange to say the least, and Parker was the only character I really liked. He seemed way too good for Zoey.

I feel like this is the second book I’ve read about two brothers that like the same girl which is just an odd concept to me ...more

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Jul 20, 2016 Cristina (My Tiny Obsessions) rated it really liked it

Read full review HERE

description

This was my second book by Kendra C. Highley, as I read the first book of this series, Finding Perfect, last year and really enjoyed it – you can check out my review of it here. And once again, I really liked this one.

The book is told in dual POV, from Zoey and Parker’s points of view, and told in the third person. Though this is not my favorite type of writing, I still enjoyed it a lot, and the 2 voices were clearly distinct. Also, damn, they were funny.

I had liked Zoey by the end of book 1, because she was an awesome friend to Paige, and I liked her even more here. Zoey is always put together while at school, and mostly hides her true self most of the time, except when she’s in Aspen, with her best friend. I really liked that although she was the typical Queen-Bee at school, she was not really like that, and she grows a lot during this book and learns that while she’s hiding stuff, she won’t ever be truly happy.

Parker was dreamy dreamy. He has always lived in the shadow of his older brother, not really having an opportunity to shine himself, but he won’t let Luke get the one thing he loves most of all, his BFF and the girl he loves. I thought it was amazing how each brother had their strongest fields, and that they could both be AMAZING at slightly different things. And it was amazing to see Parker finally get his time to shine.

I loved Zoey’s relationship with Parker. They have been best friends since forever, and they’re always themselves around each other, with no pretense or bullshit (or makeup). The progression from friendship to more had been a long time coming, and they were truly two halves of the same whole – according to their moms… Yeah… their moms were their biggest shippers. It bothered me a bit that Zoey was so adamant to pursuit Luke, though I understood her fear: Luke was just easier, because if it didn’t work out, she wouldn’t lose her best friend. But I still could have done with a little less indecision from her front. I’m still not sure how I feel about Luke, because while I do think he’s not a bad guy, I really didn’t like some of his actions during this book.

The inclusion of Paige and Ben, from book 1, in the story was perfect, and it was so great to see where they stood.

The plot was fun and lighthearted, but with a good message: you have to be yourself to be complete. The dialogues and interactions between the main characters were awesome, and charged. It was a really enjoyable read, and I have to recommend this YA series… it’s so much fun. ...more

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Jul 25, 2016 Suze Lavender rated it it was amazing

Zoey loves Aspen. It's the only place where she can be herself. At school she's the perfect popular girl who hides behind a mask, but when she goes on holiday she can be who she really is for a while. When she's in Aspen she spends most of her time with the Madison brothers. Parker is her best friend and he loves to take her snowboarding. Luke is a year older and he's already in college. He has a lot of female fans and Zoey is one of them, she has a huge crush on him. When it's time to go to Asp Zoey loves Aspen. It's the only place where she can be herself. At school she's the perfect popular girl who hides behind a mask, but when she goes on holiday she can be who she really is for a while. When she's in Aspen she spends most of her time with the Madison brothers. Parker is her best friend and he loves to take her snowboarding. Luke is a year older and he's already in college. He has a lot of female fans and Zoey is one of them, she has a huge crush on him. When it's time to go to Aspen again she decides to find out if he feels the same about her.

Luke is a player and he breaks a lot of hearts. He doesn't mind ditching one girl for another and just lives for the moment. Zoey is a pretty girl, so he likes to flirt with her and thinks that maybe she can be his for a while. Parker has been in love with Zoey for a long time and he wants her to be his long-term girlfriend. The girl of his dreams is having a crush on his brother, but he's determined to change that. He's going to convince her that he's the one for her. Will Zoey choose the right Madison brother?

Defying Gravity is a wonderful winter story. I immediately loved the beautiful setting. Kendra C. Highley's descriptions of Aspen are magical and she makes the place come to life very well. I could easily picture the mountains and the beautiful snow. The snowboard descriptions are amazing, Kendra C. Highley writes about what it feels like to descend the mountains in an enthusiastic and lively manner. It's a fabulous topic for a story and I think it has been thoroughly researched and executed.

Zoey is pretty and popular, but most of the time she's acting. She doesn't have as much confidence as she likes people to believe and she actually would rather be a person who doesn't wear makeup and carefully selected outfits, which is one of the reasons she treasures her holidays. She loves snowboarding, reading, baking cookies and watching a lot of movies. Parker is the only one who gets to see who she is on the inside and their friendship is special. Luke is a player and he's extremely competitive towards Parker. He wants to beat his younger brother in everything, even in getting the girl Parker has always been in love with. As Parker is such a sweet guy that was quite tough to see, but he's giving everything he has and I loved that about him. There's plenty of great chemistry and I liked the heartwarming romance a lot.

Kendra C. Highley has written a great story about love, future dreams, friendship and snowboarding. Aspen is the perfect setting for a romantic story. I loved the main characters and the wonderful atmosphere. If you enjoy fun, flirty winter wonderland books you should definitely read Defying Gravity, it's a delightful story. ...more

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Jul 13, 2016 Jenn rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, new-author-to-me, 3-star-reads, arc, contemporary, read-in-2016, high-school-days, triangle-of-love

Zoey Miller lives two lives. Back home she's super put together, super popular, class president, all-round Miss Perfect. But every winter vacation she comes back to Aspen and it's here Zoey lets out the person she really is - the laid back, sporty girl who just wants to hang with her two best friends, Parker and Luke - brothers, who have known Zoey since they were infants. However, this year something changed. Zoey comes to Aspen with a plan - make Luke notice her in a more than friend sort of w Zoey Miller lives two lives. Back home she's super put together, super popular, class president, all-round Miss Perfect. But every winter vacation she comes back to Aspen and it's here Zoey lets out the person she really is - the laid back, sporty girl who just wants to hang with her two best friends, Parker and Luke - brothers, who have known Zoey since they were infants. However, this year something changed. Zoey comes to Aspen with a plan - make Luke notice her in a more than friend sort of way. The only problem with that is Parker has the exact same plan for Zoey.

Yup, this book has a love triangle: 2 brothers and a girl.

Overall, I found this book adorable. Zoey, for the most part, is likeable. She's fun, sweet, cares about her friends and is trying to figure out where her future lies outside of high school and this bubble that she's created. The Zoey I didn't like so much was the fake one that surrounded Luke. For someone who spends most of the book complaining about having to be someone she's not back home and how those people only like one side of her, she certainly becomes the perfect little snow bunny just following Luke around. It really didn't make sense as to why she would fall so hard for the superficial shallow brother knowing what we know about her.

The brothers were like night and day. Luke, as I said before, was full of himself, rude, and just not a nice guy. Can you tell I didn't like Luke? The only reason her pursues Zoey is because he wants to beat Parker at everything. (How Zoey doesn't see through his charade is beyond me.) Then there's Parker. Sweet, adorable, Parker. He's been in love with Zoey for years and when he decides to make his move, suddenly she's chasing his brother. I felt really bad for him but at the same time, I wanted him to man up and tell her what was going on.

These books are just like candy. Short and sweet following the formula we all know. Despite this being set in the winter, it's a perfect read for day at the beach. And I dare you not to fall for Parker. Another plus, even though it's a series, you don't necessarily have to read them in order to understand the plot. Each book is it's own. Also, side note, I want to learn how to snowboard now.

...more

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Jul 28, 2016 Nicole rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ebooks

Defying Gravity!!! First things first: I received an ARC of this book from Entangled through NetGalley.
The book came out july 25th. Check it out if you want something cute and fun.

Book summary: Zoey Miller lives for her holidays in Aspen. Her time up on the mountain with the Madison brothers, Parker and Luke, is everything. But for the first time, it’s not enough. This time, she’s determined to win one of the brothers’ hearts. But the brother she has in mind is a renowned player, with hordes of Defying Gravity!!! First things first: I received an ARC of this book from Entangled through NetGalley.
The book came out july 25th. Check it out if you want something cute and fun.

Book summary: Zoey Miller lives for her holidays in Aspen. Her time up on the mountain with the Madison brothers, Parker and Luke, is everything. But for the first time, it’s not enough. This time, she’s determined to win one of the brothers’ hearts. But the brother she has in mind is a renowned player, with hordes of snow-bunnies following him around Snowmass resort. And the other…well, he’s her best friend and knows she deserves better. Namely him. And he’s going to win her heart.

This is the second book in the Finding Perfect series. To read this, you don't have to read the first book. Zoey was a minor character in the first one, now she is the main character.

I really loved Zoey in the first book (and actually wanted to have a book dedicated to her), so I was really happy when I saw that this was going to be a story from her point of view. We also got some mentions of Paige and Ben, who where the main characters in the first book, something that I really enjoyed cause I loved these two adorable idiots.

In this book we met the Madison brothers, Parker and Luke. And they couldn't be any more different from each other, except their love for snowboarding. I really loved Parker right from the start, he was kind, sweet and funny, AND so obviously in love with Zoey. I loved their friendship. They basically grew up together and you could tell, the chemistry between these two were off the charts. And then we have Luke, the older brother, and no, he wasn't my cup of tea. It's not even that he's a player, cause you know, to each it's own, but I found him really annoying. I couldn't see what Zoey saw in him (thank god in time, Zoey didn't either).

Other things that I really loved about this book:

- The setting. Aspen. I loved the focus on snowboarding and I think those moments were really well written.
- The mom's!!!!
- Parker's friends and wish we could have seen more of them. Especially Shawn.
- The fact that everyone who saw Parker and Zoey together thought they were a couple and were obviously rooting for them. I love things like that.

...more

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Jul 16, 2016 Anjie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2016, arc, author-req

I would like to thank the author and Entangled Teen for providing me with an Advanced Reader's Copy of Defying Gravity! This in no way affected my opinion of the book.

I was beyond excited and happy to hear that Kendra Highley was publishing a second book to Finding Perfect! I was even more excited when I found out it was a story about Zoey and the Madison brothers. We got to know a lot about Zoey in the first book and one of the reasons why I loved the first book so much was because of her amazi I would like to thank the author and Entangled Teen for providing me with an Advanced Reader's Copy of Defying Gravity! This in no way affected my opinion of the book.

I was beyond excited and happy to hear that Kendra Highley was publishing a second book to Finding Perfect! I was even more excited when I found out it was a story about Zoey and the Madison brothers. We got to know a lot about Zoey in the first book and one of the reasons why I loved the first book so much was because of her amazing relationship with Paige. I loved that we get to know her even more. She was just as I remembered but even better. We get to see inside her head. She's not just the popular, chic, peppy girl but she's sporty and down to earth. I hope that she lets those at her high school see that side of her because they would think she was even more cooler. As for the brothers ... I fell in love with Parker! Seriously! I didn't think that anyone would be better than Ben but wow. Parker was a lot like Zoey, athletic, loyal, funny, and humble. His humility and sole focus on Zoey are the main reasons why I liked him more than I liked Luke. In all honesty, I didn't like Luke at all. Their athleticism and good looks were just about the only things they had in common. Luke was too much of a playboy and arrogant and just no.

Kendra's writing was just as fantastic here. There were definitely moments of great swooning. I was really worried that it would be one of those bad love triangles but I actually really enjoyed it. The book was a lot of fun to read and I would give it 5 stars solely on entertainment value. It's perfect for a summer read! The pacing was fantastic and I loved the storyline. I also loved the dual POVs! It was great to be able to see what was happening in Zoey's end and what was happening between Parker and Luke. The relationships are fantastic and I really wanted to see more. I just don't understand how Luke can be such a jerk to his kid brother but I don't know ... are all older brothers like that?! Anyway, we even get a little bit of Paige and Ben! I loved that Kendra squeezed them in! I was just smiling from ear to ear when they popped up. I also enjoyed the epilogue and I really wish that there was more. I don't even care what the plot is, I just want more Parker haha! ...more

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Jul 25, 2016 Madi ~☆TheBookNerdDiaries☆~ rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-but-deleted-for-space

So I got this one for a tour and thought "what the heck, I gave the last one 3-4 stars so why not?". And I ended up skimming after 2% trying to find something remotely interesting or that caught my eye but alas nothing.

To be honest, I didn't even remember who Zoey Miller was until I went back to my old review and then I was like:
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because Zoey kind of sucked in the last one. I mean she was more of that cliche "smart girl's totally hot & rich friend" character than one with substance. ...more

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Jul 16, 2016 A Leisure Moment rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult, love-romance, contemporary-fiction, realistic-fiction

I didn’t realize that I could love a boy more than Benjamin Franklin—no, not the founding father. I’m talking about the boy that stole Paige Westfield’s heart in Finding Perfect! Because, I’ve already admitted and accepted fully, that I fell head over heels in love with him. Parker Madison…he might have given Ben a run for his money; though, it’s not fair to compare the two, honestly, because they are so different, as are Paige and Zoey. What did these two books have in common? They trapped me. ...more

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Jul 01, 2016 Bette Hansen rated it really liked it

This was an awesome teen friends to more story! Zoey, Parker, and Luke have been friends for as long as they can remember. Parker and Luke are brothers and every year they meet up with Zoey when she comes to Aspen for winter break. Parker has been in love with Zoey for a while but never wanted to risk the friendship. It's now or never though. He's noticed she's flirting with his brother Luke and that just won't do. Zoey is definitely crushing on Luke and plans to let him know this winter. That i ...more

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Jul 13, 2016 Shannon rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc, youngadult, net-galley, review-to-come

Defying Gravity is such a delightful little story of long time childhood friends discovering they have much stronger feelings for each other than friendship...although it takes one a little longer to realize it than the other!

Zoey returns to Aspen for Christmas break, determined to get Luke, the older playboy of the Madison brothers, to notice her. At the same time, Parker, her longtime best friend, is determined that this year he's going to get Zoey to notice him, and not just as her best frien ...more

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Jul 01, 2016 Melissa (YA Book Shelf) rated it it was amazing

I stayed up most of the night reading this book with a smile on my face. Ever since reading Finding Perfect last year, I've been waiting to read this one because Zoey needed an HEA, too. I loved the battle between Luke and Parker, but only one of them could truly make her happy.

Add in the cameos of Paige and Ben, and the "striptease," which was more teasing than stripping, and this was awesome!

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Nov 03, 2016 Paula Ribeiro rated it really liked it

This book was cute! I enjoyed it very much!

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Jul 20, 2016 Erica Chilson rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: wickedreads, 3-star, young-adult, contemporary-romance

I received a copy of this title to read & review for Wicked Reads

Young adult age-range: 13+.

4 stars for young adults.
2 stars from me personally.
3 stars total.

I need to preface this review by stating I've enjoyed this author in the past, five-starring the previous book, and the majority of Entangled: Crush Publishing's titles have been a hit with me. The female narrator rubbed me the wrong way, completely derailing any enjoyment I could find from the nearly 200-page novel. This is the review fro ...more

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Apr 16, 2017 Sara rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: romance, young-adult

This was quick, sweet read. It took Parker long enough to get Zoey. Sweet summer read. Though I know not a thing about skiing this book executed it so well. It was fun and romantic.

...more

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Dec 17, 2017 E.A. Walker rated it liked it · review of another edition

This was a nice read, but a bit formulaic and thus predictable. That took away a lot of the potential suspense and interest for me. Kendra Highley still managed to keep it entertaining with good writing and engaging characters.

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Nov 03, 2019 Kelsey van Dillen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2016-release

LOVE it when the best friend gets the girl. Very cute story, makes me super excited for winter season.

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Jul 15, 2016 ♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle) rated it really liked it

You can read this review and more on my blog:

Plot:

Defying Gravity is a cute little romantic story about best friends, Zoey and Parker.

Zoey and Parker have been best friends since they were in diapers. Their parents are so close that Zoey’s parents bought a vacation home right next door to Parker’s family home.

Zoey and her family spend every Spring break with Parker’s family, and that works just fine for him because not only is Zoey his best friend she is also the girl he has bee ...more

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Jul 12, 2016 Moriah rated it it was amazing

*This book will also appear on A Leisure Moment*

**I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review**

I didn’t realize that I could love a boy more than Benjamin Franklin—no, not the founding father. I’m talking about the boy that stole Paige Westfield’s heart in Finding Perfect! Because, I’ve already admitted and accepted fully, that I fell head over heels in love with him. Parker Madison…he might have given Ben a run for his money; though, it’s not fair to compare the two, honest *This book will also appear on A Leisure Moment*

**I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review**

I didn’t realize that I could love a boy more than Benjamin Franklin—no, not the founding father. I’m talking about the boy that stole Paige Westfield’s heart in Finding Perfect! Because, I’ve already admitted and accepted fully, that I fell head over heels in love with him. Parker Madison…he might have given Ben a run for his money; though, it’s not fair to compare the two, honestly, because they are so different, as are Paige and Zoey. What did these two books have in common? They trapped me. Once I dove in, I could barely put it down. I wanted to go back to Aspen and spend all my time with Zoey and Parker and wouldn’t have wanted to spend a long car ride any other way.

When I read the first book in this series, Zoey’s character played an important role: the object of Ben’s affections. Or so he thought. It turned out that Paige and Ben were meant to be, which was a good thing for Zoey because she had her eyes on another boy. That boy was Luke Madison, and he was part of her other life, the life that her friends in Texas didn’t know about. She liked to keep Colorado Zoey and Texas Zoey separate, so the “Class President Barbie” that I met turned out to be a snowboarding, snow-loving Colorado girl through and through.

What was so wonderful about Zoey was that she wasn’t the stereotypical beauty queen. She didn’t snap her fingers and expect hordes of boys to come running because of her looks. Trips to Aspen were what she relished in and craved, a time where she felt she could truly be herself without judgment. I found her relatable because everyone at some point in time knows what it’s like to be some way or someone because it is what’s expected, not because it’s who you are. I liked the real Zoey—in fact I loved her. She made the story fun and interesting, and I enjoyed being inside her head. Zoey Miller is the kind of girl you would want to be friends with for life.

Get ready to swoon over Parker Madison. I actually stopped reading at one point to tell someone how wonderful I thought he was and that everyone needs a Parker in his or her life (don’t worry, I knew the person—although, he’s the kind of guy you tell strangers about, he’s that wonderful). His talents and abilities on a snowboard were a hobby, not a means to an end. Humility and tantalizing hazel eyes—what’s not to love? But my favorite part about my newest book boyfriend was how much he loved Zoey. They had grown up together, Peanut Butter and Jelly, as his brother liked to call them, and knew everything about each other. That friendship started to change, but a friendship still remained. They were like Nathan Scott and Haley James, as Quinn said, “[They’re] like two best friends that are in love with each other.”

I guess I have to talk about the other person who had Zoey’s affection: Luke. I tried to look at Luke in varying lights, and I think he can be saved. While Parker has my heart, I could see the appeal of Luke, though he wouldn’t have been my type. It would be entertaining to read about a girl that could calm down that heartbreaker.

This book can be read as a standalone, but I have no idea why you would want to. This series—oh, this series! I love it! I might have squealed when Kendra asked if I wanted to review it. If you don’t have an e-reader, here’s a perfect excuse to buy one. If you do, what are you waiting for? Defying Gravity made me wish for snowy weather and a mug of homemade hot chocolate—and a cute snowboarder wouldn’t hurt, either.
...more

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Aug 01, 2016 Poulami rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: romance, contemporary, young-adult

Originally posted on Daydreaming Books.

*I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

This book was perfect! But I have to admit, at first I was confused if I wanted to read it or not because this book had my most hated trope. Yup! You got it- the love triangle! But surprisingly it was a pretty fun and refreshing read and I ended up loving it!

*A little spoilery!*

Zoey Miller comes back to Aspen during the holidays to spend her time with her ...more

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Jul 01, 2016 Megan (Under the Book Cover) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: romance, ya-books

Review also posted at: http://underthebookcover.blogspot.com...

5/5

Thank you to Entangled Teen for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for review!

Defying Gravity is the second book in the Finding Perfect series, with characters from the first book making an appearance in this book. However, this book can be read as a standalone and you don't have to worry about missing anything from the first installment! This is becoming a trend (somehow) with a lot of books I've picked up lately, Review also posted at: http://underthebookcover.blogspot.com...

5/5

Thank you to Entangled Teen for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for review!

Defying Gravity is the second book in the Finding Perfect series, with characters from the first book making an appearance in this book. However, this book can be read as a standalone and you don't have to worry about missing anything from the first installment! This is becoming a trend (somehow) with a lot of books I've picked up lately, where it is the second in a series but is perfect as a standalone. I thought it would drive me nuts, not knowing what happened in the previous book, but I actually really enjoy them whether I've read the previous books or not. When an author is able to effortlessly expand on a world that they've built and blend any previous or future novels perfectly, I get so intrigued and am immediately interested in reading more!

Immediately after starting the book, I made my prediction about who Zoey would end up with and also spent the entire book wanting to shout at her to make up her mind! Honestly, it was fun going on the journey from start to finish with her and watching her figure things out for herself despite me wanting her to hurry up and just choose. Zoey was a really solid character, although she seems slightly insecure in herself. She had her "Texas Zoey" and her "Aspen Zoey" and throughout the book, she didn't seem to be happy with her "Texas Zoey." By the end of the book, I feel like she was much more confident in just being herself and not trying to put on a different persona just to impress people. I liked that she was able to make that decision to just be happy with who she was and be who she felt comfortable being. It sends a really good message to readers that being yourself isn't a bad thing, and to embrace who you really are.

Reading all about the snowboarding was really interesting, as it's a topic I don't commonly find in books. I've always thought it was fascinating and, even though I had no idea what any of the phrases or tricks were, it was definitely a fun read! Also, making Aspen as the setting allowed me to paint some absolutely beautiful pictures in my head as to the scenery and surroundings. Kendra C. Highley was able to really transport me to the mountain with her descriptive writing skills, and absolutely shines at drawing the reader in no matter where the characters are. I really felt like I could hop on a snowboard and take on The Cirque myself by the end!

Despite contemporary not being my go-to genre, Defying Gravity was a wonderful read. It was funny, with just the right amount of smooching and drama, and some really likable characters that had me laughing almost constantly throughout the book. Zoey was sassy and spunky, Parker was sweet and passionate, and Luke was just a big jerk most of the time, but really did seem to care when it came to Zoey's safety. This book definitely got me interested in picking up Finding Perfect so I can read more about Paige and Ben!

If you're looking for a nice, chilled out (haha, see what I did there?) contemporary romance to curl up and read, then Defying Gravity is the book for you! You'll find great characters, some amazing settings, and a very satisfying ending! The book comes out on July 25th, so be sure to pick it up on release day! ...more

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About Kendra C. Highley

Kendra C. Highley

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Kendra C. Highley lives in north Texas with her husband and two children. She also serves as staff to four self-important and high-powered cats. This, according to the cats, is her most important job. She believes in everyday magic, extraordinary love stories, and the restorative powers of dark chocolate