Review: New Adult novel that hits the hard issues
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 02 3, 2013
I will be upfront and let you know that I received a free copy of Different Roads from the author in exchange for a fair and unbiased review. And that I shall give....While I won't go as far as to say that this should be required reading for every seventeen or eighteen year-old girl, I will propose that it might be helpful for many of them. Jacqueline (or Jaq) is a lesson all unto her own on how bad decisions can and will change your life irrevocably. On more than one occasion, I wanted to go and just lock the girl up in her room and keep her there, but more often than not, I wanted to give her a hug and be a friend to her. Not that she didn't have good friends; she just didn't listen to them. And then there's her Mom...."I knew how much you wanted to see 'Wicked' so I bought the tickets and asked Rick if he would take you. What you do after the show of course is up to you."Okay Mom, she's turning sixteen, not eighteen. Even though Jaq made a whole hell of alot of poor decisions, I still wonder how many could have been prevented if her mom wasn't a little more watchful(?) when she was young. I can't judge, especially since this particular character and her relationship with Jaq wasn't fully explored and of course, no one is perfect so there's that. So it's probably better if I jump off my soapbox now, before I fall off....Anyway, Different Roads is a quick read; maybe a little too quick, in my opinion. I didn't feel I had time to really get to know most of the characters, except for Damon Blackwell, who is one "bad boy" I hope to never come across. Or anyone else even remotely like him."Yeah. Believe me Jaq, do yourself a huge favor and stay away from Damon Blackwell. He's the worst kind of bad news. Trust me..."Okay, when the guy's sister is warning you away, it's probably a good idea to go running in the other direction...and not look back.All in all, I think Ms. Clark did a good job with a story that there is no doubt in my mind was very difficult to write. I can't say anything further without giving away the goods, so I'll just shut my trap now and let the story speak for itself.....nevaehnewadultbooks.blogspot.com