Review: 18-Year-Old Main Character Does Not Make This "New Adult"...or Good
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 07 29, 2013
The Low Down: Church-going, sweet little rich girl Kelli uses her good rep to create alibis for her fellow high school students so they can date who they really want to and get to keep their large trust funds. Cue entrance of smirky jerky Chase who she immediately dislikes with a passion. But, of course, he is everywhere and is everything her distracted parents would not want in a boyfriend for their daughter.Best Thang `Bout It: The idea was certainly intriguing, but before I knew it, it just turned into your typical surface-y smug boy meets disapproving girl and said girl has to get past her own insecurities to see love RIGHT IN FRONT OF HER.I'm Cranky Because: Sometimes repetition of themes or phrases works well in a story, sometimes not. There seemed to be a lot of talk about how Christian so-and-so was or that something wasn't Christian blah blah blah...it was too much. I got that in the first two seconds that was the main character's "thang." I felt like I was being hit over the head with it; was it merely there to explain why there was no sex in the book? The problem was that as soon as Christianity would be mentioned, the next sentence would have "dick" or "jackhole" in it, spoken (or thought) by the supposed Christian main character.The talk of oranges and popcorn got old fast, too. And there are some revelations about Chase that really seem to happen way too late in the story for it to change my feelings about him (or care).In relation to this, there was also a lot of "I can't believe I just thought that/said that/remembered that" every time Kelli would find herself thinking of the jerky Chase. This was supposed to show the reader how much she couldn't control her feelings about him, which, I guess, was supposed to show how real they were? This device was certainly overplayed.The characters were pretty one-note; there was no depth. I didn't particularly like either main character, and I could never quite believe the cocky ass Chase transforming into the sweet caring Chase. It was like there were two distinct people; perhaps an evil twin?Don't get me started on the nicknames they had for each other...gah.The Bottom Line: There are much better romances out there that will fulfill your boy-meets-girl needs.Tiny Rant: Do a lot of authors use this "New Adult" genre so their characters can have sex (in detail)? Yes they do. Is it a good thing? Depends. If your story is about /centered around/involving romance and sex, then yes, it's legit. So, for those of you who don't want to write about that, then don't. Write about all the other things that are "New Adult:" going to college, living alone for the first time, deciding on your major, traveling, getting your first job...the list is endless. Or, like in many ADULT books, when the characters are heading in that direction, fade to black. You don't have to tell details. Or, if your characters aren't going to do that, then don't put them in those situations. It's the very definition of a tease. Even Jane Austen knew how to make people smoulder. And you know they were waiting 'til marriage.Friday Night Alibi by Cassie Mae was published today by Flirt. A free copy of this book was given to Ink and Page in return for an honest review. Big thanks to NetGalley/the Publisher/the Author.Rating: 2Genre: New Adult/Young Adult Fiction Contemporary RomanceAges: 14 and upYou Might Want to Know: I am classifying this as NA/YA because the main characters are out of high school. However, there isn't any sex. There is drinking and talk of sex, but it is very benign.