Review: Quick read for the Darcy, Wentworth, and Knightly obsessed!
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 05 29, 2012
Raise your hand if you love Jane Austen and cannot get enough Darcy, Wentworth, and Knightley. Author, Cecilia Gray, recognizes this obsession and delivers readers an appetite-whetting medley in her first young adult novel, Fall for You. Here we see Austen's beloved heroes and heroines thrown together in the same high school.Welcome to the Jane Austen Academy, better known as JASTA by its devoted students, a name that is meant to remind students that just like Jane Austen, they do not have to accept things the way they are, as change is on the horizon. From new owners, a new headmistress, male students in attendance, and now a possible name change, students are left wondering what other traditions will be changed.Unwilling to let these changes slide without a fight, editor of the Gazette, junior Lizzie Egmont, is on a quest to stop some of the changes and uncover the mystery behind the new owners. Lizzie also struggles with personal changes. While she and her best friend Ellie drift further apart, Lizzie is forced to reconsider her resentment of the former owners' daughter, Anne Escobar, and wonders if she may have misjudged Dante as well. Along with unearthing secrets Dante may be hiding, Lizzie must come face to face with feelings she may not want to admit.In addition to these changes, old friendships are being tested and new ones are being formed. Here, Gray has captured the essence of teenage friendships : drama, jealousy, and camaraderie. I felt I had been transported back to high school. All the things that are important to teenaged girls: school dances, friends, boys, college admittance, popularity, and did I mention boys? are well captured in Fall for You.  The author creates relatable, real characters while at the same time maintaining some of Austen's main characteristics: Darcy/Dante is reserved and protective of Georgiana, Lizzie judges on first impressions, and Anne's parents are making her decisions.My only complaint is the many plot points. Even those with Lizzie and Dante seemed unfinished or under-developed. I felt Lizzie and Dante resolved their issues too quickly. "Fall for You" covers the first month of our main characters' junior year. I am curious to know how much time each of the other five novels in the series will cover. While I enjoyed the story, I was left with many unanswered questions, leaving my head spinning. Even though this is my major beef with the novel, I will most likely be reading the rest of the series as my curious and hungry nature will not be satisfied until this story is neatly wrapped up.Even though this is a young adult story, adults will find it an enjoyable, quick read, perfect for summer days.(Reviewed on [...])