Review: A Good Start to a New Series
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 02 27, 2013
** spoiler alert ** First off I'd like to send out a big shout-out and thank you to Lauren Stewart for considering me to read her new novel (and provide her with my honest review) before it became available to the general public. Since I was already a huge fan of hers, I didn't even think twice when she approached me.Second, my apologies for the delay in posting my review. So many books, so little time. :)Already a fan of Lauren Stewart, I was not disappointed reading "No Experience Required," the first book in what looks like to be a terrific series. A mystery novel, it's a fun and witty story full of humour with a bit of sarcasm thrown in that will keep you entertained from beginning to end. But what makes this novel really shine is the female protagonist, Summer Rains. Even though she grew up in a commune, you wouldn't really know it. She's witty, funny, quirky, and sarcastic; overall has a heart of gold. She's always there for her friends; always giving a hand when needed - which I believe at times gets her into a little trouble. For such a terrifc person, I wasn't a fan of her best friend Jordan, or her former roommate, Daria. I totally thought these two were the most inconsiderate people I'd ever come across and Summer deserves better friends; in fact, she deserves to be treated a lot better than how they actually were to her.It wouldn't be a proper story without a love interest, and it seems that there are possibly two in Summer's future. There's Will, the boy she grew up with at the commune and really cared for; and Detective Ronin, who at first didn't seem to be too interested in Summer but that starts to change towards the end. I personally hope she ends up with Ronin as Will doesn't seem to know exactly what he wants. I'm hoping there's some passion and heat between Summer and Ronin in the next book as I didn't feel there was any in this one. Hence the four stars.In the end I highly recommend this novel to those who want to curl up with a fun book, whether at home or at the beach. I look forward to the next book in the "Summer Rains" series. If you haven't read any of Lauren Stewart's novels, I highly suggest you do as you're missing out on some terrific story-telling.