Review: Such a great read!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 10 3, 2013
I really enjoyed this book in the Fenbrook Academy series. We get to know Karen the cellist outside of Natasha and Darrell's story. Karen is under her dad's thumb, and all she does is go to class, rehearse, and sometimes if her friends beg her enough, she'll relent and go out with them. She's determined to get into the New York Phil and one fateful night that dream seems to come crashing down.... Enter Conner, the Irish, party guy who plays electric guitar.Conner seems to be Karen's only hope of graduating, and not having to face letting down her dad, but can cello and electric guitar work? Can the two of them get past their differences and work together, the answer is yes, but not without a lot of drama, lust, and ups and downs in between.I really enjoyed how this story was told, the angst Karen felt, and trying to understand her feelings towards Conner. Trying to always please your parents (or parent in her case) is never easy, but sometimes, you have to let go and do what's best for you, and seeing Karen try to figure this out, is such a great read. I loved the back and forth banter and sexual tension between Conner and Karen. You can tell there's something there, but are they willing to speak up about it? This story has you up and down, and has you questioning if it will work out, was all of it for nothing.I also enjoyed getting to see the characters we met in book 1. Seeing how things were going with Carissa and Niel, Natasha and Darrell, and even Jasmine. Karen was always the mousey one in the group, but by the end of this book, she's the strong one, the smart one, the one that talks sense into these people that have become her family, even if they don't want to hear it.The writing, and the characters was amazing in this book. You don't necessarily have to read book 1 to read this, as it's focused on Karen and Conner, where book 1 was all about Natasha and Darrell. I did miss not getting Conner's POV, and only seeing Karen's side of everything. But maybe then the book wouldn't have been so angsty!This is  great weekend read story, and the characters will have you falling in love with them (secondary and primary characters), well except maybe Ruth... I can't stand that B!All in all, this is a very well written book, and a great read. You should definitely add it to your TBR list today.Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.