Dirty Little Secret by Jennifer Echols

Release Date: 16th July, 2013

Publisher: MTV Books

Pages: 288pgs

The Story

Bailey wasn't always a wild child and the black sheep of her family. She used to play fiddle and tour the music circuit with her sister, Julie, who sang and played guitar. That ended when country music execs swooped in and signed Julie to a solo deal. Never mind that Julie and Bailey were a duet, or that Bailey was their songwriter. The music scouts wanted only Julie, and their parents were content to sit by and let her fulfill her dreams while Bailey’s were hushed away.

Bailey has tried to numb the pain and disappointment over what could have been. And as Julie’s debut album is set to hit the charts, her parents get fed up with Bailey’s antics and ship her off to granddad’s house in Nashville. Playing fiddle in washed-up tribute groups at the mall, Bailey meets Sam, a handsome and oh-so-persuasive guitarist with his own band. He knows Bailey’s fiddle playing is just the thing his band needs to break into the industry. But this life has broken Bailey’s heart once before. She isn't sure she’s ready to let Sam take her there again . . .

The Review

A big thanks to the publisher on Edelweiss for accepting my request in reading this book early!

Don't get me wrong here: I absolutely adore pretty much every single book ever written by Jennifer Echols. She's a master of romantic books and she happens to be one of my favourite authors too since she is along the ranks of Sarah Dessen, Susane Colasanti and Elizabeth Scott who are my favourites also. But, for once in my life, I'm actually quite taken back (shocked even) by the fact that I didn't particularly like this book nor practically cared for it as much as I have for Echols's other previous titles.

Now I'm not exactly a huge country music fan, but I still don't mind it and I loved how the whole country-thing was incorporated into this one book. It was good. I mean, personally I actually found it was quite refreshing and it offered something completely different to what I'm used to in the YA contemporary genre. And I love that different feel of it. But the main problem I had with this book and the main reason why I couldn't connect well - if not at all - to this book was because of its characters. There just wasn't a lot of love there between me and them.

The supporting characters we meet were okay people and even Bailey, our main protagonist, was okay herself. I will admit this because at times I really felt so sorry for Bailey and how her life has turned out, however at times I also felt really angry over her crappy family and how they treated her, but in the end there was just something about her I still didn't like, especially when you consider her love for this new boy that she meets named Sam. I guess that's why I didn't like her. Because of this Sam dude. Honestly, what did she see in Sam? I didn't get it because let me tell you this: the first time ever Sam is the first Echols's boy character I wanted to punch. Really punch. I mean like really, really punch HARD in the face. I kid you not. Sam - in my opinion - was the worst person ever on this earth. Well, in the book at least. He was just horrible. I liked him at first because he was your sweet, typical guy, but then he turns into this crazy person who uses people non-stop, treats them like dirt (yes, Bailey he treated you like dirt but you couldn't see that, could you?) and well . . . he turned out to be a jerk. What was Bailey thinking? I still do not know. Argh. Sam.

Overall, I didn't dislike DIRTY LITTLE SECRETS on a whole because it was still a good book. However, it just wasn't my favourite book coming from Jennifer Echols. I guess you can blame Sam for this 'turn-off'. Just saying. He is entirely to blame actually. I hated that guy.

The Rating

2 1/2 / 5 stars

Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: MTV Books

Pages: 336pgs

The Story

Heaven Beach, South Carolina, is anything but, if you live at the low-rent end of town. All her life, Leah Jones has been the grown-up in her family, while her mother moves from boyfriend to boyfriend, letting any available money slip out of her hands. At school, they may diss Leah as trash, but she's the one who negotiates with the landlord when the rent's not paid. At fourteen, she's the one who gets the job at the nearby airstrip.

But there's one way Leah can escape the reality. Saving every penny she can, she begs quiet Mr. Hall, who runs an aerial banner-advertising business at the airstrip and also offers flight lessons, to take her up just once. Leaving the trailer park far beneath her and swooping over the sea is a rush greater than anything she's ever experienced, and when Mr. Hall offers to give her cut-rate flight lessons, she feels ready to touch the sky.

By the time she's a high school senior, Leah has become a good enough pilot that Mr. Hall offers her a job flying a banner plane. It seems like a dream come true . . . but turns out to be just as fleeting as any dream. Mr. Hall dies suddenly, leaving everything he owned in the hands of his teenage sons: golden boy Alec and adrenaline junkie Grayson. And they're determined to keep the banner planes flying.

The Review

I was laughing out loud, crying over sad but bittersweet moments, frowning my brow constantly, cursing at frustrating boys and girls, and holding onto my dear life as I experienced the insides and outsides of planes . . . well okay, maybe it wasn't 'holding onto my dear life' but rather on the edge of my own seat as I read about people flying planes. Yup, that's Jennifer Echols for you! SUCH A RUSH is yet another fabulous contemporary book written by one of my favourite contemporary authors of today and I have to say this title right here would have to be my absolute favourite book coming from Jennifer Echols's by far! It was sheer brilliance and I enjoyed so, so much!

As you always get from a Jennifer Echols book, everything from every character to every emotion to every scene - it all just felt so real to me. Now it isn't very often where you come across characters and the plot that they're centered around in to be so honest with one another and be combined together so brilliantly, and I guess that's why I love and appreciate Echols's writing because she knows what to do with her characters and how to remain honest and true with each and every one them as well, and she keeps them exactly like that til the very end of the book. On the bonus side of things, Echols's characters each have their own personal stories to tell - revealing all sorts of strengths and weaknesses about them - and with so little time in a book, I find Echols deals with everything so perfectly. Yes, I'm totally gushing here!

For our main leading girl, Leah Jones, she is far from being perfect. In fact, she's not exactly your typical teenage girl either. Moving around constantly and now living in a trailer park near the airport with her no-good mother - a parent who is barely present in her own daughter's life, it's no wonder why Leah is so alone, cynical, aloof, cold and tough on the inside and out. After all, no one really cares about her. While some readers may find it hard to relate to Leah on a personal level, at least in the beginning, but once you get to know her and of her current situation you will soon begin to feel for this girl which I totally did. Leah, out of all the contemporary YA books I've read so far, would have to be one of my top 5 contemporary main characters. Her voice was just so raw, tense and unique, and if it weren't for the physical book in my hands right now . . . I would've thought Leah was a real person and a true friend to me, so it was a real pleasure to read about her life and the journey she takes.

The same love and high praise goes straight out towards the two leading male 'love interest' brothers, Grayson and Alec. Now I wouldn't go and say both of these twin brothers - yes I repeat TWIN BROTHERS - were necessarily love interests for our Leah since one was a more prominent and significant love interest than the other (it was kind of obvious who Leah loved more) but who cares . . . I loved them both dearly! I won't get into anymore detail about this particular title since I don't want to ruin the book for you, but whether you call it cliche or not, both of these boys are swoon-worthy for many different reasons, mostly because they are polar opposites to one another: Grayson, the bad boy brother, and Alec, the total sweetheart brother. Yeah you get the idea. For me personally, Grayson was the clear winner. Not because I have a soft heart for bad boys (okay sometimes I do), but because he had so much more character development than his brother, Alec, ever did and as much as I wanted to hit him for treating Leah badly at times and assuming some terrible things about her without some clear evidence to back his statements up, but I still adored him and I also cheered for when Leah called him out on those bad things he says . . . which he didn't like at all and it was just hilarious. But if and when you read this book, you will know what I mean when I say Leah and Grayson are so great . . . I mean they were so perfect together and shared this undeniable chemistry so it's no wonder why I loved this book so, so much! Those two did all the loving for me!

Overall, this book was awesome! Awesome, awesome, awesome. Containing both deep characters, intense storylines and a reflective prose made to be loved by all, SUCH A RUSH must be read by everyone, even if you're not the usual contemporary book fan or even if you haven't read a Jennifer Echols book yet. Trust me, this book will take you for quite a ride indeed!

The Rating

4 1/2 / 5 stars

Love Story by Jennifer Echols

Release Date: 19th July, 2011

Publisher: MTV Books

Pages: 243pgs

The Story

She's writing about him. He's writing about her. And everybody is reading between the lines.

For Erin Blackwell, majoring in creative writing at the New York City college of her dreams is more than a chance to fulfill her ambitions - it's her ticket away from the tragic memories that shadow her family's racehorse farm in Kentucky. But when she refuses to major in business and take over the farm herself someday, her grandmother gives Erin's college tuition and promised inheritance to their maddeningly handsome stable boy, Hunter Allen. Now Erin has to win an internship and work late nights at a coffee shop to make her own dreams a reality. She should despite Hunter . . . so why does he sneak into her thoughts as the hero of her latest writing assignment?

Then, on the day she's sharing the assignment with her class, Hunter walks in. And after he reads about himself in her story, her private fantasies about him must be painfully clear. She only hopes to persuade him not to reveal her secret to everyone else. But Hunter devises his own creative revenge, writing sexy stories that drive the whole class wild with curiosity and fill Erin's heart with longing. Now she's not just imagining what might have been. She's writing a whole new ending for her romance with Hunter . . . except this story could come true.

The Review

A big thanks to Jennifer Echols for sending me an autographed review copy of this book!

My name is Erin. Her name is Erin. My middle name contains the name Elizabeth. Her middle name is Elizabeth. I want to study Creative Writing. She is studying Creative Writing. I love writing my own stories. She loves writing her stories. As you see by the similarities between myself and the main character Erin Blackwell, it's no wonder why I love this book already - even before reading it - and because I'm a super huge fan of Jennifer Echols's book Going Too Far, I pretty much knew this book was going to be another winner for me. And it definitely was through my eyes. Plus when I got this book in the mail, it was signed by the lovely author who provided me with this review copy. So kudos to Jennifer Echols and her writing awesomeness!

First of all, let me just say I loved how the author raised the ages of the characters and wrote a book set in a college campus environment. For me this is something very rare for a young adult fictional book and I think we need more of these for our older teen readers. Everything from the storyline to the characters, it all worked out really well for the story's premise.

In Jennifer Echols new book LOVE STORY, Erin Blackwell grew up in Kentucky with her grandmother and lived on their racehorse farm. But unlike her grandmother and the life she wants for her granddaughter, Erin has big dreams to become a professional writer in New York City and when she leaves for college to major in Creative Writing, her grandmother cuts her off financially and leaves her inheritance and her money to the handsome stable boy, Hunter Allen, who has agreed to take over the family business. Much to Erin's dismay and shock. Then, Hunter eventually shows up at the same college Erin is attending and not to mention joins her class of Creative Writing. He didn't choose an ideal time either, because Erin has written a steamy romance story and is reading it to the entire writing class - spotlighting the 'stable boy.' But Hunter has his own plans because he too writes a steamy hot story that has all the students eating out of his hands . . . and Erin realizes that the tables have now turned.

I'm going to lay it on the table - I really loved this book. More importantly I loved the creative writing classes and the stories traded between Erin and Hunter. Their lives are the inspiration to their stories and while being criticized by their fellow peers, little do they know how true the events are and how close they follow the character's actual lives. It was just a really interesting way to look at things and discover little secrets along the way. While I loved all of the supporting characters throughout the book, but what really got to me was the undeniable romance between Erin and Hunter. They were both interesting characters with their own set of dreams and the two of them had spot on tension and chemistry which a lot of readers will love. I found Erin as a character was a little too judgemental for her own good, but I love her aspirations and the feeling how nothing will ever get in her way. As for Hunter, I adored him but damn that boy took his time to admit his feelings . . . but then again that's what boys do.

Now I would've given the book 5 stars but for me the major let-down was the ending. Ah . . . how the ending disappointed me so. I don't particularly like books that have chapters that build to a certain point of tension and then just when you think something big is going to happen and change the course of the events, you suddenly have that tension shrink, leaving you questioning some things. The ending for me was too rushed for my taste and I was a little confused by a couple of things that happened. But overall, you have great characters, great chemistry, and a great love story all round. Jennifer Echols's LOVE STORY will satisfy any reader of a light-hearted romance - with some steamy twists - and I highly recommend this one!

The Rating

4 1/2 / 5 stars