Author: Lauren Barnholdt
Publisher: July 9, 2013
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Source: Publisher via Edelweiss
Can a road trip repair a romance gone wrong? Find out in this standalone companion to Lauren Barnholdt’s Two-way Street.
Here are Peyton and Jace, meeting on vacation. Click! It’s awesome, it’s easy, it’s romantic. This is the real deal.
Unless it isn’t. Because when you’re in love, you don’t just stop calling one day. And you don’t keep secrets. Or lie. And when your life starts falling apart, you’re supposed to have the other person to lean on.
Here are Peyton and Jace again, broken up but thrown together on a road trip. One of them is lying about the destination. One of them is pretending not to be leaving something behind. And neither of them is prepared for what’s coming on the road ahead…
Fact number one: I love road trip books.
Fact number two: I love YA contemporary romances.
Fact number three: I loved this book.
I have to start by saying how much this story reminded me of Two-Way Street, its companion novel, which I listened to on audio about a month ago. I adored Two-Way Street, and I was so happy to see that this story was just as cute, just as fun, and just as easy to read and get into. I may have liked the storyline in TWS a bit more, just because I fell in love with Courtney so quickly and easily. Plus I often really bond with characters in audios where the narrators are so incredible. I have a feeling I may end up with the audio of of this one too. (A bit obsessive? Maybe. But I love me some audios! :P) At the same time, it's not necessary to have read TWS first. They are companion novels and can be read separately.
At first I wasn't sure how I felt about Peyton. She came off very petty and insecure at first. But as the story progressed, I got a look into what she was dealing with in her personal and home life, and that helped explain her not-so-lovable personality. I did, however, completely fall in love with her thought process. She was all over the place! I laughed hysterically when she would be discussing one thing, then go off on a tangent about something totally unrelated. Peyton grew on me completely.
Jace had me at hello. Right from the beginning I knew there was more to him, and I was so excited when I saw that the chapters alternated between his POV and Peyton's. It definitely brought a lot more to the story to see both sides. I also love the flashbacks, which was very similar to TWS and something I always enjoy in a story.
* Possible spoiler for Two-Way Street coming up... *
Anyone who read TWS will be happy to know that Courtney and Jordan make a cameo appearance in Right of Way! It was great to see that they're still adorably in love and their relationship is holding strong. :)
* Two-Way Street spoiler ended.*
The story progressed at a perfectly consistent and steady pace. The waiting and wondering about the secrets that wouldn't be revealed til the end kept me flipping those pages so fast to see what could possibly have changed the lives of these two teenagers so drastically. Another great book from Lauren Barnholdt! I'm hopeful that there's another road trip book in the works. If you enjoy road trips, YA contemps, and a cute story, definitely grab a copy of this one!
Companion Novel to Right of Way:
Read my review of Two-Way Street HERE.
"I knew you were high maintenance, but that much luggage is a little crazy, don't you think?"
"I'm not high maintenance!"
He shrugs, as if to say I am high maintenance and everyone knows it, so there's no use denying it. Like he knows anything about me and my high-maintenance ways. (And yes, I am a little bit high maintenance. But not in a bad way. I just like to have things the way I like them.)
-loc 95
"Were you able to score the Twitter user name Jace?"
"Well, no," I say, "that would be impossible. And besides, I wouldn't want that name anyway. Too much pressure."
"Too much pressure?"
"Yeah, like if you don't tweet interesting things all the time, people think you don't deserve the name and you should give it up to some other, cooler Jace."
-loc 654
I LOVED Two Way Street and can not wait to read this one. As long as the MC has reasons for how she acts, I think I will be okay with her behavior. Great review!
ReplyDeleteAlise @ Readers In Wonderland
Thanks! I definitely grew to love Peyton. :) I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!!
DeleteI've heard a lot of people say that they enjoyed Two Way Street more. I wanted to read it before this one, but maybe I shouldn't?
ReplyDeleteWellllllll, I know how you like to read books in order, so I'd say you should probably still read Two-Way Street first. ;) The audio is great! The narrator does have a very childish voice, but it worked for Courtney just fine. :)
DeleteGreat review! This book sounds like a nice summer read. ;)
ReplyDeleteThis sounds AMAZING. I'm even giddy that you liked the storyline even more. And I loved the fact that the MC gets better! Great review :)
ReplyDeleteSunny @ Blue Sky Bookshelf
I love the cover, so eye-catchy :)
ReplyDeleteI absolutely adored this book. Even the characters couldn't get on my nerves. I totally understood them. I also didn't know this was a companion until after finishing it. But I still really liked Two Way Street even though I read it out of order.
ReplyDeleteI have not read TWS, but I have heard a lot about it and this one in recent weeks and I am more and more interested in reading them for myself. Peyton sounds like someone that I could relate to with the going off on a tangent, and switching topics in the middle of a conversation and rambling. I have problems with that myself. Makes the hubby laugh. So I think that I will be looking into getting these for myself soon. Thank you for your wonderful review!
ReplyDelete