I thought I'd left Blackwater, Texas behind for good. I didn't belong in the small town, but my dad wouldn't listen. He dragged me back home in his beat-up truck and dropped a bomb along the way: Chase Matthews was moving in with us. He was the golden boy of my high school, my former best friend, and the last person I wanted sleeping across the hall. His presence was too great a reminder of the ghosts I was trying to forget. I didn't ask for a hero. I don't want to be saved. To me, Lilah Calloway meant late nights sneakin'; out, moonlit hair, and sparklers in July. She was my best friend until the day she left and I'd assumed Blackwater had seen the last of her. Then, like a tempest, she rolled back into town for the final half of senior year. The chopped hair and dark devil-may-care attitude warned most people away, but I knew if I fought hard enough, I could find the lost girl. I didn't want to be her hero. Some girls don't need to be saved.
Publication Year: 2016
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0 0This review was originally posted on Latte Nights ReviewsFirst book I read by R.S. Grey and can I just say it was a success! I've heard her books are always filled with humor but when I read the blurb for this one, I knew it was going to be filled with feels and it was! It was dark, dealing with drug and alcohol abuse plus dealing with the aftermath of a family member's choices.
Lilah's mom and Chase's mom were childhood friends, counting on one another all the time, having a tight friendship and they both were pregnant around the same time. Lilah and Chase were born and since their mothers were always together, Lilah and Chase became best friends growing up. But tragedy stroke and it put a stretch in Lilah's and Chase's friendship, to the point where Lilah moves out-of-town with her aunt. Now, Lilah is back and she doesn't want anything to do with Chase but how can you avoid someone when he lives across the hall from your room?
Lilah was a bit of a complex character that I ultimately loved. She was strong on the outside but on the inside, she was vulnerable. She didn't like confrontation or talking about the past. She didn't want to let anyone else in her life but Chase won't give up on having his best friend back. He helps her with the flower bed that Lilah and her mom had started when Lilah was a kid, he's there to make her laugh and smile. He really was sweet with her and giving her time until he pushed it too far but the end result was not entirely cliché. Lilah and Chase talked about everything but Lilah needed space to clear her head. She didn't fall at Chase's feet. She simply took a mature decision, thought things through and later on did she make the ultimate decision.
I would say the blurb doesn't really show what this book is about. I had a feeling it would be on the heavy side but I didn't know to what extent it would be. This book is told in two first person's point of view for Lilah and Chase and one as a third person's point of view for Elaine, Lilah's mother. I was eager to read her story and I'm so glad it was included in the book because the story would have been lacking something. Reading about Elaine made me start to slowly understand the background of the story and why Lilah and Chase separated from one another. The story was very impacting. It was something I wasn't expecting at all.
R.S. Grey surprised me with her eloquent writing. From writing books with lots of humor, to focusing on something with depth and with impact shows how great of an author she is. I cannot wait to explore more of her writing by reading her other books. And I'm so glad she published this story and didn't give up on it (read the acknowldgements section and you'll know what I'm talking about so go buy the book ;) )
I received an eARC from the author for free in exchange for an honest review.This review was originally posted on Latte Nights Reviews
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