Review: My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick
Pages: 400
Publisher: Dial Books
Published: June 14th, 2012
My Source: ARC

My review:

This book borders on 3-4ish stars. It was a cute read that followed Samantha and Jase, as they tumble through their first love. This is a summer romance that deals with the most stressful part of any teenager's life, friends and relationships.

Samantha is our protagonist. She's the good girl, unlike her rebellious older sister, Tracey. Sam has always done what her politician mother wants her to do, which is to be obedient. And NEVER interact with the Garretts next door. But suddenly Samantha's whole world is changed forever when Jase Garrett walks into her life, and the two fall madly in love. Samantha dangles between these two families that she is now a part of, and is faced with the wrenching decision of which one to choose after a horrible accident.

The story itself was very creative. While it was still a basic romance, it had aspects that were different from a cookie-cutter love story. Things like Sam's mom's job—state senator, and the comparison of classes were refreshing to read about. The relationships that went on in this book, especially Nan & Sam's were really different and I love how especially that one was wrapped up. Tim was the character with the most development in this book, and it was nice to read about a guy-friend without any romance involved. Jase and Sam were very lovely-dovey in their relationship, at points it did get a little graphic. . .

There are some minor things in this book that annoyed me. They weren't very essential to the story, just annoyed me like a lingering itch. I didn't like how Jase's sister, Andy, talked. Huntley Fitzpatrick wrote her dialogue with question-marks after everything. I'm a teenager, and I do not talk that way. (I have not checked the question-mark thing against the final copy, so do take note of that.) And the end left me a little bit unsatisfied. It was a long book, and definitely took its time coming to the climax, but the ending still seemed abrupt. It's not that there were loose ends, more like loose thoughts. Overall these things didn't affect my opinion of the book much.

I recommend this for anyone who could use a summer read. It's a cute romance, and will satisfy anyone looking for just that. This is a wonderful debut novel for Huntley Fitzpatrick.

3.5ish/5 lightbulbs