‘If she’d waited less than two weeks, she’d be June who died in June. But I guess my sister didn’t consider that.’

Harper Scott’s older sister has always been the perfect one so when June takes her own life a week before her high school graduation, sixteen-year-old Harper is devastated. Everyone’s sorry, but no one can explain why.

When her divorcing parents decide to split her sister’s ashes into his-and-her urns, Harper takes matters into her own hands. She’ll steal the ashes and drive cross-country with her best friend, Laney, to the one place June always dreamed of going California.

Enter Jake Tolan. He’s a boy with a bad attitude, a classic-rock obsession and nothing in common with Harper’s sister. But Jake had a connection with June, and when he insists on joining them, Harper’s just desperate enough to let him. With his alternately charming and infuriating demeanour and his belief that music can see you through anything, he might be exactly what she needs.

Except June wasn’t the only one hiding something. Jake’s keeping a secret that has the power to turn Harper’s life upside down again.

Who doesn’t love a good road trip story? Though I thought this book had a bit of a slow start, it delivers on its promise, providing about 250 pages of road-tripping glory. There are time-passing car games, impulsive adventures, identity crises, heartbreak, scandal, and that breathtaking feeling that comes with reading about the most life-changing moments of someone’s life.

The first word that comes to mind when I think of Saving June is genuine. This book genuinely captures Harper Scott’s unique adolescence. The emotions and events described in Saving June are raw, powerful, and absolutely spot-on. Hannah Harrington receives my highest commendation for so perfectly capturing Harper’s voice and telling her story in a profoundly real world. These characters and their story leapt off the page for me so that I felt as if I was in the backseat of Jake’s car, listening in on their conversations during the ride to California. I believe this was due mostly the absolutely perfect dialogue. Every word that each character spoke (especially Harper) was realistic, accurate to the way people actually speak, and further developed each character. For a book dealing with such important themes, the dialogue has a large impact on the authenticity of the characters and their situation. Harrington’s dialogue elevated Saving June to the highest level.

Harrington tackles a heavy, yet delicate issue in Saving June – sharing the grieving process of a sibling who has been left behind. When dealing with an issue like this, it’s easy for the characters to become too maudlin or too angsty, therefore alienating the reader, but Harrington finds the perfect middle ground. It’s easy to sympathize with Harper throughout her journey and to understand why she makes the decisions she does. Harper’s thoughts and feelings are described clearly, even when she isn’t quite sure what she’s feeling. It’s always a relief to read about a character who’s honest with themselves, as that makes the character more accessible and relatable to the reader. In the beginning of Saving June, I wasn’t entirely sure I’d be able to relate to Harper. I knew I’d like her, but I was pleasantly to find that not only did I love her and want her for my own best friend, but I could relate to the way she acted and thought about a lot of issues, and there’s something beautiful about characters that can surprise you in that way.

Music plays a huge role in Saving June, but not in an overbearing way. For those with a passion for music, the hints and descriptions as to the songs being referenced are fun to decode. For those not as familiar with Jake’s favorite bands, the songs are described rather than just name-dropped so that you won’t feel like you’re missing out on anything pivotal. And, just in case you do manage to feel a little left out, there are a few playlists at the end of the book that you can skip ahead to and play while you read, which will just bring you closer to the book and the characters.

Speaking of Jake and his music obsession, the romance in Saving June may not be the most prevalent aspect of the book, but boy does it pay off. The way Harrington deals with Jake and Harper’s relationship is ingenious and well worth the wait. In fact, the entire ending of the book pays off. Actually, scratch that. The entire book pays off and is worth reading and rereading.

Pages: 322
Publication Date: November 2011
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Challenge: Debut Author
Rating :

Teaser Quote: “It hurts to look, but I don’t want to stop. I want to soak in everything about my sister. I want to braid it into my DNA, make it part of me. Maybe then I’ll be able to figure out how this happened.”

1. Sing with Bleeder Valve.
2. Get a tattoo.
3. Work things out with Shay.
4. Confront D.
5. Tell Serena.

Kori Kitzler is the “dark angel” of her high school” beautiful, mysterious, the subject of rumors. Serena Moore is just an average girl: unassuming, not sure exactly who she is or who she wants to be. But then a seemingly chance encounter ignites a fateful friendship—allowing Kori to draw Serena into her world.

When the girls are given an assignment to list five things they would never dream could really happen—their five ways to tempt fate—Serena doesn’t take it very seriously. But then tragedy leaves Serena shocked, alone, and in possession of Kori’s five secret impossible possibilities. Can Serena complete her best friend’s list, or will she leave Kori’s dreams undone?

When I first picked up this book, the description led me to believe it’d be about Kori. But really, only a small part is about Kori. Undone is Serena’s story; it’s a story of tempting fate, testing the bonds of friendship, discovering one’s identity, overcoming grief, growing up. Undone is Serena’s journey, but it also offers the reader a journey, one that, if you allow it, can reach the deepest part of your heart and possibly change your outlook on life.

Serena doesn’t know what made Kori decide to abandon her spot in the “popular crowd” all those years ago, but she’s grateful Kori chose her as her new best friend. Serena idolizes Kori to the point where she dyes and styles her hair so that the two are often mistaken for sisters. Kori is brash and bold and fearless, everything Serena wishes she could be. And Serena can’t imagine life without Kori, until she’s suddenly forced the face that reality.

Serena is an extremely relatable character. She’s so blinded by her envy of Kori that she fails to notice her own strong qualities. It isn’t until she has to live without Kori that Serena realizes she’s her own person and that perhaps Kori isn’t as perfect as Serena always thought.

In an effort to cope with the loss of her best friend, Serena embarks on a mission to complete Kori’s list of fate-tempting tasks. Serena thinks completing the list will bring her closer to Kori, but it actually ends up teaching her more about herself. For so long, Serena had been so wrapped up in Kori’s identity that she forgot she had one of her own. Brooke Taylor beautifully expresses the emotions of a young girl trying to find herself while managing feelings of sorrow, suspicion, and isolation. Taylor’s prose is hauntingly honest and realistic. Her story is innovative, at times romantic, and always gripping. It’s one of those books you’ll want to read again and again just to learn something new.

Pages: 308
Publication Date: July 2008
Publisher: Walker & Company
Challenge: N/A
Rating :

Teaser Quote: “My stomach turned. A part of me felt like I was just thrown in front of a truck with no brakes. Another part of me thought Kori was the truck with no brakes and maybe I could stop her if I only jumped in front of her.”

If given the opportunity, what sixteen-year-old wouldn’t jump at the chance to move in with a friend and live parent-free? Although maybe “opportunity” isn’t the right word, since April had to tell her dad a tiny little untruth to make it happen (see #1: “Lied to Our Parents”). But she and her housemate Vi are totally responsible and able to take care of themselves. How they ended up “Skipping School” (#3), “Throwing a Crazy Party” (#8), “Buying a Hot Tub” (#4), and, um, “Harboring a Fugitive” (#7) at all is kind of a mystery to them.

In this hilarious and bittersweet tale, Sarah Mlynowski mines the heart and mind of a girl on her own for the first time. To get through the year, April will have to juggle a love triangle, learn to do her own laundry, and accept that he carefully constructed world just might be falling apart…one thing-she-shouldn’t-have-done at a time.

Ten Things We Did looks and sounds like a light-hearted, fun, easy read. It promises to appeal to fans of authors like Susane Colasanti, Sarah Dessen, and Lauren Myracle. But Sarah Mlynowski doesn’t quite deliver on that promise. Ten Things is a light, fun read, but the plot and characters are unrealistic. When April’s dad decides to move to Cleveland, she opts to move in with her friend Vi rather than uproot herself. Only thing is, April’s dad would freak if he found out Vi’s mom won’t be staying with them, leaving the two teenagers alone in Vi’s spacious home. To placate April’s dad, the girls provide him with a fake email address and Vi dutifully responds to all his emails as if she were her mom.

As if this scenario weren’t crazy enough, the ridiculous situations the girls continuously get themselves into drive this story over the top. While it tries to be charming and endearing, it’s hard to forget just how improbable all of it is. As a main character, April is kind of forgettable. Vi is much more interesting, but she’s also the proponent of this whole scheme and I kind of hold that against her. My favorite characters are brothers Dean and Hudson, but they don’t appear enough to really satisfy me.

I will say Ten Things explores some real teen issues and deals with them in a relatable, believable way, specifically issues surrounding relationships, sex, infidelity, conforming, and friendship. Some conversations are reminiscent of conversations every girl has had with or can imagining have with a friend. And if you can suspend your disbelief for a little while, the craziness that is April’s life can even be funny. You’ll wistfully imagine your own life parent- and rule-free for a few minutes. Then you’ll get to the end and realize you don’t want to have the conversation that April’s about to have with her dad.

If you’re looking for a light, quick read, then Ten Things We Did (And Probably Shouldn’t Have) will probably satisfy you. If you want something with a little more substance, I’d suggest you keep looking.

Pages: 354
Publication Date: May 2011
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Challenge: N/A
Rating :

Teaser Quote: “I wasn’t sure how to process this information. Vi had lied to everyone. Vi—strong, confident Vi—had felt the need to pretend to be something she wasn’t. Why did she care so much what other people thought?”