I started reading this book as inspiration for my thesis. Since my thesis novel takes place during a road trip, the road trip feel of Finn's travels were what I was looking for to help me. Instead, it was the way a secret was revealed that helped.
I will admit I almost put this book down and refused to read another word. That was because I figured out the ending in the third chapter. While I like discovering things before I'm supposed to (because it makes me feel incredibly clever and I give props to the author for well hidden clues), discovering an ending that soon just didn't feel great. However, I trudged on, and ended up falling in love with it. This is one of my favorite books read so far.
I realized by the end that I didn't know as much as I did. Yes, I totally called the ending, but I realized that I was supposed to. As a reader, the journey was in her discovery of the secret, not our discovery. We had a sense of things that she wasn't seeing, and in he end she had to admit that she felt it, but wouldn't admit it to herself, which is what we saw. That's the part that helps my thesis, because my main character has a secret he doesn't even know, and I realized that it doesn't have to be a surprise for the reader, only a surprise for him. And that's really more help than I expected.
I really loved the characterizations in this book. There were some incredible characters here. The mom that is so unaware that she mistakes a MOM plaque as saying "WOW" instead. The hot, adventurous brother that's away traveling. The geeky brother that is the epitome of geekdom and somehow wins our hearts as readers. And the little sister that is so odd she's unforgettable. A good character always has to have some quirk and loads. And then there's Julie, the main character, and she's wonderful in that she just goes with everything. She doesn't let anything get her down and she's intent on making sure that everyone is as well adjusted as she tries to be. That's admirable.
I highly recommend this book. It's a free check-out on the Kindle Lending Library. But it's also very cheap as an ebook. I bought it immediately after reading it through the Lending Library. I'm looking forward to re-reading it one day.
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