Summary:
For Erin Blackwell, majoring in creative writing at the New York City college of her dreams is more than a chance to fulfill her ambitions--it's her ticket away from the tragic memories that shadow her family's racehorse farm in Kentucky. But when she refuses to major in business and take over the farm herself someday, her grandmother gives Erin's college tuition and promised inheritance to their maddeningly handsome stable boy, Hunter Allen. Now Erin has to win an internship and work late nights at a coffee shop to make her own dreams a reality. She should despise Hunter . . . so why does he sneak into her thoughts as the hero of her latest writing assignment?
Then, on the day she's sharing that assignment with her class, Hunter walks in. He's joining her class. And after he reads about himself in her story, her private fantasies about him must be painfully clear. She only hopes to persuade him not to reveal her secret to everyone else. But Hunter devises his own creative revenge, writing sexy stories that drive the whole class wild with curiosity and fill Erin's heart with longing. Now she's not just imagining what might have been. She's writing a whole new ending for her romance with Hunter . . . except this story could come true.
Then, on the day she's sharing that assignment with her class, Hunter walks in. He's joining her class. And after he reads about himself in her story, her private fantasies about him must be painfully clear. She only hopes to persuade him not to reveal her secret to everyone else. But Hunter devises his own creative revenge, writing sexy stories that drive the whole class wild with curiosity and fill Erin's heart with longing. Now she's not just imagining what might have been. She's writing a whole new ending for her romance with Hunter . . . except this story could come true.
Release Date: July 19, 2011
Age Group: Young Adult
Publisher: MTV Books
Source: Purchased
Review:
I am a fan of Jennifer Echols (having loved Going Too Far and Forget You) and was looking forward to Love Story for months. I pre-ordered the book as soon as it was available and waited anxiously to receive it. But before I could read the book, I did something bad---something I never do. I read other people's reviews (usually I wait to read other reviews after I have written my own review). And they were for the most part lackluster. I lost my excitement over Love Story and could not get the anticipation back. I finally decided to read it for myself, and sadly, I agree with most of the reviews I read: Love Story is a good book but something was off.
Let me start with what I liked. I like the way Echols writes. I love her attention to detail. I love the way she builds relationships---they usually progress slowly, so that when the characters finally get together it means more to me. I especially like the way Echols writes teenagers. The portrayal feels so realistic and her books really take me back to my teen years.
While Love Story was a good read, it was nowhere nearly as good as Going Too Far or Forget You for me. To be perfectly honest, the first line of the story turned me off: I hate the name Captain Vanderslice and those initial feelings of dislike set the tone of the book for me. I know that's shallow and judgemental of me, but those are the facts. I never really connected with Erin and the "poor rich girl" act got old for me. It felt like it took forever to get some chemistry between Erin and Hunter---although I did enjoy their story, I just didn't love it. Something about the book as a whole felt lacking for me. In fact, as soon as I closed the cover on Love Story, I went straight to my bookshelf and picked up Going Too Far for a re-read. Now, that's a book I can get excited about!
If you are new to Jennifer Echols, I would recommend starting with Going Too Far or Forget You. Love Story was a good read, but not her best (in my opinion).
I was pretty much exactly the same as you - loved Going Too Far and Forget You sooo much and then this one just failed to live up to expectations. It's not a bad book, but I just think that after two awesome ones with amazing characters and relationships, this one didn't hit the mark at all. I didn't feel the chemistry between Erin & Hunter throughout the whole book, unlike the two previous ones which were pretty sizzling!
ReplyDeleteGreat honest opinion. I try to avoid really closely reading reviews until after I finish a book so I know what you mean ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the advice, Kelli. I haven't read of any of Echol's books but I know she's a popular amongst teens. I think I'll pick up her earlier books. I can see why you were irritated by this one and I have a feeling that I would be just as irritated about this one too.
ReplyDeleteI liked Love Story but didn't love it. It was my first time reading a book by this author and it was a little underwhelming. But I won't give up. I will try one of her other books, one that people rave about.
ReplyDeleteI did like the 'foreplay' between Erin and Hunter that was portrayed through their stories.
And that's exactly why I try not to read reviews of books I have in my possession to read. I don't want anything to sway my opinion of the book; I want to go in with a clean slate so to speak.