ARC Review: In Real Life

About The Book:

  Title: In Real Life 

  Author: Jessica Love 
  Pub. Date: March 1st, 2016
  Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin 
  Pages: 240

  Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Realistic Fiction 

  Rate: 4/5 stars

Synopsis :

Hannah Cho and Nick Cooper have been best friends since 8th grade. They talk for hours on the phone, regularly shower each other with presents, and know everything there is to know about one another. 

There's just one problem: Hannah and Nick have never actually met.

Hannah has spent her entire life doing what she's supposed to, but when her senior year spring break plans get ruined by a rule-breaker, she decides to break a rule or two herself. She impulsively decides to road trip to Las Vegas, her older sister and BFF in tow, to surprise Nick and finally declare her more-than-friend feelings for him.

Hannah's surprise romantic gesture backfires when she gets to Vegas and finds out that Nick has been keeping some major secrets. Hannah knows the real Nick can't be that different from the online Nick she knows and loves, but now she only has night in Sin City to figure out what her feelings for Nick really are, all while discovering how life can change when you break the rules every now and then.

Review:

So we all know I'm not a ginormous fan of contemporaries, I feel like I say it all the time. But the description of this one just spoke to me. I thought it sounded funny, heartbreaking, and imaginative - I knew I wanted to read it so bad! I'm not a bit disappointed that I picked this up. I was expecting something akin to the TV show Catfish, but it was soooo much more than that.

"I would do it right now, you know I'd get in a car and drive four hours to see you.

 I want to see you so bad, Ghost. I would drive there right now." 

So Hannah and Nick have been best friends for years. They've each heard each other go through relationships, so why is it so different when Hannah shows up in Las Vegas and sees Nick with his girlfriend that he hasn't told her about? I wasn't even Hannah and I felt betrayed by him! The trip was just a roller coaster of emotions for Hannah because she has to watch Nick with his girlfriend and even worse is she's not even totally horrible. I actually really liked Nick and I thought he handled his situation pretty well - after you read it you'll kind of figure out why he was doing what he was doing. I read the entire book in less than 24 hours. It's an extremely fast read not only because it's short but because it's totally addictive. I felt like my stomach was dropping every other chapter. Hannah's situation was so tough. I'm in grad school - and I think she handled everything way more maturely than I would have!

I know a lot of people are squeamish about cheating in books. Honestly, it gets dragged through the mud because I feel like it gets handled badly. This book does NOT handle it badly. I really feel like Jessica Love handles the concept great! Another book off of the top of my head that handles cheating pretty well is Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover. And a book that gives books about cheating a bad name? 99 Days ... ugh! But never fear, haters of cheating. This book isn't only about love. It's about friendship, road trips, and discovering what's truly important to you! Because maybe it's not always a boy.

"It's not that far, Ghost. It's not that far." 

Yes, this book had quite the case of absent parent syndrome. But I really didn't mind all that much to be honest because I was so engrossed in the storyline! I'm really surprised that I'm not seeing this book all over. It definitely deserves way more hype than it's getting. If you're a fan of contemporary I would give this one a try! I'm really looking forward to Jessica Love's next project!

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin for providing
this book in exchange for my honest review

- Jocelyn