ARC Review: My Sweetest Escape by Chelsea M Cameron
Labels:
4 Stars,
ARC,
Book Review,
Chelsea M. Cameron,
Contemporary Romance,
New Adult
·
Title: My Sweetest Escape
Series: My Favourite Mistake #2
Author: Chelsea M Cameron
Published: 28th January 2014
Age Group: New Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Paperback provided by Harlequin Australia for fair & honest review
Rating: 4.5/5
BLURB:
The past will always find you.
Jos Archer was the girl with the perfect life; until the night it all came crashing down around her. Now, nine months later, she still hasn't begun to pick up the pieces. Even transferring to a new college and living under the watchful eye of her older sister, Renee, isn't enough to help her feel normal again.
And then she meets Dusty Sharp. For reasons Jos can't begin to fathom, the newly reformed campus bad boy seems determined to draw her out of her shell. And if she's not careful, his knowing green eyes and wicked smile will make her feel things she's no longer sure she deserves.
But even as Dusty coaxes Jos to open up about the past, he's hiding secrets of his own. Secrets about the night her old life fell apart. When the truth is finally revealed, will it bring them closer together;or tear them apart for good?
REVIEW:
The story:
This book basically continues on from where My Favourite Mistake finished (however these can be read as stand alone novels). Jos, Renee's little sister, has been struggling to deal with a traumatic event that occurred last year. She started to drink and party too hard, and as a result her sister Renee forces her to transfer college and live under her watchful eye. And by watchful Renee means, Not-Even-Allowed-To-Pee-Without-My-Permission.
After moving in with her sister and her friends, Jos continues to feel lost alone in the world, believing she's not entitled to be happy. But after meeting Dusty Sharp, she doesn't feel so isolated. He doesn't let her tough angry attitude keep him away from her, and he works to break through her walls and discover the real Jos. Dusty understands exactly what she's going through - more so than either of them could ever imagine. And it's that connection plus their shared passion for music that draws them closer together
The characters:
Jos is going through a bit of an identity crisis. When she first started college 9 months ago, she was popular, wore the latest fashion and was dating the 'it' boy who has his sights set on the white house, but after the traumatic event, Jos started to question all the things she stood for. Now she has the opportunity to reinvent herself, she starts to discover what she really wants to do with her life. I loved watching her grow throughout the novel as she became more and more confident in who she wants to be.
Dusty came across as a typical college guy; confident, popular and of course not to bad on the eyes. He's majoring in music education and is a beat boxer, which leads to some fun jam sessions with all the cast of characters joining in. But as Jos gets to know Dusty better, we start to see a vulnerable side to him, and we learnt to a major event recently changed his attitude to life - he longer drinks or parties the way he used to. He'd much prefer to hang out with his friends, in particular Jos…oh and his little Kitten, Napoleon too.
I also loved Jos's new friend, Hannah. She has severe burn scaring down the side of her face and body, and it's clear that the stares and nasty whispers upset her. But despite this she has a beautiful and vibrant personality, and still has a very positive outlook on life. I am desperately hoping that the third book in this series follows her story...PLEASE CHELSEA!!!
It was also great to see all the cast from the first book back for this sequel. There are developments in all their lives, which made me so excited. I kind of want to move into that house with them all - I think it would awesome amounts of fun!
The romance:
I was so happy to see that the romance was slow building. After all that Jos has gone through, a new relationship happening that quickly wouldn't have been believable. Instead we get to see them start out as friends, and just get to know each other. It was clear that they both felt an attraction towards one another, but they are hesitant to act on it, unsure how the other feels. There is also a touch of forbidden love, since Dusty is Renee's friend and she doesn't want him messing around with her little sister.
The Writing:
Oh I love Chelsea's writing, which is a good thing since this is my 6th book by her! She has a very distinct writing style with sarcastic and sassy characters and dialogue that is particularly effective. With sharp and witty conversations, it can sometimes feel like verbal foreplay. She also uses lots of pop culture references, which reminded me a lot of Gilmore Girls (which is my favourite TV show EVER!!)
FINAL WORD:
This is one of my favourite books my Chelsea! My Sweetest Escape is a fun and flirty book with vibrant, loveable characters. If you love heroines with a bit a sass and a redeemed bad boy hero who loves to cuddle up with his cat, than this book is for you!
CONTENT:
Sexuality: medium-strong / sex scene
Violence: mild / minor punch up
Language: medium / frequent f words
Drugs & alcohol: medium / some underage drinking and references to past drug use
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Excellent Review Amy! I got an ARC of this from Harlequin, and you have definitely made me want to read it! I'm glad that the romance is slow building, and believable! Jos sounds like a very interesting character! I love when the main character grows, and her friend Hannah sounds like such an awesome character! Hopefully she does end up getting her own story!
ReplyDeleteLindy@ A Bookish Escape
Thanks Lindy, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! I'll be stalking Goodreads waiting to see if the third book ends up being Hannah's story!!
DeleteI LOVE a slow building romance, I just love the build up. I really need to make time for this author soon. Her books sound amazing. Great review!
ReplyDeleteTeresa @ Readers Live A Thousand Lives
Yes you should check her books out soon!! Chelsea's books are awesome, and always make me laugh :D
DeleteI have a copy of this and now you have me excited to pick it up! I can't wait to read Jos and Dusty's story. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteExcellent!! I can't wait to see what you think!
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