BLOG TOUR {Review #95 & Giveaway}: Nantucket Blue by Leila Howland

Welcome to our blog tour stop for Nantucket Blue by Leila Howland, hosted by Shane at Itching for Books. You can follow the tour here. And don't forget to check out the giveaway at the end of this post! Thanks for stopping by! :D

Title: Nantucket Blue

Author: Leila Howland

Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Release Date: May 7, 2013

Pages: 304, Hardcover

Summary from Goodreads:

For Cricket Thompson, a summer like this one will change everything. A summer spent on Nantucket with her best friend, Jules Clayton, and the indomitable Clayton family. A summer when she’ll make the almost unattainable Jay Logan hers. A summer to surpass all dreams.

Some of this turns out to be true. Some of it doesn’t.

When Jules and her family suffer a devastating tragedy that forces the girls apart, Jules becomes a stranger whom Cricket wonders whether she ever really knew. And instead of lying on the beach working on her caramel-colored tan, Cricket is making beds and cleaning bathrooms to support herself in paradise for the summer.

But it’s the things Cricket hadn’t counted on--most of all, falling hard for someone who should be completely off-limits--that turn her dreams into an exhilarating, bittersweet reality.

A beautiful future is within her grasp, and Cricket must find the grace to embrace it. If she does, her life could be the perfect shade of Nantucket blue.

 

Review

If I could describe Nantucket Blue in one word, that would be honest. The people, events, interactions, emotions, all felt very believable to me. And Cricket herself was a very relatable character. She wasn't perfect and she didn't always say or do the right thing but she was trying her best to do right by herself and others. She had an inner strength that only became more formidable in the end and I enjoyed watching her grow and learn. And she had a pretty entertaining voice for the delivery of this story , which is always a plus. My favorite line, you ask?

"'So, what's going on with you?' I'm wearing a thong! I want to tell her. I went swimming with a boy! Buck-ass naked! I think I'm in love. With your brother!' :)

And Cricket had a lot on her plate. Her parents divorce. The loss of someone who was like a second mother. A huge fight with her best friend. A declining social status. The rejection of a high school crush. The kindling of a new romance. A less than ideal job. There was no shortage of feels in this book. And I think they all got a fair bit of attention. But on the flipside - I became invested in all of the side stories and I didn't quite get the resolution that I had hoped. The only story that I really felt was given some type of closure was her relationship with Zack (which was really sweet and made me somewhat jealous).

But I had wanted more closure with Jules. I was so frustrated by Jules' behavior and I couldn't help but put myself in that situation and see where everything went wrong. I could see where Jules was coming from but I mostly sided with Cricket because I didn't think Jules handled herself well. But as my friend BookRockBetty pointed out - that type of friendship doesn't stay broken forever.

And you know I can't help myself but add another quote:

"I was mixing up my own recipe inside as I thought about seeing Jules. There was half a cup of guilt over the fact that I was secretly dating her brother, a tablespoon of ice-cold fear that she'd found out about Zack and me, two pinches of boiling anger when I remembered how she'd acted at that party, a teaspoon of whipped hope that she missed me as much as I missed her, and a sprinkling of giddiness that I might get my best friend back."

And finally, I've never been to Nantucket personally, but I have been to Martha's Vineyard and I can honestly say that islands such as these are magical. Something about being isolated in a quaint beachy town makes it feel as if time itself has stopped and anything is possible. I adored this setting, even more so having been to MV and seeing it for myself. I really felt like I was there in the book, walking down the street with Cricket. It was such a charming backdrop for the story. 

"Everything was quaint, preserved, one of a kind, looking like it wouldn't ever change and couldn't exist anywhere but here."

So I enjoyed Nantucket Blue. It didn't move me like some other contemporary reads had but it had it's own appeal. It was sweet and sincere and as solid as contemporaries come. A good dose of drama and lessons learned and a likeable lead. Easy 3.5 stars.

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About the Author

LEILA HOWLAND loves to read, explore L.A., and engage in funny and meaningful conversations with her friends and family, especially her brother who calls from Washington D.C. whenever he’s waiting for the bus. A lot gets discussed in those phone calls, but they tend to end abruptly when the bus shows up. She can really cut the rug, but wishes she could sing without people covering their ears. A graduate of Georgetown University, Leila spent five years acting in New York where she was a company member of the award-winning Flea Theater in Tribeca. It was a lot of fun and she often talks about “getting back into it.” The closest she has come was a stint as an extra on The Young and the Restless in 2010. Leila now lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two dogs. She teaches high school English and blogs for HelloGiggles. NANTUCKET BLUE is her first novel.

Official Links: leilahowland.tumblr.com | twitter.com/leilahowland

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Giveaway

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