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A review by theresidentbookworm
Save the Date by Jenny B. Jones
4.0
As soon as I read this description, I cringed a little bit. It sounded like that awful movie that's on ABC Family all the time, Fake Fiance or something like that. Every time that movie is on TV, I change the channel. It makes me cringe. But, after reading There You'll Find Me, I trusted G's judgement and proceeded to the next Jenny B. Jones book she had given me.
I was happily proven wrong. Save the Date does mostly everything right. Lucy is a likeable, realistic girl with a heart filled to the brim with gold. I really admired her dedication to Saving Grace and the girls there and her refusal to just give up. I did want to slap her occasionally. She was a little judgmental, quick to assume, and held onto grudges she should've let go years ago, but aren't we all guilty of those things every now and then? I liked the fact she was a little geeky even though it's not my type of geeky. (I know literally nothing about Star Wars or Star Trek or any of that crap.) It's easy to root for Lucy. It's even easier to fall for Alex. I felt a lot of sympathy for Alex. He really was trying to do what he though was right, trying to redeem his (in his opinion) former superficial life. He's struggling with losing his brother and not knowing how to help his family. I thought his relationship with his sister was interesting. I'm the younger sister of brothers the same age difference that Finley had with hers so it's easy to put myself in her shoes. Alex really did mess up as an older brother, and I wish that had been elaborated a little more on.
The romance here was excellent. The banter back and forth was hilarious, and I enjoyed seeing Lucy and Alex challenge each other. In the end, each is a better person. The supporting characters were superb. Clare and Julian just made me laugh almost every scene they were in, and I admittedly have a soft spot for Finley (having read There You'll Find Me first). I wish Jones had fleshed her out a bit more here. She just seems a little too bratty. There's real grief and hurt there, and it isn't addressed. In fact, the whole Sinclair family is barely touched on. I would've liked to see more of that. Lucy's friends are awesome, and I loved Chuck's(?) sermons.
The only reason this got a star knocked off where the little things I've explained. Excellent read! Definitely recommended!
I was happily proven wrong. Save the Date does mostly everything right. Lucy is a likeable, realistic girl with a heart filled to the brim with gold. I really admired her dedication to Saving Grace and the girls there and her refusal to just give up. I did want to slap her occasionally. She was a little judgmental, quick to assume, and held onto grudges she should've let go years ago, but aren't we all guilty of those things every now and then? I liked the fact she was a little geeky even though it's not my type of geeky. (I know literally nothing about Star Wars or Star Trek or any of that crap.) It's easy to root for Lucy. It's even easier to fall for Alex. I felt a lot of sympathy for Alex. He really was trying to do what he though was right, trying to redeem his (in his opinion) former superficial life. He's struggling with losing his brother and not knowing how to help his family. I thought his relationship with his sister was interesting. I'm the younger sister of brothers the same age difference that Finley had with hers so it's easy to put myself in her shoes. Alex really did mess up as an older brother, and I wish that had been elaborated a little more on.
The romance here was excellent. The banter back and forth was hilarious, and I enjoyed seeing Lucy and Alex challenge each other. In the end, each is a better person. The supporting characters were superb. Clare and Julian just made me laugh almost every scene they were in, and I admittedly have a soft spot for Finley (having read There You'll Find Me first). I wish Jones had fleshed her out a bit more here. She just seems a little too bratty. There's real grief and hurt there, and it isn't addressed. In fact, the whole Sinclair family is barely touched on. I would've liked to see more of that. Lucy's friends are awesome, and I loved Chuck's(?) sermons.
The only reason this got a star knocked off where the little things I've explained. Excellent read! Definitely recommended!