The details: 325 pages, 2 days to read, although I did read about 20 pages back in March. I just haven't been able to remember where I put it! (Under the bed, in case you were wondering. ;-) )
Summary: (From Goodreads)
A sexy and poignant romantic tale of a young daredevil pilot caught between two brothers.
When I was fourteen, I made a decision. If I was doomed to live in a trailer park next to an airport, I could complain about the smell of the jet fuel like my mom, I could drink myself to death over the noise like everybody else, or I could learn to fly.
Heaven Beach, South Carolina, is anything but, if you live at the low-rent end of town. All her life, Leah Jones has been the grown-up in her family, while her mother moves from boyfriend to boyfriend, letting any available money slip out of her hands. At school, they may diss Leah as trash, but she’s the one who negotiates with the landlord when the rent’s not paid. At fourteen, she’s the one who gets a job at the nearby airstrip.
But there’s one way Leah can escape reality. Saving every penny she can, she begs quiet Mr. Hall, who runs an aerial banner-advertising business at the airstrip and also offers flight lessons, to take her up just once. Leaving the trailer park far beneath her and swooping out over the sea is a rush greater than anything she’s ever experienced, and when Mr. Hall offers to give her cut-rate flight lessons, she feels ready to touch the sky.
By the time she’s a high school senior, Leah has become a good enough pilot that Mr. Hall offers her a job flying a banner plane. It seems like a dream come true . . . but turns out to be just as fleeting as any dream. Mr. Hall dies suddenly, leaving everything he owned in the hands of his teenage sons: golden boy Alec and adrenaline junkie Grayson. And they’re determined to keep the banner planes flying.
Though Leah has crushed on Grayson for years, she’s leery of getting involved in what now seems like a doomed business—until Grayson betrays her by digging up her most damning secret. Holding it over her head, he forces her to fly for secret reasons of his own, reasons involving Alec. Now Leah finds herself drawn into a battle between brothers—and the consequences could be deadly.
Review: First point of interest, I LOVED the type face that was used in this book. Normally I do not notice these things, or at least enough to notice past the first few chapters. With every page I turned I caught glimpse of the title and couldn't help but smile.
However, that has nothing to do with my view on this book which is I am quite less fond of. In my last review I mentioned the book had potential, but the characters ruined the book. This is the same way. I really am annoyed when a book tries to go overboard with the "stupid teenager" stereotype and creates terrible characters in the process.
If you can't tell from the summary, Leah is a poor girl who is doing everything she can to get away from her 'trailer trash' label. However, everything she does enforces that sterotype. She chooses to dress a certain way because she thinks that is what boys expect. Then she gets angry when her friend calls her out on it. She doesn't want people to realize she's poor, but she seems annoyed that her friend hasn't driven her to the grocery store. This character is just a mess. She allows herself to be used, because... well, I'm not exactly sure why. She uses her body herself to get where she wants, and doesn't seem to look back. Except of course when it is convenient for her.
This book made it even more obvious to me, that teens have no clue what game they are playing when it comes to sex. I'm not against teens and sex, in any way, but this book made it seem like "do it now, ask questions later" was the way to go.
Not to mention, they characters are controlling. Between blackmailing, forcing friends to do what they don't want to do because it's what THEY want, lying, pretending things are a complete farce, etc. I could not stand the story line. The entire story of this book was "Lie to so and so, and they will lie back to you, while pissing everyone off."
I know my review is becoming more of a rant now, and I should be going back and cleaning it up. However I just can not give this book any more of my attention.
I've heard good things about Jennifer Echols, so I will attempt another one of her books in the future. However, if it is anything like this book, I will give up.
The only redeeming part of this book to me, was the first few chapters. I really wish Jennifer Echols could go back to that point where tragedy strikes, and re-write the entire story again.
Rating: 3 stars. Again, had potential but the characters were assholes.
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