Author: Laura Ward
Published: July 28, 2014
SYNOPSIS:
Emma Harris is learning that life is just a series of lessons.
Lesson #1: Nothing goes the way you plan.
Lesson #2: You can’t trust men. Especially not the pretty ones.
Lesson #3: Turns out, appearances are almost always deceiving.
Emma thinks she has life all figured out, and what she knows isn’t good. For years, she’s put her big sister, who was born with Down syndrome, first. Now Emma’s ready to start her own life, but fate has other plans. To do the right thing for the sister she loves, Emma’s dreams will just have to wait.
She doesn’t plan on meeting Landon — a rich, flirtatious jock, who never has to wait for anything. Not for attention, not for money, and certainly not for girls. Meeting Emma marks the first time in his life that he’s had to fight for something. And Landon doesn't know how to lose.
Emma has no interest in wasting her summer with a superficial guy like Landon. But very soon she realizes she is wrong about him. The question is, can she trust him? Or will he let her down like every other guy in her life? But most importantly, can Emma trust herself enough to live the life she's always dreamed of?
Life has a way of sneaking in the most important lessons when you aren't looking. And once the heart gets involved, that's when the real learning begins.
MY REVIEW:
This is a touching and heartwarming story about how sometimes it's just not the right time to fall in love, but just because the answer is "not yet" it doesn't mean it's "no." Ward created a cast of characters that were easy to care about and root for. I loved getting to see Landon's side of the story. His interactions with his best friend, Dean, were funny and at the same time, we got to see that he wasn't just the cocky jock...he was sweet too. I loved watching him grow, mature, and become worthy of a relationship with Emma.
One of the things I particularly liked about this book was how it incorporated people with special needs in a way that shaped and molded the characters of the story into better people. I can't recall any other books that face this subject matter so strongly and positively. Ward has an incredible message and incorporates it wonderfully into Emma and Landon's story: Everyone is equal. And those who are special, even though they're different, have something to teach us if we pay attention.
I also loved how Emma and Landon learned life lessons throughout the book. It was clever how the lessons were highlighted at the end of each chapter, reminding the reader (sometimes with humor and sometimes with heartache) what Emma and Landon learned as they navigated the obstacles of their lives. Sometimes the life lessons were positive, sometimes they were negative, but there was always a message. The best one? "Sometimes it's the wait...the not yets of life that are the very best lessons of all to learn."
SUM IT UP:
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