Girl I’ve loved, girl I’m falling for. Now that they’re both in view, the problem is clear. After losing Sarah, the friend he’s loved, to some other guy, Jameson meets Sky. Her Native American roots, fluid movements, and need for brutal honesty become addictive fast. This is good. Jameson needs distraction – his dad leaves for another woman, his mom’s walking around like a zombie, and Sarah’s new boyfriend can’t keep his hands off of her. As he spends time with Sky and learns about her village, her totems, and her friends with drums - she's way more than distraction. Jameson's falling for her fast. But Sky’s need for honesty somehow doesn’t extend to her life story – and Jameson just may need more than his new girl to keep him distracted from the disaster of his senior year.
ebook, 247 pages
Published March 1st 2012 by Tribute Books
1/2
Three and half stars: A book that takes you through the emotion of losing a love and finding a new great love.
For Jameson the night of the dance seems like the end of the world. The past three years he has spent countless hours mooning over a girl, Jenny, who considers him to be nothing more than a best friend. He is hopelessly in love with her, but has never once told her of his feelings. Tonight he watched the girl who holds his heart kiss another boy. Depressed he heads home, but decides to take a drive instead. The Vegas night rushes around him as he drives in his dad’s convertible. On the corner, he sees the most beautiful, girl with striking exotic features. Without thinking, he offers her a ride. She unexpectedly accepts. The beauty is named Sky and she just happens to be living down the street with her grandparents. Jameson turns heartbreak into hope as he slowly lets go of Jenny and falls head over heels in love with Sky. This is the story of a boy on the brink of adulthood. He falters as he lets go of the childish crush he has nurtured and moves into the complex world of adult relationships and adult problems. He teeters on the threshold as he learns to live and love again, but will this new love come at a great price?
What I Liked:
- I admit I don’t read many contemporary books, but this is definitely a case where I am glad I strayed outside my normal reading zone. This is a book filled with all the complexities and emotions that come with adulthood. Jameson as a senior in high school is on top of his game, but soon his world comes crashing down as he loses his childhood crush and his family. I loved watching him grow and change as he transformed into an adult. Books where characters show a marked growth are among my favorites, and this one certainly charts a big change.
- I really enjoyed having the story told by a male protagonist. Most contemporary YA books are via a female voice. I liked being in Jameson’s head as he endures the painful lows and the butterflies in the stomach highs as he falls in love. Jameson is pensive, compassionate, funny and a boy, meaning he thinks like any teenage boy hyped up on hormones does. I thought Ms. Perry did a fantastic job of conveying his emotions and thoughts. If you are tired of the normal, female main characters you will enjoy the departure with Jameson.
- At first glance, this book appears to have a love triangle but it is different in two ways, first, in that for once you have a male conflicted over two girls. Second, it really isn’t a triangle because when the books opens Jameson has already lost Jenny to another boy and the book deals with him coping with the heartbreak. This book really focuses more on the emotional roller coaster of losing someone and then taking those hesitant steps into a new relationship.
- I liked that this book takes on numerous issues, such as Jameson and his love life, the break up of his family and the anger and resentment he has toward his father, the difficult issues that plagued Sky in her past and most of all finding an identity as you move into adulthood.
- I liked Ms. Perry’s quiet, easy writing style. No frills or fancy descriptions, just simple straightforward good story telling.
- Can I just say I am a big fan of the cover. It is stunning!
And the Not So Much:
- I completely enjoyed the story and watching Jameson evolve but there just wasn’t much action or anything super exciting in the book. No big twists or shockers just a simple story, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing if you are a fan of contemporary books, I guess I am more of an adrenaline junkie and I was expecting something big and profound.
- I liked the story line that follows the break up of his parents marriage. Jameson is angry and even hostile towards his father; he can’t have a conversation with him without yelling. For me, this conflict never fully resolves. I was expecting a scene where Jameson and his father sit down and have a frank discussion but that never occurs. It instead is two men being angry, yelling and avoiding the issue. Perhaps that is why the author wrote it that way, men don’t tend to really sit down and thoroughly discuss feelings and issues.
Night Sky is a book that takes you through the lows of heartbreak to the butterflies in your tummy and flying feelings that come with a new relationship wrought on the heels of heartbreak. It is a book about a boy who over the course of couple of months grows into a man. This is a wonderful book that will remind you of what it like to fall head over heels in love with the one destined to be your other half.
Favorite Quotations:
“ I slide in my ear buds and blast Nirvana’s Nevermind as loud as I can stand it. It’s old, as old as me---but good.”
“I can feel the line of water slide across my skin as I jump in.”
“I miss Sarah. I want Sarah to call. Sarah calls. I wish Sarah hadn’t called.”
“A corner of my mouth pulls up into a smile---something that seemed impossible only a few moments ago.”
“When she turns to face us, a look of pure happiness is still all over her face. It dances in her eyes and weaves its way through her body.”
“She doesn’t laugh, but there’s laughter on the edges of her words.”
“One thing I know is---everyone has impulses, but you don’t have to act on them. At some point, you make a decision and that decision means you meant to do something.”
“Sarah’s becoming more of a memory now than anything else.”
“There’s always something we can be angry about, but it’s how we react that counts.”
“It’s just bringing it all to the surface again, like dragging my heart over sandpaper.”
“The problem is that when a relationship really means something, it messes with your head.”
A big thank you to Tribute Books for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.
As part of the Night Sky Tour today, I am lucky enough to be able to offer you all a chance to win an ebook copy of this great book. Please see Contest Policies for details and fill out the Rafflecopter.
For more information on the author, Jolene Perry, you can visit her on her blog, the official Night Sky website, Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.
Ebook copies can be purchased at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, and the iBookstore. Make sure you check out Tribute Books for more exciting and affordable titles.
