Jesse's Girl by Miranda Kenneally
Genre: YA Realistic Fiction
Blurb (on back of book):
Everyone at Hundred Oaks High knows that career mentoring day is a joke. So when Maya Henry said she wanted to be a rock star, she never imagined she’d get to shadow *the* Jesse Scott, Nashville’s teen idol.
But spending the day with Jesse is far from a dream come true. He’s as gorgeous as his music, but seeing all that he’s accomplished is just a reminder of everything Maya’s lost: her trust, her boyfriend, their band, and any chance to play the music she craves. Not to mention that Jesse’s pushy and opinionated. He made it on his own, and he thinks Maya’s playing back up to other people’s dreams. Does she have what it takes to follow her heart—and go solo?
MY OPINION: ****
This book was SO cute. I am not the biggest fan of this series but this one was definitely one of the best, if not my favorite! It was such an adorable, short, fluffy summer read and I finished the second half in a day. I loved the characters and although the plot was fairly cliche, it was so cute!
The first five books of the series centered around sports-related plots and I loved how this one switched it up and focused on music and two musicians. I'm not the biggest fan of sports and books about sports are fairly boring to me personally.
Maya was actually one of the first likable protagonists of this series that I actually admired. She wasn't afraid to be herself and flaunt her love for 80s music through her music and fashion. I loved her determination to make something of herself through her music without the help of others. Even though she is insecure about her love life since her last crush only wanted to hook up with her and never wanted anything more, she still looked past that and took a chance with another boy, though she didn't let her relationship rule her life.
Jesse was a famous three-time Grammy-winning country music artist. Maya's school requires them to shadow someone to help with their careers or interests and she ends up being assigned to shadow Jesse. I loved Jesse and his entire character. He has a strong love for music but his family doesn't support some of his decisions and because of his urge to please them, he wants to quit. However, Maya helps him to realize just how much he loves music and I loved how he finally saw past his family's wishes and started to follow his own dreams.
The relationship between Jesse and Maya was fairly instantaneous. Within the first day, they went on all sorts of cute adventures that were honestly quite adorable and fun-sounding and by the end, they seem to have fallen for each other. Maya initially despised the seemingly-arrogant and cocky boy that Jesse came off as in the beginning but soon realized that there was more to him than she thought. Jesse thought of Maya as just another groupie who wanted to use his fame to get their own record deal or money but then realizes that she's a genuine girl who is willing to work for her own dreams unlike his ex-girlfriend. Even though there were some conflicts towards the beginning of their relationships as both misunderstand each other and Maya has to navigate through her lack of confidence in relationships, I loved how they came together by the end. They were such a cute couple and you could look past Jesse's celebrity status and see two ordinary people coming together.
Maya signs up for a TV competition that skyrocketed Jesse to his fame and instead of trying to get favors and money from her boyfriend, she chooses to work for it herself despite the fact that her family is financially lacking to cover the trip to New York. That was truly admirable because she was willing to work for her own dreams. Even though the ending was less than satisfactory, I'm glad it showed her as a strong and determined independent girl.
I loved Maya's family. All of them were so supportive and loving of each other. Sam Henry, Maya's older brother, who was also the love interest of the first book, played the overprotective but loving brother so well. Her parents were so loving and kind. Jordan, Sam's girlfriend, was the best friend you could ask for.
Maya's friends were no exception. Dave, her best friend, was so supportive of everything Maya did. I also loved his relationship with Xander because they were so adorable.
The book can easily be read in one sitting and you'll laugh and love along with all of the characters. I would recommend this book to readers looking for a cute summer read. The previous books are not required to understand this one.
Main Character: Maya
Sidekick(s): Jesse, Dave, Sam, Jordan, etc
Villain(s): Lack of money, misunderstanding, etc
Realistic Fiction Elements: This book was all very real to life.
Comments
Post a Comment