Pepper is a perfectionist. She's captain of the swim team and a straight A student. Her life revolves around school and her family's business, Big League Burger, which started as a mom-and-pop shop in Nashville when Pepper's parents were still married. Now it's the fourth largest fast-food franchise in the country. And Pepper's parents aren't together anymore. She currently lives in New York City with her mom, and attends Stone Hall Academy, an elite private school that, as she puts it, is so "competitive even Blair Waldorf would probably burn within two minutes of crossing its threshold." Pepper doesn't have any friends and spends most of her time studying, staying in her little tiny area of the city, or baking and posting on the cooking blog she shares with her sister, Paige, who is in college. And oh yeah, she's often forced by her Mom to post on Big League Burger's corporate Twitter account. Then there's Jack. Twin brother of the far more popular, Ethan, Jack is the class clown. The one who endlessly teases Pepper. He works in his family's deli, Girl Cheesing, because that's what he's supposed to do, right? It's also a family business. But then Big League Burger steals his grandmother's famous grilled cheese recipe. And suddenly Girl Cheesing and Big League Burger are at war, Twitter style. With Jack and Pepper behind each tweet. But while they are dueling in out in a viral--and rather public--battle, they may just be falling for each other in real life.
This plot may all sound a little bizarre, but I absolutely loved this book. Pepper and Jack (ship name "Pepperjack") jump off the pages of Lord's well-written, adorable romance. This is a cute yet serious read featuring a wonderful couple that can certainly appeal beyond a YA audience--just be prepared for some tech-heavy sections. There's lots of twitter and technology in the pages, including a mysterious anonymous app called Weazel, but plenty of fun and plot twists too!
Jack and Pepper come to us with parallel stories--each burdened with the load of trying to live up to their parents' standards. It's something that many can identify with, and I felt my heart going out to these poor kids. They are quite real and while they have a lot of grown up things to deal with, they are just kids at heart, falling in love. I enjoyed the juxtaposition of them appearing as adults and kids: deep down, they were so sweet, wanting to be happy and to find love among all the pressures in their lives. (And boy, do they deal with a lot!)
This book is filled with wonderful characters. As mentioned, our two main characters are vibrant and real: not just stock romance caricatures. We also have Jack's twin, Ethan, who is a trip, but a good foil for Jack. My favorite is the twins' grandmother, who is an absolute hilarious lady (and not one to be underestimated).
Overall, this is a lovely story--funny, sweet, serious, and romantic. Jack and Pepper are a great couple, with real problems and yet they offer plenty of hilarious and heartfelt moments. This book should appeal to the YA audience, but easily entertain beyond too. It's an enjoyable little trip into another world. 4.5/5 stars.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment