Review: The Vincent Boys by Abbi Glines

  The Vincent Boys

By: Abbi Glines

Synopsis From Goodreads:

Ashton is getting tired of being good, of impressing her parents and playing ideal girlfriend to Sawyer Vincent. Sawyer is perfect, a regular Prince Charming, but when he leaves town for the summer, it’s his cousin Beau who catches Ashton’s eye. Beau is the sexiest guy she’s ever seen, and even though he’s dangerous, Ashton is drawn to him.

Beau loves his cousin like a brother, so the last thing he wants to do is make a move on Sawyer’s girl. Ashton is off-limits, absolutely. That’s why he does his best to keep his distance, even though he’s been in love with her forever. When Ashton wants to rekindle their childhood friendship in Sawyer’s absence, Beau knows he should say no.

Ashton and Beau don’t want to hurt Sawyer. But the more they try to stay away from each other, the more intense their urges become. It’s getting way too hard to resist.... 

Goodreads | Amazon

❦ ❦ ❦ ❦ ❦ ❦

My Review:

Rating:

★★★

Like many of my recent reviews, this book has been sitting on my TBR pile for years. I purchased this book years back in a big Book Outlet order, then it was shoved to the bottom of shelf and forgotten. After a much needed purge of my bookshelves I rediscovered The Vincent Boys.

Ashton, the preachers daughter has been best friends with the Vincent boys ever since they were kids. She and Beau were thick as thieves, always causing trouble only to be bailed out by Sawyer. However, as they grew up the three amigos fell apart. Sawyer and Ashton began a relationship that drove a wedge between Beau and Ashton. Their friendship forgotten. But this summer Ashton is without Sawyer and she finds herself drawn back into the arms of her once best friend. 

Beau is the rebel bad boy with quite the reputation, but as Ashton spends time with him she finds he is not as bad as everyone may think. She discovers she can be herself around him, no longer parading around as the perfect daughter or town good girl. She can finally release her inner rebel. 

The Vincent Boys is your typical YA romance. A girl stuck between the "good" guy and the "bad" boy. 

While the book wasn't bad, it was n't a series I can see myself continuing. It was predictable and resembled every other romance novel out there. The story overall was decent but it wasn't anything to right home about. 

Published by: K

Review: Drought by Pam Bachorz

Drought

By: Pam Bachorz

Synopsis From Goodreads:

A young girl thirsts for love and freedom, but at what cost? 
Ruby dreams of escaping the Congregation. Escape from slaver Darwin West and his cruel Overseers. Escape from the backbreaking work of gathering Water. Escape from living as if it is still 1812, the year they were all enslaved. 

When Ruby meets Ford—an irresistible, kind, forbidden new Overseer—she longs to run away with him to the modern world where she could live a normal teenage life. Escape with Ford would be so simple. 

But if Ruby leaves, her community is condemned to certain death. She, alone, possesses the secret ingredient that makes the Water so special—her blood—and it’s the one thing that the Congregation cannot live without.

Drought is the haunting story of one community’s thirst for life, and the dangerous struggle of the only girl who can grant it.

Goodreads | Amazon

My Review:

Rating:

★★

Several years back I picked this book up from a school book fair with my sister, the blurb had me intrigued right off the bat. However, like many of the books I've gone through lately it was shoved to the bottom of my TBR and only just rediscovered after some serious cleaning. 

Drought follows Ruby, a young girl struggling to be heard among her people. Ruby is part of a Congregation, that has been enslaved for hundreds of years by a ruthless man, Darwin West. Their only goal to endure and wait for their savior, Otto to come rescue them. For hundreds of years Ruby has been forced to collect water from the plants surrounding their village, it's all she has ever known. 

Ruby only wants to be free, to see the modern world and save her people, but no one in her Congregation with listen. She wants nothing more than to save them and walk away from their torturous lives, however she gets shutdown and berated at ever turn. Even her Mother won't listen.

Then the day comes when a kind Overseer, Ford promises her love and happiness. He is kind to her and opens her heart in a way she never thought possible. He begs her to leave with him but Ruby's blood is sacred and she must stay in order to sustain the Congregation, her people. 

I struggled though this book from the very beginning. At first I was a bit confused as to the characters history and their purpose. How can a society exist in modern times with no one outside knowing? Who is this Visitor that comes to collect the cisterns full of water? What is his purpose for collecting it? Who is Otto really?

This book felt as though it had more of a religious, cult-like meaning. The Congregation seemed to force their views on Ruby, never allowing her to voice her thoughts. The there are the many debates between Ruby and Ford about their differing views on the "gods" they pay too. 

Unfortunately, for me this just wasn't my cup of tea. The writing was great but the story seemed lacking at times. I feel as though I walked away with more questions than answers. 

Published by: K