***I was granted permission to read this by the publisher in exchange for an honest review as a part of the blog tour hosted by Itching For Books. Many thanks to Simon Pulse!***
***As always mild spoilers may follow***
Rating:5 stars
Pub date:20 May 2014
Publisher:Simon Pulse
Genre:Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance
Format:eARC provided by the publisher
Status:Book one of The Superlatives series
Summary:
Tia and Will’s lives get flipped upside down when they’re voted Yearbook’s Biggest Flirts in this sassy novel from the author of Endless Summer and The One That I Want.
Tia just wants to have fun. She’s worked hard to earn her reputation as the life of the party, and she’s ready for a carefree senior year of hanging out with friends and hooking up with cute boys. And her first order of business? New guy Will. She can’t get enough of his Midwestern accent and laidback swagger.
As the sparks start to fly, Will wants to get serious. Tia’s seen how caring too much has left her sisters heartbroken, and she isn’t interested in commitment. But pushing Will away drives him into the arms of another girl. Tia tells herself it’s no big deal…until the yearbook elections are announced. Getting voted Biggest Flirts with Will is, well, awkward. They may just be friends, but their chemistry is beginning to jeopardize Will’s new relationship—and causing Tia to reconsider her true feelings. What started as a lighthearted fling is about to get very complicated…
My thoughts:
I am so happy to be a part of the blog tour for Biggest Flirts today! I applied not thinking I would get it and was so happy when I did. I was a bit nervous though. I’m not the biggest fan of contemporary and while I had several Jennifer Echols books on my TBR (thanks to Mary) I had never read anything by her yet. Boy, have I been missing out!
Biggest Flirts really felt a lot like my senior year. I wasn’t a party girl or as big of a flirt as Tia, but goodness, the band memories!
Yes, Iam a marching band alum and that added SO much to my reading experience and brought back so many great memories. SO many memories. The early mornings, hot and humid days, long nights – I was back in the last week of July in East Tennessee all over again. I’m sure the heat and humidity is much worse in Florida though! As a former band kid, each practice scene felt so real. I was instantly transported through time and readers who weren’t in band will still be able to easily imagine the scenes before them. Jennifer does a fantastic job setting the scene in a realistic fashion.
Tia was easy to relate to because she felt so real and vulnerable. There were also girls like Tia in band, so I could relate on that level, too. I related more to her on the academic side than the relationship side. I was smart, but I really hated showing it, because I didn’t want to get hit with tons of responsibility. Also? Music. I stopped practicing flute on purpose so I could be middle of the road and not saddled with any section leader responsibilities. I loved the upperclass leadership responsibilities though!
Will was relatable for me, because I’d had my whole world ripped a part and flipped upside down before, too. I didn’t have to move across the country before my senior year like him, though. My parents got divorced. They ‘hid’ their fighting the summer before eighth grade. They said they didn’t want to ruin my summer or upcoming school year. I remember screaming at them that they were ruining my life, not just my summer. It’s definitely not a fun thing to have your whole world destroyed and my heart went out to Will.
I really enjoyed the banter between Will and Tia. It reminded me so much of me and my best guy friend in high school. There were times when we argued for the sake of arguing. It was definitely realistic cause I’ve been there! haha. I’m sure it would’ve been much worse and much more like Tia and Will had we been in the same section. He was a drummer so that made the connection even better. Goofy drummers! (I can trash on drummers since I married one! haha)
As well as two strong main characters, they are surrounded by a great cast of secondary characters. I can’t wait to read some of their stories in the future books. It was great to see an interesting mix of personalities in Tia’s circle. Again, I was reminded of my time in high school. Believe it or not, band kids aren’t complete nerds and isolationists! (: We DO have friends outside of the inner circle of band. Not all band kids are friends either.
Biggest Flirts was a fast and enjoyable read. As a fan of leaving the real world when I read, I loved this contemporary and definitely plan on checking out more of Jennifer’s books (including the rest of this series as they release!). I’m definitely becoming a Jennifer Echols fan! Many thanks to Mary for introducing me to her books, Shane for letting me be a part of the tour, and Jennifer for writing such an enjoyable story!
**Favourite Quotes**
Drum corps were basically marching bands with super powers. I have always admired drum corps! I love watching their competitions and have known a few people to march in the corps. Badass. All hail the drum corps.
“You get your energy from being by yourself,” I guessed. This was Harper’s description of the strange phenomenon I did not understand. “Having to talk to a bunch of people at once, especially people you don’t know, makes you feel drained.” Oh, man. Tia is describing Will, but this totally fits for me too.
“I’m the king of the world,” he murmured. In a sexy satisfied tone that most chicks would use to reaffirm their love, I said, “You are the king of the dorks.” LOVE IT! (;
“Mr. Matthews, get off Ms. Cruz. I’m starting to sound like a broken record.”
About the author
Jennifer Echols was born in Atlanta and grew up in a small town on a beautiful lake in Alabama—a setting that has inspired many of her books. She has written nine romantic novels for young adults, including the comedy MAJOR CRUSH, which won the National Readers’ Choice Award, and the drama GOING TOO FAR, which was a finalist in the RITA, the National Readers’ Choice Award, and the Book Buyer’s Best, and was nominated by the American Library Association as a Best Book for Young Adults. Simon & Schuster will debut her adult romance novels in 2013, with many more teen novels scheduled for the next few years. She lives in Birmingham with her husband and her son.
http://www.jennifer-echols.com | http://twitter.com/jenniferechols
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