Finding Perfect by Kendra C. Highley

Title: Finding Perfect

Author: Kendra C. Highley

Publisher: Entangled Crush

Release Date: September 14, 2015

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / B&N / Indigo

How far will you go for perfection?

For “Perfect Paige” Westfield, today is “D” Day. As in, she just got one on her calculus test. With her dreams of Stanford, her reputation, and her parents’ expectations at stake, Paige needs to find a way to save face before everything she’s worked for goes up in flames.

Ben Franklin (yes, he’s related) is from the wrong side of town, with the wrong clothes and the wrong kind of life. He also knows an opportunity when he sees one, and he’ll be happy to tutor Paige—if she makes him into the kind of guy her best friend, the hottest girl in school, will date.

It’s the perfect arrangement. And Paige is determined not even the inconvenient—and utterly imperfect—attraction simmering between her and Ben will ruin it…

Anytime I write a review for one of the books from Entangled's Crush imprint, I start worrying that I'm beginning to sound a little like a broken record. But I can't help it, I've been loving all the books they've been putting out. And that holds true for the latest one, Kendra C. Highley's Finding Perfect.

A D on a calculus test is the worst thing that could happen to Paige. After all, she is "Perfect Paige" and she has a reputation to uphold and parental expectations to meet. She needs to find a way to fix her grade, but Paige just doesn't get calculus. Enter Ben, the boy who witnesses Paige's breakdown and offers to help. There's only one catch: girls don't notice Ben, so in exchange for helping her, he wants Paige to make him into the kind of guy her best friend would want to date. It should work out perfectly. Except for the fact that something more seems to be developing between Paige and Ben.

Guys, Finding Perfect was so freaking cute. I mean, based on the description I had a feeling it was going to be cute, I just didn't necessarily expect it to be this adorable. But it was. I love stories where the person who's supposed to be the matchmaker ends up falling for one of the people they're setting up. It always leads to some interesting situations and makes for a great story when it's done well. With Finding Perfect it was, to make a bad joke, perfect. And I say that because for me it totally was. Even though it happens in most romance books, one of the things that gets to me the most is how the couple will get together until one of them does something to screw it up, forcing them to break up and then get back together again after things get cleared up. But Finding Perfect didn't do that. Once Ben and Paige got together, they were together. Sure there were some obstacles along the way but they didn't break up only to get back together. And they were just so freaking adorable together and I dare you to read this story and not root for them. 

I've already established that Ben and Paige were super adorable together, but they were pretty great as individuals too. Paige was always determined to please everyone, focusing so much on the way people saw her, even if it was to her own detriment. The whole time I was reading, I was hoping that she would finally start doing what she wanted to do intend of what people expected her to do. I just wanted her to be happy and to be herself. And Ben brought out the best in her. Around him she was able to actually be herself and that person was pretty great. And Ben himself was freaking adorable. I loved how much he loved his mom. And I loved how he wasn't afraid to tell Paige's parents off. And the boy came with cookies. What more could you possibly ask for. For real, I wouldn't mind Ben for myself if he wasn't so absolutely perfect for Paige. 

I loved Kendra C. Highley's Finding Perfect. This story was all kinds of adorable and I would have gladly kept on reading about Ben and Paige forever. They were just that fantastic and fun to read about. 

Blog Tour - Sidelined by Kendra C. Highley + Giveaway

Title: Sidelined

Author: Kendra C. Highley

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Release Date: October 1, 2013

Source: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon / Barnes & Noble

After being pushed to excel her entire life, high school basketball star Genna Pierce is finally where she wants to be. University scouts are taking notice, her team is on its way to the state tourney, and Jake Butler, the hot boy she'd daydreamed about since ninth grade, is showing some definite interest. When he asks her out and their relationship takes off, Genna believe things can't get better.

Then, it's over.

A freak accident ends her career before it's even begun. Her parents are fighting more than ever, her friends don't understand what she's going through, and she's not sure who she is without basketball. And while he tries to be there for her, Genna doesn't understand how Jake could ever want the broken version of the girl he fell for. 

Here life is a tailspin, Genna turns to the only solace that eases her pain: Vicodin.

So here's the thing about Kendra C. Highley's Sidelined, I knew next to nothing about the book when I first started reading it. To be honest, all I really knew was that it was a contemporary story, the main character played basketball and I had guessed from the title that something happens to her and she can no longer play. I was going in blind. But I'm glad I did because it meant I was able to enjoy the story in a way I don't think I would have otherwise. 

Genna always knew what her future would hold: she would graduate high school with an athletic scholarship to play basketball in college. And that reality was with her reach. Until one fateful moment on the court changed her life completely. A double leg fracture puts an end to her basketball career and now Genna has to rebuild her life from scratch.  But it's not just her basketball career that falls apart, it's Genna's whole life. And before long, Genna is spiralling downs dark whole where the only thing capable of easing her pain is the one thing that is bringing her down. 

I went in completely blind with Sidelined. I had briefly read over the summary and that had apparently been enough to convince me I wanted to read this book. And as much as I am sometimes weary of reading books when I know nothing about them going in blind can have some distinct advantages. I didn't have any preconceived ideas about the book. Sure after a couple chapters I had a vague idea of where the story might be going, but even then, Sidelined didn't end up going quite where I thought it would. I didn't really think it would go beyond exploring how Genna dealt with giving up basketball. And in a way, the story definitely did this but it also went deeper. All of a sudden I was reading a story about addiction and there wasn't much sugarcoating. I could see how much Genna struggled with being addicted to her pain meds. I could see how it was affecting not just her, but the people around her. And I appreciated the fact that I saw that inner struggle in Genna. It meant that I was able to see the progression, see her downward spiral to addiction and then her fight to get better. In a way, it made Genna feel a lot more real. 

So that brings me to Genna. I wouldn't be honest if I didn't say that I didn't really think much of her when I first started reading the story. Even once she got injured and had to deal with the implications of that injury, I still just saw her as someone telling a story.  But once she started getting addicted to her pain meds, I started finding her a lot more interesting as a character. Having the story told from Genna's perspective definitely helped with that. With the story told this way, I could see her inner turmoil, how the drug was starting to control her. And the I saw her inner fight against it. It all made her more interesting. And as much se there were other characters in the story that were both supporting her and  were there for conflict purposes, the story was very much about Genna and her conflict with herself. And for me, that made for a really interesting and engaging story. 

Kendra C. Highley's Sidelined wasn't what I thought it would be. Not knowing what to expect made for a more interesting reading experience. If you're looking for a story that's deeper an deals with a harder subject matter than I would definitely recommend Sidelined. 

Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway