My Epic Spring Break (Up)

by Kristin Rockaway

Overview

A fun and upbeat romance about a girl who finds a cheat sheet for love.

Spring break . . . heartache?

For coder extraordinaire Ashley, high school is all about prepping for college. Her love life? Virtually nonexistent. She's never been on a date. Never been kissed. Never been in love.

When her plans veer off course, Ashley realizes she might be missing out on her high school experience. Now that spring break is finally here, Ashley vows to have fun . . . and, for the first time, follow her heart.

Starting with Walker Beech, her gorgeous, maybe-not-so-unrequited crush. But with Jason Eisler—her childhood friend turned prankster—in the picture, trouble is bound to follow. Will Ashley's epic spring break lead her to love, or will her heart crash and burn?

"Smart, fun, fast-paced." —USA Today bestselling author of The Kiss Quotient Helen Hoang on Kristin Rockaway's How to Hack a Heartbreak

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593180112
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	04/06/2021
Series:	Underlined Paperbacks
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	1,001,520
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.70(d)
Lexile:	HL710L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Kristin Rockaway is a native New Yorker and recovering corporate software engineer who traded the city for the Southern California, where she spends her days happily writing stories instead of code. Her most recent novel is How to Hack a Heartbreak. Visit her online at kristinrockaway.com or on Twitter and Instagram @kristinrockaway.

Editorial Reviews

Priase for MY EPIC SPRING BREAK (UP):

A YALSA 2022 Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers!

"Smart, fun, and fast-paced it’s the perfect spring break read! If you enjoy coming-of-age stories and friends-to-lovers romance, this is your book and you will devour it in one sitting."—The Nerd Daily

"Refreshing characters bring new life to classic romance." —Kirkus

"Readers will enjoy this light romance with STEM connections." —SLJ

From the Publisher

12/01/2020

Gr 7 Up—Ashley Bergen is a studious teenager who loves coding. Spring break is here and she's excited to find out if she was chosen for a summer internship at ZigZag, a social networking company, and to compete in the Hackathon, a marathon coding competition. But a talk with her lifelong friend Jason makes Ashley think she is not "making the most" of her high school years. When she discovers she didn't make the cut for ZigZag, she vows to have more fun, starting with reaching out to her crush, Walker Beech. They start dating; it's fun at first, but Ashley realizes she doesn't have much in common with Walker and he's a player. Meanwhile, Jason isn't thrilled about Ashley dating. And when things go south with Walker, Ashley finds herself thinking about how much better it would be if Jason were there instead. Ashley is smart, driven to succeed, and she confidently participates in a male-dominated activity. Her feelings waver between the two boys, creating a back and forth that drags at times. Some aspects of the story are unrealistic, and it's odd that Ashley is unaware of Jason's feelings for her. Race and ethnicity of the characters are not mentioned, but names throughout the story suggest some diversity among secondary characters. VERDICT The relationship piece of the story is predictable, but many readers will enjoy this light romance with STEM connections.—Lisa Buffi, Sterling M.S., VA

School Library Journal

2021-03-03
A spring break full of disappointment, bad choices, romance, tattoos—and self-realization.

High school junior Ashley’s ultimate goal is to leave Brooklyn behind and achieve success as a software engineer in Silicon Valley. Between being a mathlete, belonging to a coding club, and tutoring classmates in math, she has been doing everything she can to prove to colleges that she’s dedicated to studying STEM. Ashley believes she’ll have no trouble landing a summer internship with the popular social media platform ZigZag. However, her two-week spring break is off to a poor start when they send her a rejection letter. Frustrated with having tried to do everything right, when she runs into her crush, Walker, she decides to put herself out there and have more fun. Jason, Ashley’s lifelong friend and literal boy next door, warns her that Walker is bad news, however. When Jason joins Ashley’s coding team for a spring break hackathon, she starts to see something special in the boy who has been there all along. Ashley comes across as authentic and driven—but not consumed—by her ambitions, and the role of STEM in the story is both natural and noteworthy. Ashley’s sometimes-misguided choices feel genuine, and her disappointments real. Main characters are White by default; surnames indicate some diversity in the supporting cast.

Refreshing characters bring new life to classic romance tropes. (Romance. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews