Publishers Weekly
08/22/2016
Frankie Devereux is plagued by PTSD after witnessing the fatal beating of her lacrosse captain boyfriend, but the details of Noah’s death are foggy. After a DUI jeopardizes her Ivy League future, Frankie moves from her upper-class Maryland neighborhood of the Heights to the grittier Downs with her father, an undercover cop. She immediately falls for the first bad boy she sees, an inked-up brawler, and the story leaps headfirst into their melodramatic love story as Frankie swiftly trades her obsession with finding Noah’s killer for her infatuation with the smoldering Marco. Garcia (Unbreakable) gives her characters enough backstory to make them three-dimensional, and themes of class struggle are threaded throughout the novel, but the narrative is so clouded by Frankie’s yearning that other characters, relationships, and plotlines seem to fall away as the story careens toward a too-neat finale. Overblown dialogue, including trite warnings from Marco that he is no good and cheesy promises that their love is “the always kind,” further weakens an exciting but overly formulaic romance. Ages 15–up. Agent: Jodi Reamer, Writers House. (Oct.)
From the Publisher
"Narrator Cynthia Hopkins does this complex story credit with her insightful narration...Hopkins gets right to the heart of this romance, ensuring that listeners will be riveted as each layer of secrets is peeled away." -AudioFile Magazine
School Library Journal - Audio
03/01/2017
Gr 7 Up—Seventeen-year-old Frankie Devereux has always had it good—wealthy parents, great grades, about to attend Stanford, accomplished pianist, and dating the most popular boy at her exclusive private school—until the night her boyfriend is murdered in front of her. Although Frankie can't remember anything about the incident, she is tormented by nightmares, and her life spirals downward, culminating in a DUI and expulsion from school. Sent to live with her undercover cop father in the "bad" part of town, Frankie attends the much rowdier public high school and is instantly drawn to Marco, a street racer with a criminal past. When Frankie's father's work and Marco's actions intersect, trouble and hard choices lie ahead. Performance artist Cynthia Hopkins narrates in a clear voice in the first person, skillfully reflecting Frankie's emotions. Some characters are differentiated effectively—high school friend Cruz has a Hispanic accent, and cool Marco is drawled—but the voices of Frankie and BFF Lex are often indistinguishable from each other. VERDICT With its realistic portrait of high school life in poverty-stricken neighborhoods, this audiobook would work for urban audiences as well as those who like drama-filled romance. ["High stakes, suspenseful romance. The drama-filled love story, though not the healthiest example for impressionable teens, will keep them turning pages": SLJ 9/16 review of the Macmillan book.]—Julie Paladino, formerly at East Chapel Hill High School, NC
School Library Journal
09/01/2016
Gr 9 Up—Last spring, 17-year-old Frankie's boyfriend was murdered in front of her. Frankie has always been a responsible high achiever, but her post-traumatic stress disorder from that incident leads her to make reckless decisions that result in expulsion from her elite private school. At her new public school, the most notorious students come from the Downs, a poverty-stricken and dangerous area of Washington, DC. Against her friends' advice, Frankie begins a romance with Marco, a street racer who is involved in a criminal enterprise. Frankie is in over her head as her attempts to leave behind her past start to endanger her future. Garcia, known for her paranormal romance series, has proven that she can pen a suspenseful plot and a spicy love story. Teens will root for Marco and Frankie, whose romance reads like a mix between Romeo and Juliet and The Fast and the Furious. Unfortunately, the relationship is not always a healthy one. Marco's initial attraction to Frankie is inexplicable, as her behavior toward him is strictly rude and abrasive. When she breaks up with him, he calls and texts her endlessly, refusing to accept the separation. And without Marco, the protagonist becomes self-destructive. Other relationships in the novel, however, like those between Frankie and her best friends, seem much deeper and explore the importance of healthy communication and the consequences of not asking for help. VERDICT This high-stakes, suspenseful romance novel is urban fiction lite for teens. The drama-filled love story, though not the healthiest example for impressionable teens, will keep them turning pages.—Liz Overberg, Zionsville Community High School, IN
MARCH 2017 - AudioFile
Narrator Cynthia Hopkins does this complex story credit with her insightful narration. Following the death of her boyfriend, Frankie Devereux is unable to care about anything—until she meets Marco Leone, a dangerous and unforgettable fellow student whose career as an illegal street racer is notorious. Hopkins traces Frankie’s emotional evolution with understated but stunning clarity—from the aching emptiness of the early chapters to her growing awareness of Marco, to the intensity of their relationship and the wrenching choices she’s forced to make in order to be with him. Though other characters aren’t always as discernable, Hopkins gets right to the heart of this romance, ensuring that listeners will be riveted as each layer of secrets is peeled away. B.E.K. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2016-06-28
Garcia switches gears smoothly from paranormal into contemporary teen fiction in this fast-paced story of trauma, loss, new love, and high-speed cars. Frankie Devereux cannot remember the details of her boyfriend's murder, though she witnessed the brutal event firsthand. She suffers from memory loss, flashbacks, and insomnia due to PTSD, and she no longer feels like the straight-A, high-achieving, privileged white girl she used to be. When a drunk-driving incident gets her expelled from her private school, she is forced to move in with her father, an undercover cop, and attend public school in the Downs, a rough neighborhood adjacent to her mother's wealthy suburb outside of Washington, D.C. On her first day at her new school, whose student body includes an ethnically diverse mix of rich and poor kids from the surrounding neighborhoods, she has an intense chance encounter with Marco Leone, a tough, gorgeous, tattooed street racer, possibly Latino. The connection between them is instantaneous and palpable, though Frankie tries to deny the attraction out of fear of getting too close to somebody again. Narrator Frankie's vulnerabilities are not the only ones on display, however, as Marco proves himself to be just as sensitive beneath his tough exterior. Though Frankie’s character arc is pretty predictable—she learns that the poor are just as complex as the rich—it’s still satisfying, and the romantic scenes sizzle. A wild and enjoyable ride. (Romance. 14-18)
