Review: Jesse’s Girl by Miranda Kenneally
Jesse’s Girl
Book Six
304 Pages
Release Date: 07/07/2015
PUBLISHER/IMPRINT: SOURCEBOOKS FIRE | SERIES: HUNDRED OAKS
GENRE: TEEN/YA | YA CONTEMPORARY | YA ROMANCE
One day will change the beat of her heart…
Practice Makes Perfect.
Everyone at Hundred Oaks High knows that career mentoring day is a joke. So when Maya Henry said she wanted to be a rock star, she never imagined she’d get to shadow *the* Jesse Scott, Nashville’s teen idol.
But spending the day with Jesse is far from a dream come true. He’s as gorgeous as his music, but seeing all that he’s accomplished is just a reminder of everything Maya’s lost: her trust, her boyfriend, their band, and any chance to play the music she craves. Not to mention that Jesse’s pushy and opinionated. He made it on his own, and he thinks Maya’s playing back up to other people’s dreams. Does she have what it takes to follow her heart—and go solo?
* ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review *
Jesse’s Girl is the sixth book in the young adult contemporary romance series, Hundred Oaks, by Miranda Kenneally and the first book I’ve read by the author. In this book, high school student and aspiring musician Maya has been tasked with job shadowing popular country music star, Jesse…just as he’s announced he’ll be leaving the music industry in a few months.
This story and the characters in it completely drew me in right from the start. The flow is fantastic and the wording and structure feels really natural, which made for a fast, easy, and really enjoyable read. Jessie’s Girl is filled with deep characterizations and some great personal struggles for the two lead characters, both trying so hard to find the place where they fit in while also doing whatever they can to follow their musical dreams. For Maya, she’s struggling with losing her boyfriend, her band, and also with the belief in herself as a solo artist. For Jesse, he’s struggling with leaving the industry he loves for the normal, family he craves.
I absolutely loved this story. It was a book I couldn’t put down and just thoroughly enjoyed reading. I love the author’s voice, and how well she wrote her characters and described their problems, and their personal struggles. Such a great, well-rounded, satisfying read. I highly recommend it!
Growing up in Tennessee, Miranda Kenneally dreamed of becoming an Atlanta Brave, a country singer (cliché!), or a UN interpreter. Instead she writes, and works for the State Department in Washington, D.C., where George W. Bush once used her shoulder as an armrest. Miranda loves Twitter, Star Trek and her husband.
