Author: Jolene Perry
Publisher: Tribute Books
About the Book: You’re a girl, he says, and are probably seeing things that aren’t there.
Shawn is the guy Ronnie Bird promised her life to at the age of fourteen. He's her soul mate. He's more uptight every day, but it's not his fault. His family life is stressful, and she's adding to it. She just needs to be more understanding, and he'll start to be the boy she fell in love with. She won’t give up on someone she’s loved for so long.
Luke is her best friend, and the guy she hangs with to watch girlie movies in her large blanketopias. He's the guy she can confide in before she even goes to her girlfriends, and the guy who she's playing opposite in Romeo and Juliet. Now her chest flutters every time he gets too close. This is new. Is Ronnie falling for him? Or is Juliet? The lines are getting blurry, but leaving one guy for another is not something that a girl like Ronnie does.
Shawn’s outbursts are starting to give her bruises, and Luke’s heart breaks as Ronnie remains torn. While her thoughts and feelings swirl around the lines between friendship and forever, she’s about to lose them both.
Luke is her best friend, and the guy she hangs with to watch girlie movies in her large blanketopias. He's the guy she can confide in before she even goes to her girlfriends, and the guy who she's playing opposite in Romeo and Juliet. Now her chest flutters every time he gets too close. This is new. Is Ronnie falling for him? Or is Juliet? The lines are getting blurry, but leaving one guy for another is not something that a girl like Ronnie does.
Shawn’s outbursts are starting to give her bruises, and Luke’s heart breaks as Ronnie remains torn. While her thoughts and feelings swirl around the lines between friendship and forever, she’s about to lose them both.
My thoughts: For me, this book started out slow, but I was quickly immersed in Ronnie's story. I think that every young girl thinks her first love will be her only love, and the author does a great job of capturing those feelings for the reader. But there is more than just first love going on here. Shawn has started to change and Ronnie is convinced that if she just gives him more time, he will be the boy she fell in love with again - regardless of the consequences.
And then there is Luke. Who remembers all those feelings you get when the boy of your dreams walks in the room? Ronnie begins to have those feelings for Luke, but she convinces herself that these are not her feelings, but those of Juliet for her Romeo - the characters the two of them are playing in the school play. She is sure that once the play is over she will be able to let those feelings go and that the problems Shawn is having will have begun to ease by then and that relationship will get back on track.
Jolene Perry does a great job of dealing with the sensitive issue of abusive relationships and how women, especially teens, can make exceptions to excuse the behavior in the one they love - and who loves them. I have already told my daughter that I want her to read this book - because I want her to see how no abuse is okay, and there is no reason good enough to make it okay.
~I received a complimentary ecopy of this book from Tribute Books in exchange for my unbiased review.~
About the author: Jolene grew up in Wasilla, Alaska. She graduated from Southern Utah University with a degree in political science and French, which she used to teach math to middle schoolers.
After living in Washington, Utah and Las Vegas, she now resides in Alaska with her husband, and two children. Aside from writing, Jolene sews, plays the guitar, sings when forced, and spends as much time outside as possible.
She is also the author of Night Sky and The Next Door Boys.
You can find out more about the book and connect with the author at the following locations:
Knee Deep web site:
http://knee-deep-book.blogspot.com/
Knee Deep Twitter hashtag:
#KneeDeep
Knee Deep GoodReads page:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12987551-knee-deep
Jolene Perry's Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002038196677
Jolene Perry's Twitter:
https://twitter.com/#!/JoleneBPerry
Jolene Perry's Website:
http://www.jolenebperry.com/
Jolene Perry's Blog:
http://www.jolenesbeenwriting.blogspot.com/
Jolene Perry's GoodReads:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4944599.Jolene_B_Perry
Tribute Books website:
http://www.tribute-books.com
Tribute Books Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Archbald-PA/Tribute-Books/171628704176
Tribute Books Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/TributeBooks
Tribute Books Blog Tours Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tribute-Books-Blog-Tours/242431245775186
http://knee-deep-book.blogspot.com/
Knee Deep Twitter hashtag:
#KneeDeep
Knee Deep GoodReads page:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12987551-knee-deep
Jolene Perry's Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002038196677
Jolene Perry's Twitter:
https://twitter.com/#!/JoleneBPerry
Jolene Perry's Website:
http://www.jolenebperry.com/
Jolene Perry's Blog:
http://www.jolenesbeenwriting.blogspot.com/
Jolene Perry's GoodReads:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4944599.Jolene_B_Perry
Tribute Books website:
http://www.tribute-books.com
Tribute Books Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Archbald-PA/Tribute-Books/171628704176
Tribute Books Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/TributeBooks
Tribute Books Blog Tours Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tribute-Books-Blog-Tours/242431245775186
Publisher/Publication Date: Tribute Books, May 2012
ISBN: 9780983741886
ISBN: 9781476060316
240 pages
