Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Review of Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Title: Saving June
Author: Hannah Harrington
Published by: Harlequin Teen
Pages: 304
Source: Publisher/NetGalley
Format: ebook
Rating: ★★★★

Summary From Goodreads: When her older sister commits suicide and her divorcing parents decide to divide the ashes, Harper Scott takes her sister's urn to the one place June always wanted to go: California. On the road with her best friend, plus an intriguing guy with a mysterious connection to June, Harper discovers truths about her sister, herself and life.

A heartbreaking and beautiful ride.  Saving June is one of those books that sneaks into your heart and stays there long after you've put it down.  Hannah Harrington creates these characters who are so wonderfully flawed that you have to love them.  Harper is hell bent on being the un-perfect daughter.  She is snarky, defiant and broken now that June is gone.  She is so completely lost in her grief and turmoil, that she plans a trip with her best friend and a new mysterious guy to scatter June's ashes in California to hopefully find some closure for both June and her.

Harper, Jake and Laney's rode trip is unforgettable and I'm a little jealous that I wasn't invited along.  With quite a few unexpected stops, it lightened the mood of the book and helped Hannah, Laney and Jake discover more about themselves and what they want out of life.  There is a nice, slow building of the relationship between Jake and Harper.  Along the trip they get to learn more about one another and where they fit into the other's life.  At times they are frustrating, because it's obvious they are both keeping secrets.  But as they say it all comes out in the wash and when it does come out expect vibrant fireworks!

One of the things I loved about this book was all the music.  Jake is an authority on music.  He listens to everything from The Rolling Stones, to Billie Holiday, to ABBA.  It is really nice to see how music has shaped his life and how much it means to him.  I love that he shares his passion no matter if Harper or Laney want to hear it or not.  The eclectic taste of music is refreshing and Hannah Harper weaves it perfectly into almost every adventure they had.

Saving June is a wonderful story that is so much more that a girl and her grief, it's really about self-discovery and finding out who you want to be.    

5 comments:

  1. Great review! I read this book last month and I loved it. My favorite part of the book was all of the music that was mentioned throughout the story. This book made my top ten of 2011.

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  2. Such a great and honest review. I loved this book and rave about this book all the time on my blog. It's one of my absolute favorites EVER! I'm so happy you enjoyed it as well.

    Kristan @ Lost Amongst the Shelves

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  3. I've heard the music references make quite the impression in this book. I've been wanting to read it for a while. Looking forward to those fireworks.

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  4. Wow! I really want to read this one now! I think I'm going to really like Jake. I love guys that are into music! Thanks for the awesome review!

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  5. Saving June is definitely a must-read for everyone. I can't possibly put into words how much I loved it. Even if you aren't a contemporary fan, check this one out. There is no way you will be disappointed.

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