Joyride

Joyride by Anna Banks
To be published: June 2, 2015

It has been a long time since sixteen year old Carly Vega's parents were deported back to Mexico. She and her older brother Julio have been working very hard to get them back, with her working the graveyard shift at a local convenience store. She is studious and quiet, and not whatsoever on the radar of Arden Moss, the former quarterback of the football team. That is until one night when their lives collide and they realize they have more in common than they think. Arden is still grieving over the loss of his sister Amber, whose mental illness caused her to commit suicide, something their father (the town sheriff) will not acknowledge. Arden sees in Carly a kindred spirit, someone that not only understands him and will not lie to him, but also a partner in crime for his pranks. Will Carly be able to get her family back? Recommended for ages 14+, 4 stars. 

The author did a good job of portraying a small North Florida town,  and especially the conservative attitudes towards immigration. Apparently she even lived and graduated high school in Niceville, Florida (a bit north of Destin) where my brother also graduated. Having lived in the South most of my life, I have sadly met people like Arden's dad. As others have mentioned, I think Carly's character was a bit too passive (despite her explosive temper), especially in agreeing to work till the point of exhaustion every day to get a little bit of money to send to her parents so they can illegally cross the border again, and I think it was wrong of her family to do this.  I mean c'mon, she's only sixteen, let her be a kid a little bit longer. I liked that it wasn't your traditional romance in that Carly didn't immediately fall for Arden, only only agreed to be friends with a lot of conditions before they eventually fell in love. 

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author, in exchange for my honest review.