My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Title: Lost and Found
Author: Nicole Williams
Release date: May 7, 2013
Publisher: Nicole Williams
Age Group: Mature Young Adult/New
Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Tour organized by: AToMR Tours
Blurb:
There’s complicated. And there’s Rowen Sterling.
After numbing pain for the past five years with boys, alcohol, and all-around apathy, she finds herself on a Greyhound bus to nowhere Montana the summer after she graduates high school. Her mom agreed to front the bill to Rowen’s dream art school only if Rowen proves she can work hard and stay out of trouble at Willow Springs Ranch. Cooking breakfast at the crack of dawn for a couple dozen ranch hands and mucking out horse stalls are the last things in the world Rowen wants to spend her summer doing.
Until Jesse Walker saunters into her life wearing a pair of painted-on jeans, a cowboy hat, and a grin that makes something in her chest she’d thought was frozen go boom-boom. Jesse’s like no one else, and certainly nothing like her. He’s the bright and shiny to her dark and jaded.
Rowen knows there’s no happily-ever-after for the golden boy and the rebel girl—happily-right-now is a stretch—so she tries to forget and ignore the boy who makes her feel things she’s not sure she’s ready to feel. But the more she pushes him away, the closer he seems to get. The more she convinces herself she doesn’t care, the harder she falls.
When her dark secrets refuse to stay locked behind the walls she’s kept up for years, Rowen realizes it’s not just everyone else she needs to be honest with. It’s herself.
Giveaway:
About the Author:
I'm a wife, a mom, a writer. I started writing because I loved it and
I'm still writing because I love it. I write young adult because I still
believe in true love, kindred spirits, and happy endings. Here's to staying
young at heart *raises champagne glass* . . . care to join me?
Author Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nwilliamsbooks
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nwilliamsbooks
Tour schedule link: http://wp.me/p20ttU-1vc
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My Review: Lost and found was an engrossing read. From the moment I started it, the book immediately pulled me into Rowen's life. It was pretty obvious that Rowen's gonna go through some major personality changes as the story proceeds but at the same time I was curious as to how those changes occur, especially after our gorgeous tom boy, Jesse makes a swoon-worthy entry.
Rowen was different from most of the other female protagonists that we usually read about in books. She wasn't a total goth or an absolute emo even if her appearance might fool you into believing otherwise. But reading her POV made it clear from the beginning that this wasn't going to be a bland, simple story. Rowen had a fun, caring and really adventurous side which she kept hidden from the world but upon reaching Willow Springs, I could see that side immediately popping out of the deep layers she'd put around herself. The reason behind her skeptic, mean and dark side was somewhat of a mystery though I figured it out pretty early, though that didn't make the story any less interesting.
Jesse was like sunshine to Rowen's darkness. Wherever he went, he left a trail of smiles and a few broken hearts because well, he was smokin' hot (honestly, which male protagonist of a book isn't?). He made the story a lot more funny and intriguing. His personality was charming and it was no surprise that he balanced Rowen completely. Both of them made an awesome couple and it broke my heart when Rowen kept pushing Jesse away so rudely. It was a little irritating to see her so unsure and whiny. Jesse kept his cool throughout anyway and eventually it all became alright.
The story had some common and some not-so-common elements. The mix of that made it a compelling read. I enjoyed almost every part of this book. All the characters were well built-up. Though Rowen's mother still remains a mystery to me and so does her and Rose's friendship. It was a bit confusing but maybe that's just the way how Ms. Williams wanted it to be. The main focus was always on Jesse and Rowen so I didn't mind that minor tweak.
All in all, Lost and Found is a well written and an extremely enjoyable red. It made me laugh a lot of times and made me a little misty eyed a few times. It wasn't difficult to connect with the characters and Ms. Williams has truly done an awesome job at this one and I'm already excited to read more of her books!
