AUTHOR: Jimmy Gleacher
INFO: Paperback, Fiction, 292 pages
PUBLISHED: Gallery, 2011
SOURCE: Received from Publisher for Review
FROM GOODREADS: TRUE OR F A L S E ?
It’s only a week into summer break and already seventeen-year-old Gates has . . .
a) Hustled millionaires on the golf course
b) Tried to stop his mother from having a(nother) nervous breakdown
c) Promised to lose his virginity with his girlfriend, Mel . . . which would be great if he hadn’t already lost it to his forty-year-old godmother
d) Almost killed a man
Yeah, Gates has a lot of secrets, but he’s determined to keep his heart true. When he’s not swinging golf clubs like a pro, he reads pulp fiction to old folks at the retirement home. And despite his occasional slip-ups—drinking before noon and sneaking glimpses through his sexy godmother’s open negligees—Gates only has eyes for Mel. But she knows he’s hiding something, and she’s beginning to lose her patience.
Just as Gates is about to spill his shameful secrets, he gets tangled up in a golf club scandal that jeopardizes his dreams of a normal life. He’s never been a fighter, but this time he finally pushes back at the world—which could have been a breakthrough but turns into an epic fail. Probably because Gates fights back dirty. Now his life is on the verge of ruin, and he’s got no one to turn to for help.
Or so he thinks. Because what Gates is about to discover might hit him with the most amazing shock of his life.
MY TAKE: This was a fun book to read with quite a few laughs and definitely some groans thrown in. Gates isn't a bad kid by any means, he just doesn't always think with his brain. (Of course that describes how many 17 year old males?)
The characters that populate this book are very well written. Many of them come across as people that we might have in our own lives. Gates is a very sympathetic kid as he really does have a great heart. He loves his girlfriend Mel and really does try to do things right by her, it just doesn't always go well. The fact that he goes to the retirement home on his own and has a close relationship with an old man there is one of his bright spots. Some of his choices in other areas shine a light on his age and his homelife.
Gates' mother is pretty much useless. I flat out didn't care for her at all. Then we have his godmother who is a real piece of work. Alicia is just wrong wrong wrong - on many levels. I won't delve into it as her issues are a large piece of the story. It is a very interesting part she plays.
The plot moves along quickly and it really isn't until close to the end of the book that I figured out where it was going. The author does a nice job of keeping the intensity up and the action flowing. I enjoyed how everything played out and I do hope that Mr. Gleacher is working on a sequel.
Out of 5 JEWELS, I give it:
~~~~~ Disclaimer: All opinions expressed on this blog are 100% my own. I do not receive monetary compensation for my reviews but do utilize affiliate links. I may receive books in order to facilitate a review, but this does not guarantee a good review - only a completely honest one. Each review post denotes how I obtained the book.
Sounds like a niiice read.
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