Monday, June 19, 2017

Review & Excerpt Tour: The Impossible Vastness of Us by Samantha Young

   

From New York Times bestselling author Samantha Young comes a story of friendship, identity, and acceptance that will break your heart—and make it whole again. Order your copy of THE IMPOSSIBLE VASTNESS OF US today!



“I know how to watch my back. I’m the only one that ever has.”

India Maxwell hasn’t just moved across the country—she’s plummeted to the bottom rung of the social ladder. It’s taken years to cover the mess of her home life with a veneer of popularity. Now she’s living in one of Boston’s wealthiest neighborhoods with her mom’s fiancé and his daughter, Eloise. Thanks to her soon-to-be stepsister’s clique of friends, including Eloise’s gorgeous, arrogant boyfriend Finn, India feels like the one thing she hoped never to be seen as again: trash.

But India’s not alone in struggling to control the secrets of her past. Eloise and Finn, the school’s golden couple, aren’t all they seem to be. In fact, everyone’s life is infinitely more complex than it first appears. And as India grows closer to Finn and befriends Eloise, threatening the facades that hold them together, what’s left are truths that are brutal, beautiful, and big enough to change them forever…

   

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Rating: 4/5 Stars

I have not read many Young Adult Contemporary novels recently. Having to suffer through high school myself, I prefer to limit my exposure to books that are set in high school. I also find YA Contemporary novels to be rather cliche and annoying. While other YA novels can also feature those tendencies, I find that YA Contemporary novels frequently belittle teenagers and their issues in high school. I understand that teenagers can blow everyday high school problems out-of-proportion, but sometimes authors seem to belittle us and make our problems appear more like a soap opera. I was relieved that The Impossible Vastness of Us was a solid YA Contemporary novel that featured a faithful portrayal of a typical high school setting. While the romance and some of the events were rather unrealistic, the novel overall was refreshing because the typical high school experience was not belittled.

For a novel that features a bright and vibrant cover, The Impossible Vastness of Us was a dark novel. It features dark topics and discovering your true identity. The novel never felt overwhelmingly dark and dreary, but the cover is rather misleading. I knew nothing about the novel before starting it and I never expected going on the journey I did by the cover design. The overall message of the novel is that a large portion of a person lies under their surface and while you may think you know someone you have know for years, you may know very little about them. The cover symbolizes how someone might look a certain way, but underneath there is so much more to them.

While the novel did feature darker and important topics, I felt as though the romance overshadowed them. While some of these topics did not pertain to the narrator/main character, there are two characters, in addition to the main character, that we witness the unraveling and rebuilding of. I hated that the romance between two of the characters overshadowed the journey of one of the other characters. That one character's journey was a significant part of the story, but it was left hanging. I hope that Samantha Young left it that way so she could write a spin-off novel following that particular character and the rest of their journey. I would love to see where that character's story goes. I really feel in love with them and I would love to see their happily-ever after.

The Impossible Vastness of Us was an interesting YA Contemporary novel that should have a spin-off novel. It was a compelling read that can easily be finished in one sitting. Do not let it's cover deceive you, The Impossible Vastness of Us features dark and important topics that every teen should read about. It was a novel about speaking-up, finding your identity, and overcoming your past. It also featured two families becoming one and becoming a person you never thought you could be.






“This is Jay,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest in defiance at the stern look on her face.

I hated when she acted like she gave a crap.

“I don’t care who he is.” Hayley tried to fry his ass with her eyes. “You can leave.”

Jay stared back at her with as much defiance as I did, making me like him more. He turned to me and pressed a slow, intimate kiss to the corner of my mouth. “See you at school, babe.”

He laughed at the mischief in my eyes.

I waited until he’d brushed by Hayley without a word and I heard the front door close behind him. “Nice. Thanks.”

Hayley’s dark eyes narrowed into slits. “Don’t talk to me like that. I’m tired, it’s been a long day and now I come home and find my daughter being mauled by some walking hormone. Am I supposed to be happy that you’re dating some guy who looks like he’s seen the inside of prison more than once?”

“We’re not dating. We’re just fooling around.”

“Oh, well, then, why am I so upset?” She threw her hands up in exasperation.

“Hayley.”

She flinched, like she always flinched when I called her by her name (so she flinched a lot).

“Don’t ‘Hayley’ me. I have a right to be upset about this.”

“Don’t be. I’m not serious about him. And I’m not getting pregnant. Anyway, you’re home early.”

“They put me on a shorter flight.” She dumped her purse on the couch as she moved farther into the room. “We’ll discuss Jay later. I need to tell you something.”

I tensed. “Yeah?”

She stared pensively at me for a few seconds before finally taking a seat by my side. “I’ve met someone.”

Dread instantly filled me.

Scrutinizing me for a reaction and getting none, Hayley smiled reassuringly. “He’s wonderful. His name is Theo and he has a daughter who’s actually your age. He lives in Boston. We met on one of my flights out there.”

My stomach churned. “How long?”

“Several months ago.”

“I knew something was going on,” I muttered.

“I’m sorry I kept it from you for so long… I just wanted to make sure it was real between us.”

“And is it?”

“Very much so. We’ve fallen in love.”

“That’s some long-distance relationship.”

“I stay with him when I fly out there. I see him as often as possible.”

I snorted. “And you think he’s faithful all the times you’re not around?”

“Don’t.” She cut a hand through the air. “Those are your trust issues, India. Not mine.”

My blood boiled with indignation. She was completely naïve if she thought for one second this guy wasn’t’ a loser. She had chosen badly before, after all. I had a right to the dread that was making me feel sick.

“I just wanted to give you a heads-up that it’s serious.”

“What does that even mean?”

“It means that if this is going where I think it’s going, then that might mean a big life change for us.”

Oh, hell.

I stared at her in horror.

Hayley sighed wearily at the expression I wasn’t even trying to conceal. “I’m going to make a cup of tea. I’m tired so we’ll talk about Jay another time.” She turned but then stopped to stare at me sadly. “Thanks for being so happy for me, by the way.”

That didn’t even deserve a response.

There was a time Hayley couldn’t give a damn about my happiness. I felt it only fair that I feel apathetic now about hers.


*  *  *









       



Samantha Young’s THE IMPOSSIBLE VASTNESS OF US – Review & Excerpt Tour

June 19th
BookWorm221 – Review & Excerpt
Clare's Mad About Books – Review & Excerpt
Joyful Shimmy – Review & Excerpt
Little Red's Reviews – Review & Excerpt
Naturally Nerdy Books – Review & Excerpt

June 20th
Beware Of The Reader – Review & Excerpt
Kindle and Me – Review & Excerpt
To Be Reviewed Books – Review & Excerpt

June 21st
A Fortress of Books – Excerpt
Becky on Books – Excerpt
Mustreadbooksordie – Review & Excerpt
SJ's Book Blog – Excerpt

June 22nd
Books,Dreams,Life – Excerpt
Fiction Fare – Review & Excerpt
Take Me Away To A Great Read – Review & Excerpt

June 23rd
A Literary Perusal – Review & Excerpt
BJ's Book Blog – Review & Excerpt
Ficwishes – Review
Kimberly's Hot Reads – Review & Excerpt
Read, Write, Design – Review & Excerpt

June 24th
Ali's Reviews and More – Review & Excerpt
Crazii Bitches Book Blog – Review & Excerpt
Lacey's Love Of Literature – Review & Excerpt
Nose Stuck in a Book – Review & Excerpt
Tales of the Ravenous Reader – Review & Excerpt

June 25th
All Romance Reviews – Review & Excerpt
Book Lovers Hangout – Review & Excerpt
PBC – Excerpt
TSK TSK What to Read – Review & Excerpt

June 26th
Angie and Jessica's Dreamy Reads – Review & Excerpt
Book Reader Chronicles – Review & Excerpt
Calling All Bookaholics – Review & Excerpt
Liezel – Review & Excerpt
Reads & Reviews – Review
The Readdicts – Review & Excerpt

June 27th
4 the Love of Reading – Review & Excerpt
ADDICTED TO BOOKS – Review & Excerpt
Miss Riki – Review & Excerpt
Peace Love Books – Review
The Inked In Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

June 28th
Bookalicious Babes Blog – Review & Excerpt
Greyland Reviews – Excerpt
Literary lust – Review
My Girlfriends Couch – Review & Excerpt
Read Love Blog – Review & Excerpt
The Life of a BooknerdAddict – Review & Excerpt

June 29th
Author Groupies – Review
Blushing babes are up all – Review & Excerpt
Book Enticer – Review & Excerpt
The Book Avenue – Review & Excerpt
The Review Loft – Review & Excerpt
Three chicks and their books – Review & Excerpt

June 30th
I Read Indie – Excerpt
Shh Moms Reading – Review & Excerpt
Total Book Geek – Review & Excerpt
Vi3tbabe – Review & Excerpt

July 1st
Book Babes Unite – Review & Excerpt
Cocktails and Books – Review & Excerpt
The Fairest of All Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt






Samantha Young is the New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of adult contemporary romances, including the On Dublin Street series and Hero, as well as the New Adult duology Into the Deep and Out of the Shallows. Every Little Thing, the second book in her new Hart’s Boardwalk series, will be published by Berkley in March 2017. Before turning to contemporary fiction, she wrote several young adult paranormal and fantasy series, including the amazon bestselling Tale of Lunarmorte trilogy. Samantha’s debut YA contemporary novel The Impossible Vastness of Us will be published by Harlequin TEEN in ebook & hardback June 2017. 

Samantha has been nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award 2012 for Best Author and Best Romance for On Dublin Street, Best Romance 2014 for Before Jamaica Lane, and Best Romance 2015 for Hero. On Dublin Street, a #1 bestseller in Germany, was the Bronze Award Winner in the LeserPreis German Readers Choice Awards for Best Romance 2013, Before Jamaica Lane the Gold Medal Winner for the LeserPreis German Readers Choice Awards for Best Romance 2014 and Echoes of Scotland Street the Bronze Medal Winner for the LeserPreis German Readers Choice Awards for Best Romance 2015. Samantha is currently published in 30 countries and is a #1 international bestselling author.  


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