Far From Normal by Becky Wallace

 

“Maddie McPherson is sick of Normal—both her hometown of Normal, Illinois and being the ‘normal’ sibling. But when she lands a summer internship with a sports marketing firm, she finally has a chance to crawl out of her genius brother’s shadow. Not to mention, a glowing letter of recommendation could secure her admission to her dream college.

But Maddie’s nickname is “CalaMaddie” for a reason, and when the company tasks her with repairing the image of teen soccer phenom Gabriel Fortunato, she wonders if she’s set herself up for embarrassment. Gabriel is a tabloid magnet, who’s best-known for flubbing Italy’s World Cup hopes. As Maddie works with him to develop “pleasant and friendly” content for social media, she also learns he’s thoughtful, multi-talented, and fiercely loyal—maybe even to a fault. Falling for a footballer is exactly how CalaMaddie would botch this internship, but with the firm pressuring her to get the job done, perhaps her heart is worth risking?” - taken from Goodreads.com

This was another super cute, sports-related rom-com from this author. Maddie McPherson wants to follow in her aunt’s footsteps and work in sports marketing. Getting a summer internship with her aunt’s firm is her first step. When Maddie has a bike accident at a soccer game on the beach, little does she know that her savior will turn out to be her first big project, soccer bad boy Gabriel Fortunato. In order to improve his image, Maddie soon realizes that Gabe is not his public persona. She soon finds herself trying to draw a line between work and pleasure.

Visit Becky Wallace’s website.

Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

“Meet Pepper, swim team captain, chronic overachiever, and all-around perfectionist. Her family may be falling apart, but their massive fast-food chain is booming ― mainly thanks to Pepper, who is barely managing to juggle real life while secretly running Big League Burger’s massive Twitter account.

Enter Jack, class clown and constant thorn in Pepper’s side. When he isn’t trying to duck out of his obscenely popular twin’s shadow, he’s busy working in his family’s deli. His relationship with the business that holds his future might be love/hate, but when Big League Burger steals his grandma’s iconic grilled cheese recipe, he’ll do whatever it takes to take them down, one tweet at a time.

All’s fair in love and cheese ― that is, until Pepper and Jack’s spat turns into a viral Twitter war. Little do they know, while they’re publicly duking it out with snarky memes and retweet battles, they’re also falling for each other in real life ― on an anonymous chat app Jack built.

As their relationship deepens and their online shenanigans escalate ― people on the internet are shipping them?? ― their battle gets more and more personal, until even these two rivals can’t ignore they were destined for the most unexpected, awkward, all-the-feels romance that neither of them expected.” - taken from Goodreads.com

Tweet Cute is just too cute. Pepper and Jack are high school seniors who have lots on their minds. Unbeknownst to each other, when Big League Burger, Pepper’s family's fast food chain, launches a grilled cheese sandwich that Jack believes has a lot like his grandmother's version that they serve at their local deli, the two classmates start a Twitter war. The two are also chatting anonymously on a school-wide chat app that Jack has secretly developed. Reminiscent of You've Got Mail, Pepper and Jack began to fall for one another not knowing who they they're online personalities are. A super sweet rom-com that my heart loved.

Listen to Your Heart by Kasie West

“Talking to other people isn't Kate Bailey's favorite activity. She'd much rather be out on the lake, soaking up the solitude and sunshine. So when her best friend, Alana, convinces Kate to join their high school's podcast, Kate is not expecting to be chosen as the host. Now she'll have to answer calls and give advice on the air? Impossible.

But to Kate's surprise, she turns out to be pretty good at the hosting gig. Then the podcast gets in a call from an anonymous guy, asking for advice about his unnamed crush. Kate is pretty sure that the caller is gorgeous Diego Martinez, and even surer that the girl in question is Alana. Kate is excited for her friend ... until Kate herself starts to develop feelings for Diego. Suddenly, Kate finds that while doling out wisdom to others may be easy, asking for help is tougher than it looks, and following your own advice is even harder.” - taken from Goodreads.com

This book was probably one of the best I've read from this author lately. I wasn't really sure where all of the characters were going, I was surprised by the direction Kate Bailey's life took. Not immediately sure we reach boy's attention was focused, I think everyone was able to overcome what each perceived as inescapable obstacles. Kate really grew as a character who saw that there was more than one path available in her future. Casting old grudges aside and seeing other others problems more clearly, Kate's Awakening isn't overnight or sugar-coated. One of the best parts of the book is the open ending for the Raider to ponder the future of each of the characters you will grow to love.

Visit Kasie West’s website.