Rain Check

Gypsy Rae
Choszer
Genre: 
Contemporary

NEW ADULT:  After a terrible accident takes both her adoptive parents' lives, Avery Montgomery realizes she will never be able to move on as long as she lives in her childhood home. She decides to take a drastic step and sets out to meet her birth mother. Upon entering the shop her mother owns, however, Avery can’t bring herself to just blurt out the news so she applies for a job instead.  Along with the job, she also finds a wonderful roommate and has even met Gabe, the sexy guy down the street who seems very interested but acts both hot and cold.  How will she ever be able to start a new life, though, if she can’t get the courage to be honest and grab the one she is building?  Unfortunately, when she finally confronts both Gabe and her mother, the consequences are not at all what she dreamed. Now, the question is how does she continue?

 

All the angst of growing, changing, accepting and discovering are beautifully portrayed in this lovely novel!  The characters' lives and dilemmas are both believable and poignant. The story is delightfully humorous even amidst the heaviness of the content. The final climax that facilitates the happy ending does seem a bit contrived considering the origins of the story, and some may balk at the overuse of alcohol to facilitate every interaction (even for a NA crowd).  Still, the situations ring surprisingly true and the author does a pitch-perfect job of painting emotions that will leave the reader laughing, crying and cheering when the final page is turned!

 

Ruth Lynn Ritter