Review: Joyride by Anna Banks

Joyride by Anna Banks 
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Release Date: June 2, 2015
Book Format: Hardcover
# of Pages: 288
Synopsis: A popular guy and a shy girl with a secret become unlikely accomplices for midnight pranking, and are soon in over their heads—with the law and with each other—in this sparkling standalone from NYT-bestselling author Anna Banks.

It’s been years since Carly Vega’s parents were deported. She lives with her brother, studies hard, and works at a convenience store to contribute to getting her parents back from Mexico.

Arden Moss used to be the star quarterback at school. He dated popular blondes and had fun with his older sister, Amber. But now Amber’s dead, and Arden blames his father, the town sheriff who wouldn’t acknowledge Amber's mental illness. Arden refuses to fulfill whatever his conservative father expects.

All Carly wants is to stay under the radar and do what her family expects. All Arden wants is to NOT do what his family expects. When their paths cross, they each realize they’ve been living according to others. Carly and Arden’s journey toward their true hearts—and one another—is funny, romantic, and sometimes harsh.

My Review:

I borrowed Joyride by Anna Banks from work and this is my honest review.

In Joyride, we meet Carly Vega a teenager living alone with her older brother doing her best to make ends meet, and save enough money to get her parents back from Mexico. Every pay check she receives is handed straight over to her brother to help her parents. Soon she meets Arden, the cute rich boy who likes to have fun.

In the beginning Arden just wants to have fun with Carly. The way the two meet, (during a fake robbery run by Arden) is a little extreme and the way Carly acts intrigues Arden to befriend her. He thinks the two of them would be a nice team. As time goes on Arden starts to fall for Carly and things get interesting from there.

Carly is a really mature, tough girl. I loved her I feel like I can really relate to her. Obviously my parents were not deported, but I started working at a young age as well so I know what it's like to work my butt off at a part time job to pay bills and what not. I also really liked Arden. He was able to get Carly to take a breath and have some fun, which is something we could see she really needed.

The plot of this book was really refreshing. It was intense in that it was two teenagers working hard to get there family back together. But there were times strewn throughout the book that were fun based and I was able to take a breath. I like that in books, and I definitely plan to read more of Anna Banks’ work in the future.