Wednesday, September 25, 2013

**Blog Tour & Giveaway ~ Life, Love, & Lemons ~ Magan Vernon**


Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Magan Vernon's Life, Love, & Lemons. My stop includes all you need to know about the book, my review and a giveaway.

To follow along with all the blogs on the tour, you can click here.


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Life, Love, & Lemons by Magan Vernon 
Publication date: August 20th 2013 
Genre: YA Contemporary

Synopsis
When life hands you lemons, sometimes you have to say screw the lemons and bail.

Seventeen-year-old Bentley Evans had it all. Then her Dad got laid off.

Now she has to move across town to a small apartment and leave her life of luxury for public school and a job at the local burger place. Just when her world seems like it's crumbling she finds solace in the unlikely punk boy next door, Kai Stone. But as their relationship blossoms, a jealous ex-girlfriend and a secret to tell that threatens to bring disaster back into Bentley’s life.






"When life hands you lemons sometimes you just have to say screw the lemons, and bail."

Wow ~ When I first began reading Life, Love, & Lemons, I was worried I wasn't going to connect with Bentley, the main character. Ms. Vernon surprised me. I ended up loving Bentley and her story.

Bentley Evans is a young lady who has lost her private school education, fancy clothes, sushi dates, and huge house due to her father's being laid off. While at first I thought Bentley was going to be a whiny, entitled teenager, she proved me wrong. I ended up admiring the maturity she showed in dealing with the difficult circumstances she faced. She proved she was a deeper person by adapting to her new life, making sacrifices and making new friends.

Malakai 'Kai' Stone is the epitome of a gentleman hiding behind piercings, tattoos, and strange clothes - oh, and guyliner. ;) He lives next door to Bentley, at the apartment complex, and works with her, too. And he does his level best to befriend her despite his being a punk/emo and her being a preppy girl. Bentley denies her attraction but after a particularly nasty incident with a customer at work, Kai comes to her rescue. From that point forward, Kai helps Bentley learn to be more positive. Kai had me swooning often. He was snarky quite often but romantic when the situation required it.

One particularly endearing consequence to Bentley's new life is the improvement in the relationship between she and her dad. Bentley's mom was a real piece of work - hated her. But Bentley's dad was a gen and it took him losing his job to really get to know his daughter. 

Another thing I enjoyed about Life, Love, & Lemons is the 80's pop culture references. From punk music to John Hughes, I found these mentions charming. Oh, and I loved that Kai drove a Ford Falcon. I LOVE that car! ;)

Life, Love, & Lemons is a sweet story with just the right amount of depth to keep things interesting. It was about teens coping with life changes and showing their mettle. And I found it quite a pleasant read.



**I received an eARC of the book, as part of the tour, in exchange for an honest review.








Magan Vernon is a Young Adult and New Adult writer who lives with her family in the insurance capital of the world. She is in a very serious, fake relationship with Adam Lambert and constantly asks her husband to wear guyliner. He still refuses. She also believes her husband is secretly an alien, disguised as a southern gentleman.

10 comments:

  1. Oh this sounds all sorts of cute and awesome. I also love the title. Great review!

    Teresa @ Readers Live A Thousand Lives

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  2. This sounds like a super refreshing and sweet read and definitely right up my alley! Glad you liked it! :)

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  3. This does seem like a story I would definitely enjoy. And you practically won me over at John Hughes! So glad you enjoyed, Brandee!

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    1. Oh, I think you'd definitely like this, Andrea. And YES, John Hughes rules! LOL There are all sorts of 80's references and although you're younger than me, I think you'd still know them. :)

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  4. Ooh I love the sound of that family drama. Hateful parents are a real great add on to YA and NA novels.

    I love that quote on top.

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    1. Well this one has all sorts of family drama, Braine. :) I guarantee you'll hate Bentley's mom.

      I'm glad you liked the quote - I do too, and I'm thinking I might print, frame, and hang it by my desk! LOL

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  5. LOVE the first quote on your review. I think it's great that this one surprised you. The 80's references would have been a ton of fun for me as well :D Thank you for a great review! Jaclyn @ JC's Book Haven.

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    1. I'm glad you love it, Jaclyn. I'm really feeling it! LOL I know you don't generally read anything contemporary, but I'd recommend this one for some fun.

      Sorry I'm so late replying this week - it's the first week of band competitions and it's been a busy week. :) Have a great weekend!!

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Now you know what I think...what are your thoughts??