Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
4 heart happy stars!
After finishing [b:Love Lessons|17853573|Love Lessons (Love Lessons, #1)|Heidi Cullinan|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1491605970s/17853573.jpg|24990932] I was incredibly eager to jump into the next installment, Fever Pitch! Like Love Lessons, this story about two college coeds was sweet and heart warming!
Giles is a completely over high school life in a small town. Being openly gay has led to unwelcome harassment of both the emotional and physical nature. He can't wait to go off to college and really begin his life! However, before he goes, he has an earth shattering night with fellow peer, Aaron.
Aaron can't decide which college to go to and is incredibly stressed about making his father happy. Knowing that his father will only accept him as a lawyer, Aaron knows he can't conform. After an evening with Giles he also comes to terms with the fact that he truly is gay. The two boys end up at the same school together and face the challenges that life throws at them!
Fever Pitch has much more angst than the first installment, Love Lessons. What I like best about Heidi Cullinan's writing is that even though there are misunderstandings and miscommunications it doesn't drag throughout the whole story. New issues are always arising and the stories progression is perfect!
While I enjoyed the characters, Giles and Aaron, I have to say my favorite character was Elijah and I can't wait to read his story! I was also incredibly pleased with Kelly and Walter returning frequently throughout the book! And their wedding, *squeal* yessssss!
The only thing I didn't like about this story (though this is totally a personal opinion!!!) was the Glee and Pitch Perfect music can solve anything ideology. Ugh, yes, I get that music is great but it's difficult for me to connect with it when I can't hear it. For me, the constant talk of music dragged the story a bit, but again, that's just me!
Overall, super happy with this read!
4 heart happy stars!
After finishing [b:Love Lessons|17853573|Love Lessons (Love Lessons, #1)|Heidi Cullinan|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1491605970s/17853573.jpg|24990932] I was incredibly eager to jump into the next installment, Fever Pitch! Like Love Lessons, this story about two college coeds was sweet and heart warming!
Giles is a completely over high school life in a small town. Being openly gay has led to unwelcome harassment of both the emotional and physical nature. He can't wait to go off to college and really begin his life! However, before he goes, he has an earth shattering night with fellow peer, Aaron.
Aaron can't decide which college to go to and is incredibly stressed about making his father happy. Knowing that his father will only accept him as a lawyer, Aaron knows he can't conform. After an evening with Giles he also comes to terms with the fact that he truly is gay. The two boys end up at the same school together and face the challenges that life throws at them!
Fever Pitch has much more angst than the first installment, Love Lessons. What I like best about Heidi Cullinan's writing is that even though there are misunderstandings and miscommunications it doesn't drag throughout the whole story. New issues are always arising and the stories progression is perfect!
While I enjoyed the characters, Giles and Aaron, I have to say my favorite character was Elijah and I can't wait to read his story! I was also incredibly pleased with Kelly and Walter returning frequently throughout the book! And their wedding, *squeal* yessssss!
The only thing I didn't like about this story (though this is totally a personal opinion!!!) was the Glee and Pitch Perfect music can solve anything ideology. Ugh, yes, I get that music is great but it's difficult for me to connect with it when I can't hear it. For me, the constant talk of music dragged the story a bit, but again, that's just me!
Overall, super happy with this read!
4 heart happy stars!
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
At first, didn't much enjoy this as much as [b:Love Lessons|17853573|Love Lessons (Love Lessons, #1)|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1366984277s/17853573.jpg|24990932], but as the story caught on, it got better. Loved that it had music and acappella elements to it.
I loved the way Fever Pitch started, jumping right into the fray with Giles and Aaron escaping a party neither of them wanted to be at anyway and escaping, even for just a little while, into each other. Once they both got to university, though, I spent probably 25% of the book wanting to smack them both upside their heads. But they are young and either don't have experience or have had mostly bad experiences with interpersonal relationships. So, I did my best to cut them some slack.
Meanwhile, though, I loved how both Giles and Aaron each found their way in their new world, navigating what others expected of them versus what they wanted for themselves. And I loved how they became friends before they finally got their act together and gave in to their desire for more. When that happened, I practically did somersaults!
But there is so much more going on in this story. Things happened that I certainly did not expect and the directions sometimes went in way I would not have considered. And it was brilliant. I loved that [a:Heidi Cullinan|3173295|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1346879953p2/3173295.jpg] included a little taste of Ed and Laurie from [b: Dance With Me|11488260|Dance With Me|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309831851s/11488260.jpg|16423496] (which is still my favorite book of hers that I have read) and I loved seeing Walter and Kelly from [b:Love Lessons|17853573|Love Lessons (Love Lessons, #1)|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1366984277s/17853573.jpg|24990932] again. Plus all the new characters we get to know. It reminds me that family isn't just who shares your DNA. Hell, sometimes they are not family at all. Family is who sticks by you when you need a hand. And family protects their own.
I cannot wait for Baz & Elijah's story - I have a feeling they are going to blow it out of the water. We get to know just a touch of their back stories here. Enough to realize that we've only scratched the surface and I cannot wait to read more about them.
So, yeah, I loved this story.
Merged review:
I loved the way Fever Pitch started, jumping right into the fray with Giles and Aaron escaping a party neither of them wanted to be at anyway and escaping, even for just a little while, into each other. Once they both got to university, though, I spent probably 25% of the book wanting to smack them both upside their heads. But they are young and either don't have experience or have had mostly bad experiences with interpersonal relationships. So, I did my best to cut them some slack.
Meanwhile, though, I loved how both Giles and Aaron each found their way in their new world, navigating what others expected of them versus what they wanted for themselves. And I loved how they became friends before they finally got their act together and gave in to their desire for more. When that happened, I practically did somersaults!
But there is so much more going on in this story. Things happened that I certainly did not expect and the directions sometimes went in way I would not have considered. And it was brilliant. I loved that [a:Heidi Cullinan|3173295|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1346879953p2/3173295.jpg] included a little taste of Ed and Laurie from [b: Dance With Me|11488260|Dance With Me|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309831851s/11488260.jpg|16423496] (which is still my favorite book of hers that I have read) and I loved seeing Walter and Kelly from [b:Love Lessons|17853573|Love Lessons (Love Lessons, #1)|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1366984277s/17853573.jpg|24990932] again. Plus all the new characters we get to know. It reminds me that family isn't just who shares your DNA. Hell, sometimes they are not family at all. Family is who sticks by you when you need a hand. And family protects their own.
I cannot wait for Baz & Elijah's story - I have a feeling they are going to blow it out of the water. We get to know just a touch of their back stories here. Enough to realize that we've only scratched the surface and I cannot wait to read more about them.
So, yeah, I loved this story.
Meanwhile, though, I loved how both Giles and Aaron each found their way in their new world, navigating what others expected of them versus what they wanted for themselves. And I loved how they became friends before they finally got their act together and gave in to their desire for more. When that happened, I practically did somersaults!
But there is so much more going on in this story. Things happened that I certainly did not expect and the directions sometimes went in way I would not have considered. And it was brilliant. I loved that [a:Heidi Cullinan|3173295|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1346879953p2/3173295.jpg] included a little taste of Ed and Laurie from [b: Dance With Me|11488260|Dance With Me|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309831851s/11488260.jpg|16423496] (which is still my favorite book of hers that I have read) and I loved seeing Walter and Kelly from [b:Love Lessons|17853573|Love Lessons (Love Lessons, #1)|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1366984277s/17853573.jpg|24990932] again. Plus all the new characters we get to know. It reminds me that family isn't just who shares your DNA. Hell, sometimes they are not family at all. Family is who sticks by you when you need a hand. And family protects their own.
I cannot wait for Baz & Elijah's story - I have a feeling they are going to blow it out of the water. We get to know just a touch of their back stories here. Enough to realize that we've only scratched the surface and I cannot wait to read more about them.
So, yeah, I loved this story.
Merged review:
I loved the way Fever Pitch started, jumping right into the fray with Giles and Aaron escaping a party neither of them wanted to be at anyway and escaping, even for just a little while, into each other. Once they both got to university, though, I spent probably 25% of the book wanting to smack them both upside their heads. But they are young and either don't have experience or have had mostly bad experiences with interpersonal relationships. So, I did my best to cut them some slack.
Meanwhile, though, I loved how both Giles and Aaron each found their way in their new world, navigating what others expected of them versus what they wanted for themselves. And I loved how they became friends before they finally got their act together and gave in to their desire for more. When that happened, I practically did somersaults!
But there is so much more going on in this story. Things happened that I certainly did not expect and the directions sometimes went in way I would not have considered. And it was brilliant. I loved that [a:Heidi Cullinan|3173295|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1346879953p2/3173295.jpg] included a little taste of Ed and Laurie from [b: Dance With Me|11488260|Dance With Me|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309831851s/11488260.jpg|16423496] (which is still my favorite book of hers that I have read) and I loved seeing Walter and Kelly from [b:Love Lessons|17853573|Love Lessons (Love Lessons, #1)|Heidi Cullinan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1366984277s/17853573.jpg|24990932] again. Plus all the new characters we get to know. It reminds me that family isn't just who shares your DNA. Hell, sometimes they are not family at all. Family is who sticks by you when you need a hand. And family protects their own.
I cannot wait for Baz & Elijah's story - I have a feeling they are going to blow it out of the water. We get to know just a touch of their back stories here. Enough to realize that we've only scratched the surface and I cannot wait to read more about them.
So, yeah, I loved this story.
I just happened upon this audiobook while skimming my local library's website. I had never heard of it before, nor had I heard of the author...but I'm SO glad I discovered them!
As a high schooler, Giles has dealt with a lot of bullying for his sexuality -- even being put in the hospital because of it. Ironically, some of those boys who bullied him were the ones who experimented with him sexually, so he learned to be distrustful and had become jumpy around guys at school.
At a party, he decides to hide away in order to escape his bullies, only to find that Aaron, the best friend of one of the bullies, is also hiding. They decide to hook up even though Aaron is still struggling with his sexuality and he immediately runs off after they're done. Giles assumes Aaron is just like the other guys, using him as an experiment and nothing more.
Now in college, they've found each other again and things are rough between them. Giles assumes Aaron used him, while Aaron thinks the same thing about Giles. When they become involved with the same musicians at the college, they clear the air and become friends and eventually lovers.
The story touches on many subjects: high expectations from parents, emotionally distant parents, crazy religious abusive parents, college life, high school life, found family, thoughts of suicide, bullying, homophobia, depression, prostitution, religion and more.
I absolutely recommend this book. I didn't realize that it was book #2 in a series, but it read fine as a standalone. However, now I'm going to go back and read book 1-- Kelly and Walter's story (they're both in this book, with very supportive roles) and continue the series. I would assume that reading the first book would be best before starting on this one, but like I said, it read fine as a standalone as well.
As a high schooler, Giles has dealt with a lot of bullying for his sexuality -- even being put in the hospital because of it. Ironically, some of those boys who bullied him were the ones who experimented with him sexually, so he learned to be distrustful and had become jumpy around guys at school.
At a party, he decides to hide away in order to escape his bullies, only to find that Aaron, the best friend of one of the bullies, is also hiding. They decide to hook up even though Aaron is still struggling with his sexuality and he immediately runs off after they're done. Giles assumes Aaron is just like the other guys, using him as an experiment and nothing more.
Now in college, they've found each other again and things are rough between them. Giles assumes Aaron used him, while Aaron thinks the same thing about Giles. When they become involved with the same musicians at the college, they clear the air and become friends and eventually lovers.
The story touches on many subjects: high expectations from parents, emotionally distant parents, crazy religious abusive parents, college life, high school life, found family, thoughts of suicide, bullying, homophobia, depression, prostitution, religion and more.
I absolutely recommend this book. I didn't realize that it was book #2 in a series, but it read fine as a standalone. However, now I'm going to go back and read book 1-- Kelly and Walter's story (they're both in this book, with very supportive roles) and continue the series. I would assume that reading the first book would be best before starting on this one, but like I said, it read fine as a standalone as well.
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Heidi Cullinan, if you are reading this, you are a genius. Thank you from the bottom of my heart and soul. The characters that you have created in this series will forever be a part of me. They are deeply flawed yet willing to be whole. They love deeply and unconditionally. I want to be enfolded into their culture, into their warm, protective embraces. I want them to be real.
These characters have resonated with me in so many ways...their loneliness, their depth, their will to survive and seek justice for themselves and those around them. They draw you in, keep you engaged, bring a well of tears, and make you smile with love and pride. Thank you.
I don't know if you have ever approached the idea of a movie based on these characters or a series, but their characterizations are so perfect for the LGBT youth for today.
P.S. Your narrator, Iggy Toma, is amazing. I can hear every emotion in his words.
These characters have resonated with me in so many ways...their loneliness, their depth, their will to survive and seek justice for themselves and those around them. They draw you in, keep you engaged, bring a well of tears, and make you smile with love and pride. Thank you.
I don't know if you have ever approached the idea of a movie based on these characters or a series, but their characterizations are so perfect for the LGBT youth for today.
P.S. Your narrator, Iggy Toma, is amazing. I can hear every emotion in his words.
I loved this so much. Part of why is because of personal reasons I don't need to get into here but I also just love how Heidi Cullinan's books don't just focus on the romance. Because of that I always feel a bit unsettled (are they really REALLY together at 75%?) but it makes the story more interesting in my opinion.