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A review by lmrivas54
Fighting For You by Monica Murphy
5.0
Before starting this book, I followed the author’s recommendation and re-read Falling For You, Jake Callahan’s story. Diego is presented in this book, and we met a surly, angry young man. He’s in love with Joselyn but they are having problems, fighting frequently, and he’s circling around Cami Lockhart, who is a slutty, bitchy girl who craves attention from all the males around. It all ends in disaster and now in this book we get a close look at what really happens with Diego. It was a great idea to get a refresher on Diego and Joselyn before starting this book!
Previously, you get the impression that Diego is an irredeemable a-hole, but in this book we’re introduced to his older brother Mateo and we learn that he’s evil and has been abusing Diego for years. Since they were little boys, Diego had to emulate Mateo’s behavior or else. That included bullying their cousin Marty, who is gay. Underneath all that attitude, Diego has a good heart, but his upbringing and his home situation don’t help his situation. What he’s living through has turned him into a frustrated, angry, victimized young man, and that’s translated into his surly attitude, his extreme neediness with Joselyn, his sudden enmity with Jake.
Joselyn loves Diego but she’s dealing with her present situation. Pregnant at seventeen, she needs her parent’s support to continue with her goals. Her parents don’t want Diego around, she feels overwhelmed by Diego’s attitude, and she feels betrayed by what she presumes was his cheating on her with Cami. There’s the rumor mill, Cami’s frequent harassing, and her pregnancy hormones. She needs space, she doesn’t trust Diego, so she blocks him from her life.
What I loved about this book is that the author took it in a different direction from what I expected. Instead of the pregnancy bringing Diego and Joselyn together and they could grow together as a couple, Joselyn didn’t want anything to do with Diego, so they spend most of the pregnancy apart. I loved seeing how Diego deals with his issues, growing up and manning up. Tony is a big help in helping Diego face and overcome his issues.
The whole story has a lot of participation from all the characters around Joselyn and Diego. All their friends and their family have a part, either giving support, promoting their separation, helping them move on. Cami adds a lot of aggravation and Mateo is a lurking menace. I felt a lot of suspense coming from him, because he felt like he truly hates and wants to harm Diego. I loved seeing Drew and Fable Callahan, Ava and Eli, Jake and Hannah, Tony and Caleb in the book. There’s also Diego’s mom, who is a nag, his cousin Marty, his aunt Lisa. I loved that there’s a whole gamut of characters and each is important to the plot. I truly enjoyed reading this book and loved that it was different from what I expected and the author made me love this young and troubled man, who was truly a victim of his circumstances. Joselyn was great all the time, she knew what she wanted, she respected her heart and her goals, and she was very mature. I felt for her and all the pressures she had, and I think she was a warrior, a very impressive young woman.
It was so emotional, so YA, so angsty, and so hopeful and chronicled the growing up of Diego in such a positive way. I loved every word and loved how Monica Murphy structured this fantastic story!
Previously, you get the impression that Diego is an irredeemable a-hole, but in this book we’re introduced to his older brother Mateo and we learn that he’s evil and has been abusing Diego for years. Since they were little boys, Diego had to emulate Mateo’s behavior or else. That included bullying their cousin Marty, who is gay. Underneath all that attitude, Diego has a good heart, but his upbringing and his home situation don’t help his situation. What he’s living through has turned him into a frustrated, angry, victimized young man, and that’s translated into his surly attitude, his extreme neediness with Joselyn, his sudden enmity with Jake.
Joselyn loves Diego but she’s dealing with her present situation. Pregnant at seventeen, she needs her parent’s support to continue with her goals. Her parents don’t want Diego around, she feels overwhelmed by Diego’s attitude, and she feels betrayed by what she presumes was his cheating on her with Cami. There’s the rumor mill, Cami’s frequent harassing, and her pregnancy hormones. She needs space, she doesn’t trust Diego, so she blocks him from her life.
What I loved about this book is that the author took it in a different direction from what I expected. Instead of the pregnancy bringing Diego and Joselyn together and they could grow together as a couple, Joselyn didn’t want anything to do with Diego, so they spend most of the pregnancy apart. I loved seeing how Diego deals with his issues, growing up and manning up. Tony is a big help in helping Diego face and overcome his issues.
The whole story has a lot of participation from all the characters around Joselyn and Diego. All their friends and their family have a part, either giving support, promoting their separation, helping them move on. Cami adds a lot of aggravation and Mateo is a lurking menace. I felt a lot of suspense coming from him, because he felt like he truly hates and wants to harm Diego. I loved seeing Drew and Fable Callahan, Ava and Eli, Jake and Hannah, Tony and Caleb in the book. There’s also Diego’s mom, who is a nag, his cousin Marty, his aunt Lisa. I loved that there’s a whole gamut of characters and each is important to the plot. I truly enjoyed reading this book and loved that it was different from what I expected and the author made me love this young and troubled man, who was truly a victim of his circumstances. Joselyn was great all the time, she knew what she wanted, she respected her heart and her goals, and she was very mature. I felt for her and all the pressures she had, and I think she was a warrior, a very impressive young woman.
It was so emotional, so YA, so angsty, and so hopeful and chronicled the growing up of Diego in such a positive way. I loved every word and loved how Monica Murphy structured this fantastic story!