{Happy Release Day + YA Review} Through to You by Lauren Barnholdt

Opposites attract—and then complicate—in this romantic, relatable novel from the author of Two-way Street and Sometimes It Happens.

It starts with a scribbled note in class: I like your sparkle. Harper had casually threaded a piece of blue and silver tinsel through her ponytail in honor of school spirit day. And that carefree, corny gesture is what grabs Penn Mattingly’s eye. Penn—resident heartbreaker of the senior class. Reliably unreliable. Trouble with a capital “T.” And okay, smolderingly sexy.

Harper’s surprised by Penn’s attention—and so is Penn. The last thing he needs is a girlfriend. Or even a friend-with-benefits. The note is not supposed to lead to anything.

Oh, but it does. They hang out. They have fun. They talk. They make out. And after a while, it seems like they just click. But Penn and Harper have very different ideas about what relationships look like, in no small part because of their very different family backgrounds. Of course they could talk about these differences—if Penn knew how to talk about feelings.

Harper and Penn understand their attraction is illogical, yet something keeps pulling them together. It’s like a crazy roller coaster—exhilarating, terrifying, and amazing all at once. And neither knows how to stop the ride…(Blurb via Goodreads)

{Details} Kindle Edition, 256 pages. July 8th 2014 by Simon Pulse. Source: Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to Lauren Barnholdt and Simon Pulse

{Rating} 4/5 - I really liked it!

{Review}

"This is how it ends:" (page 1, line 1)

Penn is surly. Intense. Moody. Bad tempered. Passionate. He's an all-in type of guy. His home life isn't good, he's faced disappointment after disappointment. He's a bit lost. And then he writes a note. It's amusing to see him with Harper; she bowls him over. She never does or says what he expects she will. As fascinated as he is by her he can't let her in - can't let anyone in. I did find him a frustrating character, he's on and then off, he's either too much or too little in his interactions with Harper.

I liked Harper. First, she respects herself - though she struggles with the overpowering Penn she realizes what she deserves and that she's not willing to settle for less than she deserves. Harper is smart, pragmatic, a great friend, innocent and inexperienced, a little uptight, and terribly afraid of medical exams. She's as drawn to Penn as he is to her. She likes him, feels a connection, wants to get to know him and as difficult as he makes it she's not willing to give up on him, giving him more chances than a sensible girl like her should, but she thinks he's worth it.

There are a few secondary characters - Anna and Nico, Penn's brother and family -  but I never got too invested in them. However, I did want to know what happened with Jeremy and Kaitlyn. Did they get married? Did they ever learn their first dance?