Book Title:       The Girl Who Fell (Standalone)
Author:           Shannon M. Parker
Number of pages:  320
Release Date:     March 1, 2016
Publisher:        Simon & Schuster / Simon Pulse
Pre-order Links:  
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo

Synopsis:

His obsession.
Her fall.

High school senior Zephyr Doyle is swept off her feet—and into an intense relationship—by the new boy in school.

Zephyr is focused. Focused on leading her team to the field hockey state championship and leaving her small town for her dream school, Boston College.

But love has a way of changing things.

Enter the new boy in school: the hockey team’s starting goaltender, Alec. He’s cute, charming, and most important, Alec doesn’t judge Zephyr. He understands her fears and insecurities—he even shares them. Soon, their relationship becomes something bigger than Zephyr, something she can’t control, something she doesn’t want to control.

Zephyr swears it must be love. Because love is powerful, and overwhelming, and…terrifying?

But love shouldn’t make you abandon your dreams, or push your friends away. And love shouldn’t make you feel guilty—or worse, ashamed.

So when Zephyr finally begins to see Alec for who he really is, she knows it’s time to take back control of her life.

If she waits any longer, it may be too late.

(re: Goodreads @ The Girl Who Fell by Shannon M. Parker)

Author Info:

Shannon Parker lives on the Atlantic coast with a house full of boys. She’s traveled to over three dozen countries and has a few dozen more to go. She works in education and can usually be found rescuing dogs, chickens, old houses and wooden boats. Shannon has a weakness for chocolate chip cookies and ridiculous laughter—ideally, at the same time. The Girl Who Fell is her first novel. Find her at www.shannonmparker.com

Links: Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram

Should this book be picked up? the tl;dr review:

– A standard YA contemporary opening that begins cutting open popular tropes and examines the romance in an imperfect light; a masterclass in detecting abusive and destructive relationships
– Small town vibes featuring students who are uniformly represented (no archetypes distinguishing bullies from nerds etc.)
– Complex relationships and corroding character frameworks; ensemble is rounded out with present parents and friendships that struggle at action/inaction
– Synopsis may prime the reader to dislike the antagonist and stifle that character’s depth
– Sports aspect isn’t integrative to make a difference if removed

Initial Thoughts

I [figuratively] punched holes in many walls while reading this book.

Full disclosure: I received an e-ARC of The Girl Who Fell from Edelweiss. I extend thanks to Simon & Schuster/Simon Pulse and Brittany @ Book Rambles for inviting me on this blog tour.