Review : Sway by Kat Spears

Summary (from Goodreads) 

Title : Sway
Author : Kat Spears
Publication Date : September 16th 2014
Publisher : St. Martin's Griffin
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In Kat Spears’s hilarious and often poignant debut, high school senior Jesse Alderman, or "Sway," as he’s known, could sell hell to a bishop. He also specializes in getting things people want---term papers, a date with the prom queen, fake IDs. He has few close friends and he never EVER lets emotions get in the way. For Jesse, life is simply a series of business transactions.

But when Ken Foster, captain of the football team, leading candidate for homecoming king, and all-around jerk, hires Jesse to help him win the heart of the angelic Bridget Smalley, Jesse finds himself feeling all sorts of things. While following Bridget and learning the intimate details of her life, he falls helplessly in love for the very first time. He also finds himself in an accidental friendship with Bridget’s belligerent and self-pitying younger brother who has cerebral palsy. Suddenly, Jesse is visiting old folks at a nursing home in order to run into Bridget, and offering his time to help the less fortunate, all the while developing a bond with this young man who idolizes him. Could the tin man really have a heart after all?

A Cyrano de Bergerac story with a modern twist, Sway is told from Jesse’s point of view with unapologetic truth and biting humor, his observations about the world around him untempered by empathy or compassion---until Bridget’s presence in his life forces him to confront his quiet devastation over a life-changing event a year earlier and maybe, just maybe, feel something again.

Personal Thoughts

I have conflicting thoughts when it comes to Sway. Part of me enjoyed it and the other part was offended by some of the vile thoughts the main character, Jesse, had. I was also led to believe that this was a sweet romance about a bad boy being redeemed for some daft reason (probably the cutesy cover), but it wasn't, which is probably a reason why I didn't enjoy Sway as much as I wanted to.

I was quite pleased by the sound of Jesse's narration. I found it easy to read and get involved in, which isn't something that happens often when it comes to male POVs and me. Jesse was the guy people at his high school went to get their jobs done, whether it involved drugs, getting exam answers and bagging dates, all for a price, of course. I did find him to be a douche for most of the book, but that was clearly the author's intent. He was very upfront about his opinions, without any care to the people around him, and they tended to be harsh and offensive. I was okay with his personality at the beginning of the book although not comfortable with it, because I was convinced he would grow throughout the story. I'm not too sure that happened though and as the book progressed, I grew even more uncomfortable and he honestly started to grate on my nerves. By the end of the book, I was hoping to be welcomed by a more mature, sensible and intelligent version of Jesse, but I didn't think he changed that much. That doesn't mean Jesse was an all-around bad kid though. He did have his sweet moments, where he tried in his twisted and weird way to help people around him he grew to care.

His romance with Bridget didn't particularly appeal to me, mostly because I found it hard to root for the two of them. Jesse started out by getting close to Bridget in order to find out her interests and secrets so he could divulge them to another guy at school who wanted to date Bridget. I knew that was going to happen from reading the blurb, but I was hoping that once he met her, he wouldn't do it. Unfortunately, I was wrong. While I got why he was attracted to her, I didn't feel like they interacted much for me to support their romantic relationship. Their relationship was not the focus of the book, like I believed it would be. What I did like in Sway though was Jesse's friendship with Pete, Bridget's younger brother who suffered from cerebral palsy. Jesse was cold to Pete, but you could tell that he had some affection for the guy. My favorite part about their relationship was how Jesse helped Pete see that his medical condition did not have to define him.

I didn't completely love Sway, because I was expecting something else entirely, but Kat Spears is  talented and I can see her writing some great YA contemporary books. I'm curious to see what she has up her sleeves.

Rating

Cover : 4/5
Plot : 3/5
Characters : 3/5
Writing : 3/5

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the e-ARC of Sway.