Blog Tour Stop : This Ordinary Life by Jennifer Walkup

Summary (from Goodreads)  

Title : This Ordinary Life
Author : Jennifer Walkup
Publication Date : October 1st 2015
Publisher : Lumins Books
Goodreads - Amazon - Barnes & Noble

Sometimes Hope is the Most Extraordinary Gift of All.

High-school radio host Jasmine Torres's life is full of family dysfunction, but if she can score the internship of her dreams with a New York City radio station, she knows she can turn things around.

That is, until her brother Danny’s latest seizure forces her to miss the interview, and she’s back to the endless loop of missing school for his doctor appointments, picking up the pieces of her mother’s booze-soaked life, and stressing about Danny’s future.

Then she meets Wes. He’s the perfect combination of smart, cute, and funny. He also happens to have epilepsy like her brother. Wes is living a normal life despite his medical issues, which gives Jasmine hope for Danny. But memories of her cheating ex-boyfriend keep her from going on a real date with Wes, no matter how many times he asks her.

Jasmine can’t control everything. Not who wins the internship, not her mother’s addiction, not her brother’s health--not even where her heart will lead her. She wishes she could just have an ordinary life, but maybe what she already has is pretty extraordinary after all.

Personal Thoughts

I was interested in picking up This Ordinary Life because of that adorable and striking cover and the promise of the main character being a radio host. Not to mention, it sounded like it had a sweet romance and you know how I can never pass up a sweet romance. This Ordinary Life was everything that I expected it to be. By the end, it left me filled with hope and a goofy smile on my face.

The protagonist, Jasmine, lived in a very dark home at the beginning of the book. Her mother was an alcoholic who was selfish and didn't see beyond on her own need to get drunk and she had a brother, who was sick and frequently suffered from seizures. Throughout this all, Jasmine was the person who shouldered every burden and responsibility of the family, everything that her mother should have had to take care of. I felt for Jasmine, but I simultaneously thought she was incredibly brave and selfless to pick up the pieces of her home. I loved that she did it all without ever making her brother feel like he was an obstacle to her dreams of obtaining an internship at a radio show in New York. She showered  him with love and was always there when he needed her. Their bond was really sweet and made me love Jasmine even more.

She was also very passionate about radio and she worked incredibly hard to try to achieve her dreams. She faced other obstacles besides her sick brother such as being cheated on by a boyfriend because she wasn't ready to sleep with yet. I had lots of colorful words for that guy, but I thought Jasmine handled the situation in a classy way with her head held up high. Good thing she had the support of an amazing best friend who was as supportive and awesome Jasmine herself.

Then there was Wes, the sweetheart of a boy that Jasmine meets at the hospital while her brother was there. Wes gave Jasmine hope that her brother too could live a happy life even with him being sick. I adored Wes with every fiber of my being. Their romance was undoubtedly one of the highlights of the story for me and I couldn't get over how cute it was. Jasmine was a little bit reluctant to get into a relationship with him at first, rightfully so, but he pursues her and chases after her and that made my heart so happy. Despite being ill, he was nothing but constantly joyful.

If I had one complaint, it would be that I wanted to feel a stronger emotional connection the story and the writing. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the book, but I felt like there was a missing spark somewhere and I can't exactly pinpoint what. That being said, I did end up consuming this book because of the characters and the romance and I'll be picking up more books from this author in the future.

This Ordinary Life is for all of you YA contemporary lovers who not only crave strong and resilient characters, but also romances that leave your heart fluttering all over the place. Definitely check this book out!

Rating 

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

**Overall Rating : 3.5/5**



Author Biography

Award-winning author Jennifer Walkup is most often found writing, reading, and spending time with her husband and young sons. A member of SCBWI and RWA, Jennifer also works as an editor and creative writing instructor, and is an advocate for Epilepsy awareness. This Ordinary Life is her second novel.

To hear about Jennifer's upcoming books, sign up for her newsletter here:

http://eepurl.com/belmjH

AUTHOR LINKS:

Website: http://www.jenniferwalkup.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6443859.Jennifer_Walkup

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jennwalkup

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenniferwalkupbooks

Giveaway

Prize: Win (1) hardcopy of SECOND VERSE by Jennifer Walkup and a swag pack (INT)

Win (1) of (2) swag packs (INT)

a Rafflecopter giveaway



Be sure to check out the other tour stops here.

Thank you to FFBC for letting be part of this tour and Lumins Books for the e-ARC of This Ordinary Life.

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