In a Nutshell Reviews - The New Adult Edition

In a Nutshell Reviews are my version of mini-reviews, because sometimes, you just want the highlights.

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Guy's Girl by Emma Noyes
Published by Berkley on October 24, 2023
Age/Genres: New Adult, Contemporary, Fiction

Goodreads

The boy who couldn’t love and the girl who wouldn’t.

Ginny Murphy is a total guy’s girl. She’s always found friendships with boys easier to form and keep drama-free – as long as they don’t fall for her, and she doesn’t fall for them. She and her best guy friends have stuck to that. But then she meets Adrian Silvas, the only one who’s ever made her crave more, and Ginny begins to question her own rules.

Piece by piece, Ginny and Adrian begin to fall into something intoxicating, something dangerous. Ginny threatens to destroy the belief Adrian's held ever since witnessing his own mother’s heartbreak: that love isn’t worth the risk. For Ginny, the stakes could be even higher. Letting Adrian get close could mean exposing a secret she’s long protected: her disordered eating.

Ginny isn’t looking to be saved by someone. But maybe she and Adrian can help each other – if they don’t destroy each other first.

Heartfelt and evocative, Guy's Girl is a powerful story about true love, self-love, and growing up.

After reading this book, the author's note, and her bio, I can easily see how much of herself Noyes put into this story. I cannot remember ever having read an adult book featuring a character with an eating disorder, but we all know many suffer beyond their teens. I greatly appreciate the author sharing this very personal story with us.

The synopsis alludes to this being a romance, but I felt this was mostly Ginny's story. She had been struggling for years with anxiety and anorexia. A huge chunk of the book focused on her mental health issues and her path to recovery. As someone who had struggled with bulimia in my teens and twenties, I definitely related to Ginny's hard fought path to recovery. It always amazes me how sympathetic people can be to drug addicts or alcoholics, but people with eating disorders, they tell "just eat". One doesn't need to drink alcohol or smoke or shoot up as part of basic life sustaining needs, but one does need to eat daily and face their demons in order to survive. But, I digress. 

I appreciated Noyes honesty and candor when exploring Ginny's eating disorder. I felt her conflicted emotions, her anguish, her fears. And, oh! When she lamented about feeling unwanted and such, I felt that in my soul.

Other parts of this story involved Adrian, who I would call the love interest. The problem was Adrian was dealing with his own demons and kept people at arm's length. He also had some work to do on himself before he could truly embark on a meaningful relationship with Ginny. In the meantime, there was plenty of pining and even some shared affection. Adrian became a big supporter of Ginny's who encouraged her on her road to recovery.

I also found this to be an interesting look at life after college. The story begins with Ginny visiting her college friends about one year post graduation. Each had a different experience out in the real world. Some were thriving while others were miserable. It's an interesting period in a person's life, and I was glad Noyes explored it a bit.

I must admit, a big portion of this book was on the heavier side which was appropriate for the subject matter, but overall, I was left feeling hopeful for Ginny and Adrian.

*ARC PROVIDED BY THE PUBLISHER

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Wildfire by Hannah Grace
Published by Atria Books on October 3, 2023
Age/Genres: New Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Goodreads

Maple Hills students Russ Callaghan and Aurora Roberts cross paths at a party celebrating the end of the academic year, where a drinking game results in them having a passionate one-night stand. Never one to overstay her welcome (or expect much from a man), Aurora slips away before Russ even has the chance to ask for her full name.

Imagine their surprise when they bump into each other on the first day of the summer camp where they are both counselors, hoping to escape their complicated home lives by spending the summer working. Russ hopes if he gets far enough away from Maple Hills, he can avoid dealing with the repercussions of his father’s gambling addiction, while Aurora is tired of craving attention from everyone around her, and wants to go back to the last place she truly felt at home.

Russ knows breaking the camp’s strict “no staff fraternizing” rule will have him heading back to Maple Hills before the summer is over, but unfortunately for him, Aurora has never been very good at caring about the rules. Will the two learn to peacefully coexist? Or did their one night together start a fire they can’t put out?

Sometimes you have to give into the hype, and I am glad I did.

There were three things that stood out to me as I read Wildfire.

The Setting - It's no secret that I love a good camp setting, and Camp Honey Acres was something special. The counselors had a great rapport with the kids who I found to be adorable little meddlers, the staff had a fun dynamic, but mostly, I loved the setting because this was a happy place for Aurora. She was returning to a place she felt safe and cared for to work on herself. In this space, she discovered so many new things about herself as she fell in love, made new friends, and enjoyed some hijinks.

The Friendships - Aurora shared a long and strong friendship with Emilie, but it was Russ and his hockey-mates who made me warm and fuzzy. They were so supportive and protective of Russ. They understood the damage his family did and worked hard to help Russ understand that he was worthy of love. It was a beautiful thing to see. 

The Romance - Both Russ and Aurora had family issues that made them feel less-than and eroded their self-worth. It was something special that the universe brought them together to help each other heal from these wounds. Each strengthened the other person through encouragement and support, and simply showing that they were loved. I also thought they had great chemistry, and their banter was top notch.

The jump-ahead ending was something I also adored, and it was a great one. It gave me a peek at all the Maple Hills gang, and after spending the summer together, I loved seeing what the future held for them all.

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