Overdue Reviews - The Geography of You and Me + Sunset in Central Park

 

Goodreads:  The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith

Blurb:  Lucy and Owen meet somewhere between the tenth and eleventh floors of a New York City apartment building, on an elevator rendered useless by a citywide blackout. After they’re rescued, they spend a single night together, wandering the darkened streets and marveling at the rare appearance of stars above Manhattan. But once the power is restored, so is reality. Lucy soon moves to Edinburgh with her parents, while Owen heads out west with his father.
Lucy and Owen’s relationship plays out across the globe as they stay in touch through postcards, occasional e-mails, and—finally—a reunion in the city where they first met.

A carefully charted map of a long-distance relationship, Jennifer E. Smith’s new novel shows that the center of the world isn't necessarily a place. It can be a person, too.

My Thoughts:  I'm not much of a YA reader and honestly I'm not sure why I picked this one up on NetGalley years ago.  However, I really enjoyed this story of two very different teenagers each with a very different journey.  Both are nice kids who are doing their best in situations beyond their control.  The characters felt authentic but weren't overly angsty which is why I think this one worked for me.  If you're looking for a light YA read with likable characters and a nice story this is a good choice.  My Rating: Liked It! (3.5 Stars)

Goodreads:  Sunset in Central Park (From Manhatten with Love #2) by Sarah Morgan

Blurb:  Love has never been a priority for garden designer Frankie Cole. After witnessing the fallout of her parents' divorce, she's seen the devastation an overload of emotion can cause. The only man she feels comfortable with is her friend Matt—but that's strictly platonic. If only she found it easier to ignore the way he makes her heart race…
Matt Walker has loved Frankie for years but, sensing how fragile she is beneath her feisty exterior, has always played it cool. But then he uncovers new depths to the girl he's known forever and doesn't want to wait a moment longer. He knows Frankie has secrets and has buried them deep, but can Matt persuade her to trust him with her heart and kiss him under the Manhattan sunset?

My Thoughts:  Well that was lovely!  This is the second book in a trilogy involving three friends who have started their own business after moving from a small town to Manhatten.  Frankie and Matt have known each other forever and have had crushes on each other for years but only now does it seem like the right time to start taking steps towards each other.  Frankie has more than a little baggage and some serious trust issues around relationships based off her parents' disasterous split when she was a teenager.  This is one of the few times when trust issues make some sense.  Frankie has been through it and is just now really in a place where she can come to terms with everything.  I loved both the characters and couldn't help but root for them.  My favorite thing was that they actually communicated and listened to each other.  I also really loved the friendship between the three women and how supportive they are of each other.  The ending was also pretty fantastic.  My only issue is that I listened to the audio and for the most part I was good with the narrator but her voice for Eve drove me up the wall.  It was very Marilyn Monroe-esque and just felt so overdone.  I read the third book (Eve's story) years ago and now have added it back to my TBR as I enjoyed this enough I want to revisit it.  My Thoughts:  Really Liked It (4 Stars)