Book Review: The Lovely Reckless by Kami Garcia

The Lovely Reckless
Author: Kami Garcia
Publication Date: October 4, 20016
Publisher: Macmillan/Imprint
Source: ALA Annual 2016
Format: Paperback ARC
Age Group: Young Adult
Genre: Contemporary

   

I’ve become an expert at avoiding things that could hurt me—which means I will figure out how to stay away from Marco Leone.

Seventeen-year-old Frankie Devereux would do anything to forget the past. Haunted by the memory of her boyfriend’s death, she lives her life by one dangerous rule: Nothing matters. At least, that’s what Frankie tells herself after a reckless mistake forces her to leave her privileged life in the Heights to move in with her dad—an undercover cop. She transfers to a public high school in the Downs, where fistfights don’t faze anyone and illegal street racing is more popular than football.

Marco Leone is the fastest street racer in the Downs. Tough, sexy, and hypnotic, he makes it impossible for Frankie to ignore him—and how he makes her feel. But the risks Marco takes for his family could have devastating consequences for them both. When Frankie discovers his secret, she has to make a choice. Will she let the pain of the past determine her future? Or will she risk what little she has left to follow her heart?

Wow, just wow.  The Lovely Reckless was so not what I had expected from Kami Garcia.  I am so used to her paranormal fantasy books that I would have never expected her to also rock YA contemporary the way she did in TLR.  To be honest, I don’t think the cover does justice for what this little gem in disguise is.  I started reading it the night hurricane Matthew was supposed to hit south Florida and just couldn’t put it down!  It captured me from the moment I started reading the first sentence to the moment I read the last word. 

Frankie, is the main female character and TLR is in Frankie’s POV.  Her boyfriend Noah just recently passed away in a brutal attack outside of a club where Frankie witnessed it all and is now suffering from PTSD – Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.  She is now plagued with horrible flashbacks that come without notice, unfortunately, none of them allow her to remember the killer’s face. Somehow her mind has blocked some of what happened that night.  Frankie lives in the Heights – the upper class suburbs , but after getting in trouble, her mom forces her to move in with her father, a cop, in the Downs.  On Frankie's first day of school, she meets Marco, who by the way is HOT, but also a bad boy. Part of her knows she needs to stay away from Marco, but a part of her just can't stay away. Especially when Marco can't seem to stay away from HER either.

The Lovely Reckless is a story that teaches us that we all deserve a second chance.  We are molded into who we are today by the experiences we encounter throughout our life. I cannot tell you enough just how much I love The Lovely Reckless.  Kami has given us all a little gem for sure.