Before You
Hiding behind a mask, Faith’s parading around as others want to see her; she’s afraid of being herself because she doesn’t want to let anyone down. Few people know the real Faith. She’s hung up on impossible standards. As a peer helper to Diego, a male Cuban who just recently arrived in the States, Faith is used to calling the shots but that isn’t happening here. Diego, tattoos and scars scattered across his body has no intention of following Faith around at school. He’s used to taking care of himself and she’s used to being a leader, there’s tension in the air. There are feelings between the two of them instantly: it’s a mixture of attractiveness and alarm, like sweet and sour. Faith is intrigued by what she sees in Diego but she’s leery because she has a boyfriend and she has her image to uphold. Diego does not need Faith, he knows her type and he especially doesn’t need a peer helper. Their conversations are electrifying, intense and flirty. I’m just waiting for her to go for it, I know it’s a huge step for her and its scary but she needs this. It’s Faith’s best friend Melissa that I loved so much in this book. She challenges Faith, trying to help her find herself and she is quite the schemer. She been wanting to get Faith away from her current boyfriend and she sees how Faith looks at Diego, she knows there’s something there. Faith battles come from within and her past while Diego Cuban past shadows him, “I am a weapon, I am a monster.” There’s this cloud hanging over Faith and I had mixed feeling about her. She’s a senior and she has these impossible standards that she trying to uphold, which were tearing her down and yet, I felt if she’d talk to her father perhaps he could help her. Could he not see she needed help? Faith is a hard girl to change and I wanted to slap her a few times as life started to get hard and she folded. She was the one who set the parameters in place but then she folds at the first sight of danger. What was she doing? Have I just read this correctly? Seriously?! Then, this poor girl cannot figure out why no one is not talking to her, well hello. She wants to then blame it on one wrong move, I’m thinking Faith it’s more like a domino effect. You know its books like these that get me going and I have to get up and take a breather. I love them, I seriously do. Faith, you need to understand that people don’t matter, it’s like one of my favorite saying, “Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” (Dr. Seuss) I really needed my Starburst Mini’s to get through this one.
I received a complimentary e-book from NetGalley and Kensington's in exchange for my honest review.
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