Joyride by Anna Banks – Amazing Character & A Wonderful Story

Posted 11 May, 2015 by Danny in Blog, Book Review, Danny, Danny's Book Review / 2 Comments

Joyride by Anna Banks – Amazing Character & A Wonderful StoryJoyride by Anna Banks
Published by Feiwel & Friends, Macmillan on 2015-06-02
Genres: General, Love & Romance, Social Issues, Young Adult
Pages: 288
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5 Stars

A popular guy and a shy girl with a secret become unlikely accomplices for midnight pranking, and are soon in over their heads—with the law and with each other—in this sparkling standalone from NYT-bestselling author Anna Banks.

It’s been years since Carly Vega’s parents were deported. She lives with her brother, studies hard, and works at a convenience store to contribute to getting her parents back from Mexico.

Arden Moss used to be the star quarterback at school. He dated popular blondes and had fun with his older sister, Amber. But now Amber’s dead, and Arden blames his father, the town sheriff who wouldn’t acknowledge Amber's mental illness. Arden refuses to fulfill whatever his conservative father expects.

All Carly wants is to stay under the radar and do what her family expects. All Arden wants is to NOT do what his family expects. When their paths cross, they each realize they’ve been living according to others. Carly and Arden’s journey toward their true hearts—and one another—is funny, romantic, and sometimes harsh.

There are some authors I just adore and will read anything they write. Anna Banks (The Syrena Legacy)  is one of these for me, and I was super excited when she announced to write a Contemporary story!

Fun times with deep undertones!

What I love most about Anna’s Books are the funny, witty and snarky characters she creates and Joyride does not disappoint her either. The characters were fantastic (coming to them later, stay tunes….), but the fun times and witty moments they created didn’t district from the more serious themes in Joyride. It just was the perfect balance – with some series Immigrant and immigration as well as family drama (well, let’s say lots of family drama!). 

Arden and Carly – the unlike pair that just ends up fitting perfectly!

Adorable, adorable Arden

Adorable, adorable Arden – this boy will sneak into your heart so very easy! From the outside, he’s the perfect boy, star quarterback and super popular – but then his sister died and he changed! Amber was Arden’s sister and together they were the perfect sibling team that did all kinds of fun together when he lost her he missed not just his sister but also his best friend and he thinks Carly could be that for him again. So he pursues her to go on Joyrides with him – basically he needs someone to trust, to forget his worries and he hopes this could be Carly.

Of course .. he didn’t intend to fall for this sweet strong girl!

Strong, restrained Carly that needs to let loose! 

Carly is the opposite. Always flying under the radar, never letting anyone getting close. Many kids even don’t know she exists! And it has to be that way for her if she ever wants to see her family again (as I said – big family drama and some truly serious issues here!). But it feels like Carly never really let herself live and be a kid. Initially of course very hesitant when Arden approaches her, but then she finally lets loose and finally starts living.

I loved seeing Carly change so much, I loved how Arden made her finally see her life and herself in a different way – it was an incredibly journey!

Bewitched Rating

Bottom Line

Joyride by Anna Banks is a snarky, witty story with deep and serious undertones!   Arden and Carly are the central characters (yes, there will be romance!!) and they are a delightfully unlike pair that just ends up fit perfectly!  Joyride is an amazing story, well-rounded completely adorably and a true page turner!  

 

contemporary hilarious

Additional Info

Anna Banks has a Pre-Oder Campaign going right now, with lots of interesting prizes! Right now you can win a phone call from Anna, but check soon for other amazing prizes too!

And, please please check this adorable Love Letter Arden send to Carly!

Danny_Signature_muchloveI

About Anna Banks

New York Times Bestselling author of The Syrena Legacy series.

Grew up in a town called Niceville. No, seriously. I graduated from Niceville High School. So did J Lo’s second husband. And the guy that plays Aqua Man on Smallville dated my best friend.

Now I indulge my tendency to lie by writing the lies down and selling them to publishers. Well actually my agent sells it, so she’s an accomplice to lies. One of my lies is called OF POSEIDON. The sequel is called OF TRITON. The last and final installment is OF NEPTUNE, and it released May 13, 2014. Be on the lookout for JOYRIDE, my YA Contemporary out June 2, 2015–Bonnie & Clyde meets Latina Pretty in Pink!

And um. I also write adult fiction under pen name Anna Scarlett. One of the adult lies is DEGREES OF WRONG.

That is all.

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2 Responses to “Joyride by Anna Banks – Amazing Character & A Wonderful Story”

  1. This sounds really good… I can’t wait until it comes out. I love contemporaries like this where 2 people have fun together despite all their problems. I’m glad you liked it… it’s always fun when an author I like jumps genres… I’m curious to see what this is like after the mermaid stuff.
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    Danny 5/11/2015

    It’s different than the Serena books. But Anna banks has just a way with creating amazing characters and she did this here in joyride again. Arden was such a great an amazing character and Carly so different, but her development throughout the book was phenomenal. I truly hope you’re going to love it!

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