Accidentally Perfect

Mature-content, YA/NA romantic drama

I had just read Keeping Up Appearances by this author prior to reading this novel and was expecting it to also be a PG romantic comedy without sex. It was a bit of a shock, therefore, to find that this book is written very much in keeping with the norms of the New Adult subgenre of romance–heavy on internal angsting and containing multiple sex scenes. However, because these protagonists are still in high school and the author has marketed this book as “mature young adult” fiction, the sex scenes are not remotely as graphic, or as frequent, as in a typical NA romance. But since I had never before now read this degree of sexual description in a YA romance, I was quite taken by surprise when the first sex scene happened. Hopefully, other potential readers will do what I did not do and carefully read the clear warning that the author responsibly provides in her description of the novel: “Not recommended for younger readers due to mature content.”

Roman is a dark YA hero of the sort typically found in “edgy” YA fiction. He is a brooding, “rebel without a cause,” James Dean hero who views the world with a heavy-lidded, cynical sneer, and mood-alters his angry alienation with cigarettes, drunkeness, sex with groupie-like girls, brawling, and vandalism. He has been frequently arrested for disorderly conduct, both for his own misdemeanor crimes and taken in for questioning about the misdemeanor crimes of his best buddy, Rio, who is as Byronically dark-natured as Roman. To date, though Roman rarely attends class, and constantly flunks tests, he has never been held back a grade in school, and even seems in line to graduate high school. We are given to understand this is because he has always been bailed out of his educational and legal difficulties by his wealthy, emotionally distant father, whom everyone in his town is in awe of. Roman’s mother is sweet and loving, but no more willing or able than Roman’s father to make sure that Roman receives the anger-management therapy he so obviously, desperately needs. His only relatively harmless angst-relieving activity is skateboarding. (Which seems an oddly, geekishly boyish pursuit for a macho male.) I personally am not a fan of romance protagonists who smoke and drink to excess–whether in YA, NA or adult romance. This book, in fact, is the first one I’ve read in over 25 years with a smoking hero. However, the author attempts to mitigate readers’ being repelled by Roman’s smoking, and its inevitable health and hygiene issues, by having Piper not be repelled by it. She comments, midway through the book, “Funny how he smoked so much but never smelled like it.”

I also personally enjoy a classic, “us against the world” plot where two disaffected loners find a home in each other, and this story certainly delivers a strong version of that plot.

Ms. Stevens is a very talented writer and particularly excels at presenting a romantic hero who, while displaying an obnoxiously alpha, choleric disposition to the rest of the world, interacts with the heroine like a lovable, beta male who is sensitive, affectionate, a good listener, and basically, very nurturing.

Ms. Stevens also writes a traditional romance-novel structure, which we diehard romance fans adore: the essential romantic conflict of distrust slowly evolving to trust through a personal-growth arc of one or both protagonists, and a happily ever after (HEA) ending which is, of course, in protagonists this young (and likewise for NA romance) more of a “happy for now” ending.

Hadley is a familiar BFF confidante found in the “erotic romance” genre since Harlequin Blaze first started, back in the 90’s, offering the now very familiar plot device of a good-girl heroine encouraged by her down-and-dirty BFF to be more adventurous about sex. Given that this is YA, Hadley is a less extreme version of this type of BFF in that she doesn’t push Piper to have sex, and she herself seems to be more talk than action regarding engaging in sex herself.

I was glad to see Piper, in particular, work beyond a self-protective over-reliance on the stereotypical female role of people-pleasing doormat who lives to fulfill the every need and demand of the people in her life. As for Roman, his major defining attitude and life motto is the self-fulfilling prophecy, “What you see is what you get with me….I can’t be changed.” This declaration sounds obnoxiously egotistical, except for the fact that his chief virtue is wrapped up inside it: He has no desire to try and change anyone else because he doesn’t believe other people can change and grow either. Piper accepts his world view when they are together, and is liberated by it because it gives her the freedom, for the first time in her life, to act in a way that she otherwise has always considered terrifyingly risky in that she has believed it will inevitably bring judgment and rejection. She tells Roman that they are “two people having an extended pity party” together. This ironically is healing for both of them, because it allows them to externalize their deepest blind spot–that they both are suffering from anxiety due to unconsciously wallowing in self-pity and resentment–un-enmesh from it, and thereby begin to grow beyond it. As the two of them for the first time, with anyone, share their deepest hopes and fears with each other, this acts to deliver the most significant element that the very best romance novels manage to achieve: The romantic conflict between the protagonists is the clash between their socially created, false selves, which cover up and hide their authentic, true selves. Only if they can reveal to each other their true selves–which is the ultimate sacrifice to “earn” true love–can they become worthy of true love.

For fans of angsty, sexy NA romance, this book will be a fun read.

I have experienced this book both in Kindle format and recently as an Audible audiobook. The narration is excellent.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 4 stars
Hero: 4 stars
Romance Plot: 4 stars
Social Drama Plot: 3 stars
Writing: 4 stars
Audiobook Narration: 4 stars
Overall: 4 stars