Their prom night ended in a jail cell with forty of their closest friends. But that’s hardly the worst thing that happened to them… When the principal announces prom is canceled this year, senior Riley Hart is determined to save it. Armed with little more than her own enthusiasm, she ends up working closely with Owen Locklear, who is more than completely off-limits. Because he’s the boyfriend … he’s the boyfriend of her ex-BFF, Catherine Reed. Still, Owen knows Riley better than almost anyone, and his charming ideas for turning the prom upside-down and backward win Riley over.
Catherine is willing to join Owen and Riley on the prom committee, but only because her legacy as prom queen is at stake. She’s already suffocating under the weight of her parents’ expectations for after senior year, and compared to that, ensuring prom happens should be easy. At least until everything starts to go wrong.
First they lose their deposit. Then they book a band full of octogenarians. And lose their venue… Twice.
Riley will have an unforgettable teenage experience, damn it, if it’s the last thing she does…
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Disclaimer: This review MAY contain spoilers. I received an Advance Reader Copy at no cost from the publisher/author. The opinions in my review are my own.
This book was an adventure. I don’t think that I’ve ever said that about a contemporary book before, but it truly fits this book. This book is about a bunch of seniors trying to save their prom. They navigate through mishaps, catastrophes, and triumphs trying to get their prom planned. All the while characters are learning how to use their voice to stand up for themselves, atoning for past mistakes, letting go of things that are holding them down, and going after what they want most both in matters of the heart and otherwise.
T.H. Hernandez and Jennifer DiGiovanni’s combined efforts create a writing style that really works. This story was crafted beautifully and flowed marvelously. The powerful storytelling was evident in the descriptions that brought everything to life and the characters that warmed your heart.
The story is told through the POV of Riley and Catherine, two ex-friends that want to save their prom for completely different reasons. The POVs were chosen well for this story. We really get a sense for their character motivations and the character development progressed well for both of them. Riley fades into the background at school after Catherine kicks her to the curb in middle school. She has a few friends but is ready to get high school over with. Catherine has been living the life her mother set out for her and she never puts her foot down about her own hopes and dreams. And then there are Owen and Jordon. Owen has been Catherine’s boyfriend since their parents got them together freshman year. They are the best of friends but the romantic part of their relationship soured long ago. They are clinging to their relationship because it is easy. Jordon was a little less developed than the other three main characters but I enjoyed his character nonetheless. He was a drama geek and he boldly embraced it. The side characters were delightful as well. I liked Riley’s friends, Desmond and Jane, as well as Catherine’s friend, Hunter. I felt that Jane was a little too MIA for a friend, but whatever.
I liked that there were parents present in this story. Riley and Catherine’s parents were involved and caring. It even touched upon Catherine’s issues with her mother’s controlling ways. We even get to see Owen’s mother a few times. It was refreshing to see loving families included in the story.
I liked the plot of the story as a whole, but I felt like everything revolved around making preparations for prom. It felt unrealistic that we didn’t get to experience much of anything else with these characters other than a few parties briefly. A ton of things happen at the end of senior year in high school but we didn’t get to see them. Riley and Catherine were even both involved in tons of school clubs and the like but everything was just about the prom preparations. Apart from that, I felt that everything else was plotted out well. The story flowed great and things happened when it felt like they should within the story.
This paragraph contains SPOILERS so proceed with caution!! I liked the slow-burn romance in this one but it did leave me wanting more. Since Catherine and Owen are a couple through most of the book, Riley and Owen don’t even kiss until the end of the story. And the same with Catherine and Jordon. They don’t kiss until the end of the book either for the same reason. It kind of left me feeling unsatisfied. The slow-burn part where the feelings were building was great, but I wish that the characters could have gotten together sooner in the story.
Overall, this was an extremely fun story that I couldn’t put down. It is filled with humor, catastrophe, rekindling friendships, and blossoming relationships. This book is a delightful journey that I highly recommend.
Prom-Wrecked is a great read. It prom season and I’m seeing people post about their kids going to prom all over Facebook so I was like ok I’m going to read a book that has a prom in it. This one had me hooked from beginning to end. The first chapter had me hooked. It starts with 11pm on prom night and all the kids are in a jail cell. I had to know what happened for them all to end up there and we get that because Chapter two starts with two months before the prom. I had expected to have the book told in the dual POVs of Riley and Owen but it’s told from the POVs of Riley and Catherine and I loved it. Two months before the prom the head prom planner quits and the principal wants to cancel the prom. Riley steps up to save the prom. Catherine focus to be prom queen but there is much more to her then just that. In planning the prom, this group encounters disaster after disaster. I was even wondering if the prom was doomed not to happen. Through all this we see some friendships and relationship change and others form. It’s really a great sweet YA book.
I loved reading in this writer’s style because the descriptions allowed me to picture everything in my head like a movie; I really felt like I saw everything being described. It was very well written and I enjoyed the author’s style.
The alternating POV between the two teen girls was definitely something different and I appreciated the effort at originality. I always enjoy first person narrative as well, to me, it feels more personal and it draws me into the story more.
This book is well edited. I didn’t notice any errors, which I really appreciate as an avid reader.
I don’t want to give away any of the story but I have to say I was really happy with the way the plot played out. It was excellent and I will certainly be looking for more by the authors. I highly recommend this book.
*I regularly read and review complimentary electronic books from authors, publishers, publicists, and NetGalley. I am not obligated to leave positive reviews, nor do I, nor have I ever, receive(d) compensation. I am not related to anyone who has provided these. The thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.