My Life Next Door (My Life Next Door #1)

This book had so much going on that I'm not sure how to sum it up in one short review but I'll try.

First, I want to tackle the relationship between Samantha and her mom. WOW. Samantha's mom, Grace, is running for reelection in the State Senate race. She gets involved with Clay who is apparently some sort of political genius and all of a sudden Samantha doesn't even recognize who her mom has become. They have an interesting relationship in that Grace is so overly involved in everything in Sam's life, like organizing her clothes in her dresser drawers and making sure her schedule is always filled with proper activities. However, when Grace really needs her mom the most, she isn't there. Clay and the campaign seem to take up all of her time. I'd like to say that their relationship healed itself by the end of the book but I'm not sure that it did.

Next, the next door neighbors the Garretts. This is a family I want to know. They are big (in numbers), loud, a little disorganized but love each other so much. Samantha is fascinated by this family that she has never met until one night when Jase changes everything. Jase introduces Sam into his family and his life. Jase's family is everything Sam's is not. Their relationship starts off as friendship and quickly involves into more. They have a sweet romance that isn't over the top.

Now, add in Sam's best friend, Nan, and her brother Tim. Sam and Nan have been friends for years and when they were younger Tim used to hang out with them as well. Tim has a lot of problems and does work to overcome them, and the book shows how difficult it is for him. In the end, Tim turns out to be a better friend to Sam than Nan was.

This is a lot, right? There's more....In one night, everyone's life changes and it's up to Samantha to make a choice and whichever way she chooses, she is certain she will lose someone she loves.

I really enjoyed this book. For as intense that it was at times, it flowed really nicely. There was never any downtime. The secondary characters, like Tim and the Garrett kids were some of my favorites and rounded out this story. Definitely pick this book up!

I LOVE THIS BOOK SO HARD! Once I started it, I couldn't read it fast enough and yet I didn't want it to end. This is a beautifully written story about family and friendship, first love, and learning how to be true to yourself. Huntley Fitzpatrick writes about life with all it's quirkiness, even covering tough topics like politics and addiction with such honesty and humor that had me laughing so hard I cried.

Samantha Reed lives a life of relative privilege with her single mother and older sister that includes private school, weekly dinners at the local country club and a summer job where she gets to spend time with her long time BFF, Nan and her twin brother, Tim. Life isn't always what it seems and Samantha's is no different. Her Mom's a Senator and a contradiction of sorts. On one hand, she's rarely around but when she is, she takes "involved" to a whole new level, going as far as checking to see if Samantha's hair is properly conditioned and making sure she's in bed by a certain time each night. (She's seventeen, not seven for crying out loud!) Then there's the issue with the vacuum cleaner and making sure the lines in the carpet are just right. OCD, much?

Samantha takes refuge each night on the balcony off her room where she's able to watch the Garretts, the family who lives next door. They're the ones with the 25 kids who obviously never learned what birth control was for or how to properly care for a pool, a yard or a house but managed to snag their own reality T.V. show on TLC. Oh, wait...wrong family. The Garretts really only have 8 kids and yeah, they have all those other things I mentioned, save for the reality T.V. show but that's they way they're treated by a lot of people in town. People feel the need to comment on their lives, how many kids they have, etc., etc., What outsiders fail to miss is how much love the Garretts have going on.

Samantha has secretly watched the Garretts for years, something her mother would have a cow over if she ever found out. Her mother thinks the Garretts are "those kind" of people and turns her nose up at them any chance she gets. But all that's about to change when Jase, the smart, funny, considerate and of course, gorgeous boy from the wrong side of the fence decides to climb Samantha's trellis. One simple question will begin a journey of love and adventure that neither Samantha or Jase will ever forget and one that will change both of their families lives' forever.

Jase and his family immediately suck Samantha into their big, loud, crazy and close-nit family. Much of the time she is completely out of her element and you can feel her mix of discomfort and fascination which is nothing short of hilarious! She isn't used to life in Garrettville but she's learning to love it and who she is when she's there. But each time Samantha goes home, she still struggles with having to be the person her mother expects her to be. The more time she spends with the Garretts though, the more she learns how to love people even with all of their shortcomings, how to handle delicate situations with little people and the importance of doing what's right regardless of what others may think.

Just when Samantha thinks her life couldn't get any better, one choice changes everything leaving her to decide whether what she and Jase have is worth fighting for or if family always comes first. Making the right choice isn't always easy but it's always worth it.

I'm known for my book boy crushes, but those are usually reserved for the teenagers, so you can imagine my surprise when I fell completely in love with George, the 4 year old walking encyclopedia of the Garrett family. There were times when he stole this story right out from under Jase and Samantha's noses and stole my heart in the process.

A little sample of the awesome that is George:

"George gives me a smile, the same dazzling sweet smile as his big brother, although, at this point with green teeth. "I might marry you," he allows, "Do you want a big family?"
I start to cough and feel a hand pat my back.
"George, it's usually better to discuss these kinds of things with your pants on." Jase drops boxer shorts at George's feet, then sets Patsy on the ground next to him.
....
"Is Jase already gonna marry you?"
I start coughing again. "Uh, No. No, George. I'm only seventeen." As if that's the only reason we're not engaged.
"I'm this many." George holds up four, slightly grubby fingers. "But Jase is seventeen and a half. You could. Then you could live in here with him. And have a big family."
Jase strides back into the room, of course, midway through this proposition. "George. Beat it. Discovery Channel is on."
George backs out of the room but not before saying, "His bed's really comfortable. And he never pees in it." ...TEAM GEORGE FOR THE WIN! :D

All of these characters have something to offer, regardless of age or perceived flaws. Even Tim, Samantha's childhood friend, who comes from a picture perfect home but whose potty mouth is so bad, that if made to fill a jar each time he swore, could put the entire Garrett clan through college, has a charm all his own. He proves that he's quite talented with females, of all ages *wink wink*. He even possess the unique ability to decipher the true meaning of the book, "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie." (That part made me snort water through my nose.) Tim is also the perfect example that there's always more than meets the eye and when given the chance (sometimes multiple chances), people can surprise you.

READ THIS BOOK, YOU WON'T REGRET IT!

What I Liked:
Obviously, My Life Next Door comes highly recommended by book bloggers. I’m pretty sure at least five have mentioned that I needed to get to this novel. And, having read it, I’m happy to say you were all right and that this is definitely a Christina book. I loved the Garretts, the incredibly sweet portrayal of first love, and the development of the secondary characters.

My Life Next Door starts out as a very light, fluffy tale. Samantha, youngest daughter of a wealthy woman, spends the summer getting to know cute neighbor boy, Jase. Though her mom, Grace, raised Samantha and Tracy alone, that only really became a problem when Grace entered politics. Now the Connecticut Senator, she’s running for reelection, neglecting her daughters, and becoming a person that Samantha hardly recognizes.

Grace attempted to instill a lot of her own prejudices in Samantha, including her hatred of the rambunctious, child-filled, messy family next door. Samantha, however, finds the Garretts fascinating, and has been watching them almost all of her life. Even so, she had no idea just how wonderful they were until Jase gets up the courage to talk to her and invite her into their lives.

The Garretts are truly amazing, probably the most healthy family in YA fiction I’ve ever encountered. You wouldn’t expect me to love a family with eight children, but they’re marvelous and I kind of want to be friends with them. From the parents, who, eight children in, are still totally hot for one another, down to the youngest Garrett, baby Patsy, whose first words are “boob” and “poop”, the Garretts are a charming bunch. The whole family bursts with vibrancy and life, especially compared with the cleansed, cold, emptiness of Samantha’s house. In this instance, it really is easy to believe that, though the Garretts want for money, they’re wealthy in what truly matters.

And Jase, oh Jase. He’s a WONDERFUL fictional boyfriend. Jase is physically attractive, yes, but that’s not the reason he’s so swoony, and Fitzpatrick really doesn’t harp on his looks either. What makes Jase such a great guy is how thoughtful and kind he is. He adores Samantha and she him. They truly bond, laughing together and growing together. No scene about going to buy condoms has ever been so cute or so incredibly healthy in its attitude towards sex, I swear. Both the emotional and physical sides of their relationship are done so perfectly.

Another aspect I ended up loving was Tim’s character arc. At first, I hated him, as one is meant to. Tim’s a druggie, lost in a haze and squandering all the opportunity provided by his parents’ wealth. However, he actually cleans up, even though it’s hard, and he becomes a really good, reliable friend to Samantha and Jase when they’re in need of that sort of support. And, in being so helpful to them, Tim has the motivation to stay off of drugs and alcohol. His arc’s probably a bit over-simplified, but I loved the tale of redemption.

What Left Me Wanting More:
I’m less sure how I feel about the twist for the very serious that the novel took at the end. While I think Fitzpatrick handled the subject matter well, it’s a serious mood change, and I wasn’t really prepared for the book to head in that direction, which made it a bit disappointing. Also, I came out of it less of a fan of Samantha, View Spoiler », and made me feel like Jase deserved better. Then again, Samantha’s so young, and that would be a really hard choice for her to make.

There was one thing I definitively did not like about My Life Next Door. Both Nan and Samantha use “mommy” to refer to their mothers, which really seems out of place in a seventeen-year-old. Yes, they’re spoiled trust fund girls, but they do work to earn their own money and have ambition. Sure, when I was a teen, I would make use of “mommy” and “daddy” to get my way sometimes, but I certainly wouldn’t be calling them that in casual conversation with friends or for no reason whatsoever.

The Final Verdict:
Even though I’m a bit uncertain about a couple of directions My Life Next Door took, I loved this honest portrayal of first love and its heartfelt look at family and politics. I’m definitely rating up for the adorable feels I got from the romance in this one.