Thursday 29 November 2012

Review and Giveaway: Unmaking Hunter Kennedy by Anne Eliot

Unmaking Hunter Kennedy

  Unmaking Hunter Kennedy by Anne Eliot
  Publisher: Butterfly Books
  Publication date: October 17th 2012
  My rating: 4 stars

 
 After a car accident--an event he considers a prank gone bad--pop star, Hunter Kennedy is forced to hide out with his aunt in small-town Colorado. He’s supposed to rest, heal his scars and attend high school in disguise until the press dies down. But he only wants to get back to work.

Worse, the girl who’s been assigned to make him over into a geek is a major geek herself. Vere Roth is a chattering pixie, a blushing tornado and a complete social disaster. He’s never met a girl who’s never-been-kissed, believes in romance and thinks Hunter’s a 'nice' guy.

Funny thing is...Hunter is nice around Vere because she’s his first real friend. He also can’t seem to stop sharing his secrets or keep her out of his heart. Knowing he’d never deserve a girl as sweet as Vere, he resigns himself to the friend zone, and helps his new bestie with her own makeover.

She tortures him daily for ridiculous guy advice on how to snag her life-long crush. A guy Hunter thinks is totally wrong for Vere, and sadly, one who has taken note of Vere’s transformation.

When Vere asks her best friend for some kissing advice, Hunter can’t resist...

And that’s when things get out of control...

High School Romance, first love, sweet romance.


Aww…just so flipping cute and beyond adorable!  When a gorgeous god-of-a-rock-star falls for a spazzy, adorkable girl, you have all the makings for an utterly sweet romance! 


Hunter Kennedy has just finished a six-week stay at a mental health facility after a night of vandalism, drinking, and pill popping.  He also cut himself but according to Hunter, he was never serious about taking his own life.  Things just spiraled out of control during a desperate bid to piss his mother off, and get her attention.   Well, he has her attention now and it’s bought him all kinds of down time in the little Podunk town of Monument, Colorado.  He’s to stay with his aunt under disguise, and attend high school with the Roth children, Charlie and Vere, the only ones in on the deception.  Hunter is horrified at the thought but plays along, thinking the sooner he makes his mom happy, the sooner she’ll let him get back to his real life.  So he plays along, even embracing the uber dork disguise.  What he doesn’t count on is the total relief of anonymity or his fascination with ultra-spaz-extraordinaire: Vere.

Hunter’s dork get-up may be a disguise but Vere’s is the real-deal.  Add to that is the fact that she goes completely mental when faced with any male, especially Curtis, her long-time crush.  Surprisingly, Vere is not that intimidated by Hunter and soon they strike up a friendship.   Vere makes the success of Hunter’s disguise her personal mission, schooling him in all things awkward to complete and perfect the image.   In exchange, Hunter agrees to help Vere get over her extreme shyness around the opposite sex, and come up with a plan to win Curtis, once and for all.   

You see where this is going, right?  So beyond cute!  At first I found Vere to be very naïve, and sort of over the top with her crazy reactions to Curtis, but that quickly changed as I read on and totally fell for her.  This girl was Queen Spaz, but in an entirely endearing way.   She was a breath of fresh air and the perfect friend for Hunter.  Hunter was ultra hot and famous, but he wasn’t impressed with his persona.  I liked that he was so over the mindless adoration he received from fan-girls.  The idea of him falling for a normal girl was completely believable when you got to know him because of that.  Most people believe it would be amazing to be idolized and desired like that, but this story really showed how unappealing the reality would be. 

I love it when opposites of the social spectrum are forced together and the sparks fly!  The magnetic pull between these two was obvious throughout the story, and made for a heck of a build-up!  Here’s a tempting quote:

He laughed low and ran a finger along the top of her mouth.  His touch sent shivers of sparkles down the back of her neck. “You have heart shaped lips in a heart shaped face.  Has anyone ever told you?  This one—this top lip alone—could drive a guy out of his mind?”

Swoon!!

Such a cute love story that the “vanilla queen” in me was completely satisfied when I came to the final page!  I loved Almost by Anne Eliot so I was so excited to pick this up.  I'm happy to report that Unmaking Hunter Kennedy does NOT  disappoint.  On a side note, isn’t that cover just to die for?!! Perfect for the story.  

The awesome Anne Eliot has generously offered a SIGNED copy of Unmaking Hunter Kennedy to one lucky reader!!  The giveaway is INTERNATIONAL. Just scroll down and fill out the rafflecopter below.  The only requirement is that you follow the blog.
 


Bio: I write full time, and I'm all about fate, destiny, and how it feels to fall in love. My favorite thing to write is a first kiss. 

I've worked as an online marketer and develper for Towrrecords.com, FOX TV, and UNM Engineering. I love to teach writing workshops and work with adults, kids and teens who enjoy learning about 'story' and who want to write or learn about story structure and the craft of writing.

I'm blessed with an Italian-Canadian mom and an Irish-American dad. This means my summers are full of huge family reunions, food, yelling and too much travel. When not pining for Tim Horton's to open in Colorado, I ponder Joseph Campbell. His work has inspired me to study story structure and how emotion within a story can move people through time and across cultures. Emotion is the key to everything. I owe JC for keeping me on a journey through world mythologies, folk tales, and the collective unconsciousness while I search for my own bliss in stories.

I'm a member SCBWI, RWA and Pikes Peak Writers. I'm so proud of these hard working writer's groups!

 Website    Facebook     Twitter




a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

22 comments:

Angie said...

Oh wow! this is exactly the sort of book I love to read, and this one looks fantastic! Thank you so much for this amazing giveaway! Good luck to all participants. :D (Angie Edwards)

Unknown said...

Damn. I need to read my copy, stat. Great review, Rachel. :)

Henrietta @ Leisure Reads said...

I like stories that are sweet and adorable. I think it would be fun to read about how Vere tortures Hunter for guy advice :)

Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer said...

This sounds lovely and all feel good..the perfect read to go with chocolate. New follower, thanks for joining my TBR challenge :)

Maja (The Nocturnal Library) said...

Haha, Rachel, if I'm turning you into a part-time urban fantasy queen, you're definitely turning me into a romance junkie. These two seem to have a lot of chemistry and I'm pretty sure I'll enjoy their story. Added.

On a side note, I hope you're enjoying Kate. Magic Bites is my least favorite and the series really does get better with each new book but I promise you, you'll fall in love with these characters.

Jennifer said...

This sounds so cute and I lovedddd the quote. Thanks for sharing. I added this to my TBR. Great review :)

Tanja - Tanychy said...

You girls seem to be reading this sweet romance books lately! I like that. I'm the one who always sobs with sweet little books. I haven't heard of this book and I find it interesting! Thanks for the giveaway girls! :)

Suzanne (Parabooklover) said...

Aw Rachel, this sounds like a really sweet read. I love when opposites get together too. I'm definitely going to read this one. Thanks for sharing and for the giveaway. Brilliant review as usual.

Heidi@Rainy Day Ramblings said...

I need a cute Vanilla Queen read. Lately my last few reads have been okay but not great and I just need something adorable. I am grabbing an ebook of this since it is very resonably priced!

Sam (Realm of Fiction) said...

Oh Rachel you always manage to convince me I'll enjoy these vanilla reads even though I wouldn't usually be drawn to them instantly! You had me at this: I love it when opposites of the social spectrum are forced together and the sparks fly! - It's one of my favourite sorts of relationships!

Brilliant review, darling. :)

Rachel said...

Sweet!!!!!!!!! Vere sounds adorable! Love that you used the word adorkable! I always like it when opposites-attracted too! Amazing review Rachel!!!!! So glad it was believable for Hunter to fall for her.
And thank you for the giveaway!

Sara @ Forever 17 Books said...

I have been wanting to read this one! This sounds so good and you are so right about that quote! SWOON!

Keertana said...

YOU'RE READING MAGIC BITES! YESSS! :D Sorry, this has nothing to do with your incredible review, but promise me you'll pick up the sequel even if you don't enjoy Magic Bites because the series gets SO GOOD! :)

Right, onto your review! I loved it! This novel sounds so cute and like just the type of read I need when I'm yearning for something adorable and that's guaranteed to put a smile on my face, so I definitely have to check it out. Lovely review, Rachel! :D

Rachel said...

I'm enjoying Magic Bites, Keertana but it has yet to wow me. I knew it wouldn't after reading comments between you and Maja. I'm in for the long haul. And thanks! :)

Anonymous said...

Aww this looks like such a cute read! I love that the girl is awkward. It just seems so adorable!
I need to give it a shot, especially because of that quote! :)
Lovely review, Rachel!

Dizneeee said...

This sounds like such a perfect read! Adding it to my TBR list and potential To-Buy list...ya know, if Rafflecopter denies me! :) Hehehe

Livvy said...

Awww. This book sounds rather cute. You always tease us Rachel with your quotes. How unfair! haha.

I'd love to enter the giveaway, but currently I can't see any rafflecopters they aren't working on my computer and I don't know what it's done. :(

Brilliant review! :)

Unknown said...

I'm so glad you reviewed this, Rachel! I have been watching for this book since I first heard about it. I love the plot and the quote you included made me sa-woon!
Great review!

Jasprit said...

Hey Livvy, which browser are you using? Rafflecopter doesn't seem to be working in Internet Explorer but does in chrome or firefox. Let me know if it gets sorted for you :)

Unknown said...

Aww, I always have soft spot for shy heroines. :') Such an adorable review, Rachel! I just can't resist cute stories like this, especially when they have bad-boy-gone-good like Hunter. ;) It's very cute that they become such good guy when they are with girls they like! <3 Thanks for adding another book to my long to-read list, hun! ;)

Anonymous said...

I can always leave it to one of my favourite Vanilla Queens to unearth a not-to-miss, swoon-worthy, utterly adorable romance novel. This one sounds sweet, and I think I may just have to check it out! :) Love your review, Rachel!

►Vivi ©endana甄◄ said...

love the cover and review is so great
would like to read it
missyfeifei@ymail.com

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...