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A review by jennyfer
Room and Board by Miriam Parker
3.0
Gillian is a publicist whose life turns upside down when her client becomes embroiled in a scandal she is unable to fix. She leaves her glamourous, fast-paced life to become a dorm mom at her old high school, where she rekindles a romance with her old school crush - and father of one of her dorm charges.
While ostensibly stepping back from publicity, Gillian takes on the mantle once more to protect two of her students who have gone viral with a hit song and manage the media after a scandal by Leadership.
I really wanted to like this book, but I felt it was a bit flat. The indidual elements were ok, and I do like second-chance stories, but there was nothing that really stood out as "ourstanding". This was more of a slice of life story of events rather than a great romance or a great revelation or a great journey of personal growth.
Of all the characters, the one I felt had the most depth was Julia, who went from "queen bee popular kid" through remorse and growth and finding her place in the world. Gillian and Aidan really didn't show any growth since their high school days. Lila was a supporting character at best. Bunny was a spoiled rich kid wanting teh dramz; Rainbow was utterly forgettable; the Twins were a little creepy; Gloria was timid and unlike any school administrator I've ever worked with (they're honestly forces of nature!) and the antagonist, Kent, didn't even have a speaking role as far as I can recall.
So it was a nice book, but a little flat for my tastes.
~Many thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.~
While ostensibly stepping back from publicity, Gillian takes on the mantle once more to protect two of her students who have gone viral with a hit song and manage the media after a scandal by Leadership.
I really wanted to like this book, but I felt it was a bit flat. The indidual elements were ok, and I do like second-chance stories, but there was nothing that really stood out as "ourstanding". This was more of a slice of life story of events rather than a great romance or a great revelation or a great journey of personal growth.
Of all the characters, the one I felt had the most depth was Julia, who went from "queen bee popular kid" through remorse and growth and finding her place in the world. Gillian and Aidan really didn't show any growth since their high school days. Lila was a supporting character at best. Bunny was a spoiled rich kid wanting teh dramz; Rainbow was utterly forgettable; the Twins were a little creepy; Gloria was timid and unlike any school administrator I've ever worked with (they're honestly forces of nature!) and the antagonist, Kent, didn't even have a speaking role as far as I can recall.
So it was a nice book, but a little flat for my tastes.
~Many thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.~