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A review by dani_reviews
Defying Gravity by Kendra C. Highley
5.0
Disclaimer: I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Rating: 4.5 stars
I'm a firm believer that there is no such thing as a completely unbiased review, so I want to preface this one by saying that I've been stressing hard recently about a few things. This external stress can make me really hard to please sometimes, but, in this case, it made me love this book so much more. Defying Gravity helped me do just what the title says. While life was pulling me down, Zoey and Parker raised me up. I felt like I was floating giddily above my problems, and all I can say is thank you to Highley!
I read another book recently – a "YA" contemporary (though I'd argue it's NA) – where the romance was there in words and sentences, but it wasn't there in emotions. I couldn't feel the love in that one. I can tell you... I felt this one. Boy, did I feel it. I was completely swept off my feet by Parker, and the chemistry between him and Zoey was intense. There were scenes where I stopped breathing, including the near kiss mentioned in the blurb. GAH. When they finally kissed for real, I just about died.
I could relate so much to Zoey. I haven't read the first book, so I didn't know anything about what she was like in Texas, apart from what she shared in this book. Back in Texas, she put on a show: the popular president of the student council with her life together. However, in reality, that was all an armour, and she didn't know who she was or what she was supposed to do. Girl, let me tell you... I just turned 25, and I still don't know. She's given advice by someone to go to college and try a few different classes to see what sticks, and all I can think is that that is what I should have done, instead of committing to something someone else said I'd be good at (I wasn't) and would be practical and guarantee me a job (not in this economy, it won't). So yeah, I was completely there with Zoey on the whole "figuring your life out" stuff.
Luke? Psh. No thanks. I can see what others might see in him, but I was Team Parker from 2%, though that may have been for superficial reasons... :D (Land Rovers beat Jeeps.) I loved how sure and devoted he was, and I am such a sucker for guys who know their feelings and will work hard to get the girl. Also, HELLO TOWEL SCENE. OH, and how hot is it that he could do tricks on a snowboard? Bear with me while I daydream...
I usually don't like snowboarders. I'm a skier. The damn boarders are always sitting around on the slopes, getting in people's way. AND YET I WAS IN LOVE WITH PARKER. But anyway, back to skiing. This book made me feel so nostalgic for the days when my family would go skiing. I could almost feel the biting cold, the crunch of snow beneath my ski boots, the bench of the ski lift as it swung around and scooped me up. I've been down a couple of black diamonds, but I always much preferred the gentler greens and blues, as I was a relaxation skier, not a speed demon. (That was my brother.) For that reason, while reading about Zoey zooming down black runs and enjoying it, I felt sheer terror, but also exhilaration because I could experience them through her without actually risking falling myself. (I do not fall, thank you very much.)
Overall, this was an excellent YA contemporary with a delicious romance between a girl trying to figure out who and what she wants and the boy who knows who he is and what he wants – her. Highley is two for two with me, the first book I read being Sidelined, and I'll definitely be following her work from now on. This book was better than therapy!
Rating: 4.5 stars
I'm a firm believer that there is no such thing as a completely unbiased review, so I want to preface this one by saying that I've been stressing hard recently about a few things. This external stress can make me really hard to please sometimes, but, in this case, it made me love this book so much more. Defying Gravity helped me do just what the title says. While life was pulling me down, Zoey and Parker raised me up. I felt like I was floating giddily above my problems, and all I can say is thank you to Highley!
I read another book recently – a "YA" contemporary (though I'd argue it's NA) – where the romance was there in words and sentences, but it wasn't there in emotions. I couldn't feel the love in that one. I can tell you... I felt this one. Boy, did I feel it. I was completely swept off my feet by Parker, and the chemistry between him and Zoey was intense. There were scenes where I stopped breathing, including the near kiss mentioned in the blurb. GAH. When they finally kissed for real, I just about died.
I could relate so much to Zoey. I haven't read the first book, so I didn't know anything about what she was like in Texas, apart from what she shared in this book. Back in Texas, she put on a show: the popular president of the student council with her life together. However, in reality, that was all an armour, and she didn't know who she was or what she was supposed to do. Girl, let me tell you... I just turned 25, and I still don't know. She's given advice by someone to go to college and try a few different classes to see what sticks, and all I can think is that that is what I should have done, instead of committing to something someone else said I'd be good at (I wasn't) and would be practical and guarantee me a job (not in this economy, it won't). So yeah, I was completely there with Zoey on the whole "figuring your life out" stuff.
Luke? Psh. No thanks. I can see what others might see in him, but I was Team Parker from 2%, though that may have been for superficial reasons... :D (Land Rovers beat Jeeps.) I loved how sure and devoted he was, and I am such a sucker for guys who know their feelings and will work hard to get the girl. Also, HELLO TOWEL SCENE. OH, and how hot is it that he could do tricks on a snowboard? Bear with me while I daydream...
I usually don't like snowboarders. I'm a skier. The damn boarders are always sitting around on the slopes, getting in people's way. AND YET I WAS IN LOVE WITH PARKER. But anyway, back to skiing. This book made me feel so nostalgic for the days when my family would go skiing. I could almost feel the biting cold, the crunch of snow beneath my ski boots, the bench of the ski lift as it swung around and scooped me up. I've been down a couple of black diamonds, but I always much preferred the gentler greens and blues, as I was a relaxation skier, not a speed demon. (That was my brother.) For that reason, while reading about Zoey zooming down black runs and enjoying it, I felt sheer terror, but also exhilaration because I could experience them through her without actually risking falling myself. (I do not fall, thank you very much.)
Overall, this was an excellent YA contemporary with a delicious romance between a girl trying to figure out who and what she wants and the boy who knows who he is and what he wants – her. Highley is two for two with me, the first book I read being Sidelined, and I'll definitely be following her work from now on. This book was better than therapy!
See this review in its natural environment, Dani Reviews Things.