Friday, July 3, 2015

The Deal (Off-Campus #1) [Garrett & Hannah] by Elle Kennedy

Beautiful. So So Beautiful. A solid 5 star (if not 6!) I loved this book SO MUCH. I loved Hannah, loved Garrett, loved everyone! well, naturally except for "the villains" (let's not name them at this moment..). I totally think Garrett should get a cup, not of tea but a real trophy - ♥🏆♥ THE ultimate BEST book boyfriend🏆♥ I truly envy Hannah for finding such a perfect specimen. 

Garrett Graham is a Hockey player, not just any player, he is the Captain of the team and Hockey is THE most important thing in his life. His sole goal in life is to excel. For that he also needs good grades which he usually gets with the hard work he puts into everything he does yet one class eludes him.The only way he sees in getting a better score on the remake exam is having Hannah Wells tutor him. She actually got A+ ! when most of the class flunked. Too bad Hannah isn't interested in him AT ALL. Nothing he says or does makes her even slightly interested in helping him out. But well, Hockey players are nothing but persistent! He will do what it takes to get Hannah's help. 

Hannah isn't impressed by cocky guys like Garrett. She isn't impressed by his reputation as a chick magnet and isn't interested in helping him out. Yet his final appeal to her strikes a cord.. He is offering the chance to make herself more "attractive" to the guy she actually wants! Justin.. the uber sexy football player. She doesn't usually go for the jocks but Justin seems totally different and with her record of broken relationships she truly wants Justin, something that surprises her but also makes her miserable - he doesn't even know she exist.. but going to a party as Garrett's date is SURE make an impression! Which is what she needs, and if what Garrett needs is tutoring she will do it.. 

Both Garrett and Hannah don't expect to fall for each other.. they don't even expect to LIKE each other, yet every time they spend together they feel closer to one another. As time goes by, Garrett doesn't know what to make of the feelings he has toward Hannah, he can't have a girlfriend, he doesn't have the time or energy for one. He has other goals to achieve, all as a Hockey player. Though Hannah starts to have fun with Garrett and even trust him as she NEVER trusted a guy before she is still confused about it and keeps reminding herself that what she wants is a stable guy (like Justin?) not someone who isn't interested in a relationship. Yet she starts getting even more confused when she realizes that she can have with Garrett something she never had with anyone before him. 

There is a lot of heart ache in the story, mostly about both MC's past. Both Hannah and Garrett went through difficult times (to say it mildly..). I really enjoyed seeing the way both their pasts and present were introduced. While it COULD look a bit too rushed with Hannah, when I think about it, they made a HUGE way with their friendship and the trust they build before it became more than just friendship.. I also want to say that I was quite surprised with the fact that what happened in both their lives when they were younger somehow wasn't resolved which was really sad yet it gave a story a "truer" feel. Because I guess, life is NOT fair. Bad things happen and the "right" people don't always pay for what they did. I guess the moral is more about being able to put things aside, to be a better person for your own sake. Not sure how to phrase this, but I think it's a good moral. Because "good always wins" is not only sappy, it's also not realistic..

I loved the interaction between Hannah and Garrett. It was so much fun reading their banter. it was perfectly done. I read a book a while ago that tried doing that but failed miserably, which made this one even more prefect. See, I read books that deals with similar issues, I've read my share of College New Adult, and while this this book was an absolute JOY to read it was also different enough to STAND OUT with the superb writing the sensitive way the characters were describes and how they react and interact. 

I'll be moving on to the next one in the series, but also I'll be looking to add more books by Elle. I'm truly impressed. I didn't expect to be. I thought it's going to be just a "fun read" not the kind of book I simply CANNOT put down. I read each day till my eyes were watering from exhaustion and I HAD to go to sleep. Would have finished it in one gulp if life haven't interrupted me so rudely! ;) 

HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

The next book in the series (and the last I've read) is "The Mistake" - Logan and Grace's story. 



Additional Details: Kindle Ebook, 358 pages, 1-2 July 2015 / On GoodReads

No comments:

Post a Comment