First Date - eBook
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5
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Clean fun
I honestly wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up the book. It was a feel good book and the premise was that of a high school girl getting put on a reality show to win the heart of the son of the president.
McGee had me laughing at the silly antics and the easy conversations that the characters had. In the book, we meet Addy. She is an orphan whose parents were missionaries in the jungles of Columbia. Since her parents' death, she was raised by her Uncle Mike. Through her Uncle Mike, she has had a friend and guardian who continued to encourage her in her life and faith.
Addy is chosen to represent her small Christian high school on a reality television show. Although she knew it would be difficult, when she arrives on the show - she soon learns how devious people can really be and is faced with how to respond in a way that would be God honoring in difficult situations. Ironically, her attempts to show he "bad" or "real" side, endears her to both the first son and the television audience.
I liked that it was a clean book that I would be comfortable having my young girls read. In the end this was a nice, easy, enjoyable read that made me laugh out loud.
July 24, 2012
Fun Read!
This is an awesome read!! It's loosely based on Esther from the Bible, but set it today's world, with reality tv, paparazzi, the internet and more. Addy is such a relatable character. You can't help but root for her. Fellow reality show contestant Kara is a great source of comedy and strength for Addy during their time on the show and the other characters add so much to the story. I loved the comedic elements to the story as well. Simply put this book made me smile, which as stressed as I am at the moment it's simply perfect. Can not wait for Kara's story which comes put in July-I've already pre-ordered it!!
July 24, 2012
Enjoyable, but not very realistic
"First Date" is a young adult Christian romance novel, though I suspect younger teens would also like it. The story is loosely based on the biblical story of Esther. The influence was strong enough I recognized the connection, but the story didn't always translate well into a modern setting.
For example, Addy strongly objected to being entered in this competition, but the adults had already entered her without her consent. That didn't seem realistic, nor did some other parts of the story. I also didn't appreciate how the adults in Addy's life manipulated her into joining the competition by telling her that this was God's will for her. It very clearly was their will, though God did use it.
Despite the somewhat rocky beginning, I enjoyed this charming story. The "good guy" characters were fun and engaging, though the "bad guys" were petty cliche. I enjoyed Addy's and Jonathon's romance. Considering how superficial their attraction and relationship could have been, these two still managed to connect based on shared interests and meaningful conversations.
There was a strong Christian element to this story. Addy feels like God is using the experience to grow her, and she prays and occasionally reads her Bible. She's scared about sharing that she's a Christian with people (though, as another character pointed out, it wasn't exactly hard to guess), and she does eventually share her faith. One reaction to this didn't seem realistic, but the others were.
There was no sex. There was a very minor amount of "he cursed" style of bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this novel as long as you're not looking for a serious, realistic read.
I received this book as an egalley from the publisher through NetGalley.
April 15, 2012
Light-reading, Heart Warming Story
I was looking for something fresh, and I saw the cover on BookSneeze. I knew I had to read this book.
The main lead is Addy. She's just an ordinary girl, trying to blend in. She was chosen to represent her school in a reality show entitled "The Book of Love".
One of the main reason why Abby doesn't want to be on the show, is because she doesn't want to be famous. Her parents were killed when they're trying to stop drug deals in the area. They were missionaries, and Abby was raised by her uncle, Mike.
Abby ended up joining the reality show. The idea of the show is to look for a prom date for the President's son, Jonathon. She entered the show with one focus, to quit as soon as possible. But Jonathon is quite charming, and she soon felt that she has connection with him.
At the first weeks, Abby HATE to be on the show. But days passed, and she felt disappointed at her self, she felt she let her parents, her uncle, her school down, and she felt she let God down. She's too embarrassed to admit that she's a Christian, and she certainly doesn't behave like one.
Until one day her roommate, Kara, asked her whats wrong with her. Abby admitted how she felt being on the show. She even started to be a good friend, and enjoy the luxury given by the show.
There were ups and downs, and lots of lessons that Abby get during the show. But one thing that catch me, was when Abby was sick, and had to be treated in the hospital. She felt disappointed, as when other girls were having fun, she was stuck at the hospital. The day after she was released, she went to a diner with his uncle. They overheard a conversation, a plan to kidnap Jonathon, and subsequently kill the President.
Mike move fast, and let the Secret Service know. They manage to ruin the killing plan.
It was a blessing in disguise! When Hank was planning to kick Mike out of the show, suddenly Jonathon found out that Mike had saved his life, and thanked him on the show, so Hank couldn't kick Mike out.
The story shows how Abby was transformed, she begin to accept God's calling, begin to involve God even in small things like trying to be friendlier to people, even to Hank.
This book is cute, good for teens, young adult, light-reading, and it is totally heart warming! It put a smile on my face when I read the end of the story.
Love it!
First Date is written by Krista Mc Gee. I got this book for free from BookSneeze.com, under a program with Thomas Nelson Publishing Company.
February 12, 2012