Author- Non Pratt
Genre- Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Format- Paperback
UK Publisher- Walker Books
Publication Date- March 6th 2014
Buy HERE
*I was sent this book from the publisher as part of their VIP club promoting the book, thank you Walker. This does not affect my thoughts in this review.*
Synopsis:
A boy. A girl. A bump. Trouble.
Hannah’s smart and funny, she’s also fifteen and pregnant. Aaron is new at school and doesn't want to attract attention. So why does he offer to be the pretend dad to Hannah’s unborn baby?
Growing up can be trouble but that’s how you find out what really matters.
The cover is what drew me to this book, how often do you see something this straight-forward? I loved it! It was honest and a definite risk but one worth taking. I wish the US had been just as daring. The VIP campaign meant that Walker sent me two copies of the book: one for myself and another to hand to a friend. As I was reading Ignite Me when this first dropped through the letterbox, my friend was the first to start and, after hearing her tell me how great it was, I bumped it up to first in my to-read pile!
Once you begin reading, you may be put off by the language used by the teenagers. I know I was, as a fifteen-year-old British girl, it even felt alien to me. I had never heard anybody speak in such an offensive manner before and hoped I never had to encounter such a vile person as the character of Fletch. Do not be put off and do push past this, the language eases up when we meet different characters and things get much better quickly!
Starting out, I found it difficult to connect with the character of Hannah. To be quite honest, I didn't like her. I felt that she lived her life to please others and that meant we were unable to see the real her until she became vulnerable due to the pregnancy. When she surrounded herself with the right people and took time for herself, I really started to like her though! This was very well written by Non, as it meant the reader was able to get to know Hannah as though they were in the book, seeing her in person. Aaron, on the other hand, I loved from the beginning. He was awkward and a little geeky and I felt the need to protect him. Even though he had a dark, mysterious secret that we saw hinted throughout the book, I didn't care.
There were two main 'shocks' in this story: Hannah's baby daddy and Aaron's reason for moving. I put that in inverted commas because I guessed the father pretty early on! Even though it was obvious, I still enjoyed seeing the characters work it out and I don't think it spoilt the suspense building though the book because I still had to see if I was right and how it came about. Aaron's events were unexpected though! I won't go into any details, don't worry, but I love how he was shown to handle the situation and then when a (loosely) similar event occurs later, he did not hold back with his emotions. The boy was just so human.
There was just one major thing I disliked about this book, Aaron offering to be the fake father. I just didn't think it seemed realistic! He had not known Hannah very long and they weren't that close yet his parents were okay with their son doing this? My mum would go crazy at the suggestion, never mind that actually happening!
Overall, if you just roll with this strange idea, the book is really enjoyable! I recommend that all teenagers pick it up and give Trouble a chance, it gives a well needed look at the inside of people (no, not like their kidneys), and shows the reasons people act like they do. To sum up: An honest look at the lives of teenagers dealing with the pressures of school, relationships and fitting in.
The book has it's own Tumblr page HERE, it's definitely worth checking out! With book quotes, review snippets and a break-down of the cover design process, there's something for everyone to enjoy.
No comments:
Post a Comment