Everyone says that Caro is bad ...but Jamie can't help himself. He thinks of her night and day and can't believe that she wants to be his girlfriend. Gorgeous, impulsive and unconventional, she is totally different to all the other girls he knows. His sister, Martha, hates her. Jamie doesn't know why, but there's no way he's going to take any notice of her warnings to stay away from Caro. But as Jamie falls deeper and deeper under her spell, he realises there is more to Caro - much more. There are the times when she disappears and doesn't get in touch, the small scars on her wrists, her talk about revolutions and taking action, not to mention the rumours he hears about the other men in her life. And then always in the background there is Rob, Jamie's older brother, back from Afghanistan and traumatised after having his leg smashed to bits there. Jamie wants to help him, but Rob seems to be living in a world of his own and is increasingly difficult to reach. With Caro, the summer should have been perfect ...but that isn't how things work out in real life, and Jamie is going to find out the hard way. This taut psychological drama is the brilliant new novel from acclaimed Celia Rees.
I thought this book was quite "deep" "involved" and "political" for a Young Adult novel. at first I struggled with the way the book jumps around from different points of view. there were occasions where I found myself thinking whose point of view is this, you had to read a few paragraphs to realise who was telling you that particular point of the novel. Once I got used to the ever shifting points of view I quite enjoyed the book. I would say it is a thought provoking book, it makes you stop and think about things going on around you in the world. One thing I did like about the point of view swapping between the three main characters was that you saw their motivation for their actions and their reasoning for their reactions too.
It is quite difficult to say a great deal without giving away spoilers, which I hate to do. The relationship between Caro and Rob and Jamie is so complicated. Which brother is Caro "using" and which brother does Caro "love" or as she says she doesn't do love, which one does she care about the most? The book raises quite a few questions, as it goes along and I think it answers most of them eventually, like why does Martha seem to hate Caro so much? Exactly what happened at Martha's birthday sleep over all those years ago? This book is all about the younger generation, the interaction and mention of older people is kept to a minimum. I did like the book...but can't help having the "but" or "Oh" kind of reaction/feeling after I had read it. It was kind of "odd" but a good "odd" if that makes sense? I could imagine this book being made into a TV drama/movie and someone like Rob Kazinsky (aka Sean from Eastenders) playing the part of Rob.
Available from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk £0.99 on Kindle (price correct on 31st Dec 2011) £3.99 in paperback available 2nd Feb 2012.
WEBSITE: www.celiarees.com
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