*Review* Something I'm Good At by Caroline Andrus

Genre: YA Romance

Published: June 18, 2019

Pages: 240

Goodreads

Summer was the girl who had it all: good grades, a spot on the high school volleyball team, and a best friend since elementary school. Then she was diagnosed with lupus...and her best friend betrayed her. Now she’s cutting ties, because nobody should have to deal with someone as broken as her.

Kane is the guy who never gives up. When he puts his mind to something, he gets it done—no matter how many broken bones it takes. So when a chance encounter at the urgent care throws him in the path of Summer, the girl he’s secretly had a crush on for years, he’s determined to win her heart.

Despite her vow to keep people away, Summer finds herself falling for Kane’s charm. Will the boy who never gives up be able to win—and keep—the heart of the girl who is afraid to let people in?

Kane is charming. But I'm not a princess, and my disease isn't a dragon some prince can slay.

"I'm usually covered in blood and dirt. Do you really think I care about tears and snot?"

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley. This is my honest review. 

This book had some serious A Walk to Remember (the movie) vibes for me. A girl who's basically swearing off love because of an illness, Summer's just isn't terminal. I honestly felt like Summer was being a bit dramatic, but in retrospect I think I was probably just a different type of teenage girl than Summer. Also, I'm not super-familiar with exactly how lupus affects someone's life, and I guess I can sort of understand how being diagnosed as a teenager could make it seem like your life is over. But I still ultimately couldn't really relate to her swearing off love because of it. That particular pair of Summer's shoes just didn't quite fit my feet. I had no problem wearing the rest of her shoes throughout the story though. 

My inability to relate to Summer's approach to love just made Kane's part of the story that much better for me though. I could not wait for them to hook up and for Summer to realize that her lupus diagnosis wasn't a spinsterhood sentence. I have slight mixed feelings about Kane's persistence (No means no, dude!), but overall I feel like his approach was acceptable. I definitely got the impression that in another story, he would have accepted only ever being friends if that's all Summer was down for. Like Summer mentioned, he was pretty much the only person she knew who would let things drop when it was obvious she didn't want to talk about them. 

Overall this was a light and sweet teenage romance. It's exactly the type of romance I'd want my daughter to read because Kane is the type of guy I'd want her to date. I'd definitely recommend this if you're looking for a lighthearted read this summer. 4.38976 stars. - Katie 

Amazon

Caroline Andrus was born and raised in the St. Paul suburbs where she lives with her husband, two daughters, and Henry McCoy—her cat, who thinks he's a wild cougar.

When she's not working her two part time jobs and her full time publishing job, she divides her time between writing, Facebook, designing, and managing her household. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, rocking out to the radio, and tabletop board games.

She is passionate about both reading and writing teen fiction, and is pretty sure she will forever be eighteen at heart.

Website: www.CarolineAndrus.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarolineAndrusAuthor
Twitter: @andruscaroline