katie
Written on Jul 24, 2019
Full review to be published later this week at http://kaitplusbooks.com!
After a year spent at a boarding school for her past mistakes, Ashlyn is ready to reconnect with her friends, restart her life, and enter senior year. But when family trouble hits home and she is forced to help out at her estranged cousin’s wilderness retreat center, Ashlyn struggles between returning to the girl she was or growing into someone new.
Ashlyn Zanotti has big plans for the summer. She's just spent a year at boarding school and can't wait to get home. But when Ashlyn's father is arrested for tax evasion and her mother enters a rehab facility for "exhaustion," a.k.a. depression, her life is turned upside down again.
Things go from bad to worse when Ashlyn's father sends her to work with a cousin she doesn't even know at a rustic team-building retreat center in the middle of nowhere. A self-proclaimed "indoor girl," not even Ash's habit of leaving breadcrumb quotes--inspirational sayings she scribbles everywhere--can help her cope.
With a dangerously careless camp manager doling out grunt work, an overbearing father trying to control her even from prison, and more than a little boy drama to struggle with, the summer is full of challenges. And Ashlyn must make the toughest decision of her life: keep quiet and follow her dad's marching orders or find the courage to finally stand up to her father to have any hope of finding her way back home.
A modern twist on Hansel and Gretel, No Place like Here features:
- A strong female lead who doesn’t shy away from difficult parent-teen relationships
- A clean and wholesome love triangle, romcom vibes, and feel-good fuzzy emotions
- Returning cast of characters from Christina June’s It Started With Goodbye
- Perfect for fans of Elise Bryant, Morgan Matson, and Sarah Dessen
- ISBN10 0310766923
- ISBN13 9780310766926
- Publish Date 27 June 2019 (first published 21 May 2019)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Publisher Zondervan
- Imprint Blink
- Format Paperback
- Pages 288
- Language English
Reviews
Full review to be published later this week at http://kaitplusbooks.com!
Sam@WLABB
Written on May 20, 2019
Characters
I had "met" Ashlyn in June's first book, It Started with Goodbye, and was excited to get to know her better. My heart went out to her, when she found out that her family was going in three different directions that summer. Her feelings of abandonment were strong, as well they should be, but I was grateful that she was able to find some comfort in her aunt, uncle, cousin, and some of the retreat staff. Her cousin, Hannah, and Baxter were two standout characters. They were very supportive, but didn't push Ashlyn too hard, and that was exactly what she needed to help her work through her family issues.
Family Focus
Ashlyn's family was in trouble. Her mother was seeking treatment for her depression, and her father was to begin serving his sentence in prison. Either one of these would be a stressful situation, and Ashlyn had to bear the weight of both. But, you know what? She used the time and space at camp to reflect on her relationship with her family. She realistically struggled with her feelings for her father. She loved him, but was also frustrated with him for the demands he constantly made of her. Through her separation and a lot of refection, she came to terms with her issues regarding her father, and resolved to try and fix things with her family, because in the end, she loved them. I also liked that Ashlyn was building a bridge back to her aunt, uncle, and cousin. They were such a big part of her growth and healing, and I was glad she was keeping them in her life.
Lots of Fun Stuff
I was all over this setting. The wilderness retreat was such a fun and unique place to spend the summer. There were bon fires and bike rides, swimming and scavenger hunts, sunrise hikes and zip lining. It just posed a wealth of possibilities and I had a great time being there with Ashlyn.
There was also hints of an adorable romance in this story. It was not a full-on romance, and the character justified her stand on why it wasn't, but I so, so wanted it to be. In fact, I was hoping there was an epilogue waiting for me, so I could see how Ashlyn's family made out AND see if my ship happened. Alas, there was none, but I am holding out hope, that June writes another book set in this world. Maybe Hannah could get her own book. It could happen, right?
Overall
A fabulous, low-drama coming of age story. It was a heartwarming tale of family and finding your voice, and I was happy to accompany Ashlyn on her journey.
*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
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Liz (Bent Bookworm)
Written on May 9, 2019
No Place Like Here was so much more than I expected! I went into it thinking I was getting a somewhat fluffy summer camp novel (at only 272 pages I finished it in half a shift at work – yes, my job is that slow). While there were fluffy aspects, it was so much deeper and touched my heart in ways I was completely surprised by.
Ashlyn’s entire world has been turned upside down. All her plans for the summer have gone out the window. Her parents BOTH seem to have abandoned her. She’s been shipped off to stay with relatives she hasn’t seen for nearly a decade. She plans to just keep her head down and her mouth shut, just like she has for the entire life she’s spent with her overbearing, self-centered father. But then she realizes that she does still have a family that cares about her, and she starts to grow into herself. She grows SO MUCH in this short book, it was really amazing and yet still very believable.
I loved that she didn’t just grow up and shut her parents out. She grew up and at least tried to start the healing process with them. Her mom’s struggle with depression felt realistically portrayed, and I really appreciated the positive mental health rep in the book! Getting help is NOT a weakness, or a waste of time. YES!
Also, a HUGE thank you to Christina June for not making this a “romance is the answer” story. There is a little flirtation, a little kissing, a lot of attraction – but no real romance. So many stories portray romantic relationships as the cure-all for what ails us and it’s just so not true!
Now I need to go back and read the books that came before this one. Apparently some of the same characters show up, so I’m personally hoping that after No Place Like Here we get to hear more of Baxter’s story…
5/5 stars. I loved this book! I’ll be waiting for anything else Christina June puts out.
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