Book Review: On the Fence by Kasie West (@KasieWest)

On the Fence by Kasie West
Publication Date: July 1, 2014
Published: HarperTeen

My Rating: (Give all the stars!)

She's a tomboy. He's the boy next door…
Charlie Reynolds can outrun, outscore, and outwit every boy she knows. But when it comes to being a girl, Charlie doesn't know the first thing about anything. So when she starts working at a chichi boutique to pay off a speeding ticket, she finds herself in a strange new world. To cope with the stress of her new reality, Charlie takes to spending nights chatting with her neighbor Braden through the fence between their yards. As she grows to depend on their nightly Fence Chats, she realizes she's got a bigger problem than speeding tickets-she's falling for Braden. She knows what it means to go for the win, but if spilling her secret means losing him for good, the stakes just got too high.
Fun, original, and endearing, On the Fence is a romantic comedy about finding yourself and finding love where you least expect.

If I wasn't already head-over-heels in love with anything Kasie West writes, this would have done it for me. There is something about her writing style and storytelling ability that draws you in, captures you in this vice grip and makes you fall in love with not just every character she puts on the page, but with falling in love itself. Not only did this book make my heart expand, burst, and repeat, it gave me just the right amount of realness and hope combined. So instead of doing my regular gushing about this book, I'm going to list all the reasons why this story works and why it is awesome. (There are many reasons)

Reason 1: Best friend Romance

Who doesn't love a best friend romance? I think we've all had that fleeting thought that maybe the person who knows us the best is Mr. or Mrs. Right. Throughout, I felt like I was rooting for Charlie to get a clue and realize that the boy she considers a brother is probably the best guy for her. 

Reason 2: Likeable female protagonist

Time after time I find myself frustrated with female main characters. There is something about them that irk me in one way or another. However, with Charlie, I immediately liked her. Maybe it was the fact that she was a tomboy or maybe because she didn't know everything off the bat, but there was this likeable quality about her. I wanted to be her friend.

Reason 3: Even more loveable secondary characters

Each and every one of Charlie's brothers were amazing. Gage, Jerom, and Nathan were so developed and each had their own unique personality. Being an only child, reading about Charlie and her brothers sucked me in and gave me a sense of belonging. Not to mention that Gage was hilarious! 

Reason 4: Slight angst

There are times when books have sad things happen to characters for the sake of it, with no real purpose other than having angst. What Kasie does is give her characters obstacles without  having it over shadow the whole story. 

I could go on and on and on about this book, but then you wouldn't have to read it and what fun would that be? Read this book and everything else Kasie West has written. I seriously love her stories.

Until Next Time!