Blog Tour – Book Review: I Know It’s Over

PURE. UNPLANNED. PERFECT.

Those were Nick’s summer plans before Sasha stepped into the picture. With the collateral damage from his parents’ divorce still settling and Dani (his girl of the moment) up for nearly anything, complications are the last thing he needs. All that changes, though, when Nick runs into Sasha at the beach in July. Suddenly he’s neck-deep in a relationship and surprised to find he doesn’t mind in the least. But Nick’s world shifts again when Sasha breaks up with him. Then, weeks later, while Nick’s still reeling from the breakup, she turns up at his doorstep and tells him she’s pregnant. Nick finds himself struggling once more to understand the girl he can’t stop caring for, the girl who insists that it’s still over.

–From Goodreads

Cover Inspection:
What caught my eye was the girl walking away from the bed. Hmmm….

First Thoughts:
Oh my gosh. Nick is in deep!

***

My Review:
This is the type of book that I wish was around when I was a teen. Perhaps there was one out there, but I wasn’t lucky enough to find it. It is the type of story that draws you in, even though it deals with some tough issues. Pregnancy, divorce, abortion, it all makes for a gritty and realistic read. Martin writing is deep, and its brutal honesty shines from the page. I would compare this to Sarah Dessen, but more real and less sugar coated.

The story is told in first person, from Nick’s point of view. It is hard for me to explain just how refreshing it was to see a topic like teen pregnancy looked at from a male point of view. Generally books that deal with these types of subjects are from the female point of view, and we see how a teenage girl deals with this life changing turn of events. To see this from Nick’s side was so different. I was really surprised at the range of emotions that he felt throughout the book. I suppose what I’m saying is that C.K. Kelly Martin shows us that not all boys in his position are “unfeeling bastards” as the norm would tell us. Nope, Nick is quite an enigma.

From Sasha’s side, we see the way that an issue like this affects a family. Sasha is the type of girl who strives to live up to a certain expectation. Her family wants her to do well and so she does her best to make them happy. That being said, when the pregnancy comes to light Sasha is torn. The story shows the reader how a family like Sasha’s will take control as well. I won’t spoil this book for anyone who is interested, but Sasha doesn’t have much of a say in what happens to her and the life living inside her. This too, is so true to life.

As an older reader, this book was really impressive to me mostly because of how true to life the characters and their emotions were. The sheer weight of what was happening weighed down on both of them, but they chose to handle it differently. C.K. Kelly Martin doesn’t berate her characters for choosing their path, but she does show the true consequences that come along with it. She subtly conveys the simple message that we are ultimately responsible for the consequences of our actions. Unfortunately, sometimes this means being responsible for someone else as well.

Overall I really enjoyed this read. There were times when I was so drawn in that I literally wanted to jump into the book to hug, or possibly punch, a character. The honesty that I Know It’s Over is written with is refreshing! I would recommend this book to any teen that is able to deal with sexual encounters. This might be one that a parent reads first, or even with their teen.

Book Details
Title: I Know It’s Over
Author: C.K. Kelly Martin
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Pages: Hardcover; 244
Source: Library

Final Rating: 4 Keys to My Heart
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