Sunday, June 8, 2014

My Ramblings on Rain Check by Gypsy Rae Choszer

Rain Check
By: Gypsy Rae Choszer
Release Date: May 28th 2014
Author Website

Summary:
For Avery Montgomery, the devastation of losing her parents in a tragic accident has left her completely shattered. As she begins to pick up the pieces of her once perfect life, she uncovers a secret that will forever change her—she’s adopted!

In a search for answers, Avery ventures to Portland where she rents a room from Jonah, a quirky artist who quickly becomes her best friend. His house puts her in close proximity to the metaphysical shop run by her birth mother, the free-spirited Marianna Hutchins. Avery enters The Crystal Moon fully intending to confront Marianna, but instead she chickens out and inquires about a job. She's hired; yet remains leery about confessing her secret.

As Avery settles into town, she has an embarrassing encounter with Gabe, the incredibly attractive man who works a few doors down. Despite the awkward introduction, there is undeniable chemistry, but after a recent heartbreak all he’s looking for is friendship. 
Everyone deserves a second chance. Will Avery get hers with a new family? Will Gabe allow himself a second chance at love? Will they embrace their new relationships, or will they simply decide to take a rain check? (from Goodreads)

My Ramblings:
I've known Gypsy for several years and when I started reading this book I was a little worried. What if I didn't like it? Then what would I do? I should have known that I didn't have to worry. All the things that make Gypsy and awesome person come through in her writing and reading Rain Check felt like I was listening to Gypsy tell a story. She managed to take a story that could have taken a turn towards sadness and filled it with humor and hope. 

Avery is an awesome lead character. She's been hurt and left alone, but she's not falling victim to her circumstances. Instead she's going out and trying to create her own future by making some tough choices. Not always successfully, but always with a good attitude. Gabe comes across as a bit of an asshole for some of the book- when he's with Avery he's great, but then there's that other girl that just won't let him go, and you kind of want to reach into the book and smack him at least once since he isn't getting it all on his own. Even though Gabe is the love interest, as far as I'm concerned the leading man is Jonah, and he's fabulous. Everyone should have a Jonah as a best friend to remind you that you aren't alone and that the world can be made better with a few hours with the Winchester brothers and some snarky comments. 

These characters felt real to me. They weren't perfect and they weren't so tragic that it seemed their problems were insurmountable. They existed in the middle somewhere, taking their knocks and coming out of them scarred, but okay.  I felt like these characters could be my neighbors, or my friends, or me and that made reading the story really great. I can't wait to see what Gypsy does next!