99 Days by Katie Cotugno384 pages
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Release Date: April 21st 2015
Read an excerpt
Rate: 3 STARS
Synopsis:
Day 1: Julia Donnelly eggs my house my first night back in Star Lake, and that’s how I know everyone still remembers everything—how I destroyed my relationship with Patrick the night everything happened with his brother, Gabe. How I wrecked their whole family. Now I’m serving out my summer like a jail sentence: Just ninety-nine days till I can leave for college, and be done.
Day 4: A nasty note on my windshield makes it clear Julia isn’t finished. I’m expecting a fight when someone taps me on the shoulder, but it’s just Gabe, home from college and actually happy to see me. “For what it’s worth, Molly Barlow,” he says, “I’m really glad you’re back.”
Day 12: Gabe got me to come to this party, and I’m actually having fun. I think he’s about to kiss me—and that’s when I see Patrick. My Patrick, who’s supposed to be clear across the country. My Patrick, who’s never going to forgive me.
Katie Cotugno went to Catholic school for thirteen years which makes her, as an adult, both extremely superstitious and prone to crushes on boys wearing blazers. She routinely finds herself talking about the romantic endeavors of characters on TV shows as if they actually exist in the world.
99 Days was one of those books that you had to be really understanding with. It's definitely sends a message (but only after you've read the entire book) but it might be hard to really like the characters. There is a lot of drama that some people may not be able to handle or addictive. It really depends on the reader. 99 Days is a book about a teen making mistakes, a teen dealing with the mistakes, a teen running from her problems, a teen who's trying to mend relationships, and a teen who's been quite lonely.
Molly was probably the hardest character I could connect to. I've never been in her position and she honestly makes terrible choices. But honestly, which teenager doesn't? Molly's a really flawed but real character. It's her poor decision making skills that got me annoyed at points.The thing is that not many YA books deals with this huge character arc in just one book so we see this whole thing she had to go through in order to really get on with her life. I did however love how Molly took responsibility for her own actions but also affirms she wasn't the only one in the wrong. I also loved we see her re-establishing her friendships and relationships with others despite what's going on and it showed that everyone was trying on both parties.
I know that romance is technically a big part of this book but it didn't really feel like that for me. I honestly couldn't have cared less for Gabe and Patrick. They were both guys that I just didn't see with Molly but it was ultimately her choice. There are flashbacks to back when she was with Patrick and we get a pretty good insight into what their relationship was like. Because of this, I felt like some of her actions were contradictory to what she was thinking. But that could have just been my thinking and not hers. Either way, 99 Days ends on THE perfect note and I love love love how really showed how much her character developed over the summer.
Cheating was a big issue in this book and this may put some readers off. It's understandable but it is an issue that can and should be handled in YA especially with how much it can relate to the reality of the world. Not everything is black and white and some people need to just let go and come to terms with past events. If you think 99 Days is your type of book (or a contemporary person), then most definitely give it a try. Happy Readings!
Katie Cotugno went to Catholic school for thirteen years which makes her, as an adult, both extremely superstitious and prone to crushes on boys wearing blazers. She routinely finds herself talking about the romantic endeavors of characters on TV shows as if they actually exist in the world.
Katie is a Pushcart Prize nominee whose work has appeared in The Broadkill Review, The Apalachee Review, and Argestes, as well as on Nerve.com. Her first novel, HOW TO LOVE, is due out from Balzer + Bray on October 1st, 2013.
The great loves of Katie's life include child's pose, her little sister, and mozzarella and honey sandwiches. She lives in Boston (and in sin) with her boyfriend, Tom.
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