"Callum and Harper" by Fisher Amelie

Title: Callum & Harper

By: Fisher Amelie
Genre: YA
Format: Kindle
Cover Rating: 5/5 Stars

From Goodreads: Life sucks for orphans Callum Tate and Harper Bailey.

Kicked out of their foster homes because they suffer the 'eighteen disease' with nothing but a hundred dollar check from the government and a pat on the back, they're forced to rely on a system that failed them miserably.

So they sit. They sit inside Social Services, waiting for their social workers to call their names and offer them the miracle they know will never come but they sit anyway because they have nowhere else to go, no other options on their very literal and figurative empty plates.

But as they sit, they notice the other. Although captivated, they each come to the conclusion that life is complicated enough without throwing in a boiling tension that can't ever be acted upon because they're both too busy thinking about where their next meal will come from but when their names are called and both are placed on a year long waiting list for permanent housing, suddenly relying on each other seems like a very viable plan B.

And, oh, how lovely Plan B's can be.

Well, except for the psycho from Harper's past that haunts her and, oh, yeah, there's the little issue that neither of them knows they're in love with the other. 

My Thoughts:  Okay, I have yet to post a "bad" review on my blog, but there's a first for everything. I REALLY wanted to like this book. I found it and was so excited by the description and the cover. But once I attempted to read it, I discovered it wasn't for me at all. I couldn't even finish it. The characters of Callum and Harper were good in theory, but fell flat on the page. They were cliche and like some other reviewers said, Callum came off as girlish. I was unable to connect to them emotionally, which I found odd because the story should have been filled with emotion since the two kids are basically homeless. It felt sugar-coated. Granted, I did only read 16% of the book, but being thrown out on the streets should leave you pretty freaked out. Even their "relationship" was plastic to me. There was no depth, just "Oh, she's pretty." It was "love at first sight". I mean, as the story goes on I'm sure they got to know one another better, but their foundation was ridiculous for me.

However, I could have finished the book with all that. I may would have even rated it 3 stars. But what really made me unable to endure it was the writing. The author switches between past/ present constantly, jarring me from the pages of the story and yanking me right out of the world.

All in all, the idea of this book is pretty awesome, but it's been poorly executed. I think that if the author went back and edited some things it could be a 5 star book. It needs more emotion and for the love of all that is holy, for her to pick a tense and stick with it.

My Rating: