Starry eyes weaves the story of Zorie and Lennon. Two ex best friends who decided to take their relationship to the next level. Sounds pretty simple, right? It should be but family drama, miscommunication, and teenage emotions cause Zorie and Lennon’s relationship to shift from young love to not speaking. When the two of them get stranded camping they find their way out of the wilderness and back into each others hearts. I read very few teen romances but this story was very well done and I was intrigued by all of the different aspects of these characters. Zorie and Lennon were as unique as their names and Jenn Bennett’s Starry Eyes an intelligently written vehicle for their story.

This was my first Jenn Bennett novel and was rather surprised by the adult subject matter. Lennon has been raised by two moms who own an adult sex shop. As wild and crazy as that may sound the scenes in the shop were subtle yet filled with humor. Most of the early emotional drama came from Zorie’s father who hates Lennon and his parents. As the novel goes on we are clued into the why’s and wherefore’s but in the beginning this hatred seems filled with bigotry.  Zorie’s emotional growth is displayed by the way she deals with her father and his irrational anger and marital problems with her step mother. Also, I feel I should give a warning, the teens in this book are all sexually active which I guess is not uncommon today but I found myself trying to double check their ages a couple of times. At times I forgot I was reading a YA novel, so if you have kids, be aware of the adult content.

Lennon was a perfect blend of nerdy cool. He had two moms, worked in a snake shop and had a b-level rock star for a father. What’s not to like? Even though the novel was written from Zorie’s perspective you could feel Lennon’s emotions and really identify with his character. I can totally see YA readers being easily captivated by him.

I really enjoyed this novel in large part because of all of the surprises revealed through the story, but also because of the unique setting. Most of the novel takes place while Zorie and Lennon are hiking through the wilderness. Seeing nature and the night’s sky through their Starry Eyes almost made me want to pack a bag and a book and go on a hike. Almost. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

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Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

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