Out of Play by Nyrae Dawn & Jolene Perry

Challenge #12 ~ “A book that is a collaboration between two or more people.”

outofplay

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

My opinion in three sentences:

A heart-warming tale with twists and complexity that didn’t shy away from the difficult themes it broached wasn’t necessarily what I was expecting from a book that, let’s be honest, is by and large marketed as a young adult romance based on the familiar old celebrity trope, but its what Dawn & Perry deliver. Bursting with realistic and relatable characters, from the protagonists down to the side characters, Out of Play presents a strong narrative, whilst simultaneously offering the ease of a beach read. I won’t pretend it offers a mind-bending or non-predictable plot, but it remains true to its roots and doesn’t falter when things get difficult.

(Without spoiling anything) the best bit:

Without a doubt, the shining gem of the novel has to be the characterisation. I’m one of those readers that prefers plot-driven literature over character-driven, yet I can certainly see the appeal when presented with characters like these. Even the side characters had their complex 3D lives, which wormed their way into my hearts, and soon I cared just as much about them as I did the protagonists. Well, almost. Two, beautifull-written POVs certainly help focus the attention, but you’d need a heart of stone not to fall for Gramps.

A warning for the book:

Don’t really conjure up any ideas before reading the book. The blurb is fine, just not really suited to the book. The title is fine, although it has me conjuring ideas of tennis rather than music. The cover is, I guess, fine, though not my cup of tea and rather generic, and the book deserves better. Going into the book with pre-conceived ideas, I feel, is setting yourself up for disappointment when they inevitably don’t match. But it will surprise you, and has a lot deeper thematic discussion to offer than your average beach read.

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