ARC Review: The Unlikelies by Carrie Firestone

The Unlikelies by Carrie Firestone

Genre: YA Contemporary, Friendship, Romance

Publication: June 6th 2017 by Little, Brown and Company

Series: n/a

Length: 336 pages

Format: ARC from publisher (thanks!!)

Goodreads

Five teens embark on a summer of vigilante good samaritanism in a novel that’s part The Breakfast Club, part The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, and utterly captivating.

Rising high school senior Sadie is bracing herself for a long, lonely, and boring summer. But things take an unexpected turn when she steps in to help rescue a baby in distress and a video of her good deed goes viral.

Suddenly internet-famous, Sadie’s summer changes for the better when she’s introduced to other “hometown heroes.” These five very different teens form an unlikely alliance to secretly right local wrongs, but when they try to help a heroin-using friend, they get in over their heads and discover that there might be truth in the saying “no good deed goes unpunished.” Can Sadie and her new friends make it through the summer with their friendships–and anonymity–intact?

This rich and thought-provoking novel takes on timely issues and timeless experiences with a winning combination of romance, humor, and wisdom.

I didn’t know what to expect when I requested this novel on a whim; I just knew that I liked the cover, and it gave me amazing summer vibes. THE UNLIKELIES was my first Carrie Firestone novel, and I definitely will pick up her other works!

THE UNLIKELIES follows Sadie, as she saves a baby from a sweltering car and establishes herself as a local hero. She and her group of friends decide to embark with the goal of making their town safer, by becoming anonymous heroes. The plot had a pretty quick pace, and there were nuances of different themes, like romance, addiction, and family ties.

My favorite part of this novel was, hands down, the dialogue. It was biting, quick, and full of jokes and sarcasm that I love. The writing style was eloquent and easy to follow, interspersed with text messages and notes that the Unlikelies write. The only few reservation that I have with this novel is that it’s not a book you can read quickly—if I did, I would be pretty lost and I had to go back and reread a few pages. As a result, this book is to be read slowly and carefully, as there are only a few sentences-worth of info-dumping and don’t give you much background throughout the novel.

The romance was also quite well-done. The romance between Sadie and her fellow Unlikely (name not included to prevent spoiling!) was sweet and I enjoyed how it was developed well and didn’t occur on a whim. While this romance seems standard, Firestone delivers themes of rumors and mistakes surrounding blooming love.

Overall, I was pretty content with THE UNLIKELIES. It was a cute summer read, including an adorable romance featuring Sadie. If you enjoy contemporaries with a summer flair, be sure to check this standalone out!

Are you planning to read THE UNLIKELIES soon? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!