(Yay, I found my cover and not the redo they just released! Not that the redo's ugly, but this cover is mine.)
So in this novel, we meet insomniac Auden, who's about to go off to Defriese University in the fall. She lives with her academic mother, who likes hosting parties for her grad students that usually end up with her sleeping with one of them. Her author father now lives in Colby with his younger new wife, Heidi, and their newborn daughter, Thisbe. (Her father likes pretentious names like that, if you couldn't tell.)
In order to get away from her mother's proclivities for a little while, Auden decides to stay with her father and Heidi for the summer. She figures she might study up for her classes and maybe spend a little time at the beach - nothing too crazy or out of her comfort zone.
That's not what ends up happening.
First of all, Thisbe demands constant attention because, you know, she's a newborn, but Auden's father is too busy working on his highly-anticipated second novel to ever help Heidi, so Auden ends up falling into the role of sometime-caregiver. Second, Heidi's boutique is a mess when it comes to accounting, so Auden also ends up becoming the bookkeeper for Clementine's. Most importantly, though, is third: Eli Stock. Eli's also an insomniac and a native of Colby who used to be hot in the BMX biking circuit until a car accident that he believes was his fault killed his best friend. Eli and Auden end up hanging out most nights as he shows her around Colby's "nightlife," and they help each other realize that maybe they don't have to act like everyone expects them to.
Auden's new personality becomes more and more evident throughout the novel, especially when her pretentious, professorial mother shows up on a surprise vacation and her father and Heidi's relationship starts getting rocky. Will she default to her old, loner ways, or will she realize that it's possible to strike a balance between being responsible and being alive?
I really, really love this novel. Auden is a character I can understand (minus the angry, divorced parents), and it's entertaining to watch her have these revelations that are earth-shattering to her but totally normal for me: I can be smart but also enjoy wearing pink? Failing at things is okay?
I also appreciate Maggie's character so much. Maggie is one of Heidi's employees at the boutique, and at first glance, she's a typical girly-girl - pink clothing, boy drama, etc. But as Auden gets to know her, she learns that Maggie's also going to Defriese in the fall and she's pretty good at BMX biking herself. Maggie helps Auden break out of her internalized misogyny, and it's kind of the best thing ever.
The only characters I really didn't like were Auden's parents, but even that changes over the course of the novel. Her mom starts out as a woman who forces her world to orbit to her whims, but slowly realizes that talking about your emotions isn't weak or problematically girly, while her dad begins as a selfish man who wants the world to focus on him more but starts realizing that he's going to need to compromise if he wants both a family and a career by the end of the book. Seeing both of these ostensible "grown-ups" learn how childish they really are is truly satisfying.
One minor complaint is all I have: the action always cuts out right when the storyline starts working itself out. Auden and Eli juuuuuust work out their final issues when bam! It's suddenly a couple weeks later, when Auden's in college. That epilogue-y segue does inform the reader that the characters are continuing their implied development, but it just feels a little abrupt, at least in my opinion. It doesn't ruin the novel, but it throws off my groove.
Overall, Along for the Ride is captivating and pleasant, with characters that feel real and friendly. The character development is rich, worthwhile, and fun to watch. 4.5 stars for the slapdash ending.
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