What better way to kick off a Monday than a blog tour? Today I’ll be reviewing the Contemporary YA novel, Fade To Us.
Title: Fade To Us
Author: Julia Day
Published: February 6th (Wednesday Books)
Genres: Contemporary
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Goodreads Summary:
Fade To Us is a story about found families, the bond of sisterhood, and the agony and awe of first love.
Brooke’s summer is going to be EPIC–having fun with her friends and a job that lets her buy a car. Then her new stepfather announces his daughter is moving in. Brooke has always longed for a sibling, so she’s excited about spending more time with her stepsister. But she worries, too. Natalie has Asperger’s–and Brooke’s not sure how to be the big sister that Natalie needs.
After Natalie joins a musical theater program, Brooke sacrifices her job to volunteer for the backstage crew. She’s mostly there for Natalie, but Brooke soon discovers how much she enjoys being part of the show. Especially sweet is the chance to work closely with charming and fascinating Micah–the production’s stage manager. If only he wasn’t Natalie’s mentor…
When summer comes to an end, will Brooke finally have the family she so desperately wants–and the love she’s only dreamed about?
Reason One:
The Family Aspect
I loved so many things when it came to this blended family. First of all, Brooke was born from a sperm donation. I have never come across a story with a main character having a birth this way. I thought it was really interesting and wish it was delved in deeper. Only because I wasn’t exactly familiar with the process. This led to Brooke’s longing for a father her entire life. I loved her relationship with her mother as the two got a long quite well.
Secondly, I liked Brooke’s relationship with her stepfather and stepsister. She’s still getting used to her stepfather when Natalie makes her way to town. I can’t imagine the adjustment she had to go through. I don’t know how I feel about her behavior towards Natalie at times. I felt it was sometimes misdirected. I imagine it can be hard to get used to someone with a mental disorder, but there were times that I thought Brooke wasn’t helping things.
Reason Two:
Autism Representation
I enjoyed the representation of Autism here, though it seems like there’s quite a few books out that focus on the main character rather than the sibling with the disorder. I don’t know how I feel about that. It seems people would rather read about someone living with someone who has a disorder than read about that person with the disorder.
Reason Three:
Plays Galore
The majority of Fade To Us takes place amongst a community play group. I love plays and musicals. I liked being able to see the behind the scenes actions and the action going on backstage. I thought it was interesting to see the pressure that Jonah felt being one of the main people in charge at only 17.
Reason Four
MC With A Pet
Okay, this is a silly reason, but Brooke has a pet. It’s a cat named Tigger. I was way too excited about this because 1. I love cats and 2. lot of main characters do not (I don’t know how) have pets. It was nice to see him even brought up and seen at times.
Reason Five:
Brooke
Brooke was not a perfect character by any means. She also did a lot of wrong things when it came to Natalie. I still loved her a lot because of these things. They made her realistic. I liked seeing how she dealt with her stepfather and how she slowly began to further their relationship. I liked how she was with her stepsister most of the time.
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