Review: On The Fence by Kasie West – Swoonuary Post

This February I am participating in Swoonuary. If you did not read my first post about Swoonuary, Swoonuary is an event hosted by The Bookish Groupies (Jennie, Mallory, Ang, Blessie, & Tika), in which I pledged to read personally selected swoon worthy books throughout the month of February!

The second book on my list for Swoonuary is…

On The Fence

Title: On The Fence

Author: Kasie West

Publication Date: July 1, 2014

Excerpt from Goodreads:

For sixteen-year-old Charlotte Reynolds, aka Charlie, being raised by a single dad and three older brothers has its perks. She can outrun, outscore, and outwit every boy she knows—including her longtime neighbor and honorary fourth brother, Braden. But when it comes to being a girl, Charlie doesn’t know the first thing about anything. So when she starts working at chichi boutique to pay off a speeding ticket, she finds herself in a strange new world of makeup, lacy skirts, and BeDazzlers. Even stranger, she’s spending time with a boy who has never seen her tear it up in a pickup game.

To cope with the stress of faking her way through this new reality, Charlie seeks late-night refuge in her backyard, talking out her problems with Braden by the fence that separates them. But their Fence Chats can’t solve Charlie’s biggest problem: she’s falling for Braden. Hard. She knows what it means to go for the win, but if spilling her secret means losing him for good, the stakes just got too high.

With three brothers and no mother, Charlie can’t help but be a tomboy. When she gets a job at a boutique to pay off her speeding tickets, she’s in for quite a few surprises. Charles starts to wear “girly” clothes, model makeup, and even begins to date. Afraid of her brothers teasing and judgement, she tries to keep her home life and work life separate. Charlie finds solstice with her middle of the night fence talks with her and her brother’s practically life-long friend, Braden. Braden is the only one she feels she can be herself around. He even knows about her double life. They meet up almost every night at the fence and Charlie is beginning to have feelings for him.

When she confronts him about those feelings, he denies any feelings he has for her. Charlie, although hurt, tries to move on. She meets someone else (Evan) whom everyone approves of, except Braden. Charlie can’t decide if Braden is being overprotective of her or if it is plain jealousy. Meanwhile, Charlie is attempting to sort out her true feelings for Evan and how to tell her family about the double life she has been living.

This book was seriously cute. I love the banter between Charlie and her brothers and it was very obvious how much they cared for Charlie. I also loved how tomboyish Charlie was. It was definitely a fresh take on the main character of a contemporary novel. We experience some very realistic and serious issues within this book that many people can relate. And no instalove!! Yay! We get to see some real character development in their relationship from friends to a couple.

This was a quick and easy read that kept me entertained from beginning to end. This is the first book I have read by Kasie West and I will definitely check out her other books!

4 out of 5 stars