Review: Boomerang by Noelle August

Rating: 5 stars

Pub Date: July 8, 2014

Publisher: William Morrow (Harper Collins)

Genre: new adult contemporary romance

Format/Source: DRC, Edelweiss

Status: Book 1 of the Boomerang companion series

Summary:

The first book in a sensational New Adult trilogy from Noelle August.

Welcome to Boomerang.com, the dating site for the millennial gen with its no-fuss, no-commitments matchups, and where work is steamier than any random hook-up

Mia Galliano is an aspiring filmmaker. Ethan Vance has just played his last game as a collegiate soccer star. They’re sharp, hungry for success, and they share a secret.

Last night, Ethan and Mia met at a bar, and, well . . . one thing led to another, which led to them waking up the next morning—together. Things turned awkward in a hurry when they found themselves sharing a post hookup taxi . . . to the same place: Boomerang headquarters.

What began as a powerful connection between them is treated to a cold shower courtesy of two major complications. First, Boomerang has a strict policy against co-worker dating. And second, they’re now competitors for only one job at the end of summer.

As their internships come to an end, will they manage to keep their eyes on the future and their hands off each other, or will the pull of attraction put them right back where they started?

Review:

I heard that Veronica Rossi was cowriting a NA romance, and I was like, "Oh, of course I'm going to read that!" Then one day, I was on Edelweiss. I saw this cute cover, liked the blurb, and requested it. It was only after I'd sent off my request that I looked at the author information and realized Boomerang was in fact that book I'd heard about months before. I was so grateful to be approved, and then Boomerang sat on my tablet just waiting for me to start reading it. And by "sat on my tablet just waiting" I mean it was silently telling me to READ ME NAO. So I started reading Boomerang immediately, even though I had some other books I sould have been reading. Eventually guilt overcame me so I put Boomerang down, but it just wasn't having it. I kept trying throughout the course of a day to put Boomerang down, but my efforts were absurdly futile. I read it in less than a day.

So what about this book was so captivating? First of all, it's the humor. In the very first sentence, Mia managed to win me over by being concerned about the location of her underwear, and I was hooked. Eventually you will discover where Mia's missing undies have been hiding (and it'll have you rolling on the floor as well), but the secret is out: this book is hilarious. Ethan, Mia, their boss, their families, their coworkers: every character has at least one line that had me giggling. This book is a delight in that it was incredibly fun to read. In some ways it's very much a comedy of errors as Mia and Ethan attempt to figure out what exactly they did that first night (did they or didn't they? THAT is the question!) as well as try to tamp down their very natural-but-against-the-rules chemistry, juggle their internship with dating and exes and money and family.

I know many people are still very skeptical over the validity of the new adult genre in literature, but I think Boomerang is definitely a book that has the substance to prove to readers it is not only an entertaining and interesting genre, but it is just as vital and necessary as we have now realized the young adult genre to be. And this is because of that juggling act Mia and Ethan have to do. I am a new adult. At twenty-six years old, I'm living away from my parents fcr the first time (I don't count college because dorm life is NOTHING like real adult life) and having to pay my own bills, cook, and generally just be responsible for myself. At one point, Ethan has to call his dad to ask for financial help. I totally made that utterly humiliating, embarrassing, humbling and emotionally-exhausting call to my own parents just a few months ago. It was one of the worst moments of my life, and I 100% empathize with Ethan's financial straits. I forget who I was talking to, but at an event, someone said they consider these books to be shelved simply as adult. I mean, that's fine. They ARE adult. But there is something to be said to have a genre that is catered to a specific age group. One upon a time, there was just literature. Then kid lit was introduced, and everything else was therefore adult. Then ya came on the scene in a big way, then middle grade. Why not have a genre dedicated to the early stages of adulthood? YA is important because there is a lot more responsibility and you also mature a lot emotionally and mentally. Buuuut NA kind of represents that period when you are truly independent, particularly financially (or at least trying to be that way). This is another time of firsts (first adult love, first post-college job, hopefully a true and lasting career, first adult home, etc) so I think it's cool that this genre has started showing up in a big way.

But I digress (I know I do that a lot...). Even though Boomerang is clearly a book that revolves around a romantic relationship, it hits on all those points I mention above and still balances in other kinds of relationships like those with friends, family, roommates, good AND bad coworkers as well as other kinds of romantic relationships like awkward and bad first dates and exes. I've said that Fangirl and Just One Day are the books I wish I'd had going into college, but Boomerang is the one I wish I'd had once I'd left. Better late than never, I suppose. It seems like the current generation of 20s and early 30s are somewhat lost. I hope you are not offended if you are in that group; I'm there too. There's a lot of uncertainty that we face daily. In a world with so much freedom to choose a future but severe limitations created by an economic crisis and tight emploiyment competition, it's easy to feel frustrated and alone. I think Boomerang is a book that honestly portrays characters living with these same uncertainties, and that makes me feel a heck of a lot less alone.

No matter your feelings on the new adult genre, Boomerang is a great book. Period. Because of the adult content and nature, I don't feel like I would recommend it to a teen. I don't mean just because of the sexy times, which are actually very tasteful and well-done, but I just don't think a teen would really identify with some of the conflict in the book. Ignore the labels, though, and this is a book any reader will relate to and enjoy.

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About the Author:

NOELLE AUGUST is an anagram for Veronica Rossi and Lorin Oberweger. Just kidding, it's a pen name!

VERONICA ROSSI is the author of the New York Times Best-selling UNDER THE NEVER SKY trilogy for young adults. The books are available in more than thirty countries and the film rights have been optioned by Warner Bros. Veronica completed undergraduate studies at UCLA and lives in Northern California with her husband and two sons. She is fond of dresses with pockets, fluffy dogs, and cheese and chocolate -- but not together.

LORIN OBERWEGER began her storytelling career by captivating her first-grade class with tales of her summers on a kibbutz in Israel. Lorin had never been to Israel. While teacher/parent night put an end to her first experiments in fiction, she’d already caught the bug and eventually made a career of all things story. As a long-time independent editor and story development guru, Lorin's client successes range from small press publications to major bestselling novels. She's an award-winning author and has also worked behind the scenes as a ghostwriter on a variety of projects. Her work has received starred Kirkus reviews and glowing mentions in The New York Times. Oh, she did get to see a kibbutz, eventually, and found out she had it pretty much right all along.

Veronica and Lorin met at a writing workshop and just knew they were destined to create awesome things together.

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Thanks to Jessica and Rachel of Bookslapped for letting me be part of this awesome tour!