Review: First Comes Love by Katie Kacvinsky

From Inside Jacket: Like his name, Gray is dark and stormy. Dylan, a girl always searching for what’s next, seemingly unable to settle down, is the exact opposite: full of light and life. On the outside, they seem like an unlikely couple. But looks can be deceiving and besides, opposites attract. What starts as friendship, turns into admiration, respect and caring, until finally these two lone souls find they are truly in love with each other. But staying in love is not as easy as falling in love. If Dylan and Gray want their love to last, they’re going to have to work at it. And learn that sometimes love means having to say you’re sorry.

My Rating: 3.5 hearts  

Thoughts on the Novel: When I saw the synopsis for First Comes Love by Katie Kacvinsky, I thought it would simply be a story about two very different people falling in love and then experiencing some obstacles that challenge that love. It was that; but, First Comes Love was also a book about two people learning more about themselves by having someone to talk to and confide in.

Told from the perspectives of both Dylan and Gray, First Comes Love allows you to see what the two characters like about each other while simultaneously letting you develop your own opinion about them as individuals. Gray is moody, cynical, and someone who’s very much a loner. Dylan on the other hand is extremely carefree and completely uninhibited with her emotions. She also has this quirky tendency of naming everything she owns. Although I found it easier to connect with Gray than Dylan, what’s nice is that both characters are college-aged – an age range that I find lacking in YA. As such, Dylan and Gray do engage in (frequent) sex; and so First Comes Love may not be appropriate for younger teens.

What I enjoyed the most about First Comes Love though was the setting. As Gray and Dylan develop their fledgling friendship into something more, they visit numerous places in Phoenix, which Kacvinsky describes in detail. I’m terrible at visualizing things and places in my head, but Kacvinsky’s descriptions made me feel as if I had actually visited Phoenix and tagged along with Gray and Dylan like a third wheel.

A short book with a surprising amount of depth, First Comes Love was released in May 2012 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Comments About the Cover: I like that it’s very dark because First Comes Love isn’t one of those cheerful summer romance stories that are perfect for reading at the beach. I did take off the jacket though while reading the book on the bus since it’s kind of embarrassing to be seen in public with it.

In exchange for an honest review, this book was received from the publisher (Thomas Allen & Son) for free.

Author Interview: Katie Kacvinsky

As part of the A Cornucopia of Dystopia event held by Casey from The Bookish Type and Danya from A Tapestry of Words, Katie Kacvinsky, the author of Awaken, is here today to answer some of my questions. 

A bit about Katie (as quoted from Goodreads): Katie Kacvinsky worked in the entertainment industry and as a high school English teacher before deciding to write full time. She currently lives in Corvallis, Oregon. 

 
As a debut author, how long did it take to write and publish Awaken, and what was the process like?

This could be a really long winded answer, but to summarize it, it only took a couple of months to write a draft of Awaken. It was one of those books that spilled out of me; my characters took over my mind and pretty much wrote it for me. Once I had a solid draft polished, I started looking for agents. I spent almost as much time looking for agents as I did writing the manuscript! When I found representation, we pitched it to publishing houses and it took a few months and we had several rejections. I had interest from one house and even rewrote the first seven chapters and they still stalled. When Houghton Mifflin read it, they jumped on it. I remember my editor called me on a Friday to tell me how much she loved the book and they had a written offer by Monday. I was ecstatic because that’s what I wanted – a publishing house that loved my book and didn’t hesitate on signing it.   

How did you come up with the world and inventions present in Awaken?

I tried to put myself in Maddie’s shoes and see the world through her eyes. I imagined inventions that I think would be cool in the future, like cars that can drive underwater (I’m surprised they aren’t available yet).  I just extrapolated trends I’m seeing around me. 

Given a choice between living in the present or living in your world of 2060, which would you choose?

Well, since my future is a dystopia, I guess I’d prefer the present. Not to be dreadfully cynical, but I think we’re heading for a scary future. We spend more time on the computer every day. President Obama plans to make wireless internet available to 98% of households around the country. That’s great, but it also shows how digitalized we’ve become. If you’re not part of the new digital age, you might as well drop out of our culture. It’s like pushing a drug – I don’t think people realize the internet is a drug and they actually offer rehab for it now.   

Maddie has a bad habit of biting her nails. Tell us about a bad habit that you have.

I have a coffee habit but I’m in hardcore denial that it’s bad. I like to think of it as just a nice morning routine and ignore the fact that I’d probably have a migraine by noon if I didn’t get some caffeine in my system. 

Maddie's mom passes down her favourite books to Maddie. What are some of your favourite books that are worth passing on?

Oh, so many. I have a shelf full of my absolute favorites and some of them are: Cannery Row, Slaughterhouse Five, The World According to Garp, Jellicoe Road, Pride and Prejudice, The Alchemist, Fahrenheit 451, The Unforgiving Minute, Weetzie Bat, Romeo and Juliet, Blue Like Jazz …

 

Who is your favourite character from Awaken and why?

Justin is my favorite. Even though Maddie is the protagonist, I think the story is just as much Justin’s as it is hers. He has his own feelings to wake up to. He is also the foil against everything technological. More than anything I admire Justin’s perseverance. He won’t back down until he gets what he wants and I think that’s one of the most attractive traits a person can have. 

Do you have any writing projects currently planned for the future?

Yes! Houghton Mifflin Harcourt signed my next book, First Comes Love. This book rocks my world. It's young adult, but it's general teen fiction (instead of sci-fi). I hope to do a sequel for Awaken. Justin and Maddie's story has so many unresolved issues - it definitely needs to continue. Fist Comes Love is angst teen drama and the love story is ... wait for it ... legendary. (Had to steal a line from How I Met Your Mother. Thanks Barney).

A big thanks to Katie for taking the time to answer my question!

Review: Awaken by Katie Kacvinsky

Goodreads Summary: Maddie lives in a world where everything is done on the computer. Whether it’s to go to school or on a date, people don’t venture out of their home. There’s really no need. For the most part, Maddie’s okay with the solitary, digital life - until she meets Justin. Justin likes being with people. He enjoys the physical closeness of face-to-face interactions. People aren’t meant to be alone, he tells her. Suddenly, Maddie feels something awakening inside her - a feeling that maybe there is a different, better way to live. But with society and her parents telling her otherwise, Maddie is going to have to learn to stand up for herself if she wants to change the path her life is taking. In this not-so-brave new world, two young people struggle to carve out their own space.

 

My Rating: 4 hearts

Thoughts on the Novel: The last time I read a dystopian novel was back in sixth grade, and my only experience with the genre made me not like it (probably because I was forced to read the book and didn't bother to give it a fair chance). So, with the abundance of dystopian novels hitting the YA market, it was only a matter of time before I read another one. Little did I know that it would be Katie Kacvinsky's Awaken, a very good start towards building positive feelings for the genre.

What I really liked about Awaken – barring flying cars or ones that can travel underwater – was that Kacvinsky’s vision of the future was pretty realistic. In 2060, most things can be done digitally and so there’s no need to go out for school, work, etc. We’re already starting to see the beginnings of these possibilities with online schools and social networking sites, and so it isn’t hard to imagine that face to face interactions could become rare in the future, especially if free online schooling becomes mandatory for students. I know most of the friends that I see on a regular basis are those that I’ve met through school.

Maddie was a pretty good narrator as well and I liked that she was willing to question the way things were. However, for someone as smart as she was, I felt that she was way too trusting of Justin early on, particularly given who she is and her past. I mean, who is so eager to introduce you to their friends if they’re going to be leaving town soon?

Speaking of Justin, I thought he was an interesting character but I didn’t really like him as a romantic interest because I felt that he was trying to get close to Maddie for her connections. Even later when I knew that Justin liked Maddie, I felt that his feelings for her were muddled up with the advantage Maddie presented to him and his side. Their relationship was a little frustrating to read with Maddie wanting Justin whereas he kept saying that he wasn’t good enough for her and his job would always come first to him.

The other complaint I had reading Awaken was that there were a bunch of grammatical errors. It was an ARC though so those mistakes will obviously be fixed before publication.

A solid debut by Kacvinsky, Awaken will be released on May 23, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Comments About the Cover: The cover is really creative and I like that the flowers are captured perfectly in a jar because the plants that Maddie sees daily are not real but synthetic. As well, the colours that are used give a nostalgic feel, which goes really well with the story of trying to elicit a change in society back towards the good old days of face to face communication.

In exchange for an honest review, this ARC was received from the publisher (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) for free via NetGalley.