Just Juliet by Charlotte Reagan

Just Juliet by Charlotte Reagan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is another of those books I pick up free then take forever to actually get around to reading. I'd say that the slowness is due to massive piles of books on my TBR pile and books by authors I'd never read before take longer to try, even if free, but the same slowness to read applies to books I acquire for free by authors I've read before. Well, this time I know, since I can check, that I got this book for free on September 20 2016 - only took me until July 14 2017 to begin the book.

What's this book about? Well, largely this is about a high school student who sees themselves as being somewhere around the middle part - not popular, not total outcast (though it's confusing as she uses 'outcast' for herself a few times, while also making comments about how she's on the popular side of things a few other times), but middle. She's dating a football player, though doesn't like football herself, and has a bunch of friends. Lacey is her best friend since pre-school days.

She's something like the token black girl in school, Lacey that is, though another friend, Georgina, is also of darker coloration. Lacey is a cheerleader and popular, but doesn't actually like hanging out with the cheerleaders and is popular enough to do whatever she wants - which seems to be to hang out with people like Lena - the star of this book. Georginia is the token 'got pregnant young' girl. She had her baby and has an on again/off again situation with the baby daddy. Kiki is a petite Asian girl who is really into math, and doesn't talk much. That's the table of friends Lena has - until a new girl turns up named Juliet James.

Lena just can't stop starring at Juliet. Watching her, wanting to be near her, gazing upon her. Eventually the two even get around to talking to each other, and then becoming friends.

Becoming friends with Juliet leads Lena into a world she knew about but didn't have a personal connection to. One occasion, if I recall correctly it's the first day that opens the book, Lena gives Juliet a ride back to Juliet's house because it's pouring rain and it'd be a while before someone comes along to get Juliet. This is where we get to that 'into a world' part. For one of the first people Lena meets when she enters the James house is a man named Scott. Who, eventually, has someone yelling at them from another room. Saying things like 'baby' and the like. That individual eventually appears in visual range and proceeds to do two things - complain about being hungry, and kiss Scott. Lena is kind of frozen there in place when this happens, and Juliet gives off a kind of wave of annoyance at Lena's reaction. Scott, by the way, doesn't live at the James house (though he spends a lot of time there), no, he's dating Lakyn, Juliet's cousin (who does live at the James' house - do to horrible parents who lead to 'Mr. James' taking in Lakyn).

Really quickly it turns out that Juliet is like her cousin, in that she likes the same sex, sexually and romantically.

The book follows along as Lena processes this information and comes to a certain conclusion. That takes a really long time to get to. That conclusion? Well, she's not a lesbian. She's found men way too attractive and fun to be around to be a lesbian. Juliet, though, isn't a guy, nor is she the kind of person she is normally attracted to - which tended to involve square jaws and stuff, and have penis's. That certain conclusion? It's possible, maybe, that she might be bisexual. And no, that's not the conclusion of the book, this 'conclusion' occurs . . . hmms, well, some way before the half way mark.

Neat book. I'm having trouble seeing at the moment, though, so everything is kind of blurry and gibberish-y. So I'll just go to the rating and date part. Blurry due to being blind. From poor seeing ability. bah, fine, I broke my glasses. And can't see. So blind. So can't write.

Oh, right. Remembered something as I was adding this to my reviewed shelf and spotted the other shelves I've used - ages 13-19. Most of the people in this book, well Lena and friends, are around 17 to 18 for most of the book, but the book does follow them (through epilogue) to age 23. Hence the 'age-20s' shelf. Free-ebook. Self-explanatory. Bisexual - Lena. Young Adult - *nods*. Lesbian Fiction - well, Juliet's the lesbian there. LGBT. LGBT-Coming Out - in connection with the Questioning shelf - applies to Lena, though stories about the others coming out also plays role. LGBT-Gay - Scott & Lakyn.

Rating: 4.58

July 15 2017



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