October 28, 2013

NEW ADULT MONDAYS: Finding It (Losing It #3)

The New Adult genre - their bad boys and big problems and epic loves make them engrossing tales that are so easy to lose yourself in. What's not to love about that? And, now, thanks to the cool chicks at Bewitched Bookworms, we can show these books the love they deserve in a weekly feature - New Adult Mondays.

Finding It (Losing It #3), by Cora Carmack
Published October 15, 2013
Publisher:
William Morrow
Format:
paperback, I purchased
Genre:
NA contemporary romance
To Buy: 
Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Rating:  4 STARS

(From Goodreads)
Sometimes you have to lose yourself to find where you truly belong...

Most girls would kill to spend months traveling around Europe after college graduation with no responsibility, no parents, and no-limit credit cards. Kelsey Summers is no exception. She's having the time of her life . . . or that's what she keeps telling herself.

It's a lonely business trying to find out who you are, especially when you're afraid you won't like what you discover. No amount of drinking or dancing can chase away Kelsey's loneliness, but maybe Jackson Hunt can. After a few chance meetings, he convinces her to take a journey of adventure instead of alcohol. With each new city and experience, Kelsey's mind becomes a little clearer and her heart a little less hers. Jackson helps her unravel her own dreams and desires. But the more she learns about herself, the more Kelsey realizes how little she knows about Jackson.


I admit it - I was one of those freaky people who stormed all the Targets within a 30 mile radius on the day that Finding It (Losing It #3) released, looking for my "golden ticket." Sadly, it appears that the copies of Finding It with Cora's golden signature completely skipped the metro Harrisburg area. But, I had fun searching, and in the end I still ended up bringing home another good Cora Carmack book with her pretty signature inside it (in plain black).

In Finding It, Bliss' BFF Kelsey is traveling the world with no real plan, effectively running from her problems and her future. It worked for awhile, but lately, the loneliness and bleakness has started catching back up with her, and no amount of alcohol or strange men can change that. Until she meets Jackson and he convinces her to try something different.

So, here's the thing. Cora Carmack has said that Jackson is her favorite boy yet. When I read that, I was like, "Whaaaat? Better than Garrick? Better than CADE?" Naturally, my interest was piqued. And, now that I've read about him, I get it. I get the Jackson love. This guy takes awesome to a new level. He's adventurous, bold, brave and sometimes a little bit of an ass. He finds Kelsey and makes it his mission to protect her while trying to help her.

Then there is Kelsey - I felt so sad for her pretty much all the time. She has these rich parents who don't give a crap about her. She had some really awful things happen to her when she was small, and her parents didn't believe her. It has affected her the rest of her life and really messed her up. Jackson really came along at the right time.

I loved Kelsey and Jackson together. Jackson has the ability to charm any female, yet Kelsey proves to be a big challenge. She doesn't let him get away with too much. And he doesn't let her get away with too much, either. They really are pretty perfect together. I think they may be my favorite couple of Cora's.

So, if Jackson is an amazing guy and Kelsey is a compelling girl and the two of them together are my favorite couple, why only the four stars? I was really, really into the story, and then it just kinda... fizzled. The entire book was spent building up this crazy tension and suspense between Jackson and Kelsey. There was so much push and pull, and the whole time there were these huge secrets that were being kept. The inevitable point in every book where the secrets come out and people are hurt and mad came, and from that point on the pace took off like a shot.

The last 10% of the book felt so incredibly rushed. To make matters worse, it felt like some major plot points suffered because of it. There was never any resolution between Kelsey and her parents. The book ends in Spain, so we never find out if she ever goes home. I felt so unfulfilled at the end, and that really upset me. I loved the characters and for the most part, I really loved the book. All it really needed was a really perfect ending. and that was the big thing that was missing.

I know that there is a novella soon to be released from Jackson's POV - Seeking Her. After reading Finding It, I was hopeful that the novella would fill in the holes and give me the closure I need. It seems, though, that it's more of a prequel to the events of Finding It. I'm still looking forward to reading it. Like I said - I love Jackson, and this is his mind we'll be in. A very sexy, wonderful place to be.

The story is good. The characters are fantastic. Despite my gripes, it's absolutely a worthwhile read. 

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