***
It all begins with a stupid question:
Are you a Global Vagabond?
No, but 18-year-old Bria Sandoval wants to be. In a quest for independence, her neglected art, and no-strings-attached hookups, she signs up for a guided tour of Central America—the wrong one. Middle-aged tourists with fanny packs are hardly the key to self-rediscovery. When Bria meets Rowan, devoted backpacker and dive instructor, and his outspokenly humanitarian sister Starling, she seizes the chance to ditch her group and join them off the beaten path.
Bria's a good girl trying to go bad. Rowan's a bad boy trying to stay good. As they travel across a panorama of Mayan villages, remote Belizean islands, and hostels plagued with jungle beasties, they discover what they've got in common: both seek to leave behind the old versions of themselves. And the secret to escaping the past, Rowan’s found, is to keep moving forward.
But Bria comes to realize she can't run forever, no matter what Rowan says. If she ever wants the courage to fall for someone worthwhile, she has to start looking back.
Kirsten Hubbard lends her artistry to this ultimate backpacker novel, weaving her drawings into the text. Her career as a travel writer and her experiences as a real-life vagabond backpacking Central America are deeply seeded in this inspiring story.
***
Ok, I'll be honest. I'm not much of a traveler. As a Sagittarius, I've always read my horoscopes about what a natural traveler I am. It's why horoscopes don't hold much stock for me.
IF I were a traveler, I'd be exactly like Bria. Which is why I love this book so much. She's trying soooo hard to be a backpacker. She wants it so bad. She wants to take risks. She wants to forgot the loser boyfriend back home. But she just can't break her true nature. She just can't be who she's not.
In the end, it's the experience of traveling that changes her. She learns from it, and she doesn't have to be someone else.
Great book, great character arc, great ending. LOVED IT.
Disclaimer: This review is cross-posted on my personal blog.
A backpacker novel?!!!! I'm sold! This sounds really awesome. The combination of a newbie backpacker with a little bit of romance sounds really fun, and their conflicting dilemmas are perfect for a complicated romance. Plus, I've been meaning to read some Kirsten Hubbard ever since I heard about Like Mandarin. Sounds like she put out another winner. Thank you, Kris!
ReplyDeleteThanks for that review! Sounds like a very good read.
ReplyDeleteI'm so, so glad you loved this book, too! I think Kirsten did such a great job with this second novel. I liked her debut, but I loved this one!
ReplyDeleteIrene (Boiler Service)