Complex and sophisticated…. Absolutely un-put-downable.
The award-winning Manning thoughtfully examines the intricacies of living with a chronic condition, love, and identity in her page-turning latest YA romance. Life for high-school senior Erica O’Donnell is hardly ideal: living with syncope, a condition of chronic fainting, means she can’t drive, attend a concert, or play sports. But Erika has a savior in her best friend Lindsey Bennett. When Lindsey breaks up with her boyfriend Adam to pursue a married man, Erika finds her own life turning upside down. Manning is excellent when it comes to delving into Erica’s struggles, passions, and insecurities as the latter deals with the increasingly complicated circumstances of her life: she sympathetically portrays Erica’s frustration and trauma and convincingly addresses her challenges of dealing with her syncope. The prose is clear, straightforward, and immersive, and the fully fleshed-out cast of secondary characters and sharp dialogue keep the reader engrossed. The skilled narrative enhances the characters’ individual drama that may hit very close to home for YA readers struggling with issues of identity, love, and self-realization. Un-put-downable.
Rules of Falling
By Leslie Tall Manning
Pub date November 8, 2021
ISBN 978-0960017751
Price $12.99 (USD) Paperback, $0.00 Kindle edition