Review: The Year Nick McGowan Came to Stay by Rebecca Sparrow

Released: April 8th 2008
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Rated: YA
Buy: Amazon

Seventeen-year-old Rachel Hill is the girl most likely to succeed. And the girl most likely to have everything under control . . . that is, until her dad invites Nick McGowan, the cutest boy at school, to live with them. Rachel worries that this could only be a recipe for disaster, but her best friend Zoe thinks it’s the perfect opportunity for lurve. Sparks start to fly for all the wrong reasons. Nick finds Rachel spoiled and uptight and Rachel dismisses Nick as lazy and directionless. But a secret from Nick’s past draws them together and makes the year Nick McGowan came to stay one that Rachel will never forget.

What I thought

I had read a few reviews of this and thought I'd give it a try. I hadn't heard of this one before. It was pretty cute. I had a hard time imagining this set it 1989, but one thing I didn't miss in this book, was the cellphones. No constant texting or checking of the phones at all times. It was a nice break from the texting era.

It was a given that Nick and Rachel wouldn't hit it off right away, but I liked the growth of these two characters. Not much in the way of romance, but there was a building support for the two that grows. Nick is in a bad spot and the rumors fly, as they do in school, about what his troubles might be. As I read more and found out more about Nick, the more I felt for him. At first, I thought he was going to be just another jerkish character who grows up. That wasn't the case. Here is a guy who is struggling with something real and it was nice to see something other than the superficial.

This is a cute, entertaining read. While it isn't overclouded with romance, it does have a nice coming of age story about it for both characters. It's definitely worth checking out!

My Rating

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