You were my first. Not just sex, although that was part of it, but the first to look past everything else into me. Some of the names and places have been changed, but the story is true. It's all here because one day this will be the past, and I don't want to forget what I went through, what I thought, what I felt, who I was. I don't want to forget you. But most of all, I don't want to forget me.
For her last summer before college, Claudine Henry and her mother head to a remote island off the Georgia coast. There, amidst the wild beauty of the place, she meets the free spirited Jeremiah Crew. Their chemistry is immediate and irresistible, and even though they both know that whatever they have can only last the summer, maybe one summer is enough . . .
My Review:
Rating: 5/5 stars.
Firstly I have to thank NetGalley and Jennifer Niven for gifting me an eARC for an honest review.
Breathless is a YA coming of age romance that focuses on MC Claude who has the perfect life and the only thing that is bothering her is how and when she will lose her virginity. Until her father sits her down and announces her parents are getting a divorce and the floor falls from beneath her feet. Claude and her mum move to a small island in Georgia where Claude meets Miah Crew.
I cannot express how much I enjoyed this book. I loved watching Claude evolve into a woman and truly becoming herself. Her summer romance with Miah was beautiful because they were so open with each other, sharing each others deepest feelings and working through them together. The adventures they went on read so well with the brilliant descriptions of the beaches and the dunes and the sea! Also, plenty of sex scenes that made me question my knowledge of YA books! I enjoyed the suggestion throughout of ghosts and souls on the island that were powerful ancestors of Claude. Also, that she and her mum were both writers was lovely.
I could feel for Claude throughout with the situation with her dad and all the emotions she went through as each revelation came up. I loved the feeling of community on the island and it really is a true coming of age story. Reading the acknowledgements it was lovely to see how much this story meant to the author and that she found her own Miah Crew and they are married! I have to say I was crying at the end and my heart broke with Claude's but I feel like the story really showed her growth and that she would be okay and make a success of her life.