Review: 99 Days by Katie Cotugno

99 Days

Author: Katie Cotugno

Series: 

Pages: 384

Publisher: Balzer & Bray

Release date: 21^st April 2015

Amazon -TBD

Synopsis: (Goodreads)

Day 1: Julia Donnelly eggs my house my first night back in Star Lake, and that’s how I know everyone still remembers everything—how I destroyed my relationship with Patrick the night everything happened with his brother, Gabe. How I wrecked their whole family. Now I’m serving out my summer like a jail sentence: Just ninety-nine days till I can leave for college, and be done.

Day 4: A nasty note on my windshield makes it clear Julia isn’t finished. I’m expecting a fight when someone taps me on the shoulder, but it’s just Gabe, home from college and actually happy to see me. “For what it’s worth, Molly Barlow,” he says, “I’m really glad you’re back.”

Day 12: Gabe got me to come to this party, and I’m actually having fun. I think he’s about to kiss me—and that’s when I see Patrick. My Patrick, who’s supposed to be clear across the country. My Patrick, who’s never going to forgive me. 

Review: 3 out of 5 stars

99 Days is a book that I knew from the blurb would frustrate me to no end; anyone who knows me knows that cheating in books in any way shape or form is a huge no no but I still went into this book thinking everything would work out and as I was reading along I thought things were ok and then BAM = disappointment! But in saying that, it is also a book that I couldn’t stop reading, my thoughts are conflicted about this one.

Molly Barlow was dating Patrick but cheats on him with his older brother Gabe; the whole saga was written about by her author mother and published causing drama all-round and as a result Molly flees to boarding school but returns unwillingly for 99 days for the holidays hoping to avoid the Donnelly’s which isn’t possible when the first person who is actually ‘nice’ to her is Gabe.

Molly seemed like a nice enough girl but one who had been hurt as a repercussion of a very big mistake, I don’t agree with any of the decisions she made – both before she left town and after but I won’t go into it to avoid spoilers. She was the subject of some nasty small town gossip and she stood up to them but I’m not sure if she truly felt any remorse for what she had done.

Besides Julia, I did like the secondary characters; Patrick and Gabe couldn’t have been more different but I liked them both, I was sad about the demise of Molly’s relationship with Patrick, it seemed quite sweet and it was nice to read these parts. Imogen was also a supportive friend and I felt sorry for poor Tess.

Katie Cotugno’s writing is engaging, as much as a despise cheating and love-triangles I was still hooked and finished this book in a short period of time, I can’t say I was satisfied with the ending but I don’t really feel it could have gone any other way.

Thank you to Balzer & Bray for the opportunity to read and review 99 Days.

 

About the author: Katie Cotugno went to Catholic school for thirteen years which makes her, as an adult, both extremely superstitious and prone to crushes on boys wearing blazers. She routinely finds herself talking about the romantic endeavors of characters on TV shows as if they actually exist in the world.

Katie is a Pushcart Prize nominee whose work has appeared in The Broadkill Review, The Apalachee Review, and Argestes, as well as on Nerve.com. Her first novel, HOW TO LOVE, is due out from Balzer + Bray on October 1st, 2013.

The great loves of Katie's life include child's pose, her little sister, and mozzarella and honey sandwiches. She lives in Boston (and in sin) with her boyfriend, Tom.