(book) Nobody But Us by Kristin Halbrook

Synopsis:

Will

Maybe I'm too late. Maybe Zoe's dad stole all her fifteen years and taught her to be scared. I'll undo it. Help her learn to be strong again, and brave. Not that I'm any kind of example, but we can learn together.

When the whole world is after you, sometimes it seems like you can't run fast enough.

Zoe

Maybe it'll take Will years to come to terms with being abandoned. Maybe it'll take forever. I'll stay with him no matter how long it takes to prove that people don't always leave, don't always give up on you.

Review:

I once wanted to write about a similar premise, but I wasn't ready yet so the idea just simply vanished.

I got this book because I wanted to feel again that feeling when I wanted to write my first book with this premise, and because the cover is so gorgeous.

A few major setbacks:

- The characters. Flawed, too flawed even. I agree with some reviews on Goodreads, we're being told, not shown. I don't like either character very much, and what's being described as smart does not resonate as an act of intelligence to me. The girl Zoe is too naive, and the male protagonist Will, although quite refreshing, is just a repetitive cycle of lack of self control and a tough guy with a dark past. I wish to see so many different layers and heavy emotional conflict instead of kissing, being on the run, and going back and forth with the same conflicts during the run.

- The pace. The plot. I just wish to see more. Less angst, more action. More thoughtful planning, more adventures, more cat and mouse game. There's so much that could be done with this wonderful material, but all we get is two teens on the run, running out of gas, get into trouble, some angst, everything will be OK, then it's not, and then each is trying to save each other in a very stupid way. They're young, but they come across as really juvenile.

- The ending. It's okay, although I'm disappointed by the twist near the end.

I wouldn't say I enjoyed it very much, but overall it was a quick read. 3/5 stars.