UK Publishing Date: 6 Oct 2015

Romancing the Dark in the City of Light is one of those books that throws you a curveball. The story is ticking along nicely and then you realise what has actually been happening and you just didn’t notice it.

Summer Barnes has just moved to Paris to live with her mother and to repeat the final year of high school. She has now been kicked out of four boarding schools and is the proverbial troubled teen. Summer’s drug of choice is alcohol and as the book progresses you start to realise how much she relies on it to get through the day.

Summer has to graduate and start a degree course very quickly. The terms of her grandfather’s will were explicit. She needs to have a completed her degree by the age of 22 or she will risk losing a very hefty inheritance. At the American school in Paris Summer finds it difficult to fit in but soon finds herself being befriended by Moony. He is a fellow classmate who suffered a life threatening car accident and as a result is disabled and suffering from poor health. His attitude is refreshing though and forces Summer to try and see the best in life.

At the same time Summer is aware of Kurt, hovering in the background. He keeps turning up when she is out and about. He’s a suave older man who seems to have a propensity for leading her into trouble. As her relationship with Moony develops Summer finds it harder to escape from Kurt and his influence and the final showdown is explosive.

I’m not going to spoil the plot for you here but this really is a YA novel with a difference. It’s surprisingly thought provoking and I found myself thinking about some of the issues long after I’d finished the book. This is a wonderful story and beautifully told. I look forward to Ann Jacobus’s next book.

Supplied by Net Galley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

You can buy the book here: Romancing the Dark in the City of Light

Categories: 4 Stars Book Review

angelnet69

Prolific reader, enthusiastic theatre and movie-goer and ex-Olivier Awards judge who spent twenty years working in the music industry in London. Sharing my house with a gorgeous cockapoo called Harry who has taken over completely.
I love sharing my favourite books with friends - nearly always spoiler-free as I hate reading a synopsis of the whole book in other reviews.

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